We just got back from our first family vacation after spending a week in Deep Creek Lake, Maryland and yes, we wish we were still there!! We rented a lakefront house with my parents, brother, my best friend, her husband, and two children (4yo and 1yo), So in total we had 7 adults and 3 children. It was chaotic at times but always so fun! I wanted to recap our time there and give some summer vacation inspiration for your next family vacation!
A little back story to our connection with Deep Creek
I have been going there with my family my whole life and my parents have gone since the 70s because my Uncle built a lakefront cabin there in the 70s. Our cabin was on a private lane with protected woods across the lane, right next to the State Park and was the most perfect, quiet, private lakefront location. After he passed away in 2001, we kept the house for another 10 years or so with my dad’s side of the family but with the exception of my parents, they all chose to not have the house anymore and my parents couldn’t take it on all on their own. It unfortunately had to be sold.
When my husband and I started dating in 2013, we were the first to go back after the house sold. We stayed in a condo and ever since then, we have been coming back to the lake, renting and staying in different properties all around the lake and on the ski mountain.
Location
Deep Creek Lake, Maryland is located in western Maryland in a section of Maryland you probably didn’t even realize was still part of Maryland. We are from New Jersey so it used to be a 6 hour drive but now with more roads and faster speed limits, it’s about a 5.5 hour drive. It’s a 2 hour drive from Pittsburgh and a few hour drive from DC. It was initially popular for people from Pittsburgh (like my Uncle) but in the last decade or so it’s become more popular with the DC area.
The lake itself is location in Garrett County and is very close to West Virginia, There are mountains (for us east coasters), farmland and woods everywhere, and you are at a much high elevation. It is still very underrated and not super well known for anyone outside of those areas so we still call it a best kept secret. You actually feel like you are away from the hustle and bustle but there is so much to do. In the summer there is the lake and in the winter there is the ski mountain, right on the lake. The best of both worlds and a year round destination.
Lake House
This year, we rented a lakefront house in a new to us area of the lake. We have rented from 2 different rental companies but we highly recommend renting through Taylor-Made Deep Creek Vacations. Rental sites like VRBO and Airbnb used to not be allowed there and we’ve found that the rental companies are much more helpful/accommodating so we suggest Taylor-Made.
The house we stayed in was Brief Respite. It was on an area of the lake closely attached to quiet coves and still centralized and close to the State Park and main roads to get us to all the places we frequent. It’s dock was a cute but hilly walk down to the lake with a lot of steps to get to the dock that was shared with the few houses on the lane. It had a beautiful outdoor table and eating area, deck, hot tub, fire pit, basketball hoop in the driveway, and the inside was perfect for our families. The major downfall of this house was that there was no gradual entry into the lake (like we were used to from our old house). It was actually 7ft deep right off the edge (read, small cliff) from where the stairs meet the dock. So having the kids play and wade in the water was not even possible. The babies hated having their life vests on so we really maximized our time floating and enjoying the lake only when they were napping. Since we were close to coves, I explored a bit during my runs and the coves all had a lot areas that had very calm, gradual entries into the water that had rental properties. So it’s definitely something to keep in mind when searching for a home to rent if you have young children.
What We Did
Since we have been to Deep Creek Lake my whole life, I could write a novel on things you could do. I have a fall vacation recap that lists some things you can do in September but for this recap, I’ll just focus on some of the new things we did this time or things that are specifically great for families.
Firewater Kitchen & Bar is a new restaurant right on the lake next to the condos, Will O’ The Wisp and more upscale restaurant, Aces Run. We actually know the owner of Firewater because it’s Brenda from the infamous and amazing Brenda’s Pizza in Deep Creek. She and her husband also own Ace’s Run. My Uncle met her and has known her since she was a Chef in an old restaurant in Deep Creek and had been close friends with her since coming to Deep Creek. My family stayed in touch with her after my Uncle passed and even after we sold the house.
Firewater is a new favorite and we highly recommend it. They had great kids options and the grass area right on the lake is a plus for kids to run around while waiting for food. Like most on the lake locations, there are public docks so you can pull up your boat and grab a meal. The drinks were all delicious and so well made, food was soo good, and the views and location are of course a plus. They have a lounge area on the patio as well that you can use to sit and enjoy some drinks. We got there about 5pm and sat right away and when we left all the tables were full and lot of people waiting to be seated so get there early!
We went during The Garrett County Agricultural Fair. We always went during this time growing up and now that there were kids involved again, we figured it would be fun for them to do! We went one afternoon/evening and got to walk through the animal barns, see the pig judging, watch the beginning of a tractor pull competition, have some corn dogs and ice cream, and went on some rides. The rides were WAY more sketchy than I remember but we survived. If you are not used to fairs like this and come from ‘city’ areas like we are considered, then it’s definitely something very fun and different to check out!
