Eldersburg, MD Indoor Activities

Though spectral forms and shadowy figures still reside in The Haunted Cottage, its greatest legacy is as the occasional vacation home of assassin John Wilkes Booth. Also known as the Booth House, The Haunted Cottage is home to paranormal researcher Vince Wilson, who helms the haunted abode's ghost tours and maintains the paranormal library and history museum, where guests can spy a vampire skeleton among other supernatural exhibits. All this knowledge pours from Vince's mouth during tours and investigations, which pair breakdowns of the house's 150-year history with actual equipment designed to catch ghosts, from cameras and digital recorders to EMF meters delicately hoisting a morsel of cheese.

The Haunted Cottage also strives to school spirit-seekers with paranormal-research training that cycles through parapsychology topics such as extrasensory perception, hypnosis, and psychic healing.

Every year, the NCAA men's basketball tournament is a three-week saga of single-elimination suspense, where athletic juggernauts must fight for their records and overlooked programs have the chance to shine. In 2006, the George Mason Patriots penned their own March Madness Cinderella story by unseating powerhouses Michigan State, North Carolina, and Connecticut to become the lowest seed ever to advance to the Final Four. The Patriots' historic run left fans gasping for air and basketballs everywhere reaching for the nearest pump before the team finally bowed out to the eventual champions, Florida, in the national semifinal.

Though the Patriots' Final Four berth garnered tremendous national attention, George Mason's athletic prowess extends beyond the basketball court. In their proud history, the Patriots have won NCAA championships in multiple sports, including men's indoor track and field and women's soccer.

For 35 years and counting, artists Charles and Susie Andrews have helmed a gallery displaying the work of Pennsylvania artists alongside nationally recognized artists from across the country. In addition to curating an art space, the staff also specializes in custom framing and fastidious photo-restoration services to help customers adorn their homes and offices with art and archival-quality framing. Their restorers retouch art and photos with dedicated attention to detail, breathing new life into sepia-toned relics by repairing damage such as mold spots, water damage, cracks, discoloration, or shattered monocles. Their artistic eyes especially come in handy when restoring compositional problems such as redeye, underexposure, or awkward backlighting. In addition to the finished piece, clients also receive photo documentation of any work done.

Milton S. Hershey, founder of the Hershey chocolate dynasty, gave the world more than just his signature bars of sweet, rich chocolate. He also built the town of Hershey, Pennsylvania, and laid the foundations for its future, providing public education for residents and preserving collections of Native American and Pennsylvania German artifacts.

Visitors to The Hershey Story, The Museum on Chocolate Avenue learn about Hershey's entire legacy, perusing exhibits such as Failures to Fortunes, which details his impoverished childhood and later success, and Sweet Innovations, which showcases his creative chocolate-making practices, such as his unique approach to milk chocolate. Guests can make truffles and other confections to feed their pet chocolate bunnies during the hands-on Chocolate Lab, or they can stop by Café Zooka to taste flights of drinking chocolates sourced from Africa, Indonesia, and other locations around the world.

As more theaters converted to high-quality digital projection, FunTime Cinemas knew it had to keep up with the times. There was one small problem: the cost. Independent from the industry behemoths, the community-focused FunTime Cinemas needed some help to fund the conversion and maintain its affordable ticket prices. So it reached out to its patrons through the Dollars for Digital campaign, which helped raise enough money for all three theaters to become 100% digital. The updated projection allows FunTime to continue showcasing the newest major releases, as well as special one-time screenings of smaller features, with crisp picture and sound at deeply discounted prices.

Forty-eight gleaming, wooden lanes shimmer under bright lights as polished, multicolored bowling balls careen toward pins waiting at the other end. As friends, families, and bitter enemies take aim and release balls, flat-panel scoreboards automatically update scores alongside irresponsibly hilarious monikers. Occasionally, glow bowling dazzles the senses with pumping music, heady fog, and magnificent laser-light shows.

Beyond bowling, guests can also amuse themselves at one of the Billiard Hall’s 10 full-size pool tables, play their favorite tunes on the room’s private music system, or hit up the on-site pro shop to get tips, equipment, or inspiration for a new juggling routine. They can also grab a bite on site at The All-American Sports Pub, a space known for its HD TVs, karaoke nights, and the occasional rowdy round of beer pong or bar trivia.