1. Greenbelt Park
City: Greenbelt, MD
Category: Parks & Recreation
Telephone: (301) 344-3944
Address: 6565 Greenbelt Road
Description: Just off the Beltway in Prince George’s County, this 1,100-acre national park defies its highly urban setting with 9 miles of wooded trails and special interpretive nature programs for kids, such as summer Junior Rangers activities. It also offers numerous campsites for tents and vehicles. The camping fee is just $16 per night per site. Make reservations by calling (301) 344-3944 April 1 through October 31.
2. Greenbelt Recreation Department
City: Greenbelt, MD
Category: Parks & Recreation
Telephone: (301) 397-2200
Address: 25 Crescent Road
Description: Greenbelt’s facilities include an aquatics and fitness center, community center, youth center, and recreation center, as well as two parks available for community rentals.
3. Greenbelt Recreation Department
City: Greenbelt, MD
Category: Retirement
Telephone: (301) 397-2208
Address: 15 Crescent Road
Description: A senior game room and lounge are open during regular hours. Other seniors’ activities include hot lunches on weekdays, available by reservation at least a day in advance; a weekly Golden Age Club; monthly movies; craft and continuing education classes; and a weekly intergenerational program with nursery school and kindergarten students. Call for the latest program guide.
4. Beltway Plaza Mall
City: Greenbelt, MD
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (301) 345-1500
Address: 6100 Greenbelt Road
Description: Serving nearby University of Maryland and Prince George’s County, this bargain-conscious mall features stores like Target, Marshalls, Burlington Coat Factory, and Value City. Children can play games and ride rides at Jeepers! indoor amusement park, and adults can work out at a Gold’s Gym with a glass-enclosed basketball court. As an added convenience, the mall boasts the area’s largest Giant Food grocery. In all, the mall houses more than 100 fashion and specialty stores as well as 14 movie theaters.
5. Goddard Space Flight Center Nasa Visitors Center
City: Greenbelt, MD
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (301) 286-9041
Description: Visitors to this museum learn about the history of American rocketry, from its humble beginnings on Robert Goddard’s Massachusetts farm in 1926 to current research involving the Hubble Space Telescope. Visit the gift shop for space-related souvenirs. The center is open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday from September 1 through June 30. From July 1 through August 31, it’s open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and is closed on Sunday and Monday. The visitor center is also closed on all Federal holidays. Call for information. (See our Kidstuff chapter for information about hands-on activities and model rocketry programs.)
6. Nasa Goddard Space Flight Center Visitor Center
City: Greenbelt, MD
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (301) 286-9041
Address: 8800 Greenbelt Road
Description: Kids interested in space and rocketry will enjoy the museum’s interactive exhibits pertaining to Goddard’s involvement in the space program. Visitors can build and launch a space satellite via a computer game and sit in a Gemini space capsule that includes an audio recording simulating liftoff in a Titan rocket. Model rocket enthusiasts hold launches the first Sunday of each month at 1 p.m. The museum also arranges educational birthday parties.