Maryland offers an impressive selection of activities and adventures you have to try with kids. There quite a number of fun and interesting places for families to visit throughout the state, ranging from historic sites and a diverse variety of museums to state parks, islands, amusement parks, lakes and sandy beaches.
Enjoy endless fun for all ages at Adventure Park USA
Adventure Park USA is the largest entertainment center for families in the state of Maryland. Open throughout the entire year, rain or shine, this massive indoor complex provides adults and kids alike with hours of fun, no matter what the weather may be outside. With a little bit of everything, ranging from the Hang ‘em high ropes course and the Rustler’s Ridge Rock Wall to West World laser tag to the Stampede Arcade, Adventure Park USA offers plenty of indoor fun.
As for outdoor entertainment, there’s the Wild Cat, the Wild West Express, the Sky-Coaster, miniature golf, and the Blazing Trail Go-Karts.
Adventure Park USA, 11113 West Baldwin Rd, Monrovia, MD 21770, Phone: 301-865-6800
Visit the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum
The Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum in Baltimore is home to several different exhibits focused on the life and career of the famous George Herman "Babe" Ruth, Baltimore native and the first sports celebrity in America. The “Ruthian Record: exhibit explores why Babe Ruth is one of the greatest baseball players of all time, including his record as a slugger, pitcher, and catcher. “Playing The Babe” highlights actors who have portrayed the “Great Bambino” on television and movies.
The “Babe: Husband, Father, Friend” exhibit focuses on the life of Babe Ruth and his relationships with his family and friends.
Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum, 216 Emory St, Baltimore, MD 21230, Phone: 410-727-1539
Tour the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum in Maryland is home to the most comprehensive, most historic, and oldest American railroad collections anywhere in the world.
Dating back to the beginnings of the railroad in the United States, the museum collection includes historic buildings, rolling stock and locomotives, and small items that document how the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad impacted the development and growth of early railroading. The collection covers nearly every aspect of the railroad industry, and is representative of the first, last, and best of rolling stock and locomotives, as well as ones that are the only one of their kind left in existence.
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum, 901 West Pratt St, Baltimore, MD 21223, Phone: 410-752-2490
Learn the stories behind the Baltimore Museum of Industry
The Baltimore Museum of Industry is located within the last surviving cannery in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, taking a proud look at the work world of “Charm City.”
Have fun outdoors at the Bear Branch Nature Center
The free to visit Bear Branch Nature Center in Westminster, Maryland has been a part of Carroll County for over twenty years, providing family-friendly and quality nature programs, a variety of outdoor activities, and festivals throughout the year.
Have fun with kids at Pirate Adventures on the Chesapeake
Pirate Adventures on the Chesapeake is one of the most popular attractions for kids in the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore areas, and the state of Maryland in general. Pirate Adventures in Annapolis, Maryland is a destination for pirate dress up, sunken treasure, water cannons, face painting, and more. This family-friendly pirate cruise taps into the imagination of children, taking them on a real life adventure as they pretend to be pirates looking for sunken treasure. If you are planning a family vacation to Maryland from mid-April to October, Pirate Adventures is a great idea for a fun day on the water.
Pirate Adventures on the Chesapeake, 311 Third St, Annapolis, MD 21403, Phone: 410-263-0002
Go on an adventure with C&O Canal Boat Rides
Now a preservation of the early transportation history of the United States, the C&O Canal first started as a dream for “passage to Western wealth.” The canal operated for almost one hundred years and served as a lifeline for the communities located along the region’s Potomac River as agricultural products, lumber, and coal floated to market down the waterway. The C&O Canal today continues as a path to discover recreational, natural, and historical treasures. Park Rangers guide boat rides and provide narration from the Visitor Center down the canal, pass historic buildings and through an 8-foot lift lock.
C&O Canal Boat Rides, 11710 MacArthur Blvd, Potomac, MD 20854, Phone: 301-767-3714
Play sports at Cabin John Regional Park
The Cabin John Regional Park provides something to do for nearly any sports lover.
Enjoy family activities at the Calvert Marine Museum
The Calvert Marine Museum invites guests to explore how the maritime heritage, natural environment, and Prehistoric past come together to share the unique story of the area around Chesapeake Bay.
