Where to stay in Baltimore

Home is where the heart is, and for your trip to Baltimore, you’ll want your heart (and the rest of you) to be close to the stadium. First off, it’s always nice to be close to the ballpark. And second, the best lodging options for a Camden Yards visit, in our opinion, are right near the stadium in the Inner Harbor.

There are plenty of other options for where to stay in Baltimore, and even the furthest hotels are just a 20-30 minute walk to the stadium. This chapter will help you choose the right place for you to stay in downtown Baltimore.

Where Camden Yards is located

Camden Yards is in downtown Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, which is also where most of the city’s tourist attractions are located. While Baltimore has gotten its fair share of coverage for the things it is not good for, the Inner Harbor has long been a bright spot in the city. With the football and baseball stadiums, National Aquarium and many other attractions, the Inner Harbor is the hub of Baltimore’s tourism and a really great place to explore for a few days. 

Within the Inner Harbor, many restaurants and walkable areas are nearby. Federal Hill to the south across the harbor, the stadiums to the west of the harbor, and Fells Point and Little Italy to the Southeast all are great places to explore when you’re not at the stadium, and they’re all within a 30-minute walking radius.

Deciding where to stay

In Baltimore it’s all about the cost-to-steps ratio. You can stay right next door to the stadium, but you’ll probably pay for it. Or, you can stay a bit further, save some money, and walk off your beers and crab from the game. Both options are good, and we’ll break it down for you.

The hotels closest to Camden Yards

Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor, Marriott Inner Harbor, Hampton Inn

These three hotels are within a block of the stadium. Mere seconds from the best pregame bars, right near the gates to the stadium, and just a 20-minute walk from the aquarium, each of these hotels offers peak convenience. All of our favorite gameday attractions are right here, so assuming you can find a good price at any of them, we love the way this trio of hotels allows you to focus on your gameday experience rather than any transit issues.

Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor

At the Hilton, you are so close to the ballpark that you can literally see the game from the hotel’s rooftop deck. Of course you didn’t come to Baltimore to watch the game from the hotel, but if you’re looking for a place to pregame, you can bring your own drinks up to the rooftop to watch batting practice. If you’re driving in, the Hilton also has a park and stay option, which pretty much eliminates any travel worries during your trip.

Built in 2008 and renovated as recently as 2019, the Hilton is really an all-in-one option: park, eat, pregame, stay right next to the stadium … it’s a really easy option.

Marriott Inner Harbor

The Marriott is a whopping two walking minutes further from the stadium than the Hilton, which is to say it’s very close as well. You can park your car with the Marriott as well, and they have a number of on-site restaurants for pregaming.

Hampton Inn

The Hampton Inn is usually the cheapest of the three hotels that immediately abet Camden Yards, and it’s tied with the Hilton for the closest. It’s also the closest to the Babe Ruth Museum, which is just three blocks to the west. The Hampton Inn offers complimentary breakfast and valet parking too. This is a great option if convenience is important, but you prefer a lower price point.

The Hampton Inn has a nice patio that is mere feet from the main pregaming bars, but it is not a good place to pregame unless you’re bringing your own beverages. Their “bar” is a mini-fridge behind the concierge desk, and since you barely need to leave your room to get to the best pregaming Baltimore has to offer, we say you skip the Hampton patio and go do the pregame experience for real. 

Hotels within a 10-minute walk from Camden Yards

The Days Inn, Sheraton, Hyatt Regency

You can’t fall out of bed and into the stadium from these hotels, but they are still close enough that the crowd flowing out of Camden Yards after a game will continue well beyond you when you arrive at your hotel. And what this group of hotels offers is a central location between Camden Yards and some of the Inner Harbor’s main attractions, like the Baltimore Aquarium. So if you want to be a bit closer to some of the tourist spots, these hotels are good choices.

The Days Inn (7 minute walk, 0.3 mi)

A mid-range option, the Days Inn offers free breakfast and self-parking. The walk from the Days Inn to the ballpark takes you along Pratt Street, where most of the gameday foot traffic will be, so there will be plenty of fans on your route. It’s an older hotel, built in 1984, but it’s been renovated and they have either pullout sofa beds or cots available if you’re traveling with family.

The Sheraton Inner Harbor (9 minute walk, 0.4 mi)

Though it was built in 1985, the Sheraton is still among the nicer options to stay at in Baltimore. Depending on which room you stay in, you can open the shades to see either the baseball stadium or Inner Harbor through your window. The Sheraton offers on-site parking and restaurants, and like the Hyatt Regency below, is a straight walk up Conway Street to the right field gates at Camden Yards.

