Maryland Travel Guide
The Inner Harbor, Baltimore. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.
Maryland's identity is the Chesapeake Bay: 300 km of shoreline, skipjack sailing boats, and the blue crab fishery behind the state's famous crab cakes. Annapolis, the sailing capital, keeps 18th-century streets around the Naval Academy.
Baltimore's Inner Harbor anchors the urban end: the National Aquarium, Fort McHenry (where the Star-Spangled Banner was written in 1814), and the Fell's Point waterfront. Assateague's wild horses roam the ocean side.
Destinations in Maryland
AnnapolisThe Naval Academy, the 1772 State House and Ego Alley yachts.- Fort McHenryThe 1814 battle that inspired the national anthem.
- Assateague IslandWild horses on the barrier-island national seashore.
Inner Harbor, BaltimoreThe National Aquarium, historic ships and the waterfront promenade.- Antietam battlefieldThe bloodiest single day of the Civil War; the driving tour.
Hover a state to explore it. Click a city pin to open its guide.
Top Cities & towns in Maryland
Regional food
- Maryland crab cakes (lump crab, minimal filler, Old Bay)
- Pit beef (Baltimore's charcoal-grilled roast beef sandwich)
- Smith Island cake (the official state dessert, 8 to 10 thin layers)
Getting there
Baltimore-Washington (BWI) is the gateway, on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. Annapolis is 45 minutes from Baltimore or DC; the Eastern Shore needs the Bay Bridge.