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Baltimore

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Baltimore, Maryland, USA - August 18, 2022: View of the Eutaw Street Plaza outside Oriole Park at Camden Yards; Shutterstock ID 2207751315; your: Ben N Buckner; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: Ben Buckner - Chase Southwest
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Overview

Once among the most important port towns in America, Baltimore – or 'Bawlmer' to locals – is a city of contradictions. It remains a defiant, working-class city tied to its nautical past, but in recent years has earned acclaim for impressive, up-to-the-minute entrepreneurial ventures, from new boutique hotels and edgy exhibits at world-class museums to forgotten neighborhoods now bustling with trendy food courts and farm-to-table restaurants. Traditionalists shouldn't worry, though – local culture and hometown sports, from lacrosse to baseball, remain part of the appeal.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • BALTIMORE - APRIL 09:  American Visionary Art Museum as photographed from Federal Hill Park on April 9, 2015 in Baltimore, Maryland.  (Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)

    American Visionary Art Museum

    Baltimore

    Housing a jaw-dropping collection of self-taught (or 'outsider' art), American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM) is a celebration of unbridled creativity…

  • Evergreen Museum & Library

    Baltimore

    Well worth the 7-mile drive north from the Inner Harbor, this grand 19th-century mansion provides a fascinating glimpse into upper-class Baltimore life of…

  • Historic ships in front of the National Aquarium, Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo By: Education Images/UIG via Getty Images)

    National Aquarium

    Baltimore

    Standing seven stories high and capped by a glass pyramid, this is widely considered to be America's best aquarium, with almost 20,000 creatures from more…

  • Grave of Edgar Allan Poe in Baltimore, Maryland.

    Edgar Allan Poe's Gravesite

    Baltimore

    Horror writer and poet, Edgar Allan Poe was buried (twice) on the grounds of Westminster Hall. His body was first deposited in an unmarked grave behind…

  • Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine, The Star Fort.Home of The Star Spangled Banner American National Anthem.

    Fort McHenry National Monument & Historic Shrine

    Baltimore

    On September 13 and 14, 1814, this star-shaped fort successfully repelled a British navy attack during the Battle of Baltimore. After a long night of…

  • Baltimore, Maryland / US - Oct 24, 2019: Perspective exterior facade of The Walters Art Museum as seen from the corner of Cathedral and Centre st downtown Mount Vernon neighborhood district; Shutterstock ID 1540828388; your: Bridget Brown; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI Image Update

    Walters Art Museum

    Baltimore

    The magnificent Chamber of Art & Wonders re-creates the library of an imagined 17th-century scholar, one with a taste for the exotic. The abutting Hall of…

  • Baltimore, UNITED STATES:  A wax figure of Booker T. Washington stands is seen on exhibit at the the National Great Blacks in History Musuem in Baltimore, Maryland, 13 February 2006. The exhibit puts a face on the stolen history of Blacks in America.              AFP PHOTO/Jim WATSON  (Photo credit should read JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

    National Great Blacks in Wax Museum

    Baltimore

    This simple but thought-provoking African American history museum has exhibits spotlighting Frederick Douglass, Jackie Robinson, Dr Martin Luther King Jr…

  • View of the Washington Monument at night, in Mount Vernon, Baltimore, Maryland.; Shutterstock ID 618663329; your: Bridget Brown; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI Image Update

    Washington Monument

    Baltimore

    For the best views of Baltimore, climb the 227 marble steps of the 178ft-tall Doric column dedicated to America's founding father, George Washington. The…

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Planning Tools

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Best Time to Visit

Shorter, milder winters than most Northeast states and summers that aren’t quite as brutal as points further south make Baltimore a great year-round spot.

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Free Things to Do

Baltimore offers endless historic and cultural attractions that compete with the bigger cities with one major advantage – it’s easy on the wallet. 

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Day Trips

One of the biggest advantages of living in Baltimore is the ease of escape to the region’s smaller towns and rural enclaves. Here's our favorite day trips.

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Articles

Latest stories from Baltimore

Activities

Go easy on your wallet with these 10 free things to do in Baltimore

Sep 24, 2021 • 5 min read

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