Explore scenic trails at Catoctin Mountain Park
The Catoctin Mountain Park offers an abundance of scenery, fly-fishing, camping, scenic drives, trails for hiking, historic buildings, wildflowers, and wildlife.
Get up close with fascinating animals at the Catoctin Wildlife Preserve and Zoo
The Catoctin Wildlife Preserve and Zoo is home to a wide variety of animals, from pythons to panthers, lemurs to llamas, boasa to bears, monkeys to macaws.
Spend a rainy day at the Chesapeake Children's Museum
The Chesapeake Children's Museum is tucked away within busy Annapolis, Maryland on over five acres of quiet woodland located at the start of Spa Creek. The museum’s mission to educate children about the Chesapeake Bay in interesting and fun ways. Kids can build their own city within the museum’s Hard Hat exhibit area, catch a glimpse of wildlife through the large Bay Window, or learn about how runaway slaves relied on nature in order to survive in the Underground Railroad Trail area.
Chesapeake Children's Museum, 25 Silopanna Rd, Annapolis, MD 21403, Phone: 410-990-1993
Visit the College Park Aviation Museum, dedicated to the worlds oldest airfield
The College Park Aviation Museum preserves and promotes innovations in aviation in Prince George’s County and at College Park Airport, while also fostering lifelong curiosity, inventiveness, and research about the science and history of flight.
Escape to the scenic Great Falls Park
The Great Falls Park is located just outside of Maryland in McLean, Virginia.
Pet cute animals at the Green Meadows Petting Farm
The Green Meadows Petting Farm provides a chance for families with kids to get up close and hands-on with almost two hundred farm animals, including llamas, pigs, goats, horses, and much more.
Relax and learn at the Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum
The Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum is a place where nature and history surrounds visitors and is a great destination in Maryland for families with kids wanting to get out into nature and escape the hustle and bustle of the city.
Enjoy a day of fun at Jolly Roger Pier Amusements
Jolly Roger Pier Amusements is an iconic symbol of fun in Ocean City, Maryland. The only full-service “Family Amusement Facility” in the city provides entertainment, fishing opportunities, a wide variety of games, and several amusement park rides. There are also a number of iconic businesses located inside the building at the Jolly Roger Pier as well, such as Ripley’s Believe It or Not and Thrasher’s French Fries. Attractions guests can enjoy at the Jolly Roger Amusement Park include the Kraken, the Slingshot, the Looping Star Roller Coaster, and the Giant Wheel, an Ocean City Boardwalk icon.
Jolly Roger Pier Amusements, South Atlantic Ave, Ocean City, MD 21842, Phone: 410-289-3031
Explore the universe at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center is a unique attraction for both kids and adults alike, offering an experience like no other, plenty of knowledge, and look into the future.
Learn about marine animals at the National Aquarium in Baltimore
The National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland is one of the Inner Harbor’s most popular attractions, home to approximately twenty thousand animals within numerous award-winning habitats.
Take the kids to the KID Museum in Bethesda, Maryland
KID Museum in Bethesda, MD is a brilliant place to enjoy a day with the kids amidst something that is bound to captivate and inspire them. The museum was built with the idea of giving kids the right tools to be able to harness their creativity and help the world become a better place through the proper understanding of the things around us. The museum tries to ignite the fires of creativity and innovation in children by giving them the tools they need to make a difference to society in the future.
KID Museum has a special maker’s studio that helps children develop their own innovations and inventions, providing all the necessary tools and an array of different things that they can use to build and develop anything they like, including access to machinery and tools they wouldn’t get elsewhere. Led by guides experienced in child development, the children are able to engage in their own endeavors in making new things. There are also special programs labelled “mini inventors” for kids below the age of five, to give them a head start into the world of inventions and these are especially beneficial in boosting a child’s curiosity and creativity.
KID Museum, 3 Bethesda Metro Center, Suite 140, Bethesda, MD 20814
Visit the historic Surratt House Museum
The Surratt House Museum in Clinton, Maryland is a historic house operated by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, as well as the Prince George’s County Parks and Recreation Department.
Learn about local history at the Brunswick Heritage Museum
The Brunswick Heritage Museum has been committed to preserving the history of Brunswick, Maryland for more than thirty years.
