~~~Day trip to Baltimore this Sat. TRIP REPORT!

[loveysbydesign]

Planning to head down to Baltimore on Sat. for a daytrip!! Haven't been there since I was 13 and in junior high for a field trip.

6 y.o. ds has been asking everyday to go in a submarine...got half price tix. to see the ships and submarine at the inner harbor for only $30 total for the 5 of us through livingsocial.
Anyway where is a good place to have lunch and dinner that won't cost us $100 for the 5 of us?


We're also hoping to go to the science center as we can get in for free with our reciprocal admission from Boonshoft Museum in Dayton.

Not planning to do the aquarium this time(budget)
Anything else we should plan to see or do that's inexpensive...or suggestions on where to park?

 

[CynBeth]

Unfortunately I don't know places to park other than the garages which can be expensive. I am not sure where you are in PA but if you take I-83 there are light rail stops in Hunt Valley or Timonium and it is about a half hour to the Convention Center/Pratt Street stop and then a short walk to the Inner Harbor. You could also possibly go to the Owings Mills subway station and that also takes about 30 minutes to the Shot Tower stop which is a short walk. As far as food, I don't know prices but there is a Hard Rock Cafe and a few other restaurants in the Power Plant and both Harborplace buildings have restaurants such as Bubba Gump Shrimp Co or Cheesecake Factory. Those buildings also have 2 levels and there are some shops as well as food booths and Five Guys Burgers plus other choices. There should be something to fit your needs. The Science Center used to have some sort of place to eat. Please let me know how your visit was. I hope you have a great time!

 

[chrissy92972]

A few months ago when we drove from NE PA and went to the Science Museum and the Aquarium we parked in a garage that was listed on the science museums website. They had discount rates for the science museum you just had to get the parking ticket stamped.

We ate in the shopping area at Noodles and Company, but right across the street is a Panera and there are other places to eat nearby. The prices are really high in the area for eating.

Chrissy

 

[BillSears]

The Fells Point Fun Festival is this weekend. That's mostly free and fun.

http://fellspointfest.com/

 

[loveysbydesign]

The Fells Point Fun Festival is this weekend. That's mostly free and fun.

http://fellspointfest.com/

This looks like fun but I don't think we'd have enough time to do it, the science center and the ships and submarine. But I'll keep it in mind for next year...sounds kind of like F&W and Epcot


I just hope we don't run into too much traffic beacuse of it...not sure where exactly it's located in regards to the inner harbor?

Eek..just checked the weather and it'll be 86 in Baltimore tomorrow...feeling like 90, wonder if we should still go or push it off a week or 2. Dh gets grumpy when it gets near 90
(except when we're at wdw)
Of course my 6 y.o. will probably have a fit f I tell him we're not going tomorrow.

Also the person who mentioned the Cheesecake factory...that sounds yummy!
Bubba gump sounds good too as we love shrimp.

 

[CynBeth]

Also the person who mentioned the Cheesecake factory...that sounds yummy!
Bubba gump sounds good too as we love shrimp.

Cheesecake Factory tends to get crowded so if you can go for an early lunch or dinner you should be ok. There is seating inside and outside. The portions are huge. Save room for dessert. Bubba Gump is fun and the food is good. They also have seating inside and outside. If you have time right above it or close to it is a Ripley's Believe it or Not that the kids might enjoy.

 

[loveysbydesign]

Thanks, getting ready to head out. May try Kooper's Tavern in Fell's point!

 

[Suger Mag]

If your kids like baseball... Camden Yards (short walk from the Harbor area) is beautiful even just to visit and if there is a game... tickets can be shockingly cheap ( As a Red Sox fan used to Fenway prices... paying $7 to see the Sox play at Camden was almost heart attack time)... Also the Babe Ruth Birthplace museum is in the Camden neighborhood

 

[Janepod]

If your kids like baseball... Camden Yards (short walk from the Harbor area) is beautiful even just to visit and if there is a game... tickets can be shockingly cheap ( As a Red Sox fan used to Fenway prices... paying $7 to see the Sox play at Camden was almost heart attack time)... Also the Babe Ruth Birthplace museum is in the Camden neighborhood

The Orioles' season is over. Babe Ruth's birthplace is cool though.

Our favorite restaurant is The Brewer's Art -- you could get out of there for <$20/person if you order carefully, but the beers (which are terrific) will drive the price up.

 

[CynBeth]

How was the trip?

 

[loveysbydesign]

So we had a fabulous time in Baltimore! Wish we had stayed overnight so we could have done more!

We left later than planned, 9:30a.m. and stopped for lunch at Chick-Fil-A right off of Rte 83...on Shawan Rd. Saw the light rail that takes you into the city but we opted not to do that as we had a cooler packed with water bottles as it was to be pretty hot and had not planned to take it anyway.

After lunch we drove the last little bit into town. Got there about 12:15.
Parked at 11 East Lee st. parking garage by the science center as that way we could get a voucher from the science center to make our parking only $9 for the day!
