~ Top 10 Exciting Places to visit in Maryland, USA ~

[MysteRy]

Top 10 Exciting Places to visit in Maryland, USA

Maryland is an exciting state to visit in America, one because of its history, two because of its beauty and three because of its hospitable and open residents. The state is about the size of Belgium and it was the 7th state to incorporate the United States constitution. The states history runs deep and it is well noted in its many historic cities and districts. This in fact may be one of the main reasons for being such an interesting place for tourists. There are many things to do in the state, especially for the nature lover. Many wild animals can be found in the forest and mountains of the state including wild horses and bears. Maryland in general is an exciting place to visit anytime of the year but this top 10 list will let you in on some of the most exciting places known in the main stream of tourism.


1. Inner Harbor, Baltimore
 


The Harbor or Inner Harbor as it is known is one of Americas oldest Harbor and its historic presence throughout American history is phenomenal. This historic seaport is a landmark to the city of Baltimore. After being abandoned during WWI and II because it could not accommodate large containerships that were prominent during those years, it was later redeveloped to make way for an influx of tourism and city recreation. The Inner Harbor was recognized for this major overhaul in look and feel getting away from industry, the way it was developed is more than accommodating and well on the eyes. Along the coast of the harbor you can now find museums of all sorts, war ships and maritime museums. In this group of war ship is also the USS Constellation, which just happens to be the only civil war, war ship still floating. More historical and modern attractions are found around and nearby the harbor as well that wait for visitors to see each year.

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2. Ocean City
 


Although it is known as "OC” it doesnt represent Orange County but this Atlantic coast resort town is one for the history books and has many merits of its own that draw visitors in year round. Thomas Fenwick, an Englishman stole the land from the Native American inhabitants originally and the city was then built on the land years after. Ocean City soon became a resort town bringing in tourists from all over to fish the shoreline and to just do something as simple as watching the surf. What is now known as wonderful Ocean City, in the past was known as "The Ladies Resort to the Ocean”. One of the most well-known events the Ocean City throws now is the "Beach Week” celebration, which brings in graduates and those right out of high school, for some beachside fun. The city makes sure to plan events as well to make sure everyone has fun safely.

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3. United States Naval Academy, Annapolis



The United States Naval Academy in Annapolis is the premier education area for Americas young sailors and top of the line SEAL trainees. The academy was first established in 1845 and has grown exponentially since. The Education complex is the second oldest training and fine service academy in the United States. The school is primarily for officers in training and this spans the military spectrum from Navy trainees to US Army trainees. Student of the academy have the chance to study everything from military leadership to their bachelors in science and the institution has many other degrees available as well. During certain times of the year visitors can stop by the academy and catch the students marching and doing their drills, this is fun to do for anyone. You can also travel the institution. From the Civil War to WWI the history of the academy was written by David Porter, a war hero from the Civil War and his influence on the school is seen throughout the grounds.

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4. Assateague Island National Seashore



Maybe one of the most beautiful places in the states is the Assateague Island National Seashore in Maryland. The 14,000 acre stretch of land includes everything from saltwater marshes, forest areas, freshwater marshes and of course, a huge spread of beach front. Have you ever read one of those romance books with a wild horse running across the beach? Well it is most likely that the photo was captured from the Assateague Island National Seashore in Maryland. Wild ponies are quite common trotting on the sand and running out into the tree line. The horses are said to be survivors of a long ago shipwreck, some disagree with this legend and say that the horses were merely put on the island from someone. Aside from the wild ponies and the legends that follow them, there are many other wild animals and migratory birds to see. Of course there is always hiking and just laying out for a tan.

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5. Deep Creek Lake
 


For hiking and just being out in the wild wilderness of Western Maryland Deep Creek Lake is one of the most popular places to go. It is a place in the west of the state where you can find lush green forested areas climbing up the sides of mountains. During the winter it is one of the best places to go out for some adrenaline pumping skiing on the Wisp Slopes and as mentioned during the summer hiking and outdoor activities reign supreme. Without a car Deep Creek Lake is quite hard to reach but it can be done, although once you get there by foot or bicycle you will wish you had a car to go around and explore the vast area that the region covers. Many restaurants, places for fun things to do for the kids and golf, among other things can be found to keep you occupied if you are just there for the great scenes that are found in the region.

