Amy

Hello!
My family and I will be in Washington DC for a week and will have a rental car for the first two days. Since we will be arriving in the late afternoon the first day, we will spend the rest of the time visiting a friend who lives in Rockville, Maryland.
On the second day, we were thinking about visiting the following places in this order:
Drive from Rockville to Falls (1/2 hour)
Great Falls, MD or VA? (2 hours)
Drive from Falls to Caverns (1 1/2 hours)
Luray Caverns, VA (3 hours)
Drive from Caverns to Aquarium (2 1/2 hours)
National Aquarium, Baltimore (2-3 hours)
Drive back to Rockville from Aquarium (1 hour)

Is this doable?
If we start the day out at 8 AM, we will probably be back in Rockville around 9 PM.
Is this too rushed? Are the times put aside for driving and the sites realistic?
It will be our first visit to this area of the country and we do not know when we will be able to come back. We want to see as many sites as possible, but still allow enough time to enjoy them.

Any comments or replies will be greatly appreciated.
THANKS!

mwg

This cannot be done in one day. A drive from DC to Luray and back, with a few stops, is plenty to do for one day. You're going in almost completely opposite directions. Going to Baltimore to see the Aquarium (and in the inner harbor?) with lunch, etc., is a day's outing. Ever seen Fort McHenry or have any interest in the Baltimore museums? These sights can round out your day.

ilisa

I honestly think you will be trying to do too much in one day. I'm exhausted looking at your itinerary. If you try to stick too much to that schedule, you won't enjoy what you are seeing; you'll be too preoccupied with what to do next. Also, how do you know you won't want to spend more time at one spot? Balitmore has a lot to offer; you may want to spend more time there. And have you figured in meals and other unexpected events? If you have the time, I would do Luray on a different day.

Diane

I live not far from Rockville, and our son goes to school in Front Royal, VA (near Luray Caverns). It's about an hour and a half drive one-way, non-rush hour. You'd probably want to use a whole day, and see some other points of interest in the area. To be honest, the water levels are so low this summer the Great Falls aren't that "great". There's more to see on the Virginia day trip that would probably be more entertaining. I echo the other suggestions that Baltimore has way too much to offer than to just try the aquarium. The Inner Harbor area is pretty neat itself. Park there for the whole day. It may be hard to leave! You could do the aquarium in the AM, take a water taxi to Fells Point for lunch (and take it back again) -- there's plenty to see on the boat trip, the harbor is a very busy one! You can usually tour Camden Yards if there's not a game, and there's also a nice baseball museum.

Dawn

There is no way you could do all that in one day. Luray Cavers is o.k., but I think you would enjoy Baltimore. There is a lot to do there. Great Falls is o.k., but is there something there to see that I don't know about? Baltimaore is fun and there is more than enough to keep you busy.

Amy

Thanks to all who have responded!!

Since we will probably not have any more time other than that day to take side trips, I'm going to have to choose.
We are a family of 4, 2 in late 40's, a 16-yr-old, and a 14-yr-old.

Which one would you recommend to us: Baltimore & the National Aquarium in Maryland or the Luray Caverns & the Skyline Drive in Virginia?

We have been to the Stephen Birch Aquarium in San Diego & small caverns in Utah. We enjoyed both, but I imagine they don't compare to the Baltimore Aquarium & Luray Caverns.

Diane- you said that the water levels were low this year, but do you think that the Great Falls are still worth a quick visit before or after our visit to the Aquarium or the Caverns?

Again, THANK YOU!

Donna

I think Luray Caverns are unique. So is driving along the Skyline drive. The aquarium is very nice, but when we visited it was also very crowded and we couldn't really enjoy ourselves. On our drive from DC to Luray, we also stopped at Monticello. I think there are other aquariums that are as nice as Baltimore's but there's only one Luray Caverns.
Good luck. It's a hard choice.

Amy

Thank you Donna for your response!

If this changes anything, I just remembered that I don't have to return the rental car to the National Airport until 5 PM the next day. (the rental is from 5 PM on the day I arrive & 2 full days after that)

Is there enough time on that day (morning til 5 PM when I need to return the car)to go to Baltimore & the Aquarium or the Luray Caverns & Skyline Drive?

THANK YOU!

Bridget

Hi Amy,
I live in Maryland and I graduated from James Madision University, which is about 1/2 hr away from Skyline Dr. I agree with the above posters that you cannot do everything on your lists because of how spread out everything is. However, I will give you my opinion: SKyline drive is neat and especially gorgeous in the fall. I have never been to Lurary, but I heard it was cool but a little expensive. However, a trip to the Aquarium and the inner habor will be MUCH MORE expensive than anything you do in the SHenandoah Valley. THe inner habor is an experience, and the Aquarium is awesome, but it really depends on what type of family you are. FOr instance, if they are outdoor lovers, then the caverns and Skyline would be perfect. If they are shoppers and museum types, or even sports fans (the Ravens and the Orioles staduims are in Baltimore), then the Inner Habor is for you! Hope this helps, please feel free to write with any other questions.
Bridget =)