I simply cannot believe that this lovely museum in Baltimore was FREE!! We spent about two hours…read moreexploring the 3 floors of art, artifacts and exhibits. We were lucky enough to see the Douriean Fletcher: Jewelry of the Afrofuture exhibit that showcased her various works and costumes that were made for The Black Panther, which was super cool. A great way to spend a morning or afternoon and cannot complain that it was free!!

Cost: Free (!) Neighborhood: Mount Vernon…read moreHow much time? 60-100 minutes, maybe. Depends on exhibits and how much you like certain time periods Baltimore Reviews 9/11: I went to this wonderful free museum, located in the historical Mount Vernon neighborhood, while traveling through the city with a couple of others, though apparently I had been there about 10 years earlier when I went to Baltimore for an Orioles game. The space was well air-conditioned, and there were several floors for us to explore. The special exhibit was about contemporary jewelry maker Douriean Fletcher and her exhibition, Jewelry of the Afrofuture, which showcased her modern designs and how she drew inspiration from her ancestry and other African countries. She's probably best known for Black Panther, and the exhibit did a good job of comparing while also including some other useful information. It was nice overall and well spaced. Otherwise, we went to the top and made our way down through the various floors, though we didn't take as much time as I would have liked, since we left at one point to go back to the hotel and get ready for the convention center. My favorite sections were probably on the Middle East and ancient Asia, as there was an impressive amount of antiques, ranging from bowls and jugs to statues and other items. The sections containing European artifacts were also nice, with a good hall to relax in, though I've never been the biggest fan of works from the Italian Renaissance. Some spaces felt a bit discombobulated, but there was a ton of stuff there to see, so it's hard to complain. Overall, we had an excellent time. If you want to see a wide variety of things and prefer more historical objects over modern art, I would heavily recommend this museum. It's hard not to, as it's free, though I did give them a small donation, as they definitely deserved it.

Summary: while Doodlehatch is definitely not short of character, there are some key points that…read moremake it hard to love. A question I had prior to visiting Doodlehatch was "what is it?" The best answer I can think of is that it's an interactive art museum. There are tons of random sections throughout: a space area, a unicorn area, a tea party area, a giant bed, etc. Most are designed to be "interactive," but I don't know how much care + maintenance is going on. Parts of the exhibit don't feel sturdy and a lot of it doesn't feel clean. There are a lot of areas that have fabric that retain moisture/dirt like the giant bed (plush), bean bag chairs, and hammocks. Coming off a fresh pandemic, it didn't give the best feeling to "interact" with something like that. Conclusion: I think the concept is cute and the art is unique. The exhibit itself makes for a cute little outing. I'm just a bit more wishful as far as care/maintenance goes. I wouldn't describe myself as a germaphobe, but even so I didn't feel great about it.

Overall: Okay place to spend an hour or two with young kids, but it is very dirty and most exhibits…read morefeel like safety hazards and are close to breaking. They have multi-stall gendered restrooms. We went right when they opened on a Saturday morning and had the place pretty much to ourselves. We used a Groupon deal. My son just turned 3. His favorite exhibits were the mail station, the space station, and the room with the ukuleles and guitars. The mail station was really cute. It had instructions to write a letter to your younger self and you could put it in the mail box and organize the mail by year you wanted to send it back to. It really didn't look like this place had a cleaning regimen. I can't imagine who thought it was a good idea to put that many (very used) plush toys in a place where this many children visit. You sign a waiver saying you're liable for anything your kid breaks, but so much of this place is about to break and I'd be worried about my kid being hurt as much as I'd be worried about parts of these installments breaking.

Not your typical art museum and that is why it is a Five Star experience. Funky and fun (and…read morepoignant) art work by those who are not typically featured in a museum. This strikes me as somewhat similar to the two excellent Kohler Art museums in Wisconsin. Super interesting and thought provoking especially the stories of many of the artists accompanying their work. The main museum building is a work of art itself. The gift shop is a riot. Hands down the best and craziest museum gift store. Thank goodness my friend recommended this stop. Heads up on parking - the meters on the street are way way cheaper then the Rusty Scupper lot across the street. This place is a gem. Don't miss it!

I've lived in the Baltimore area for quite some time now and I can't believe I've never been to the…read moreAmerican Visionary Art Museum. I mean how can you pass by the mirrored egg or the golden hand and not think to find out what type of dope art is hidden inside. With so many unique pieces to look at I took my time leisurely strolling through the two buildings for the museum. Welcomed by a half naked mannequin with wings floating in the center of the stairs, you can't help but be intrigued to learn more about the artists work. There was so much to take in with every turn. I especially liked the homage to the staples of Baltimore's culture in the second building. And we can't forget about the gift shop that I literally could've spent hours in just rummaging through all the eclectic finds. I'm happy I finally bit the bullet to visit the American Visionary Art Musuem, and I look forward to a return visit to see all the things I missed.

