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A Love Letter to Baltimore

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By Kelley Louise  •  Posted on Oct 01, 2019

Baltimore is ideal for a weekend escape from destinations like NYC or DC, and offers a mixture of arts and culture, farm-to-table food options and urban exploration.

If you’ve never tried putting Old Bay spice on your popcorn, it’s something you should consider. This little piece of advice is one of the (many) things that my Baltimore-raised boyfriend has taught me. Over the years, he’s shown me more hidden gems in Baltimore than I can count. When I asked for a couple of suggestions on what to include in a must-see list, he quickly listed off eight (and could have easily kept going). Because just like Baltimore, he’s charming.

The city is ideal for a weekend escape from destinations like NYC or DC, and offers a mixture of arts and culture, farm-to-table food options and urban exploration.

 

Where to Stay

Located in the center of the historic Mount Vernon neighborhood awaits Revival, a boutique art hotel and hipster’s paradise. Gather your bearings in the beautifully designed rooms and make a game-plan for your itinerary – but heads up: you may find yourself not wanting to leave. The rooftop bar boasts the city’s only 360 degree indoor views of the city, and each area is made up of thoughtfully designed sections that are both vibrant and welcoming.

 

Pro-tip: By booking your stay on KindTraveler.com, you'll unlock exclusive discounts at Revival. Kind Traveler’s Give + Get model allows you to access discounted rates after a $10 donation to a charity (and 100% of proceeds go to the nonprofit – but more on this later).

Photo: Elijah Hail

What to See

Just steps from Revival is what is perhaps the most magical library I’ve ever laid my eyes on, the Peabody Library. If Belle was your favorite Disney princess growing up, you’ll easily be swept away by the allure of the picture-perfect space. The library, which originally opened in 1866, holds more than 300,000 books within its collection, upholding funder George Peabody’s vision that it be “well furnished in every department of knowledge and of the most approved literature.”

Continue embracing your cultural side at the Baltimore Museum of Art, or for the less traditional, the Visionary Art Museum (art by people who never went to art school).

 

Where to Eat + Drink

Baltimore has a cozy way of making you feel at home even if it’s your first visit, and the restaurant scene is no exception. Visit Brewer’s Art Restaurant for a delicious sampling of New American style comfort food in a historic building (a former townhouse). Try the grilled market fish, or for the vegetarians, the homemade squash falafel.

For the farm-to-table connoisseurs, visit Foraged, a hyper-seasonal eatery in the Hampden neighborhood. The inspiration for the restaurant comes from Chef Amendola’s love for finding food in nature, so the menu changes with the seasons and all of the ingredients are locally sourced.

There’s also a burgeoning and rich beer scene in the city. Union Craft, Waverly Brewing Company, and Suspended Brewing will all appeal to micro-brewery enthusiasts, plus they each offer a solid place to relax and hang out with friends. In particular, Suspended Brewing will earn bonus points with goodly globetrotters, as their ethos is rooted in both eco-friendly and socially sustainable practices.

How to Travel Kindly

Traveling with impact means taking a lot of little steps throughout your journey to empower the community you’re visiting. Whether it’s supporting locally owned establishments or opting for eco-friendly experiences, little actions add up to big impact.

 

An easy way to support the local Baltimore community is through something as simple as where you choose to book your hotel. Kind Traveler makes it easy to donate to a charity, and voila: you’ll also unlock an exclusive rate to book a local hotel, such as Revival.

In Baltimore, Kind Traveler highlights Back on My Feet, a nonprofit that combats homelessness. The nonprofit's initiatives are centered around building community through running races, and also developing essential employment and housing resources.

“Our unique model demonstrates that if you first restore confidence, strength and self esteem, individuals are better equipped to tackle the road ahead,” said Sydney Van Horn, the Development and Marketing Director at Back on My Feet Baltimore.

A $10 donation will go toward initiatives like helping a member further their education, support a security deposit for a member to move into their own apartment, or help to provide job skills and assist members in finding employment.

And when that donation means that you can stay somewhere as welcoming as Revival, and explore Charm City’s diverse urban offerings, that’s an easy win/win.

Photos provided by: Visit Baltimore, Kelley Louise and Hotel Revival 
Kelley Louise is an entrepreneur and storyteller passionate about improving the world through travel. An intrepid traveler and innate connector, she is the founder of Impact Travel Alliance and Elsewhere Agency.

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