Other than aquarium, what else to do at Baltimore Inner Harbor?

[disny_luvr]

My twins' birthday is on Sunday and obviously it is also Father's Day. In years past (well, like last year) we've always let the boys pick what they want to do for their birthday. I know this year they'll pick Hersheypark. We have season passes and go all the time, in fact, when I am done typing this we are going to Chocolate World and Hersheypark, so I really don't want to go again on Sunday. On Father's Day I always let DH pick where he wants to eat or what he wants to do. Now, since both Father's Day and the boys' birthdays are on Sunday they both can't pick what they want to do (I know DH won't pick Hersheypark) so I was trying to think of things that we could do that both DH and the boys would enjoy. For months now my DH and I have been kicking around the idea of taking them to Baltimore Inner Harbor but we just haven't done it. I was thinking maybe that would be a nice place to head on Sunday. The weather is supposed to be nice on Sunday so it would make for a great day to be outside. If we go, we'll probably do the aquarium, but what else is there to do? I haven't been there for years and can't seem to remember what else is down there. TIA!

 

[clj1410]

There is also the Science Center that is a lot of fun!

 

[TaraBara]

The aquarium is great, but just check rates. They are pretty expensive.....just so you know going in and you aren't shocked! My kids (ages 4 and almost 7) love the science center. It is also right there in the inner harbor. Port Discovery is very close by too. We haven't been there in a while, but my kids used to enjoy going there also. If you just look those things up online, you could get an idea of where they all are in relation to each other, the cost, their hours, and whether it would be something your kids would enjoy.

There are a bunch of restaurants in the inner harbor too. The cheesecake factory, Philip's seafood, hmmm.....I don't remember what else is there.

Hope this helps a little bit!

 

[Cristy]

Check with Derry Township or AAA Travel to see if they have a discount for Aquarium admission. West Hanover Twp. has a discount with prepurchased tickets. Not great, but a help.
Last time we were there we went to a movie at the IMAX. You can tour the tall ship. There is an ESPN zone restaurant next to the Aquarium. Also, a McCormick and Schmidt restaurant ($$$) in walking distance that we enjoyed for a special event. You can take the boat ride over to Ft McHenry or walk through Little Italy. You can check out the Baltimore calendar of events website. I'm sure they'll have some special things to do for Father's Day. Have a great time!

 

[Karenj2]

The Ride the Duck tour!! My hubby and I really enjoyed it, plus the kids we saw on the tour enjoyed themselves too. It's a land/sea tour, where the "bus" goes into the water! The pickup and drop off was right at the inner harbor, which was also nice.

 

[mrsboz]

I thought that the aquarium was pretty lame. My girls and I went a couple of years ago and we saw the whole thing in maybe a couple of hours. I don't think that there is that much to see. I wouldn't care to go again.

How about a ball game. I don't know if there are any tickets but that would surely be something your husband would enjoy, i would think. What about the kids? You could walk from inner harbor. There are a few restaurants in the inner harbor that you could go to dinner.

 

[JustineMarie]

We took our kids to here : http://www.portdiscovery.org/#home

It is a children's museum and they had alot of fun. It has a huge play area that's 2 or 3 stories. We spent a couple hours there. We also did the aquarium and we took them to see an orioles game. We bought the Orioles tickets on ebay for 8$ a piece. We parked the car at Inner Harbor Garage on Gay Street bc we had a coupon for 3$ off and we walked to the museum, aquarium and the stadium. It wasn't a far walk for any of them. HTH!

 

[MarilIncredible]

I went to the aqaurium this past winter with my DH and thought it was a rip-off (and I had a coupon). VERY Expensive!!! But the cost to park in Baltimore was even more scary!

 

[jenb1023]

Hi there!

We live in Camp Hill and thought the Aquarium was expensive. We bought a family pass for a year since it is not that far away and the year pass was not much more than one day's worth of tickets.

Just a thought!

All of the other suggestions sound good too! I will have to try a few!

 

[Swimalie]

We went to the Inner Harbor on my husband's birthday (May) and did the 5 ship tours http://www.historicships.org/ It took us about 5 hours to go through all 4 ships and the lighthouse and eat lunch (M&S Grill). We had heard the same that some are saying here about the aquarium being too much money for what you get. We loved the ships and it's a lot less money! My son even participated in raising the American flag to start the day on the Constellation. After the ships, we did a short drive to Fort McHenry and that was awesome. We were there for the lowering of the big flag to end the day and the story teller there is amazing! His story telling alone is worth a trip there. I got chills and his story even kept my 5 year old's attention for about 20 min.

