Downtown Prince Frederick

Prince Frederick is a community of 3,200 people (2020) in Southern Maryland.

Get in

You'll only get to Prince Frederick by car, and MD-4 is the main road going north-south between Washington, D.C. and Solomons. It goes right through the heart of Prince Frederick. Just north of Prince Frederick it converges with MD-2, which heads north to Annapolis and on to Baltimore.

There is commuter bus service to and from Washington, D.C. that is provided by the Maryland Transit Agency.

See

• 1 Battle Creek Cypress Swamp, 2880 Grays Rd, ☏ +1 410-535-5327. Tu-Sa 10AM-4:30PM, Su 1-4:30PM. The country's northernmost cypress swamp has an elevated boardwalk for a walk and wildlife spotting, as well as an informative nature center, open year round. Free. 
• Jefferson-Patterson Park, 1515 Mackall Rd, St Leonard (from Prince Frederick, drive south on Route 4; take a right on Broome's Island Road, then left on Mackall Road. Follow Mackall Road approximately 8 miles, turn right at the park entrance). Jefferson-Patterson Park is a 560-acre park set on the Patuxent River. It is home to a state history and archeology museum telling the story of the Chesapeake Bay's entire 12,000 year history of habitation. Includes a reconstructed Native American village and extensive displays on Maryland agriculture from the colonial period to the present. The Park is also home to the Maryland Archeology Conservation Lab, a state-of-the-art research, conservation, and collections storage facility. It also has water access to the river; the beaches are small but are often deserted and the sand and water quality is often better than that of the Bay. Very child-friendly, with numerous hands-on displays and activities. Free. 

Do

Battle Creek Cypress Swamp

• 1 American Chestnut Land Trust, 165 Vianney Ln (Shares parking lot with St. John Vianney Church), ☏ +1 410-414-3400. 22 miles (35 km) of hiking trails. Guided nature hikes are sometimes available. free. (updated Jan 2023)

Eat

• 1 Adam's Taphouse and Grille, 2200 Solomon's Island Rd (Route 4), ☏ +1 410-586-0001. Roadside barbecue joint. Local chain with other locations in Annapolis, Severna Park, and Salisbury. Excellent pulled pork and smoked ribs. $10-25. 
• 2 Heritage 485, 485 Main St, ☏ +1 443-968 8338. W Th 4PM-9PM, F 10AM-3PM. Upscale comfort food. (updated Jan 2021)
• 3 Stoney's Seafood House, 896 Costley Way, ☏ +1 410-586-1888. Maryland is known for blue crabs, and the Washington Post voted Stoney's as having the best crab cakes in the state (and, by extension, the universe). There are three locations: on Broomes Island, in the Fox Run Shopping Center in Prince Frederick, and on the Solomons Island Pier, but the Broomes Island location is the oldest and the one with the best ambiance, as it sits directly on the water of the Patuxent River. Crab cakes come in two sizes, small and regular. The small is the size of a baseball and ordered as a sandwich is an ample meal for one. Order the regular and they'll have to carry you out. Stoney's also has great tomato-based seafood chowder, fried rockfish (another Maryland classic), mussels, and potato salad. Be warned that the Broomes Island location is closed during the winter months, so call ahead to make sure they're open. The other locations are open year-round. $15-30. 

Sleep

• 1 SpringHill Suites, 75 Sherry Ln. A medium-sized all-suites property just south of Prince Frederick shopping center. $90-120. 
• 2 Super 8, 40 Commerce Ln, ☏ +1 410-535-8668. The budget option at the intersection of MD-2 and MD-4. $65-90.