Cheap Flights To Baltimore

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Cheap Flights To Baltimore

Overview
When to Go
Airport Information
Weather
Things to Do
Local Attractions
Must See Sights
Insider Tips
Getting Around

Overview
Baltimore is comprised of neighborhoods built on strong ethnic foundations. As one of the nation’s oldest cities, it is home to historic events that helped shape the course of American history. Nicknamed “Charm City” for its fusion of small town hospitality and big city attractions, Baltimore lies midway between north and south Maryland and is a world seaport situated on the harbor near Chesapeake Bay. In addition to its scenic views, bountiful fresh crabs and the illustrious John Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore is also known for having housed famous residents, including Babe Ruth, Edgar Allen Poe and Cal Ripken.

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When to Go
High Season
Spring and autumn are the most popular times to visit Baltimore, as winter weather is very unpredictable and summers can be humid. Mid-to-late spring offers baseball games for sports fans as well as festivals and events.

Tourism peaks during spring and fall, and many tourists come for the Preakness, the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown, which is held the third Saturday of each May.

Low Season
Mid-June to August are the hottest months, bringing extreme humidity that deters some travelers from visiting. Winter is also much less crowded, with temperature lows usually in the 20s, frequent rain and occasional snowfall.

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Airport Information
Baltimore-Washington International Airport (BWI)
Distance: 10 miles south of Baltimore, 30 miles north of Washington

This international flight hub has five terminals, 78 gates and is the main entrance to the city.

Supershuttle offers vans between the airport and all major downtown hotels for $11 one way. Free shuttle services take visitors from the lower terminal to rental car providers, including Avis (410-859-1680), Budget and Hertz. Taxis from the airport to downtown take about 30 minutes with fares averaging $30. Trains run from the airport to Baltimore’s downtown Penn Station daily, and a continuous free shuttle bus service links the rail station with the airport terminal less than 10 minutes away. Amtrak rides between BWI Airport rail station and Penn Station, takes about 15 minutes and costs $5.

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Weather
Baltimore experiences all four seasons. Set on the East Coast, the climate is ocean-moderated, making summers warm and humid and winters mild, cold and damp. The city experiences high annual rainfall which occurs throughout the year. Winter weather usually hits in late December and continues through early February, with daytime highs in the mid-to-upper 20s and 30s. In the spring and fall, temperatures rise toward the upper 50s and 60s, with summers ranging in the low-to-mid 80s. Baltimore also experiences Indian Summers, where unexpected periods of warm weather follow the first freeze.

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Things to Do
National Aquarium
Dolphins, stingrays, sharks and piranhas are just some of the thousands of marine creatures housed at the Baltimore National Aquarium. The Inner Harbor attraction has more than 14,000 animals, including a four-story tank, outdoor sea lion pool, Rain Forest and Marine Mammal Pavilion.

Baltimore Museum of Art
The Baltimore Museum of Art is a world-class museum home to approximately 90,000 works, including a large endowment of Post-Impressionist pieces. Its jewel is the Cone Collection, including over 3,000 pieces by Picasso, Van Gogh, Renoir, Cezanne and Matisse. The Matisse collection is the largest in the Western Hemisphere. Visitors should also view the extensive Andy Warhol collection and take a stroll through the three-acre sculpture garden.

Pride of Baltimore II
The Pride of Baltimore II is a replica of an 1812 clipper ship that that sailed the Chesapeake waters throughout the 19th-century. In 1986, the original Pride of Baltimore sank in a storm. As the city’s goodwill ambassador, it has traveled all over the globe. When the ship is docked in the Inner Harbor, visitors can board for a free tour.

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Local Attractions
Oriole Park at Camden Yards
Opened in 1992 and located a few blocks from Inner Harbor, Camden Yards is considered by many to be the best baseball stadium in the country. The stadium’s design, with steel trusses, an arched brick façade and natural turf, is reminiscent of great ballparks built in the early 1900s. Guests can sit in any of the 48,876 seats and enjoy unobstructed views of the games. Tours offer fans a glimpse of the dugout, press box and clubhouse.

Fells Point
Dating back to 1730, this quaint neighborhood houses 350 original residential structures and a cobblestone waterfront area of patisseries, antique shops, galleries and bars. Names of streets are British (Shakespeare and Thames) and the brick row houses are iconic.

Fort McHenry
The historically-rich Fort McHenry boasts a stunning view of the harbor, authentic, recreated structures and a wealth of living history. The same site that inspired Francis Scott Key to write “The Star Spangled Banner” offers visitors guided tours, exhibits and screens a short historical film.

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Must See Sights
Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum
Literary buffs should note that it was in Baltimore that Edgar Allen Poe mysteriously died at the age of 40. Visitors can view his grave at Westminster Hall Cemetery, or visit his former home.

Jones Fall Trail
Located in the center of the city, the Jones Fall Trail is a hidden gem. Once heavily polluted, the 58-square mile watershed has been restored and now features a green hiking and biking trail, which parallels the Jones Fall River and meanders through some of the old mills that once powered Baltimore’s economy.

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Insider Tips

• Be warned that most of Baltimore’s downtown streets are one way, so if you are driving make sure to view a map before driving in the downtown area.
• Chocoholics and music lovers will delight in a visit to The Fudgery on Light Street, whose talented staff performs a capella odes to cocoa while making fudge.
• Fridays after five o’clock from mid-September through March, the National Aquarium opens its doors to patrons for more than half off the regular price of admission.
• Foodies can drive by—but not stop in—Charm City Cakes, home of Food Network’s reality T.V. show Ace of Cakes. Here, Chef Duff Goldman and his team of artists craft elaborate, and sometimes ignited, cakes for all occasions.
• Don’t be surprised when locals call strangers “hon.” This term of endearment is Charm City’s unofficial mantra. Additionally, the locals often lose the “t”s in words and leave out syllables entirely, as in pronouncing the city as “Bawlmer.”

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Getting Around
The most popular neighborhoods (Fells Point, Inner Harbor) and attractions are easy to explore by foot. Beyond these areas, renting a car is useful, as the Metro system is somewhat limited and public buses often involve several transfers and can be confusing. If you do opt for the metro, the MTA light rail 27-mile system offers transportation within the city for $1.60 one way and day passes for $3.50. MTA also runs the Metro, connecting downtown with the northwestern suburbs with fares running $1.60 one way or day passes for $3.50. Water taxis run between a dozen Inner Harbor locations with a cost of $8 for an unlimited day pass.

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