Over the past few months, we’ve given you plenty of ideas for what to do while you’re in town. But every once in a while, you just say, “Screw it! I’m getting out of town.” Assuming a last-minute plane ticket is prohibitively expensive, there are still plenty of destinations that, while within a reasonable distance of D.C., still feel a world away. Here are a few of our favorites.
Photo by A. Bull
SHENANDOHAH NATIONAL PARK: Less than two hours from busy downtown D.C., this Virginia destination is a great spot for camping or just a day trip to hike or drive or bike the scenic Skyline Drive. Big Meadows Campground is near a lot of hiking trails, including a couple that wend down to secluded waterfalls, and the somewhat strenuous hike to Old Rag is always a popular climb. On your way back, check out High on the Hog BBQ in Sperryville. It’s good stuff. —Andrew Wiseman
Shenandoah National Park is 75 miles from D.C.
Photo by Michael Andrade
REHOBOTH BEACH, Del.: Located just over two hours outside of D.C., Rehoboth Beach, Del. offers a quiet alternative to Ocean City, Md. and is preferred by those looking to relax without the distraction of drunk college kids. In addition to a standard sandy beach, there’s a small boardwalk featuring a haunted-house ride and excellent caramel corn from Dolle’s. The city also has a rich history of being gay-friendly (see: Poodle Beach) and this reputation stands today. And given recent developments in Delaware, everyone can get married at the beach now. The city is also welcoming to dogs, as pooches are allowed on the beach after 5:30 p.m. during summer months. DC2NY provides buses to Rehoboth on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. A $39 ticket comes with a free bottle of water and wireless Internet access. —Sarah Anne Hughes
Rehoboth Beach is 123 miles from D.C.
Heavy Seas Brewing Company (Photo by Thomas Cizauskas
BALTIMORE: While most in D.C. often overlook Baltimore for the larger beer bastions of Philadelphia or New York, Charm City is a great weekend retreat for great local beer, impressive bars, and restaurants that respect their food as much as their libations. Pratt Street alehouse is home to Oliver Ales, British-inspired ales with an American twist by Stephen Jones who was born and raised in the U.K. Only about a year old but taking the region by storm, Union Craft Brewing has put out an impressive array of beers in a small amount of time. Try the Old Pro Gose for a refreshing beer that is low in alcohol and just a hint of orange tartness. Heavy Seas and DuClaw are also local and round out a solid day of brewery tours.
If D.C.’s cathedral to zymurgy is ChurchKey, then Max’s Taphouse in Fell’s Point is where Baltimore goes to show reverence to the holy suds. With 140 rotating drafts, five hand-pumped casks, and approximately 1,200 bottled beers in stock, Max’s is impressive to even the most knowledgeable beer aficionados. Across town near the Lexington Market, Alewife serves up an impressive selection of American beers and a higher level of pub food in a space that used to house a bank. Make sure to get Chef Chad Wells’ smoke burger, an insane concoction of local beef blend (ribeye, skirt steak, brisket, and filet), smoked gouda, Gruyere, applewood smoked bacon, caramelized cipollini onion, and chipotle aioli. And if you dare, tweet at the chef before ordering and ask for the Evil Twin: his off-menu smoke burger stuffed with crab meat.
Brewer’s Art in Mount Vernon pairs European-style country fare with some of the best Belgian-style beers made in the mid-Atlantic. Make sure to have their Ozzy, a deliciously dry strong pale ale with a yeasty, almost-peppery finish that matches with a number of the entrées.
Of Love and Regret, Stillwater Artisinal Ales’ Brian Strumke’s restaurant-and-bottle shop is not to be missed. With a menu that rotates between pub fare done right to creative entrées, Stumke’s union of great food and his world-class beers is a place that would be an destination in any city. —John Fleury
Baltimore is 42 miles from D.C.
Photo by Christaki
HARPERS FERRY, W.Va.: Although West Virginia is a small state, it’s packed with history and beautiful scenery. (Also: tap dancing drug addicts.) Visit Harpers Ferry for the Civil War history and re-enactors, stay for the John Brown Wax Museum, which features terrifying figures, mildew and a replica of the gallows where the abolitionist was hanged. Hike one of the many trails in the area for a spectacular view of three states—West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland—at once. Amtrak provides one train from Union Station to Harpers Ferry per day. —Sarah Anne Hughes
Harpers Ferry is 67 miles from D.C.
Photo by Pat Padua
GETTYSBURG, Pa.: Washington on July 4? That’s America, however unoriginal. But if you’re looking to get away from the holiday crowds in town, one of the most surreal pageants of Independence is less than two hours from the Beltway. Every year around Independence Day, Gettysburg, Pa. is transformed into an entire town of cosplay. Walk the city’s historic streets at all hours and run into visions from the 19th century, go ghost-hunting in cemeteries built atop Civil War battlefields, and rest assured that since the whole town was the battlefield, wherever you go, you’re treading on somebody’s grave. Even if you’re not a Civil War buff, it’s a blast. Just don’t eat at the Lincoln Diner. —Pat Padua
Gettysburg, Pa. is 85 miles from D.C.
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ATLANTIC CITY, N.J.: Don’t be swayed by Maryland, Delaware, and Pennsylvania attempting to get in on the gambling industry. Sure, it’s nice for us risk-seekers and degenerates that the casino action is getting closer, particularly with the addition of table games at Maryland Live! in nearby Anne Arundel County. But, please. Who wants to chase six hours at a blackjack table with a 20-minute wait at Bobby’s Burger Palace and a walk through outlet stores on the side of the highway? Besides, those states don’t even permit comped drinks!
When it comes to not-too-far destinations that offer a bit of everything—vice, kitsch, even some alternative culture—Atlantic City does kind of have it all. True, the casinos that anchor this demographically lopsided oceanfront town have been having a rough go for more than a decade, but they’re so desperate for business, it’s not a stretch to find a $15 table even on a Saturday night at the newest gambling joints. Low-stakes players might find themselves priced out of the Borgata, located at the edge of the Marina district, but Atlantic City’s newest resort, Revel, is never more than half-full and remains the tidiest casino you’ll ever see. Yes, most of that can be chalked up to the place going bankrupt—highly leveraged debt and a non-smoking policy IN A CASINO aren’t the best business practices—and being partially owned by the state of New Jersey—but it’s still as open as any other casino. (Plus, due to the shoddy finances, rooms at the 1,400-room hotel can be booked on the cheap.)
Bruce Springsteen wrote a song about Atlantic City. It’s great, gloomy, and depressing as hell. And the city badly needs the tourism this year as it recovers from the devastation wrought last year by Hurricane Sandy. The boardwalk remains a clapboard corridor of greasy snacks, garish T-shirts, carousels, and drunks. And you don’t even have to go for the gambling. A few blocks in from the water, you can find places like The Boneyard, a dingy rock club that sees a lot of touring acts, including many from D.C. Who says you can’t blow up the Chicken Man and put $50 on red? —Benjamin R. Freed
Atlantic City is 193 miles from D.C.