In the beginning of the week we rented a boat for the day and it was the perfect amount of time for everyone. Last time we all went together was 2020 and we rented speed boat to wakeboard. This year we wanted something more calm and simple so we did a pontoon boat. The older we get the more we realize how easily motion sickness we get LOL so the pontoon boat was perfect to literally putt around the lake. The kids all had to be in life vests and again, they hated them. Graham was immediately not a fan, crying the whole time and didn’t want anything to do with the boat. He fell asleep in Steve’s arms up until we docked at a restaurant for lunch.
We boated around the lake just to look at quiet coves and different areas of the Lake and then went for lunch and drinks at Honi Honi bar which is a must do for every vacation! They have a fun playground area for kids and large grass area for them to run around too. The bar is right next to an Uno’s restaurant so you can get served drinks and food on the patio outside and the food comes from next door. Steve’s go to drink there is a Pain Killer and mine is either a regular Margarita or Spicy Margarita. No matter what your drink or non alcoholic drink is, it’s such a pleasant, calming spot to settle at for a few hours!
Shopping. I’m not huge on getting touristy things or trinkets when we are on vacation but I am adamant about getting Deep Creek Lake clothing of some sort when we go! Steve has gotten some things from Honi Honi (he got such a great long sleeve sun shirt there when we went together last year and this year he got a sweatshirt) and I usually wander around Bear Creek Traders because they have such great, quality items from clothes to accessories, home decor, toys, etc. that is not just all tourist stuff. I got a long sleeve Deep Creek Lake shirt and have worn it every day since. It has now become my personality. This year we got stuffed animals of their choosing for the kids at the State Park Discovery Center (another must do spot for adults and kids!!). My parents and I also stopped in at a little shop we used to frequent with my Uncle and Aunt called School House Earth. There is a petting farm outside and has such cute little trinket things (also not just tourist stuff).
Tuesday and Wednesday we split up a bit. Tuesday, my husband and best friend’s husband played golf in the town of Oakland in the early morning. While they did that, the rest of us took the kids to the State Park to see the aviary they built for rehabilitating and homing hurt birds such as Bald Eagles, owls, hawks, etc. We then walked through the park and stopped at several playgrounds along the trail. After the playgrounds, we played in the sand where they have the swim areas and then put our feet in the water. It was still early in the morning when we went so we didn’t have them ready to swim (and it was chilly so we really didn’t want to!) but they had fun with sand toys and their feet in the water. From there we walked back to where we parked at the Discovery Center and looked at all the exhibits and terrariums they have, then each child picked out a stuffed animal. Graham got a black bear and we named him Garrett, for Garrett County. He now sleeps with him every night.
On Wednesday, the adults all went white water rafting at Wisp Resort while my mom and I stayed back to watch the 3 kids. We have done it a lot of times since they installed the course so we didn’t mind letting the rest go so my husband, best friend, and her husband could try it for the first time. The course is man-made on top of the Wisp ski mountain. It’s an olympic level course that can add water and change rock positions to make it beginner or expert level and has great instructors to guide you. You don’t need any experience and it’s not just a ‘floating’ raft ride. You are able to watch others through the course so definitely check it out if you are there to see if it’s something you’d like to do! They all had the best time.
We wanted to go mini golfing for my best friend’s son so we went to Funland which we haven’t been to in forever and it was so much fun! The mini golf was honestly so well maintained and such a fun course for everyone…we even did go karts afterwards! It’s all outside and they have a mini arcade inside (all very clean) so it was a great afternoon to enjoy the fresh air while allowing the kids to run around a bit. Also note to self, 1 year olds on a mini golf course is very fun, funny, and stressful. I had to tap out halfway through to go inside for Graham to cool off and let him do his own thing for a bit then met back up with them as they got to the end.
Our friends bought a big blow up screen and projector and we ate dinners outside and had outdoor movie nights with popcorn and candy. That was such a fun surprise that they brought and it allowed you to still enjoy nature without feeling like you needed to be inside for a movie night. We watched Top Gun: Maverick and a summer MUST, Heavyweights. My husband likes to yell “Nurse, Julie! Nurse, Julie!” while doing a slow jog on the dock…hopefully he doesn’t read this. We all like to yell “buddy!!” while floating in the water. We basically just quote the whole thing. Watch it if you never have or haven’t in a while. I’m not sure how this quickly became a Heavyweights fan club post.
We of course enjoyed the lake as much as we could the whole week. We woke up early and I took my coffee down to the dock while Steve and the guys fished in the mornings, floated in the lake during the day, and soaked in the sunsets when we could at night either from the dock, at the fire pit, or on the deck.
There is of course so much to do on the lake and around Deep Creek but this just scratched the surface. If you have questions or want more information to plan a vacation, I’m always here to help! It’s truly our favorite place year round and we have so much experience here that I’d love to help make a family vacation memorable for you. If you are wondering what to wear on a lake vacation, I’ve also got you covered there! You can find what to wear in the early fall here and what to wear during a summer vacation here and here.
Remember to save this post as inspiration for you future family vacation at the lake!