 

[dlrhine]

My twins' birthday is on Sunday and obviously it is also Father's Day. In years past (well, like last year) we've always let the boys pick what they want to do for their birthday. I know this year they'll pick Hersheypark. We have season passes and go all the time, in fact, when I am done typing this we are going to Chocolate World and Hersheypark, so I really don't want to go again on Sunday. On Father's Day I always let DH pick where he wants to eat or what he wants to do. Now, since both Father's Day and the boys' birthdays are on Sunday they both can't pick what they want to do (I know DH won't pick Hersheypark) so I was trying to think of things that we could do that both DH and the boys would enjoy. For months now my DH and I have been kicking around the idea of taking them to Baltimore Inner Harbor but we just haven't done it. I was thinking maybe that would be a nice place to head on Sunday. The weather is supposed to be nice on Sunday so it would make for a great day to be outside. If we go, we'll probably do the aquarium, but what else is there to do? I haven't been there for years and can't seem to remember what else is down there. TIA!

Oh my.... this could have been my post EXACTLY!! We do not have twin boys however my DD will be 8 on Sunday and we too live right by Hersheypark (right down 39) and have season passes. My DD wanted to do the waterpark all day but we are there all the time and told her to pick something different. We are going to Inner Harbor and doing the Maryland Science Center right across the Harbor from the Aquarium. We are letting Dad pick dinner that night while in Inner Harbor. This is two cute, maybe we'll bump into you. I'll look for someone with twin boys. Have a great day and Happy B-day to your boys.

 

[KS_Disney_Dad]

You eat fresh seafood because one day you may wind up in a part of the country where the grocery stores consider the four catfish on ice as a "seafood section"!

 

[LizEN]

Near the Iner Harbor is the B & O Railroad Museum, which is quite fun. Here's a link to them:
http://www.borail.org/index.shtml

For restaurants, we like Pazo and Chinghale over by the Marriott. Nice to take a water taxi over to the Marriott and then walk up to all the good restaurants over there. Better food for the touristy prices.

 

[chefkellyb]

Cristy mentioned the ESPN Zone restaurant next to the aquarium. Sadly, it is closed now.

This thread really reminds me that I really need to be a tourist in my own town! I haven't been to Baltimore to visit in a few years!

 

[Cristy]

Cristy mentioned the ESPN Zone restaurant next to the aquarium. Sadly, it is closed now.

This thread really reminds me that I really need to be a tourist in my own town! I haven't been to Baltimore to visit in a few years!

Wow! I just followed up on this post, and it is true, sad to say. The ESPN Zone in Baltimore just closed this past week. Who would have guessed that their flagship store would be one of the first 5 to close?

 

[QVCshopper]

There are metered parking spots by Federal Hill next to the Visionary Museum. You can leave your car for many hours (not overnight) for very cheap. I have done it many times, it's a great secret and fairly safe.

Also, Port Discovery is great for young kids. Again, not cheap, but my 4 and 5 year olds enjoy it very much. The Maryland Zoo is quite nice as well, but it's not in Inner Harbor.

 

[disny_luvr]

Oh my.... this could have been my post EXACTLY!! We do not have twin boys however my DD will be 8 on Sunday and we too live right by Hersheypark (right down 39) and have season passes. My DD wanted to do the waterpark all day but we are there all the time and told her to pick something different. We are going to Inner Harbor and doing the Maryland Science Center right across the Harbor from the Aquarium. We are letting Dad pick dinner that night while in Inner Harbor. This is two cute, maybe we'll bump into you. I'll look for someone with twin boys. Have a great day and Happy B-day to your boys.

How wierd is that? If I don't run in to you in Baltimore, maybe I'll see you at Hersheypark. Happy Birthday to your DD too.

Thanks, everyone, for the responses. DH and I haven't 100% decided if we are doing this or not on Sunday, but if not on Sunday I'm sure we'll be heading down to Baltimore later this summer.

 

[PA Princess]

We went to the aquarium last May and as someone mentioned found the best buy to be the membership pass over the daily admission.

Something else to keep in mind is that the aquarium gets really busy on weekends. I would think on Father's day it would get even worse, so plan to get there at opening...this is always our plan with the aquarium. We enjoy it, but a couple hours is usually enough (and especially with young kids because once the crowds hit it is hard for them to see much).

We really enjoy riding the water taxi's around the harbor. It is a great way to see Fort McHenry, as well. They also have some sort of pirate boat ride that always looks fun, but we have never done that.

 

[sinnika]

I ditto taking the water taxi or ferry from the Inner Harbor to Ft McHenry. The grounds are very nice there, and the fort itself is amazing! Also, take the water taxi over to Little Italy for a great Italian meal! Sabatino's and Chipparelli's are my favorites! Federal Hill is also a great spot to have a good lookout. You can walk there from the Inner Harbor.

 

[debbiemomto4]

There are also little paddleboats you can take out on the harbor you have to pedal them. Lots of fun for kids. Thats right between the Aquarium and the seaport.