Baltimore Attractions

Baltimore's Inner Harbor. Photo: Sally Shivnan

City Highlights

From waterfront entertainment and famous seafood spots to sports events at Camden Yards and historical walking tours in Mount Vernon, Baltimore offers a variety of activities. If you're exploring the city for the first time, the Inner Harbor is probably on your list of Baltimore attractions: it's where hotels, shops, bars and clubs, and family entertainment converge. Here, embrace the kitsch and take a dragon paddle boat into the water, or hop on the Baltimore Water Taxi and visit numerous waterfront attractions, from the National Aquarium and the Rusty Scupper restaurant to Maritime Park and Fort McHenry. If the art scene is more your thing, head to historic Federal Hill, adjacent to the harbor, to the American Visionary Art Museum—a center of eclectic works of art by self-taught individuals.

Chesapeake Bay Cuisine

From crab cakes to mussels, the city proudly serves up some of the freshest seafood at long-standing local institutions. For 120 years, Faidley's Seafood boasts Baltimore's best crab cakes, made with the hearty meat of Chesapeake Bay blue crabs—simply the best. Other popular spots like Obrycki's in Fells Point and G & M Restaurant and Lounge in Linthicum Heights are also known for crab cakes. Fans of mussels should head straight to Bertha's Mussels, which has a lively atmosphere and funky interior (check out the collection of fishing equipment). For foodies interested in sampling hip, up-and-coming dining spots, a good bet is Woodberry Kitchen, a farm-to-table restaurant serving local seasonal fare in Clipper Mill, an artists' community.

Quirky and Quintessential Baltimore

The city's drinking holes are certainly full of character: Mount Royal Tavern is a cool dive bar for people watching and, interestingly, staring at the ceiling—a grand reproduction of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel spreads out above you. The Brewer's Art, a happening bar inside an old Mount Vernon townhouse, is a ideal spot to sample microbrews, which are produced on-site.

Those who linger in Baltimore will discover its more offbeat side: the city's got a lively burlesque scene, a top comic book and pop culture museum—Geppi's Entertainment Museum—and iconic local theaters, from the Charles Theater to Bengies All-American Drive In. Visitors will also love wandering its diverse and historic neighborhoods, such as Hampden and Canton, where blue-collar meets hipster.