The holiday season is the perfect time to “gift outside the box” and give family, friends and that special someone an experience to remember that is also an “environmentally friendly” way to celebrate the holiday. And those experiences can be found close to home in Montgomery County. Visit Montgomery has gathered some great ways to give gifts that are part of the County’s best attractions—the type people who live elsewhere come a long way to enjoy.
Montgomery County getaway near home attractions include classes, museums, performance venues and entertainment spots—all right here, but sometimes not in immediate thoughts when you are thinking of doing new things or revisiting things you did, but not recently.
Visit Montgomery’s holiday gift list includes presents represented through gift cards, giving your recipient the flexibility to explore when they are ready.
To learn more about the adventures suggested by Visit Montgomery’s Gift Outside the Box, go to 13 Experiences for Things to Do Gifts - Visit Montgomery.
Highlights on the list of experiences include:
- Spending a night in a “yurt” at Little Bennett Campground in Clarksburg. The step up from camping can sleep six with a double bed futon and two full-size bunk beds.
- Lockhouses Along the C&O Canal: The Canal Quarters Lockhouse program, managed by the C&O Canal Trust, provides guests the opportunity to live like a lockkeeper for a night—or three. Each of the seven historic lockhouses—five in Montgomery County—are restored and furnished to reflect the time in which they were built.
- Adventure Park at Sandy Spring: Take flight with the ultimate ziplining, climbing and axe throwing experience at the Adventure Park at Sandy Spring. Tackle 14 trails of varying difficulty that create more than 200 unique challenges in its Aerial Forest. Take a swing at Adventure Axes, the area’s premier outdoor axe-throwing venue with a variety of targets and games to choose.
- Calleva in Poolesville: With its unique brand of outdoor adventures, Calleva’s experiences include summer camp, wilderness educational experiences, environmental education and small-scale sustainable farming. If you are looking to explore the Potomac River, consider gifting a whitewater kayaking and river tour.
- VisArts in Rockville: Spark some creativity in your special someone by treating them to a class at VisArts. Choose from a wide variety of intimate classes such as ceramics, drawing, jewelry making and painting. Book an adult or children’s art party for a special occasion. During their award-winning School’s Out Winter Craft Days Camp, children ages 6-12 can enjoy making friends, drinking hot cocoa, ice skating in Rockville Town Square and learning new skills while creating winter-themed art projects.
- Glass Blowing Classes: There are two places in Montgomery County that offer glass blowing. Art of Fire in Gaithersburg features a selection of interactive glass blowing experiences, including making your own bowl, vase or ornament. Glen Echo Glassworks, located in the historic Glen Echo Park, offers introductory glass blowing classes and individual lessons.
- Arts of all types: The Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, the Round House Theatre, the Olney Theatre Center and the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Silver Spring are among the many venues in Montgomery County the offer the elite of performing arts.