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6. Solomons
 


The Solomons is one of the most popular places for tourists to go and relax at, especially those from the Boston area as it has been a popular spot for residents of Boston for many years. Solomons is actually a resort community that caters to the vacation experience of its visitors and it has many places to go out for a drink and wonderful homes to spend your night time in or maybe have a barbeque in the backyard. The Solomons are also known as Solomons Island as well and it was actually the name back in the 19th century. The island inherited its name from a very wealthy businessman from the middle of the 19th century, Isaac Solomons, to be exact. The area though which is Solomons where the community still rests has been inhabited throughout colonial times and it has remained so since then. The area has a large amount of history to discover too and it is the perfect place for a family vacation.

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7. National Aquarium, Baltimore
 


Hidden in the rush of Baltimore is the National Aquarium, which is one of the citys main attractions when it comes to museum like fun and discovery. The aquarium is a non-profit organization and it is free for the public to enter and this does keep it quite busy, especially since it has a massive collection of marine life within its walls. The aquarium has made it a goal to put all of their focus on addressing the negative affect that global pollution and other impacting factors have on the worlds aquatic habitats. Altogether there are around 15,000 different marine creatures living at the aquarium and this includes a giant octopus, which is native to the Pacific Ocean. There are also 9 bottlenose dolphins making their home in the aquarium too and out of those nine three of them were actually born inside the National Aquarium. Kids and adults can all have fun while in the aquarium making it a great place to see while in the Baltimore area.

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8. Catoctin Mountain Park
 


Set in the middle of northern Maryland is the forest covered mountains of Catoctin Mountain Park; it is actually part of the eastern Appalachian Mountains. The park is the epiphany of relaxing in nature as that is basically what it sells, a good time out with Mother Nature as your date. The park is full of meadows and flowers sparkling from the morning dew on sunrise. There are many things to do in the park including camping and hiking. Above all the camping and hiking take precedence, although there are many recreational sports and area within the park. The recreational facility development was mainly due in part to the Great Depression in the 1930s as the park made a transition at this time to accommodate these kinds of activities, putting many people to work in the area at the time. Now the park is a nature lovers dream and it encompasses an area around 8 miles squared.

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9. Maryland State House, Annapolis
 


Another quite nice place to check out while you are in Annapolis, Maryland is the oldest State building that is still in operation today, the Maryland State House as it is known has been in operation since 1772. One of the unique and most prevalent features of the state building is that it has the largest wooden dome found in any building of the United States. Of course there are others but the wooden dome on Maryland State House is the constructed without nails. Due to the American Revolution it took more than 7 years to complete the construction of the state building , so even though it was started in 1772 it was not finished until 1779. The architecture of the building is done in the popular Georgian style of the late 1700s and it has remained quite untouched, meaning not many additions have been made to the structure since its construction.

[MysteRy]

10. Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park
 


The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park spans three states on the borders of Ohio, west Virginia and Maryland and it has been around since 1938, when the American government purchased a large piece of the land and part of the canal. Although, the land was purchased by the government in 1938, the area was not made into a national park until around 1971 almost 35 years later. In present day nearly 3 million visitors come to the park each year for recreational purposes including hiking, boating, swimming and touring the historical structures that are found within park. One cool attraction of the park is taking a ride a mule powered canal boat, the mule powers the paddles of the boat by trotting in place. There are two boats like this and they were both restored from their original states. When you travel to the park you are sure to enjoy exploring all the historic structures and buildings.


If you didnt know about all the wonderful places to see in Maryland, you know about some of the top ten exciting places to see during your next trip or even your first trip. These places definitely inspire a first time trip or vacation in the area. Maryland has a jammed packed history and visiting the state just to see all the historic monuments and structures that are found within the state. Kids will enjoy the places they can find in the state as well, so bring the whole family out for a trip when you go to Maryland. Dont forget to bring a camera to catch some great snapshots of the mule powered paddle boats, it is something you are going to show your friends.

[MysteRy]