7 Whimsical and Weird Day Trip Ideas Near DC

Explore Our Local Stonehenge

England’s Neolithic structures have a duplicate at Cox Farms. Dubbed Foamhenge, the replica is made of—you guessed it—Styrofoam, painted to look like its stone inspiration. It’s the magnum opus of Mark Cline, a Virginia artist whose work can be found at other attractions on this list, such as Dinosaur Land and the Enchanted Forest. Tickets for the farm’s fall festival and Field of Fears include access to the landmark, so you can turn your Foamhenge excursion into a day of autumnal activities or a night of Halloween horrors.

Drive time from DC: 40 minutes

Stumble Into a Storybook

Kids can pet goats at Clark’s Elioak Farm, but the true fantasy is in the Enchanted Forest, a village of colorful, life-size structures torn from fairy tales and nursery rhymes. Step through the archway of the castle manned by a guitar-wielding dragon to enter the “neighborhood,” where you’ll find homes belonging to the Three Bears and the Three Little Pigs, plus the Old Woman’s Shoe. For more magic, take the path into the forest, where wanderers are encouraged to look down and search for fairies and sprite houses.

Drive time from DC: 50 minutes

Romp Around Dinosaurs

Whatever extinction event came for the dinosaurs 66 million years ago somehow missed this roadside sliver just outside Winchester, Virginia. More than 55 fiberglass dinosaurs—and inexplicably, King Kong—make up Dinosaur Land. The quirky destination also features a massive shark, woolly mammoth, and octopus for photo-ops with a retro feel. There are no animatronics or high-tech happenings here—just good old-fashioned road-trip kitsch. Fans of the Mesozoic Era will appreciate the gift shop stocked with a variety of dinosaur souvenirs.

Drive time from DC: One hour and 15 minutes

Examine a Medical Museum

When it was created in 1862, Silver Spring’s National Museum of Health and Medicine—then the Army Medical Museum—was on a mission to display “specimens of morbid anatomy.” The free museum still offers an education on various body parts, with real examples. Up in Frederick, learn about the work of physicians on the battlefield at the National Museum of Civil War Medicine. And for a deep dive into a specific branch of medicine, Baltimore’s Smithsonian-affiliated National Museum of Dentistry covers everything from dental tools to dentures.

Drive times from DC: One hour (to Frederick and Baltimore)

Hang With Alpacas

A typical petting-farm experience conjures images of goats or pigs. Long Meadows Farm has those animals, but it’s also home to a crowd that’s a bit more unusual for Loudoun County: alpacas. Book a one-hour visit for up to six people to nuzzle and feed the fuzzy creatures. Seeking more time? Black Barn Alpacas in Maryland’s Carroll County lets you spend as long as you want with the animals—within a 10 am to 4 pm window—once you secure a date online. To bring some of the experience home, the farm has a shop* 15 minutes away selling alpaca fleece clothing.

Drive times from DC: One hour; an hour and 15 minutes

Wander a Whimsical Garden

For imaginative botanicals with an equestrian vibe, head to Ladew Topiary Gardens. Creator Harvey Ladew was a lover of topiaries and fox hunting, and his Maryland estate combines the two pursuits in whimsical fashion. Find more than 100 sculpted shrubs and trees, from a fox-horse-and-hound scene rendered in leafy figures to spiraling Seussian plants. Beyond the bushes, you can learn about Ladew’s home, with its English-country aesthetic and horsey art collection, or explore the Butterfly House, where native butterflies flit about while caterpillars eat the plants below. The butterfly exhibit closes for the season on September 25.

Drive time from DC: One and a half hours

Commune With Spirits

In addition to being the home of Edgar Allen Poe, the father of American Gothic, Baltimore is where the Ouija board was created. For those who enjoy the occult, consider this Charm City itinerary. Start with the Ouija-board-shaped headstone of original patent holder Elijah Bond in Green Mount Cemetery, then head to Gothic Westminster Hall and Burying Ground for a stop at Poe’s grave and a monthly tour of the creepy catacombs. Round out the macabre route at the Witch Board Museum in the Hampden neighborhood, a small exhibition with a collection of rare spirit boards.

Drive time from DC: One hour

This article appears in the August 2026 issue of Washingtonian.

Daniella Byck

Lifestyle Editor

Daniella Byck joined Washingtonian in 2022. She was previously with Outside Magazine and lives in Takoma.