Road Trip Guide : Philly to Baltimore to DC (Summer)
From the ruggedness of Philadelphia and Baltimore to the elegance of DC, this road trip offers a study in contrasts, each unique experience within a couple hours or so of drive time between them (or a short train ride). Along the way you’ll see history, eat some great food (crab cakes, cheese steaks and oysters ???), and meet some fun people (who, in the case of Philadelphia, may try to fight you).
This summer there is no shortage of Super Sports Weekends on the east coast between New York and DC. One trip I am particularly pumped about is the weekend road trip starting in Philadelphia, moving to Baltimore and then finishing off in DC (or the reverse). I adore all of these cities having lived in Philadelphia and having spent a decent amount of time in Baltimore and DC with friends who are either from these cities or who have lived in these places. So as these weekends keep popping up I wanted to think through how I would pull this trip off, what I haven’t done in these places that I’d like to, and what I wouldn’t want to miss.
Let’s use the August 2nd to 4th weekend as our guide. Let’s assume we’re flying in, meeting friends in Philly, renting a car and flying out of DC on Monday morning…
Friday in Philly
You’ll fly into Philly in the morning or early afternoon ahead of the White Sox/Phillies game at 7 pm that night. With one night in Philly you’ll want to stay in a place that’s strategically located for restaurants and quick access to Citizen’s Bank Park south of town. Personally, if I’m staying in one city for the entire weekend I want to rent a house, spread out, fill a fridge with beer and snacks and create a more communal feel. On the road trip however, the convenience of rolling into a hotel, parking and being ready to head out the door immediately to get things moving is invaluable. Philly has a number of options around City Hall but stay on the south side for quick access to Broad Street. The Ritz-Carlton and Leows are here on the high end but there are Holiday Inn Express and Doubletree options here as well.
With the game that evening at 7 pm dinner is going to be tough to squeeze in and that’s unfortunate. Philly’s restaurant scene is exceptional. Many of the restaurants are BYOBs so for a corkage fee you’re drinking whatever you damn well please (at a significant savings) alongside fare from some of the most acclaimed chefs in the country. Keep this in mind when we do an all-Philly Super Sports Weekend. Just getting in to town and with little time to spare it will be tempting to head directly to Pat’s or Geno’s. Don’t. Cheesesteaks should only be eaten in the dead of night. You simply don’t know how your system will react to a steak and Cheez Whiz overload. Opt instead for a boozy lunch to kick things off. Jamaican Jerk Hut on South Street is a great place to pair energizing food with local beers (which again, you are supplying).
Back to the hotel before heading out to the game. At around 3 miles you’re not far from Citizen’s Bank Park but on a Friday traffic can be rough. Take a SEPTA train given it’s a straight shot and super cheap. Leave early and get started with a drink (drinks!) at McFadden’s. If you need to eat at the game Bull’s BBQ rates highly with ballpark food aficianados but there are a lot of great options.
After the game if you’re ready to go out but if you haven’t destroyed your appetite at the ballpark consider Monk’s, one of the best beer bars in the US with killer burgers to wash the beer down with (is that backwards?). From here are so many options to have good time on a Friday night in Philly whether you’re looking for cocktails (Ranstead Room, 1 Tippling Place), for history (McGillin’s Olde Ale House), or for a dive (Tattooed Mom). There’s also the hip Fishtown where if you haven’t over-barbequed(?) to this point head to Fette Sau before moving on to Frankford Hall for beers. Make your selection, have a great time and THEN you can hit Pat’s or Geno’s (or Jim’s). Whatever comes after that, you’re asleep so let your system work things out for you.
Saturday in Baltimore
After that night you’re sleeping in. Blue Jays/Orioles starts at 7 pm again in Baltimore so you have plenty of time to make the approximately two hour drive south to Baltimore. You had a big night eating so let’s lighten things up with some strong coffee and pastries at La Colombe. From there we’re on the road south. As you roll into town around lunchtime, proceed directly to Lexington Market and to Faidley’s Seafood for the best crab cake known to man (don’t park on the street at Lexington Market – park where someone is watching your car for you). Lexington Market is historic and awesome. Walk around a little and take in something that you probably don’t have where you’re from.
From there check in to your hotel in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. There is a Hilton and a Marriott right on top of Camden Yards which are both great options but if you’re looking to save money there is as Kimpton Hotel Monaco Inner Harbor a little farther away that is nicely positioned for the rest of the evening. From the Kimpton walk toward Camden Yards and stop at Pickles Pub to get fired up. On to the game. It’s hard to overstate how important Camden Yards is as a ballpark. When it opened in 1992 baseball stadiums, with the exception of Wrigley and Fenway, sucked. Baseball teams usually shared their fields with football teams and the atmosphere resulting from re-configuring a 70,000 seat football stadium into a baseball stadium with weeknight crowds of around 20,000 was a little underwhelming. Camden changed all of that as a baseball-centered venue. Most of the parks that were built post-1993 were modeled on Camden Yards. It remains a special place to watch a game.
As we leave Camden we again are in search of a place for food and beer. There are great cocktail lounges in Baltimore but I would head to Fell’s Point. After stopping for some shellfish at Thames Street Oyster House I’m bouncing around without a plan looking for live music and beers. Cat’s Eye Pub and The Horse You Came In On are good bets.
It’s now Sunday morning and if you’ve survived Fell’s Point you have a choice to make: brunch in Baltimore or on to DC before the Philadelphia Union/DC United MLS game. Go for brunch! The DC United game isn’t until 7:30 pm and you’re only an hour away. I only know (and recommend) Red Star in Fells Point or Miss Shirley’s closer to the hotel, so use this very well done guide to brunch from Baltimore Magazine to find the best landing place for you.
Sunday in DC
If the weekend ended here you would have won but now is the time to drive a stake through the heart of this weekend as you head toward DC. DC United’s home stadium, Audi Field, sits on the Potomic. Stay in that direction at one of three affordably priced hotels on the Wharf such as the Intercontinental Washington DC The Wharf where you’re perfectly set up for a quick trip to the International Spy Museum! It’s as though this museum was created for this type of trip. You couldn’t go on a road trip to DC with your friends and kill a few hours at the Lincoln Memorial – but the Spy Museum? Everyone is fired up for that!
Since you haven’t had near enough seafood yet, check out the Salt Line near the Navy Yard for some oysters ahead of the DC United game. Then on to Audi Field for the soccer game.
I know what I would look/feel like at that point if I did everything described above. At this point I’m most likely done but If I had more stamina or were dared to go out, I might look for places in Capital Hill which is just a short ride away. I would probably hit Bullfeathers for the authentic DC feel. Then, I would definitely be done. We’ll see how you fare.
At this point I’ve at least convinced myself this is an awesome trip. This itinerary works fairly well for any of the Philly-Balto-DC weekends (the Union play in Chester, PA which is about 20 minutes south of Philly but you’re not staying in Chester on this trip). If anyone tries to do this (or even part of this) let me know how it works out!
Your ideas
Have thoughts on how to Super Sports Weekend in Philly, Baltimore or DC? Email me.