A low-key barrier island, Assateague is a place to relax. In the Maryland section of the national seashore, you can cycle along a 4-mile road, hike nature trails, paddle a kayak, check out the exhibits at the visitor center, catch a ranger talk or simply chill out on the beach. You might even spot some of the famed wild horses. If you enter the park as a pedestrian or cyclist, admission is free. Camping is allowed year-round.
© Vicky Faye Aquino / Shutterstock
Assateague Island National Seashore
Maryland
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum
9.67 MILES
This small but engaging museum sits inside an 1891 life-saving station at the southern end of the boardwalk. Here, the station keeper and six to eight …
28.86 MILES
Six miles east of Laurel, Trap Pond State Park is the home of the northernmost bald cypress habitat – a flooded forest that looks like it lurched out of…
Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge
22.64 MILES
This lush preserve has hiking trails where you can look for wild horses. There's also beachfront and a lighthouse. The 3¼-mile Wildlife Loop is open to…
2.95 MILES
The Maryland-run section of Assateague Island stretches for 2 miles along the coast and is tucked within the boundaries of the national seashore. Come…
16.09 MILES
The Shad Landing section of Pocomoke River State Park, part of the 15,000-acre Pocomoke State Forest and located about 3.5 miles south of Snow Hill, is an…
25.12 MILES
This museum is built around a little-known but fascinating art form that was largely perfected by two brothers who rarely left their small town. In the…
9.75 MILES
If you really want to engage in tacky seaside fun to the fullest possible extent, hit up Trimpers Rides, one of the oldest of old-school amusement parks…
19.64 MILES
This barrier island park tucked between Bethany Beach to the north and Ocean City, MD to the south offers peaceful groves and 3 miles of quiet beach and…
Nearby Maryland attractions
2.95 MILES
The Maryland-run section of Assateague Island stretches for 2 miles along the coast and is tucked within the boundaries of the national seashore. Come…
2. Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum
9.67 MILES
This small but engaging museum sits inside an 1891 life-saving station at the southern end of the boardwalk. Here, the station keeper and six to eight …
9.75 MILES
If you really want to engage in tacky seaside fun to the fullest possible extent, hit up Trimpers Rides, one of the oldest of old-school amusement parks…
4. Calvin B Taylor House Museum
9.8 MILES
Built in 1832, this green-shuttered Federal-style house evokes everyday smalltown life in the 1800s and 1900s through period furnishings and exhibits…
10.26 MILES
An enormous art gallery stuffed with prints of varying quality (mostly bad, but there are a few gems), with an exterior papered in vibrant folk art.
13.27 MILES
While away an odd, rewarding half-hour in this tiny structure, which feels like an attic for the entire Eastern Shore. Highlights include the town's first…
16.09 MILES
The Shad Landing section of Pocomoke River State Park, part of the 15,000-acre Pocomoke State Forest and located about 3.5 miles south of Snow Hill, is an…
17.25 MILES
History buffs will enjoy this multi-building living-history museum that marks the old location of a 19th-century iron-smelting town.