Hotel recommendation in Baltimore, near MARC station

[mleng]

Hi, my family will extend the cruise vacation by a few days afterward.  We want to stay in a long-term-stay type of hotel (Residence Inn, Towne Place Suites, Homewood Suites, or similar type with free breakfast and a kitchen) and do some sightseeing in Baltimore and in Washington DC.  Based on my research, the best way to go into DC is via MARC train.  So I would like to get recommendations on hotels that are near a MARC station that I can park&ride for free.  Any advice?  Thanks.

[mleng]

One more thing to add to my request:  we will have a car, so we don't want to stay in a hotel in downtown Baltimore or Inner Harbor that charges $30~40 a day for parking.  We are willing to stay a little farther out of the city so that we can park for free, then drive to the nearest MARC station and do a free park&ride. (Obviously don't want to be too far out of the city.)  

 

Thank you for any suggestion you guys may have.

[markeb]

You’re probably looking at the airport area along or near Nursery Road. There’s a MARC station at BWI. Google MARC BWI for basic info. The hotels may run a shuttle to the station. 
 

There is definitely a Residence Inn in the area, and pretty much every other flavor of hotel as well. 

[Cruisingformetime]

Concur with the Nursery Road area, and with hooking up with the MARC Train. Remember, though, that parking is very limited at some MARC stations. Parking is good at BWI, at Odenton, and at New Carrollton, but any of the others, not so much. Airport areas can also be a bit pricey.

Tip: MARC has more than one line that runs between Baltimore and DC. Previous recommendations are all on the Penn Line, but you might give some thought to a Camden Line station as well if you are traveling during the week. The Brunswick Line runs north of DC and up into West Virginia, so is probably not what you want. https://www.mta.maryland.gov/ can offer more insight into schedules and stations for all three lines.

[msmit002]

You are correct.  It's best to mass transit into both Washington DC and Baltimore.  You certainly can do MARC as it is quite convenient to get from central MD into DC but don't discount the DC Metro system  https://www.wmata.com/ especially if you plan on seeing quite a bit in DC.  The Metro is pretty efficient for getting from one major area of the city to another (such as getting from the Smithsonian/National Mall to the National Zoo). Instead of getting tickets for MARC and Metro, you can drive to a Metro stop, park the car (parking isn't terribly expensive) and then utilize Metro for your DC days.

Getting into Baltimore from BWI is really easy and inexpensive as the Light Rail  (https://www.bwiairport.com/to-from-bwi/transportation/transit/mta-light-rail)  goes directly form the airport, straight through Baltimore, and to points north.  And, it's really inexpensive.  While you are in Baltimore, you might find riding the free Charm City Circulator bus system.(https://www.charmcitycirculator.com/)  a good way to get around.

 

As for hotels, you've received lots of good information.  Can't remember any of them charging for parking while you stay there and all are very conveniently located around the airport.  One that might be of particular interest to you is the Residence Inn at Arundel Mills.  It's a short drive from BWI, and right at the mall where you have access to all kinds of dining and entertainment for when you aren't tootling around the big cities.

 

[Tony O]

Also you may want to check out  trinityreservations.com  for park and cruise  specials.

[mleng]

Thanks to all for the great advice. 

 

It's amazing there are 3 or 4 different types of public transportation in the Baltimore, DC area, each serving a different geographic area but also overlapping somewhat.  It's going to make a very interesting decision-making process to compare all the hotel prices with the amenities they offer, and taking into consideration their proximity to various train/light rail routes.  🙂