South to Annapolis, northwest to Gettysburg, north to Lancaster
Three directions, three kinds of day. Washington gets its own verdict below — it’s the fourth direction, and the odd one out.
| Day trip | Terminal to it | Back to the terminal | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annapolis | 25.7 mi · 44 min | 29.4 mi · 41 min | Maryland; city garages, rates not shown to us |
| Gettysburg | 60.1 mi · 1 hr 33 min | 61.5 mi · 1 hr 35 min | Pennsylvania; park entry free |
| Lancaster | 73.2 mi · 1 hr 51 min | 72.2 mi · 1 hr 48 min | Pennsylvania; Amish Farm and House |
| Gettysburg to Lancaster | 58.3 mi · 1 hr 40 min | — | The middle leg of a two-day loop |
| Union Station, Washington | 37.6 mi · 58 min | 38.3 mi · 58 min | Garage $13 for the first hour; MARC instead |
OpenStreetMap routing, no traffic, no stops; we didn’t check which roads each route takes, so tolls are counted only where the port’s directions put one. Read Oct 3, 2026. Our routing
Each figure is a free-flow routing from East McComas Street, not a promise — I-95 and the Beltway run slower at rush hour.
Gettysburg and Lancaster are both in Pennsylvania, roughly 58 miles apart — close enough for a two-day loop.
Before a cruise, the return is what goes wrong. City desks shut by 6 PM on weekdays and by 2 PM at weekends, so a long day out ends at BWI, and the hub’s checker shows which desk is still open.
Cruise Maryland suggests the National Aquarium, Fell’s Point, Fort McHenry and Lexington Market the day before; the commission’s flat cab fare from the terminal to Fort McHenry is $5.50. None of those needs a car.
Washington, D.C. from Baltimore: why it’s a MARC ticket, not a road trip
Washington is the one day trip from Baltimore where the train beats the rental before you’ve left the station.
The rental, line by line
The $50 base rate is our assumption for a city desk; type yours. Maryland’s 11.5% is in, the garage is Union Station’s $26 maximum, and fuel covers about 76 miles there and back at AAA’s Baltimore average. MARC is shown as a round trip from Baltimore Penn; a cab to Penn Station from your hotel isn’t included on either side.
MARC’s Penn Line runs Baltimore Penn to Washington for $9 one way, or $8 from BWI, and MARC lets two children under six ride free with a full-fare adult.
Union Station’s 24-hour garage charges $13 for up to an hour, $18 to two, $23 to ten and $25 to 24 hours (it also prints a $26 daily maximum); multi-day parking starts at $39.
Put two people through the sum and the car comes to about $93 with the garage, our arithmetic, against $36 return on MARC. At four people MARC is $72 while the car barely changes — the gap narrows to about $21, and the train still wins.
Union Station prints two prices for a full day, $25 for 10 to 24 hours and a $26 daily maximum. We used the higher one. A visit under ten hours is $23 — about $3 off the car, and the train still wins.
We didn’t check MARC’s weekend timetable, so look before you plan a Saturday in Washington. Skip the car either way.
Annapolis and the Naval Academy: park in town, walk in through Gate 1
Annapolis is the short one, under an hour each way, and the Academy decides how you spend it.
The Naval Academy doesn’t let visitors drive in: park in town and walk through Gate 1, and adults need a REAL ID, a passport or an enhanced licence.
The Armel-Leftwich Visitor Center is open daily 9 to 5 (410-293-TOUR). We couldn’t read its tour prices.
Downtown has five city garages: Gott’s Court, Knighton, Park Place, State and the newly opened Noah Hillman. A free shuttle runs from the West Street garages to City Dock, and street meters run Monday to Saturday 10 AM to 8:30 PM and Sunday noon to 7:30 PM.
The city’s parking site wouldn’t show us garage rates, so the sum here stops short. The car itself is about $64 for the day, our arithmetic on a $50 base with tax and fuel — add whatever the garage charges.
Bring the ID — a driver’s license that isn’t REAL ID-compliant means a passport in the bag, not a wasted morning at the gate.
