I’ll be spending a day in Baltimore soon with the family. Since none of us have been there before I hereby solicit advice on what to see/what to do.
We’ll have no children with us, but I wouldn’t automatically rule out family-oriented stuff. I’d like some indoor Plan Bs lest the weather not cooperate.
I know the riverfront is supposed to be nice. And crab cakes. That’s the extent of my Baltimore knowledge (aside from what I’ve seen on The Wire :D).
Thanks!
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The National Aquarium, which is at the Inner Harbor, is worth the time and money. Across the harbor from it is Fort McHenry, from which Baltimore was defended during the War of 1812. For food, Little Italy is a few blocks east of the Inner Harbor, Bertha’s in Fells Point(a mile or so east of the harbor) has great mussels and other seafood, while Obrycki’s in the same area has great crab cakes.
Go to the Inner Harbor and walk around.
There is, incidentally, no area called “the riverfront” in Baltimore.
The Inner Harbor has more than enough to occupy you for a day. The National Aquarium is worth the trip alone.
You can tour the Constellation if you are into history and/or sailing ships
http://www.historicships.org/plan_visit.html
Camden Yards is a short walk from the harbor if you like baseball and the Orioles are playing while you’re there.
If it’s a nice day, you can get an all-day ticket for the Water Taxi, which stops at a lot of the places suggested (Harborplace, Aquarium, Fort McHenry, Fell’s Point). It can be a nice way to get to a few places without worrying about driving or parking.
I went to Baltimore…two years ago? We went to the Inner Harbor. Anyway I had a wonderful time. We went on a water taxi; the weather was just beautiful. We hit the aquarium and had tapas overlooking the water. It was the most romantic, nice evening we had in a long time.
Just don’t stray too far from the docks. You walk, like six-eight blocks inland and you are suddenly in a horribly seedy area. 
I agree. The Inner Harbour is very nice and safe (security all over the place) but beyond that it gets sketchy.
I highly recommend the Inner Harbour and the National Aquarium. The Hard Rock Cafe is right across from it and there are a couple of nice little touristy malls, with Camden Yards just a few blocks away.
The good thing about Baltimore is that crab cakes and the inner harbor are all you need to know.
Edgar Allan Poe is buried there;
Harriet Lane is also buried in Baltimore;
Saw Poe’s but not hers.
His home while in BM is not open for tours now according to one site, not until OCT., but nice to drive by. When I was there it was off season, but walked around it.
I also toured Fort McHenry, now that was cool.
BM was also the Capital of the U.S. once, meaning the Second Continental Congress met there. What still stands from that time I di not look.
Oh, John Wilkes Booth is buried in BM, but had no desire to visit.
Exactly. In addition to the National Aquarium, there’s also the Maryland Science Center, and the Maritime Museum
Don’t forget the Walters Museum and the American Visionary Arts Museum (highly recommended).
Agree on the inner harbor and the aquarium.
Right next to Camden Yards is a museum called Geppi’s. The best way to describe it is: “all the cool stuff you would collect if you had the money and space”:
Stay away from blue lights that you see intermittently dispersed along the streets. They’re supposed to be safe lights but a disproportionate amount of crime happens around them.
Inner Harbor is the way to go but it’s also super-touristy. It’s also connected to Fell’s Point and Fed Hill where lots of bars and restaurants are harborside, or at least harbor-adjacent. Those two neighborhoods are less touristy and more yuppie.
The all-day water taxi suggestion is a great one.
The view of the harbor and city is excellent from Federal Hill.
If you decide to go to the Walters Art Museum, which is definitely worthwhile, allow some time to step into the George Peabody Library, which is one of the most beautiful rooms I have ever seen.
You can crab cakes and steamed crabs all over the place. That makes it worth the visit even if you do nothing else.
Wander around the Johns Hopkins Homewood campus and see it without all the annoying pre-meds around. Hopefully a few folks will be tossing a lacrosse ball back and forth on the lawn.
Visit Johns Hopkins Hospital for all your emergency healthcare needs. It’s rated as the Nation’s Best Hospital 23 years out of 24 or somesuch (just regained #1 status again this year.)
Eat crabs. Eat crabcakes. Try the mussels and oysters.
(I miss Bawlamer, where I cut the grass with a paramour, and ate it litlitlee.)
You are so funny and so cute. I should visit a college/hospital campus on my vacation? Hee.
There’s also the Babe Ruth Museum a couple blocks from there.
At night you can check out Power Plant Live, a grouping of bars, restaurants, and clubs a few blocks from the Inner Harbor.
And yeah, don’t wander too far; once you’re outside of the downtown area, it gets really sketchy really quickly.