Baltimore's Historic Charles Street
Baltimore's Historic Charles Street is a National Scenic Byway in Maryland. Within Maryland it covers roughly 10 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Baltimore's Historic Charles Street with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
Baltimore's Historic Charles Street is a dozen-mile National Scenic Byway threading the heart of the city. It runs from the Charles Street-Beltway traffic circle in Lutherville south to the Beltway viaduct in South Baltimore, one of only four National Scenic Byways in the country set entirely in an urban environment, chosen not for open landscape but for density of culture: world-class museums, performing arts venues, professional sports, and dining, all reachable along a single corridor connecting Baltimore County's wooded neighborhoods to the Inner Harbor and Federal Hill. The route captures roughly 400 years of change, including the mid-20th-century urban renewal of the Inner Harbor and Charles Center that became a model copied by cities nationwide. Along the way it passes the Walters Art Museum, the National Aquarium, the Maryland Science Center, the Maryland Center for History and Culture, and, just off-route, Camden Yards and M&T Bank Stadium.
- ~12-mile urban National Scenic Byway
- Lutherville to South Baltimore's Federal Hill
- One of only 4 national byways set in a city
- Walters Art Museum
- National Aquarium & Maryland Science Center
- Inner Harbor urban renewal history
Plan a drive on Baltimore's Historic Charles Street →
What is a National Scenic Byway?
National Scenic Byways are roads recognized at the federal level for at least one outstanding quality — scenic, natural, historic, cultural, archaeological or recreational — that gives travelers a reason to seek them out rather than just pass through.
Where to Stay along Baltimore's Historic Charles Street
No campgrounds are listed close to Baltimore's Historic Charles Street yet, but there are rooms near the route.
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