It was very easy to find and not full. We had to walk across one road and the harbor was right there. What a great view!

The weather was perfect, it did get a little toasty around 1, but then around 2 it clouded up just a little to cool things down. The breeze coming off the water was lovely and we had brought lots of water in the small cooler we had in the bottom of the stroller. Normally my 6 y.o. ds does not use stroller but he had twisted his foot on friday at recess at school and it was still bothering so we brought it just in case!

 

[loveysbydesign]

We decided to head right to the USS Constellation to turn in our Living Social vouchers for tix. They actually just stamp them and give them back to you to take to each ship and the submarine.
We went on the Constellation 1st. I wish I had taken more pix. then I did, but my 6 y.o. was so excited about all of this he was constantly going back and forth from here to there while aboard the ship. It was really neat...no pix. of my oldest as he was wondering around at his own pace reading all the things in the ship.
It was hard to imagine that this ship had been in a war. The cannons, captains quarters, kitchen and such were really neat.

 

[skater]

Thanks for the report! I live not too far from here, and you've inspired me to plan another trip! I used to work at the Science Center, yet I haven't taken my kids there in a really long time .

 

[laurensmommy]

Glad to hear you had a good time. Bmore is my hometown. Next time try and extra day and check out Fells point. They have a pirate ship ride for the kiddos.

 

[loveysbydesign]

more is coming once naptime gets here!

 

[wiigirl]

Following along!

 

[loveysbydesign]

So after the Constellation we headed right to the USS Torsk submarine. My 6 y.o. ds had been asking for over a week to go inside a submarine and I just happened to get lucky when the livingsocial deal popped up in my inbox that day I was searching for info.
He was superexcited when I told him Fri. night where we were going on Sat.!

We walked around the World Trade center building of Baltimore and past the aquarium to the sub.
He was so happy! My dh and other kids(ds 14 and dd )11 were excited as well. You go down into the sub at one end and walk all the way through it to the other...pretty neat!

This image shows that Walt Disney himself helped create the new logo for the USS Torsk...pretty cool!

While we were touring the sub it was really neat to meet people who had served on it and were helping with the restoration of it. Some people live on it part time while restoring it.
Now that is dedication!!! I have to admit it was pretty cool going down in there and seeing how they lived and operated the sub. God bless them as that is something I could never do! They had stuff stocked in the kitchen to eat and even had small soft serve ice cream machine there for the volunteers to get a snack from

 

[loveysbydesign]

After touring the sub we hopped onto the Lightship Cheaspeake which was docked right next to the Torsk. For some reason I didn't take any pix. excpet this one. It is small and didn't take long to tour. They did have a nice dispplay of pix. and things to read about all the different dogs who served on the ships back then.

Then we decided we stop at the bathrooms right along the outside of the aquarium and then walk over to USCGC Taney and the light house. We were beginning to get a bit hungry and I figured we grab a snack at one of the many places to eat inside the Light building after the Taney and lighthouse.

Around the aquarium we went and onto the Taney.
The Taney was really neat and they had a special scavenger hunt activity for the kids to do in regards to Soogie the dog who served on the Taney. You got a small card and could stamp it at the 6 stations that told you about Soogie. This ship was neat too as you followed a blue line around the ship. You could also lay in the bunks and sit at the tables if you wanted to. Wish I had taken more pix. but I was trying to keep up with ds while dh was with the older 2.
My 6 y.o. ds loved getting that card stamped. Here's a pic. of him sitting in front of the lifeboat after he got them all stamped.

 

[CynBeth]

Glad you had a great time. Hopefully you can plan another trip for spring or summer to get to the things you didn't get to see including attending a ballgame.

 

[loveysbydesign]

We headed to our last stop, the lighthouse. For some reason I didn't take any pix. of it...I guess because everyone was getting tired and hungry we rushed through it. We would have walked back and gotten a snack but it is quite aways from the lighthouse area back past the aquarium to get over to the shops/eateries. We knew we would run out of time if we went to the shops and then back to the lighthouse.
Here's a pic. of dh and I up standing on the top of it that ds took.

So after touring all the ships, lighhouse and sub. it was time for a refreshing snack to cool us down! We were all getting a little cranky so we headed back to the shops closest to the ships...I think it was Light street shops and looked for the place that sells gelato. We couldn't find it so we went upstairs to the marble creamery/cookie place. I got a smoothie, the older kids and hubby had milkshakes. 6 y.o. ds got a cookie.

Everything was delicious and gave us the energy to head over to the other shops, Pratt St. so 11 y.o dd could go in the H&M store(she was dying to go in it as there are none near us) Wow...what a neat store!!
DD wanted a sweater and they were buy 1 get 1 free so she got 2 for $25 total and then we found these really cool Mickey mouse leggings...they are red, black and white with Mickey faces in an all-over print. too cool I'll have to post a pic. of them then, she wore them to school today. We could have spent an hour or so in that store but dh was getting impatient while waiting outside with the boys. They did say a cannon went off on the Constellation while they were sitting there and it was neat.

Aha..I found apicture of them online!

Next up the Science center!