Solomons Island, MD

The top-rated restaurant on Solomons Island — #1 of 23 on Tripadvisor — a comfortable, well-run American kitchen that has been part of the island's dining scene since 1996 and continues to hold its position through consistent quality rather than novelty. The menu covers Chesapeake Bay seafood alongside well-executed land dishes in a room that works for everything from a relaxed lunch to a serious dinner.

A waterfront restaurant on Solomons Island Road that operates at the more ambitious end of the island's dining scene with contemporary American cooking, house-made pasta, and fresh-caught Chesapeake Bay seafood in a room that has genuine waterfront views and interior design that matches. Ranked third on the island, it's the choice for visitors who want something more polished than the casual crab houses.

A newer arrival on the island that quickly built a following by applying a broad American approach to local ingredients — Maryland crab cakes alongside Pacific Northwest salmon and Southern shrimp and grits on the same menu. The coastal-casual décor and water views make it one of the more comfortable dining rooms on the island, and the kitchen sources locally while keeping the format accessible.

A combination seafood market and casual cafe at the waterfront that's been on Solomons Island for decades, known especially for its crab cakes which have developed a reputation well beyond the island. The market side sells fresh local catch and steamed blue crabs in season; the cafe tables let you eat what you've bought or ordered on-site. Unpretentious and consistent.

The original Stoney's location on Broomes Island, about eight miles north of Solomons, that established the operation's reputation as one of the better waterfront crab houses in Calvert County. The setting — a converted fish house on Fishing Creek — is as authentic as Southern Maryland waterfront dining gets. The kitchen does steamed crabs, rockfish, and oysters with the directness you'd want from a place this close to the source.

A waterfront restaurant at the head of Solomons Island serving fresh Chesapeake Bay seafood — crab cakes, oysters, and Maryland classics — in a room with views over the Patuxent River. The crab cakes use fresh lump meat and minimal filler, which is the local test of quality. A reliable second choice when the better-known spots on the island have waits.

The 1.8-mile trail through Calvert Cliffs State Park from the parking area to the Chesapeake Bay beach at the foot of the ancient sea bed cliffs — the most direct route to the fossil hunting and water access that make this park distinctive. The trail passes through wetland boardwalk sections and mixed coastal forest before opening onto the narrow beach.

The island's waterfront walk combined with a kayak or paddleboard session on the sheltered waters of Back Creek gives the most complete picture of what Solomons is: a working boating town sitting at the convergence of the Patuxent River and Chesapeake Bay. The creek is calm enough for beginners, and the route past historic boat works and the museum basin is more interesting than open-water paddling.

A longer circuit through Calvert Cliffs State Park combining the Blue and Yellow Trails for a 5-mile route that covers more of the park's forested interior before reaching the beach — offering greater variety than the direct Red Trail and a better sense of the park's full scale. The additional miles cover upland forest habitat that the coastal route doesn't show.

The museum hosts an annual calendar of festivals and events that fill the waterfront campus with energy beyond the standing exhibits: the Patuxent River Appreciation Day each fall, holiday boat parades, and weekend demonstrations at the working boat basin where historic Chesapeake vessels are maintained. The Lore Oyster House also opens for special events that provide direct context on the working oyster trade.

A two-hour BYOB tiki boat cruise on the Patuxent River operating from the Beacon Marina, taking groups of up to six through the waters around Solomons Island with a captain who narrates the local geography, wildlife, and history as you go. The format — bring your own drinks and food, the boat provides coolers and ice — is social and relaxed in a way that packaged boat tours are not.

Beyond the permanent sculpture garden, Annmarie hosts an annual schedule of outdoor concerts, maker's markets, family events, and seasonal art installations that use the full wooded grounds. The summer concert series and the Garden in Lights winter event transform the space after dark in ways the daylight visit doesn't suggest. Programming is consistently high-quality for the region.

Solomons Island's location at the confluence of the Patuxent River and Chesapeake Bay makes it one of the best sailing departures on the western shore, with charter operators offering everything from sunset cruises to full-day Chesapeake Bay sails. The harbor supports a working fleet and several charter operations that range from formal instruction to private sailing yacht rentals.

A kayak, paddleboard, and bike rental outfit on the Solomons Island waterfront that makes the island's water and trail resources accessible without requiring your own gear. Guided tours of Back Creek and the Patuxent River are available alongside standard rentals, and the staff give useful orientation for those unfamiliar with the local waterways and currents.

The anchor attraction of Solomons Island, this waterfront museum integrates three distinct themes in a single visit: 15-million-year-old Miocene fossils from the Calvert Cliffs, live Chesapeake Bay marine exhibits including resident river otters and stingray touch tanks, and the 1883 Drum Point Lighthouse — one of only four surviving screwpile lighthouses on the bay. The working boat basin outside features historic vessels you can board when they're in port.

A Smithsonian-affiliated outdoor sculpture garden on 30 wooded acres with over 30 large-scale pieces on permanent and rotating loan from the Smithsonian Institution and National Gallery of Art, set on a woodland trail that makes the works feel discovered rather than displayed. The Arts Building hosts rotating gallery shows and runs studio classes, while the fairy house trail offers a whimsical second loop through the garden.

A mile-long waterfront promenade connecting the heart of the island to Back Creek and the Patuxent River confluence, running past marinas, the Calvert Marine Museum boat basin, restaurants, and views of the Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge. This is where the island's life happens — watermen returning, sailboats maneuvering, and pelicans working the shallows alongside the docks. The walk takes 20 minutes each way and shows you the real character of the place.

The centerpiece of the Calvert Marine Museum, this 1883 screwpile cottage lighthouse was originally located at the mouth of the Patuxent River and was relocated to the museum grounds in 1975 to save it from demolition. It's one of the best-preserved examples of the screwpile design that once dotted the Chesapeake, and guided tours of the furnished interior bring the isolation of a 19th-century lighthouse keeper's life into sharp focus.

A 1,460-acre state park 10 miles north of Solomons featuring a 1.8-mile trail through coastal forest and wetland that leads to a sandy Chesapeake Bay beach at the base of 100-foot ancient sea bed cliffs. Over 600 fossil species from the Miocene era have been documented in the eroding cliffs, including sharks' teeth that wash onto the beach at the high-tide line. The combination of an accessible beach, rare geology, and a meaningful walk to get there makes this one of the most distinctive day hikes in Maryland.