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Voykit pocket guide · United States
College Park
College Park, Maryland
Base here only if you're visiting UMD or flying out of BWI: 1 night, walk the campus and the aviation museum, then Metro into DC.
College Park is a Washington DC suburb built around the University of Maryland, about 30 minutes from downtown on the Metro Green Line. It is not a sightseeing destination in its own right: visitors come for campus events, Terrapins games, the aviation museum at the world's oldest continuously operating airport, and cheaper beds than DC. One night covers it; most people day-trip in from DC instead.
- Country
- United States
- Local name
- College Park, Maryland
- Best months
- Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (heat and humidity), late Dec–Jan (campus quiet, cold)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- USD
- Money
- Currency is the US dollar (USD, $). Cards and phone payments work almost everywhere; carry a little cash for tips and small vendors.
- Daily spend
- Budget $60–100 excl. bed · Mid $100–180 excl. bed · High $180+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile cover the country; prepaid SIMs at their stores and Walmart/Target (passport required), or an eSIM before you fly.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 911
- Plugs
- Types A, B · 120 V · 60 Hz · Chargers are dual-voltage; hair dryers and straighteners from 230 V countries need a converter.
- Tipping
- Sit-down restaurant: 18–22% of the pre-tax bill.; Bar: US$1–2 per drink or 20% of the tab.; Taxi / ride-hailing: 15–20%, in the app.; Hotel housekeeping: US$3–5 a night.; Porter / valet: US$2–5 per bag or car.; Tour guide: US$10–20 per person for a day tour.; Counter service / tablet prompts: Optional; 0–15%.
- Water
- Tap water is drinkable nearly everywhere; boil or treat water from streams in parks.
- Toilets
- Free public toilets are scarce in big cities; use cafés, department stores, libraries, stations. Rest areas on highways are free.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | $3–6 |
| Fast-casual lunch near campus | $10–16 |
| Sit-down dinner, main course | $15–30 |
| Draft beer at a Route 1 bar | $6–9 |
| Metro ride | $2–6 (check) |
| 5 km (3.1 mi) taxi or rideshare3.1 mi (5 km) taxi or rideshare | $12–20 |
| College Park Aviation Museum entry | $4 (check) |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- CGS · College Park Airport
- Private planes only; no scheduled airline service.
- BWI · Baltimore-Washington International
- About a 30-minute drive; also reachable by MARC and Amtrak via Union Station or New Carrollton.
- DCA · Ronald Reagan Washington National
- About a 30-minute drive; reachable on Metrorail.
- IAD · Washington Dulles International
- About a 45-minute drive; reachable on Metrorail via the Silver Line.
Typical fares
- Metro Green Line, College Park → downtown DC
- about $6, 30–40 min (check)
- MARC Camden Line, College Park → Washington Union Station
- peak hours only, Monday–Friday (check)
- Taxi or rideshare, College Park → BWI
- about $50–70, 30 min (check)
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
Route 1 (Baltimore Avenue) is the main north-south artery and most sights sit along it; Rhode Island Avenue runs parallel to the east. University Boulevard (Route 193) and Campus Drive/Paint Branch Parkway run east-west. Route 1 traffic is heavy at rush hour. There is no free parking in College Park, so check each meter's rules. Shuttle-UM buses cover campus but many routes need a University of Maryland ID. The Rhode Island Avenue Trolley Trail and Paint Branch Trail are the bike routes; residential streets are easy, major roads are not.
See and do
Known for
- University of Maryland, College Park
- College Park Airport, the world's oldest continuously operating airport
- College Park Aviation Museum
- Terrapins college sports
- Metro Green Line access to Washington DC
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Washington, D.C. | Metro Green Line from College Park station, or MARC from the same station at peak hours | About 40–50 min to downtown |
| Greenbelt | Metro Green Line one stop north, or a short drive on Greenbelt Road | About 15 min |
| Hyattsville | Metro Green Line south, or Route 1 south by car | About 15–20 min |
| Bowie | Drive via US-50 east | About 30 min |
| Laurel, Maryland | Drive via I-95 north, or MARC from College Park at peak hours | About 30–40 min |
| Largo, Maryland | Metro Green Line to Largo Town Center | About 45 min |
Sleep
- Baltimore Avenue (US-1) corridor
- Chain hotels and fast-casual food along the main north-south artery; walkable to campus and the Metro station.
- Near the College Park Metro station
- Green Line and MARC Camden Line stop; about a mile from the university.
- Route 1 north near the Beltway
- Highway-side hotels with free parking; best if you have a car and are heading to BWI.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Where is the Metro station? | Where is the Metro station? |
| One ticket to Washington, please | One ticket to Washington, please |
| Can I pay by card? | Can I pay by card? |
| Is this seat taken? | Is this seat taken? |
| Thanks, keep the change | Thanks, keep the change |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and 'hi, how are you?' — reply 'good, thanks'; avoid: Treating the question as a real health enquiry
- Restaurants: Tip 18–22% and wait for the check; avoid: Leaving without tipping
- Personal space: Keep an arm's length in queues; avoid: Standing close to strangers
- Politics and religion: Listen more than you speak; avoid: Opening with hot-button topics
- Smoking: Smoke only in marked areas; avoid: Smoking near doors or in parks where banned
Scams and watch-outs
- Route 1 backs up badly at evening rush hour; avoid arriving or leaving then.
- No free parking anywhere in College Park: read each meter's restrictions.
- Petty theft from cars and of bicycles happens; lock your bike.
- Greenbelt Road and Baltimore Avenue are risky for cyclists and, less so, pedestrians, because of driveways with limited visibility.
- MARC Camden Line only stops at College Park at peak commuting hours Monday to Friday; the Penn Line runs seven days a week from New Carrollton.
College Park has a low amount of crime. The real issues are petty theft from cars and of bicycles, and cycling or walking on Greenbelt Road and Baltimore Avenue where driveways have limited visibility.
One and two days
No timed day plan for College Park yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- University of Maryland, College Park
- College Park Airport, the world's oldest continuously operating airport
- College Park Aviation Museum
- Terrapins college sports
- Metro Green Line access to Washington DC
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- City of College Park: www.collegeparkmd.gov/
- University of Maryland: www.umd.edu/
- College Park Aviation Museum: www.pgparks.com/facilities/college-park-aviation-museum.com/
- WMATA — National Airport station: www.wmata.com/rider-guide/stations/national-airport.cfm
- Baltimore-Washington International Airport: www.bwiairport.com/
- Wikivoyage: College Park (Maryland), revision 5307795 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5307795
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
College ParkCollege Park, Maryland
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance911
Most embassies are in Washington, DC, about 30–40 minutes away on the Metro; check your country's listing before you travel.
Tipping is expected: 18–22% at sit-down restaurants, $1–2 a drink, 15–20% for taxis.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/college-park-maryland). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.