Maryland Insights Aug. 5, 2009

Tourism Office spotlights ‘family fun’ during August

As families plan their last summer outing before schools re-open, the Maryland Tourism Office is letting visitors and residents know – through its monthly Maryland Spotlight campaign – that there’s plenty of options for family fun in Maryland.

The Tourism Office’s web site lists a selection of destinations – including 52 attractions across the state – that might appeal to families on vacation.

“Ocean City is among the most family-friendly beach resorts on the East Coast,” says Margot Amelia, director of the Tourism Office. “The amusement parks, boardwalk and area attractions make it a place that families like to come back to time and time again.”

Also, county fairs and festivals make August an appealing time for family trips, she says. “You can visit fairs from one end of the state to the other.”

Maryland Spotlight allows the Tourism Office to highlight an individual aspect or theme of Maryland travel. It brings focus to the state’s Pretty. Close. marketing campaign, which has promoted Maryland’s natural beauty and ease of access for travelers. In July, the spotlight was on “buy local.”

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Welcome Center program plans operation shifts

Two Maryland Welcome Centers – Sideling Hill (Washington County) and Bay Country (Queen Anne’s County) – will no longer operate with state funds after this month. Budget constraints and a re-assessment of the cost-per-visitor at the centers prompted the changes. Local officials are discussing how to keep the centers open.

Also, the welcome center’s volunteer staff at Baltimore/Washington International-Thurgood Marshall Airport will merge into the airport’s traveler-assistance program – a volunteer group called BWI Pathfinders.

The other seven welcome centers have reduced their schedules to a six-day week. Restrooms, parking lots and outdoor facilities (such as picnic and dog-walking areas) will remain open 24 hours a day, seven days a week at the seven centers and at the Sideling Hill and Bay Country rest areas.

Two welcome centers at South Mountain in Western Maryland are expected to re-open next May, following major reconstruction.

The Baltimore County Visitor Center has moved to a new location in Towson – the Jennifer Building at 44 W. Chesapeake Ave. It will share space with the Towson Chamber of Commerce, which recently purchased and renovated the building. Hours for the visitor center are 10-3, Monday through Friday. Information on more than 750 things to do in Baltimore County is also available online.

Two travel writers – who have participated in FAM tours hosted by the Tourism Office – have written books that were recently published. Fran Severn’s Art Drives on Delmarva, a 120-page paperback, is a guide to art studios, craft galleries, cultural attractions and special events on the Delmarva Peninsula. Allison Blake’s Maryland Curiosities: Quirky Characters, Roadside Oddities & Other Offbeat Stuff is a 240-page paperback that documents her findings from around the state.

Join American and British troops in Prince George’s County
Muster with your fellow War of 1812 stakeholders at the 14th annual Battle of Bladensburg Encampment outside the Riverdale House Museum, Saturday, Aug. 15, 12 to 4 p.m. Call 301-864-0420 for details. Free admission to grounds.

Chesapeake Market Day offers taste of regional fare
Annapolis Maritime Museum and FreshFarm Markets will hold their annual Chesapeake Market Day, Aug. 23, at the museum’s Eastport location. The skipjack HM Krnetz will have locally-grown watermelon, vegetables, fruits and flowers for sale at the museum’s dock. The museum will screen two short films, Fridays at the Farm and True Cost of Food during the event.

Show your product at Travel Show in August
The deadline for exhibitors to participate in the Maryland Tourism and Travel Show has been extended. Sponsored by the Maryland Tourism Council and Arundel Mills, the annual show is Aug. 28-30 at Arundel Mills.

Documentary photographs on display at Backas Gallery
East Side Images, an exhibit of Ken Royster’s photographs that depict an East Baltimore neighborhood, runs through Sept. 25 at the James Backas Gallery. The gallery is located at the Maryland State Arts Council in downtown Baltimore near M&T Bank Stadium, 175 W. Ostend St. This exhibit is presented in conjunction with a show at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture.