We’ve got plans for NYC and DC… But not sure where to stop inbetween!
Probably Philadelphia for one day… Maybe head up towards York… Or explore Delaware?
It’s a roadtrip so mostly looking for good food, and hopefully some nice scenic routes to avoid boring highways.
Interests include anything car/motorbike/plane related. So catching an airshow or NASCAR race or something would be amazing. Anything going on over the next two weeks?
Thanks!
19 comments
I assume you’ve seen that the Thunderbirds will be in NY/NJ/PA later this month.
What time of year?
Into history? Check out Philadelphia and maybe even Gettysburg
Want to see a cool aquarium? [The National Aquarium in Baltimore](https://aqua.org/) is pretty cool (as are other things in Baltimore)
The only “applicable” NASCAR races would be Pocono, Dover, Richmond, *maybe* Watkins Glen or Martinsville if you really wanted to make that the focus of your whole trip.
There’s the Oceana Airshow September 17th/18th in Norfolk Virginia that’s pretty cool.
If you’re going to Philly I’d recommend the Second Continental Congress, the Art Museum, a walk down South Street, and Old City. Avoid Pats and Genos like the plague. If you want some great authentic Italian food Ralph’s in South Philly is a great place to stop by. Feels like any minute Michael is going to walk in and take out Sollozzo. Maybe that’s racist but it’s got that small family-owned vibe. Depending on what time of year you might be able to catch a Phillies, Flyers, 76ers, or Eagles game to get a feel for how die-hard they are about sports in that city. Great tailgate culture there. Just across the river in Camden are some naval battleships that you can tour so that’s pretty cool too.
If you are into NASCAR and motorsport Delaware has the Monster Mile in Dover. There may be an event there or not but the highlight is the massive statue of a car-eating monster outside the arena. Also there’s no sales tax in Delaware so if you want to make any pricier purchases on your trip I’d do it there. Maybe load up on some American snacks to take home?
I would detour through Shenandoah Nat’l Park / drive skyline drive.
Udvar Hazy in Fairfax, Virginia is a must see if you like planes. It’s near Dulles Airport.
SR 71, concord, space shuttle
https://airandspace.si.edu/udvar-hazy-center
The Inner Harbor area in Baltimore has lots to see. If you’re looking to buy stuff, there’s no sales tax in Delaware.
Princeton, NJ
Philly
Udvar Hazy Center in Dulles Virgina (maybe just do this while in DC)
Scenic routes, while not unheard of, willbe kind of difficult to stay on without going way out of your way as NYC – DC is some of the most congested space in the US
I’m a DC resident who grew up right outside of NYC, so off the bat I’m a fan of your road trip! Philly is definitely a good choice for a visit, but if you have time I wouldn’t pass up on Baltimore either. While it’s less popular as a tourist destination, it’s a really fun, affordable city to spend a day or two in. There are several major museums, the inner harbor neighborhood is fun to walk around, and it had a really underrated restaurant scene. It’s also home to one of the only decent barbecue places I’ve found in the North.
There are bike and car shows throughout the summer in that area, I don’t know if any of them will be happening when you’ll be there but they tend to be down at the beach towns in new jersey, delaware, and maryland.
You have four days to spend between New York and dc? As in visiting those two cities is not included, right?
If it was me, I’d probably spend part of the first day up in the mountains, like around the Delaware water Gap and Stroudsburg or something. Then come down into Philly spend the night and the next day there. Check out old city and chinatown, check out the Italian market and some of South philly, plenty of historical shit to see along with a ton of museums. On the third day head out to the beach, maybe down to Cape May, catch a couple rays, drink an orange crush and then hop on the ferry into Delaware and spend that night in baltimore. On the last day hang out there, hit up the visionary arts museum for sure, hang out at fells point or wherever, and from there you’re like less than an hour from DC
Nothing to explore in Delaware.
I’d recommend either driving via Princeton to the New Hope area – these are quaint, somewhat upscale places where there is good food and shopping and a variety of things to do; or going to the NJ shore – there is great food and shopping there too as well as some classic boardwalks and beaches and so on. (Do not go to Atlantic City. Good places include Asbury Park, Spring Lake, Seaside, Long Beach Island, Cape May.)
Then, after Philly, go via Gettysburg PA and visit the historical Civil War stuff that’s out there. You could also go to Hershey Park, a relatively popular amusement park, if that’s your jam; or visit Lancaster PA, which is “amish country.”
From there it’s a pleasant drive south to DC. You could also go via Baltimore and check out the aquarium. I would also recommend stopping in Annapolis Maryland, a very cool little city with (again) good shopping and food and a truly great state capitol building, only about 45 ish minutes from DC. You should also get some Maryland crabs to eat, they are amazing and this is the right time of year.
Princeton
Cute little town full of great restaurants and good shopping. Best ice cream in the state at the bent spoon. Tiger noodle is fantastic too
Nice scenery on the drive into and out of.
Then head to Philly if you want
How long are you spending in DC and NYC? Because you could spend a week or more in either and not see everything; it might be better (and probably cheaper) to spend less time on the road and more time in DC or NYC.
On the subject of planes, make sure in the DC area not to miss the Smithsonian air and space museum annex; it’s outside the city so they have space to keep a ton of historic planes there.
Check out any museum ships in the area. If you’re looking more plane stuff, the Intrepid in NYC is a carrier and will probably have some planes on the deck (at least that’s how the Yorktown was when I visited). Massachusetts has several, including a battleship, as well (not exactly “on the way” between NYC and DC, but with 4 days of travel time you have plenty of time to make day trips out and back).
Gettysburg is a pretty cool little town if you are into that sort of thing.
Battleship NJ in Camden, right across the river from Philly
After Philadelphia you can head due south to Delaware and check out Rehoboth or Dewey. I prefer DE beaches to the Jersey shore. They are worth spending a night if you can get a room.
Then you can hit up Annapolis on the way to DC. They’ve got a cure little downtown area you can stop for lunch or even just ice cream. I would just spend an afternoon there on the way to DC.
I live outside of Philly. Philly would be a great day visit. Great restaurants.
Also, do you like the ocean? It’s peak shore season in NJ Shore, and you could get a great experience that very few non-Americans experience. I’d go to one with a boardwalk. Boardwalks have classic boardwalk food for you to experience, and there are many good restaurants around. Also plenty to do besides swimming and chilling on the beach. THey have miniature golf, lazer tag, amusement park rides, water parks, etc.
Ocean City boardwalk sells no liquor and is more family friendly
Wildwood Crest is classic.
Cape May has a great downtown
Pt Pleasant is just pretty, and pretty close to Island Beach State Park.
I could go on, but I’d strongly recommend going to the shore.
I’m only familiar with the Philadelphia-DC stretch:
Philly is cool, there’s a lot of stuff to check out around Independence Hall and the art museum. There’s lots of fancy restaurants around City Hall too
For a scenic drive, you can drive through the Amish country around Lancaster and York counties. There’s antique shops to check out there too. Some Amish farms offer tours and buggy rides.
The beach towns and boardwalks in south Jersey are worth it in the summer. I’ve always liked Wildwood. Atlantic City is hit-or-miss
Crossing into Maryland, Elk Neck State Park is nice. There’s lots of farmlands to drive through on the Eastern Shore if you enjoy that. Ocean City MD is a popular summer beach destination, it has boardwalks and beaches as well
Baltimore has the National Aquarium, you can walk around the inner harbor, and Charles Village, Mount Vernon, and Federal Hill have decent places for food and drinks.
Annapolis is great too. Lots of old historical buildings and streets, good restaurants too. Chik n Ruth’s Delly is a local favorite
On the way to DC is the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. If you go *make sure* you type in NASA and not NSA into your navigation. Their headquarters is just a few miles up the road from NASA and might not take kindly to uninvited foreign visitors
Near DC is the National Harbor with shopping, restaurants, bars, and a ferris wheel. There’s the MGM casino/hotel close by too if you’re into that
In DC itself you have all of the memorial buildings and museums, the National Archives are cool. Dupont Circle has a lot of restaurants and bars. Same thing with M Street in Georgetown.
Happy travels and hope you have fun!
All the museums and monuments on the Washington Mall.
Baltimore’s inner harbor.