Keep cool in Baltimore during the dog days of summer. Need a refreshing escape on these hot, humid, summer afternoons? Check out some of our favorite local spots and air-conditioned activities sure to help you keep your cool.
Stay Cool in Baltimore this Summer with our Top 7 Picks
- Ice cream for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! You just can’t beat a frozen sweet treat this time of year, especially creamy and delicious local ice cream. Visit Hampden’s The Charmery for a huge variety of fun and unique flavors. Or plan a summer-long expedition of Maryland’s Ice Cream Trail and visit 9 local dairy farms and creameries. My favorite so far is the Prigel Family Creamery in Glen Arm (mmmm…. the chocolate almond coconut is to die for!)
- Duck into a bowling alley for some duckpin fun. A Baltimore tradition since the early 1900s, duckpin bowling is fun for the entire family with smaller bowling balls perfect for the littlest bowlers. Visit the AMF lanes in Timonium for duckpin or 10-pin bowling.
- Icy, sweet snowballs. Another favorite Baltimore summer tradition. If you’re not from the area, you must try one. Our equivalent of a snow-cone, made from finely shaved ice and flavored with sweet syrup, and always best, in my expert opinion, topped with marshmallow.
- Cool off inside a cool museum. If eclectic, fun, and air-conditioned sound appealing, beat the heat exploring some of Baltimore’s world famous museums. From the AVAM’s over-the-top and always unforgettable exhibits to the world-class art collection at the Walter’s Art Museum, you’re sure to discover something new.
- Swim with the fishes. Dive into the National Aquarium and meet the exotic creatures of the Blacktip Reef and Rainforest. Enjoy a hands-on experience at the Living Seashores Touch Exhibit and make friends with the sharks in Shark Alley. Bonus: Half-price admission every Friday after 5 p.m.
- Make it a beach day. You don’t have to drive to the Eastern Shore to enjoy a day by the water. Gunpowder Falls State Park’s Hammerman Area offers 1,500 feet of beach and swimming area on the banks of the Gunpowder River. Stay the day with concessions, canoe/kayak and sailboat rentals, hiking trails, and picnic pavilions. This is definitely a summer hot spot so arrive early.
- Catch a cool flick. On a not-so-sweltering summer night, take in an open-air movie in Little Italy, Federal Hill or Fells Point. Basignani Winery also offers TGIF movie nights on select Fridays. Or flashback to the fifties at Bengie’s Drive-In Theatre – “the biggest theatre screen in the US!”