Gettysburg from the cruise port: a free battlefield and a $20.75 museum
The battlefield costs nothing to enter, which leaves the museum as the one ticket to decide on.
The rental, line by line
Our $50 base rate, Maryland’s 11.5% rental tax and fuel for about 122 miles round trip at 30 mpg. The museum ticket is the Park Service’s adult price for each traveler; children cost less, so the line overstates a family. We counted no toll, though we didn’t check every road on the route.
Gettysburg National Military Park needs no entrance pass; the battlefield and visitor center are free, open daily from 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset.
The Museum & Visitor Center ticket covers the film, the Cyclorama and the museum: $20.75 for adults and $15.75 for ages 6 to 12, with under-6s and active military free.
So the battlefield is free and the museum is a choice, not an entry fee. Two adults with the car and the tickets come to about $115; two adults and two kids aged 6 to 12 about $146, our arithmetic.
We priced Gettysburg by car alone, not against a bus or a tour — we didn’t look for either, and won’t pretend to a fare.
The park closes 30 minutes after sunset, so a winter day there is short — leave early, and plan the return at BWI if a city desk will have shut.
Lancaster County’s Amish farms, 73 miles up the road
Lancaster is the farthest of the three, close to two hours each way by our routing. Start early.
The Amish Farm and House, 2395 Covered Bridge Drive in Lancaster, is open daily 10 to 5; its Amish bus tour starts at $28.95, at 11, 1 and 3, and it recommends booking (717-394-6185).
Two people on that tour with a car day come to about $134, our arithmetic — the drive is the longer half of it.
Lancaster’s tourism site wouldn’t load for us, so we can’t point you at its listings or its parking.
A weekend Lancaster day is unlikely to be back before the city desks close at 1 or 2 PM. Plan that return at BWI.
Gettysburg and Lancaster in one overnight loop
Both Pennsylvania stops in one go, with a night between them.
The loop runs about 191 miles from the terminal to Gettysburg, on to Lancaster and back, roughly 5 hr 01 min of driving by our routing.
A two-day car for it is about $139 before the hotel, on our $50 base with tax and fuel — we haven’t priced a room in either town.
After a cruise this is the natural shape — the car goes back at BWI on day two, near your flight.
The after-cruise page covers which desk will hand you the car the morning you dock.
A day-trip car from a Baltimore desk, booked for the hours you need
Book the car for the day out, not the nights around it. A rental parked at a hotel overnight pays a day for nothing.
For Washington, don’t book one at all.
- Pick-up: BWI or a Baltimore desk
- One day or a two-day loop
- Taxes and fees shown before you pay
- Free cancellation up to 48 hrs before pickup
Day trips from the Baltimore cruise port, answered
How far is Gettysburg from the Baltimore cruise port?
About 60.1 miles and 1 hr 33 min without traffic, by our routing from the terminal on East McComas Street. The return is about 61.5 miles.
Is it better to drive or take the train from Baltimore to Washington, D.C.?
The train, on our numbers. MARC is $9 each way from Baltimore Penn, and Union Station’s garage alone prints a $26 daily maximum. Two people come to $36 return by MARC against about $93 by car.
Can you drive onto the Naval Academy in Annapolis?
No. Visitors park in town and walk in through Gate 1, and adults need a REAL ID, a passport or an enhanced license. The visitor center is open daily 9 to 5.
Does Gettysburg National Military Park charge an entrance fee?
No. The battlefield and the visitor center are free. The Museum & Visitor Center ticket, covering the film, the Cyclorama and the museum, is $20.75 for adults and $15.75 for ages 6 to 12.
How long is the drive from Baltimore to Lancaster’s Amish country?
About 73.2 miles and 1 hr 51 min from the cruise terminal to the Amish Farm and House, by our routing without traffic.
How much is parking at Union Station in Washington?
Its garage charges $13 for up to an hour, $18 to two, $23 to ten and $25 to 24 hours, and also prints a $26 daily maximum. Multi-day parking starts at $39.
More on renting around a Baltimore cruise
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