Hyatt Regency (10 minute walk, 0.5 mi)

With views of the northwest corner of the Inner Harbor and glass exterior, the Hyatt Regency looks the part of a beautiful hotel. They also have a rooftop pool bar with harbor views.

Hotels within a 20-minute walk of Camden Yards

Residence Inn, Renaissance Hotel, SpringHill Suites by Marriott

There are a bunch of other hotels that are within a 20-minute walk of the ballpark, and we consider them to be completely fine. You don’t need us to explain each one, as you’ll recognize the names and you can check out the ratings. These hotels may be a little less expensive than some of the other ones we’ve mentioned, because they’re a bit of a further walk. But as long as you’re picking a hotel inside of our “TSI Hotel Zone,” you should be fine.

Hotel options beyond walking distance

If you can’t book a hotel in either of our first three categories, fret not. There are some good options on the east side of the Inner Harbor, and just beyond that in Fells Point. Both are walkable and safe at night, but a 15+ minute walk makes taking the bus or a rideshare after the game a strong option as well.

To get from Camden Yards to the eastside of the Inner Harbor by bus, the quickest route is to ride the Orange bus to the corner of President Street and Eastern Ave in Little Italy. From there, it’s just a short ten-minute walk to your hotel. To get to Fells Point, your best option is to take the Navy City Link one stop past the Inner Harbor to Eastern Avenue and Broadway. That will drop you just a couple minutes from your hotel. 

In these neighborhoods, there are hotels and bed and breakfasts at all price points, including a couple of five-star hotels we’ll note, so whether you want your hotel to introduce you to a new neighborhood, you prefer the harbor to the city, or the closer options were already booked, here are some lodging options on the eastside of the Inner Harbor and in Fells Point.

Four Seasons Baltimore (30 minute walk, 17 minutes by bus, 1.4 mi)

Though a bit far, the Four Seasons has a lot going for it. Right on the harbor’s water and next to a Whole Foods, the Four Seasons has a rooftop pool, spa, and multiple restaurant options. This is certainly a pricier option, but it will make for a great high end visit to Baltimore.

Courtyard Marriott Inner Harbor (29 min walk, 14 min by bus, 1.4 mi)

A block past the Four Seasons, the Courtyard is slightly more accessible by bus, but isn’t directly on the water. It also has an on-site bistro and a 24-hour gym.

Hilton Garden Inn Inner Harbor (27 min walk, 18 min by bus, 1.4 mi)

The Garden Inn is right next to the Courtyard Marriott and Four Seasons, and sits in the same price range as the Courtyard. The rooftop garden stands out among the amenities.

Sagamore Pendry Baltimore (35 min walk, 25 min by bus, 1.9 mi)

A five-star hotel in Fells Point, the Sagamore Pendry is as far from the stadium as you should probably stay. But as Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards’ 2018 Best Hotel in the U.S. we couldn’t leave it off the list. Their pool deck overlooks the harbor, and they offer multiple restaurant options, including a whiskey bar. The fitness center is open 24-hours, and there is a spa as well. 

Hotel Comparison Summary

Options outside Baltimore

There are a few areas outside the city but still in Maryland where you could think about staying. Laurel, near the Laurel Park horse track, is on the Camden MARC line. Aberdeen, near Cal Ripken’s childhood town and where the Oriole affiliate Aberdeen Ironbirds play High-A baseball at Ripken, is on the Penn MARC line. 

With that said, we think these options are not relevant for a Camden Yards visit. The hotels in Laurel are far enough from the MARC station that you would need to take a taxi or rideshare from the train to your hotel, which just adds too much inconvenience. The MARC train to and from Aberdeen doesn’t run during the weekends, and the last weekday train to Aberdeen leaves Baltimore at 10:00 pm, so you might have to miss the end of an Orioles game to make your train.

Our suggestion is to build your visit to Camden Yards around the Inner Harbor. The best part of a dense city center is enjoying the proximity to all the things you want to do.

Bottom Line

Downtown Baltimore is tightly packed, so you’ll never be too far. Our advice:

1. If there’s an acceptable rate, stay next door to the Camden Yards. The closer you are to the stadium, the less complicated your gameday experience will be.
2. Stay within walking distance of the stadium. If you can keep your in-city travel to walking, you’ll have much less to think about before and after games.
3. Stay further out, but not past the Inner Harbor or Fells Point. You’ll be a quick rideshare from the stadium, and near the other downtown attractions. Any further than this and you’ve gone too far.