Maryland Official Visitors Guide - 2020 Maryland Official Visitors Guide
Uncommon Accommodations
Ashley Stimpson 2019-12-19 00:24:42
From lighthouses to treehouses, these Maryland digs are anything but standard.
Unforgettable vacations start with memorable accommodations, and in Maryland, there’s no shortage of unique places to unpack your bags. At these lodgings, adventure is included with your stay. From serene mountain retreats to blissfull bayside hideaways, your next trip to Maryland will be an experience apart from anything else.
THE MOUNTAINS ARE CALLING
Rugged Western Maryland is the perfect setting for a reset, and at Savage River Lodge relaxation and being at peace in nature come standard in every cabin and yurt. The on-site restaurant offers New American classics with options for everyone in your party (including treats such as “Mutt Loaf” for your pup!) as well as an extensive wine list. In the morning, the birds are your alarm clock and homemade muffins are delivered to your door in a tackle box. When you’ve had your fill of loafing around, enjoy the property’s 14 miles of trails or hop on a shuttle for nearby activities like fly fishing or mountain biking.
You don’t have to be a kid to feel a childlike sense of wonder at the Treehouse Camp at Maple Tree Campground, 30 minutes outside of Frederick. The 20-acre property’s accommodations range from primitive tent sites to a fully-electric hobbit house (you read that right). Choose from eight tree cottages complete with wood stoves and private porches, or rough it in one of the camp’s 10 charming-yet-rustic treehouses. No matter where you choose to rest your head, plan on gooey s’mores and ghost stories around the fire at night—stop by the office for supplies and loaner board games. Book early though, as the treehouse camp is often filled to capacity in the summer.
No vacancy? No problem!
Planning on pedaling or walking through the mountains? Book one of the six lock houses available along the C&O Canal towpath. Each lock house has been furnished from a different time period and showcases the development of the canal and the people who tended it.
BORDER STATE QUARTERS
Is there a Civil War buff in your life? Treat them (or yourself) to a stay at Antietam Overlook Farm, nestled in the rolling hills of Washington County. The 19th-century country manor and inn is located less than five miles from the visitors center at Antietam National Battlefield, a site that marks the bloodiest one-day battle in American history. Return home from the battlefield to one of the farm’s well-appointed and cozy rooms, many of which offer amenities such as a fireplace, screened-in porch or soaking tub. Breakfast is three courses of exquisite country cooking, tasty enough for the discerning palate and hardy enough for a soldier.
BARBARA FRITCHIE HOUSE
She’s a Maryland legend. But whether or not a 95-year-old Barbara Fritchie actually taunted Confederate soldiers by waving a Union flag at them from the upstairs window of her Frederick cottage will likely always remain a mystery. Her notoriety, on the other hand, was made certain when the poet John Greenleaf Whittier memorialized her defiance in his infamous 1863 poem. So popular were the 30 stanzas that Winston Churchill is said to have recited them by heart when he visited Fritchie’s home with Franklin D. Roosevelt 80 years later.
Today, Fritchie’s home is open to overnight guests looking to relive Maryland history or simply enjoy charming downtown Frederick and its many shops and restaurants. Of course, no visit is complete before you channel Fritchie’s patriotic spirit by leaning out of the second-story window to announce: “Shoot if you must, this old grey head, but spare your country’s flag!”
No vacancy? No problem!
If history’s your thing, check in to the Governor Calvert House in Annapolis. Once home to two Maryland governors, the hotel features a glass floor where guests can see the original foundation, dating back to 1695.
TO THE LIGHTHOUSE
For nearly 200 years, the Cove Point Lighthouse has guided vessels to the shipping channel of the Chesapeake Bay. Standing 45 feet above a rocky coastline with a beacon visible for 12 nautical miles, the lighthouse was automated in 1986, meaning the keepers’ home—a handsome duplex adjacent to the tower—would be unmanned. If a simple tour (offered by the Calvert Marine Museum during the warmer months) won’t do, visitors can rent one or both sides of the home and stay on the grounds of the oldest continuously operating lighthouse on the Chesapeake Bay. Each apartment has been renovated to include modern conveniences such as Wi-Fi and central air, but also boast notable historical momentos, such as photos from the museum archives, locally made furniture and cabinets and a table made with materials from another nearby decommissioned lighthouse. And although you’ll be staying on a historic site that’s open to the public, your beach access while staying on the property is just for you.
If there are more passengers aboard your ship than one lighthouse can handle, consider docking at the Lighthouse Club Hotel in Ocean City. Modeled after the octagonal Thomas Point Shoal Light Station (the most recognizable lighthouse in Maryland), the hotel features 23 water-view suites (bay or wetlands) complete with fireplaces and feather beds. Afternoon cookies are a delightful tradition; so is watching the sunset from the hotel’s wrap-around front porch. For a nightcap, don’t miss the Lighthouse Clubhouse, an intimate spot for slowing down and catching up with friends. The Lighthouse Club Hotel is part of Fager’s Island, a small collection of properties where guests can eat, sleep and dance—all without having to call an Uber.
No vacancy? No problem!
Want an even more hands-on experience? Gather a group of friends and book an overnight adventure through Historic Ships in Baltimore. Participants on the USCGC Taney adventure, for example, must work together to save the ship in a sinking simulation
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