Besides drawing many tourists to our nation's capital, Washington, D.C., is also close to many other sites and attractions that make good weekend trips. The District of Columbia is a short drive from many popular tourist destinations in Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. You can also travel from Washington by train. Quick weekend destinations have something to offer every traveler from history buffs, sailors and shoppers to tourists who just want to relax by water.
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, which is approximately 125 miles north of Washington, is the center of Pennsylvania Dutch country. On the first Friday of each month, downtown art galleries are open longer and feature artists who greet visitors, notes TravelTips.com. You can ride through the Amish countryside in an authentic Amish buggy. Quilt shops and farm stands can be found on the back roads and nearby eateries and restaurants serve traditional Pennsylvania Dutch meals.
Fredericksburg, Virginia, is about 50 miles south of Washington, D.C. This is where several Civil War battles were fought in 1862, so if offers much history, notes TravelTips.com. Next to the Fredericksburg National Cemetery, on Lafayette Street, is the National Park Service Visitor Center. You can choose between a ranger-guided or self-guided driving tour of the battlefields. The childhood home of George Washington lies across the Rappahannock River from Fredericksburg. Here tours, both guided and self-guided, relate stories of Washington's youth such as his tossing a silver dollar over the river and how he chopped down a cherry tree. The A. Smith Bowman Distillery and the Blue and Grey Brewing Company are other attractions.
Annapolis, Maryland is known as the "Sailing Capital of the World." Located about 33 miles east of Washington, Annapolis is home to the United States Naval Academy where tours of the academy are available, year-round. Maryland's capital contains one of the nation's highest concentrations of 18-century buildings with over 50 buildings built before the Revolutionary War. Tours are featured of homes of the three of the four signers of the Declaration of Independence, which include Samuel Chase, William Paca and Charles Carroll.
Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, home of America's first spa, lies about 105 miles northwest of Washington. Specialty shops, antique shops and spa businesses line Main Street with shops offering extended shopping hours the first Friday of every month. The Museum of Berkeley Springs has publications, exhibits and activities showcasing the noted warm mineral springs. It's open throughout the year and located in a Roman Bath House building, which was built in 1815 and is the town's oldest public building.