Definitely one of the first places to visit if you're in the Inner Harbor area of Baltimore. We…read morestopped by as our first stop when staying in the neighborhood, since the vantage point provides perspectives and ideas of all the other places to visit afterwards. The harbor views are beautiful and vast, and the signage within the observation area talk about all the neighborhoods and give a history of Baltimore. There's even a small section dedicated to honor the memories of Marylanders lost in the 9/11 attack. Pricing is very reasonable at just $8 per person, and the elevator ride to the top is quick.

We were in Baltimore for the weekend and staying about two blocks from the inner harbor. My…read morehusband suggested going to this place Saturday morning. It was a great idea. Pricing is only 8 dollars for each adult which is a great price to go up to the 27th floor of the World Trade Center. There are four different sides of the building with written panels explaining what landmarks and buildings are out in that direction. The views are spectacular. They also have tributes to those from Maryland who perished in the World Trade Center in New York on 9-11. There are also several panels listing movies filmed in Baltimore and famous people from Maryland.

A bit of a hike from DC, this cozy free museum is a must for history and technology buffs…read more Located, appropriately enough, right next to the heavily secured National Security Agency. Plan on taking an hour, maybe an hour and a half, to leisurely examine the exhibits. Docents are available to answer your questions. I found the exhibits amazing. Walking away from visiting NCM, I have to marvel at how smart and clever humans are. Encryption started way back. The Egyptians were known to encrypt messages. Thomas Jefferson encrypted his sensitive letters. Napoleon was a big fan of encryption. The mechanical encryption devices on display, from World War I on, are fascinating to see with all their bells and whistles.

Brought a group of High School students here for a field trip. The museum is free so you can't beat…read morethe price. We had a guided tour. It was very interesting to see all of the history and learn about the science behind all of the exhibits. Some have a little interactive portion as well. The tour lasted about a hour. After it was done the students looked around on their own for a few. Not a bad way to spend a day away from school while still learning something.

Spot is pretty cute and not "huge". Overall very…read moreentertaining for toddlers and kids but can't say it's anything amazing but worth the money 100%. The lady at the front desk made me want to drop a star but can't say it's the owners fault. Reason being is she was very dry and quick with the rules I couldn't catch anything she was saying because she was so dry. Didn't seem like she wanted to be there but whatever that interactions like a second. It's basically a bunch of stations like shopping , doctors office, a slide, and so on. Like I said pretty cute.

Play Street Museum is a franchise that specializes in kids' play areas that encourages imaginative…read moreplay and fun settings. The one in Severna Park is one of my favorites to take the kiddos because it has a great mix of interactive toys and buildings. Just to name a few: - an area for crafts - one of those motorized air funnels that you can put a scarf in - ice cream store - grocery store - doctor's office - vets office - a recycling truck with slots to sort different recyclables - a play house with kitchen stuff - pretend firetruck and firehouse with hose and slide You can also opt into extra add ons that allow you to participate in crafts you can take home (think DIY activities like slime). I like that there's only a finite number of spaces for time slots so it never gets too crowded. You should check their website before going just in case they're sold out (I believe they do allow walk ins though). They also have punch cards for a slightly discounted rate. It's usually around $18 for a single visit, but comes out to like $15 a visit with a punch card at the time of this post. I would totally recommend for little ones, but they may start to get bored for any ages 5 or older.

I visited Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum last weekend, when I was exploring Old…read moreEllicott City with my husband and his family who were in town visiting. It's a museum decided to Benjamin Banneker and, as I didn't know anything about him before I visited, I really enjoyed our visit to the museum. Benjamin Banneker was a naturalist, mathematician, astronomer, and almanac author. He was born in Baltimore County to a free African-American mother and a father who had been formerly enslaved. The museum is small but has information about his life and times. Exiting the back of the museum, you can walk to a reconstructed cabin that estimates how Banneker lived on these acres of land he owned until his death in 1806. I learned a lot from this little museum, and the employee working at the museum when we visited was very kind and helpful. He shared a lot of information with us about the museum and about Banneker. If you haven't been before or if you don't know anything about Benjamin Banneker, this little museum is definitely worth a visit!

This place outside of Baltimore offers a small museum, a reconstructed hut, and a set of gardens…read morearound it, and some trails. It is free to enter and there is plenty of parking. I got a quick intro with some interesting information related to the history of the famous person who lived here. The place offers a window into American colonial history, as well as an education on the pastoral lifestyle that was the norm at the time. The museum is just a couple of rooms and won't take a long time to get through. I did not have time to stay for the trails. It wasn't the most lively or deep historical site that I've ever been to, but there was enough in terms of aesthetics and in terms of information to be worth checking out.

The place is small but enough for about 10 people. The man who outlined our work is an artist for…read moresure and gifted!! I do feel like he rushed on outlining my art piece; however it still came out nice. The guy who worked there also got me a drink of water which I appreciated!!!! They are all nice and friendly here and are some talented people.

Casual art space with a mini hip hop gallery upstairs. Walls are lined with original artwork for…read moresale. They host a variety of events - mostly sip and paints for adults with various themes. Some classes for kids too. I noticed adult themed events / BYOB. I attended a sip and paint with friends; staff was friendly. Call ahead if you have limited mobility; only saw steps to reach upper level.