The headline concerts may frame the season, but they do not tell the full story of a Solomons summer. Between Warren Zeiders at the Calvert Marine Museum on July 24 and Brothers Osborne on August 22, the local calendar shifts among maritime programs, art exhibits, historic sites, river cruises, markets, and community events.
The useful planning insight is that these activities are not evenly distributed. They gather around a few particularly full Fridays and weekends. Residents will get more from choosing one anchor event and one realistic add-on than from trying to cover every overlapping program.
The simplest approach: Circle August 7 for a full nonconcert day, choose either the museum or Annmarie Garden on July 31, and treat August 22 as an all-day Solomons event that requires an early parking plan.
Here is how the calendar actually fits together.
The first concert is a bookend, not the whole day
The July 24 Warren Zeiders concert begins at 7 p.m., but the Calvert Marine Museum starts that Friday with Family Fun Friday: Blooms and Bugs from 9 to 11 a.m.
The morning program examines beneficial insects, native plants, and practical environmental habits families can use in their own yards. Registration is required. The museum and store then close at 3 p.m. for concert preparation.
That early closure matters for anyone without a concert ticket. July 24 is a good morning for the museum, but it is not a dependable late-afternoon museum day.
The following morning offers another useful lesson about planning ahead. The July 25 Fossil Field Experience at Cove Point was already marked full on the official calendar by mid-July. Limited-capacity fossil programs can fill before the weekend arrives, so future sessions are worth reserving when registration opens rather than waiting for a weather check.
The pace settles on Sunday, July 26. The Lore Oyster House has published hours from 10 a.m. to noon, Cove Point Lighthouse is open from 1 to 4 p.m., and the museum’s Beyond the Displays: Artifact Stories program runs from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. A Wm. B. Tennison cruise also departs at 2 p.m.
Those overlapping times create choices, not a checklist. A historic-site morning followed by the lighthouse is practical. Trying to add the artifact program and cruise at the same time is not.
July 31 is a choose-your-own morning
Two worthwhile programs meet almost back to back on Friday, July 31, but at different venues.
Calvert Marine Museum’s Maryland Mammals program runs from 9 to 11 a.m. It covers river otters, beavers, and native bats through crafts and learning activities. At Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center, the Birds in Habitats: Aquatic Birds nature walk begins at 11 a.m.
There is no meaningful transition time between them. Choose according to interest rather than planning to rush from one to the other.
The Annmarie walk costs $7 per child and $5 per adult, with a member discount. Admission includes the sculpture garden and galleries, which makes the walk a natural anchor for a longer visit. The museum program is the better fit for a morning centered on Maryland mammals and hands-on activities.
This is the central pattern of the summer calendar: Solomons often offers several good options at once, but the day works better when one venue sets the pace.
August 7 is the strongest full nonconcert day
If you want one date that captures the range of things to do in Solomons this summer, make it Friday, August 7.
The day can unfold in three distinct parts:
- Morning at Calvert Marine Museum: Freestyle Family Fun Friday runs from 9 to 11 a.m. The program is designed for families with children ages 5 to 12 and begins before the museum opens to the general public.
- Afternoon fossil identification: First Fossil Friday runs from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Visitors can bring fossil finds from Calvert Cliffs or other local areas for free identification. Regular admission still applies to the museum exhibits.
- Evening at Annmarie Garden: Food Truck Friday runs from 5 to 7 p.m., while the Art Blooms After Hours reception continues from 5 to 8 p.m.
This is one of the rare dates when the schedule supports a morning, afternoon, and evening progression without forcing anyone to leave an event early. There is time between each part, and the final stop combines food, art, and extended garden hours.
Art Blooms carries the weekend
August 7 also opens Annmarie Garden’s 17th annual Art Blooms exhibit. More than 25 floral designers from across the region create arrangements inspired by artworks in the Main Gallery and Kay Daugherty Gallery. The Calvert Garden Club co-hosts the exhibit.
Published hours are:
- Friday, August 7 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Saturday, August 8 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Sunday, August 9 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Friday reception runs from 5 to 8 p.m. If Friday evening is already committed, the exhibit remains available throughout the weekend.
August 8 pairs browsing with the galleries
The next morning, Annmarie Garden hosts the Great American Yard Sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission to the market area is free.
More than 50 booths are advertised, with clothing, furniture, kitchenware, books, bicycles, sporting goods, and other secondhand items. Listed food vendors include The Jamaican Grill, Old Town Pub Wing Wagon, Just Chillin Pops, and Sippin Dirty Refreshments.
Art Blooms opens at 10 a.m. and continues until 5 p.m., so this is a realistic pairing. Browse the yard sale first, then move into the galleries. Unlike several other weekends, the timing supports both without a hurried departure.
On Sunday, August 9, Art Blooms continues from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Calvert Marine Museum also presents Creature Feature from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m., followed by Beyond the Displays: Artifact Stories from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. This is another day when one venue should serve as the anchor.
Mid-August belongs to smaller, hands-on programs
The middle of the month becomes quieter, but it is not empty.
On Friday, August 14, Annmarie Garden offers Birds in Habitats: Backyard Birds from 11 a.m. to noon. The program begins with an educational show-and-tell before continuing through the garden’s forests and fields. Admission is $7 per child and $5 per adult, with a 50 percent member discount. Garden and gallery admission are included.
Calvert Marine Museum holds toy-boat building from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, August 15. Materials and space are limited, and participation is first come, first served. The activity is intended for ages five and older. Museum admission applies, and a $2 donation per boat is requested.
On Sunday, August 16, Annmarie Garden’s Outdoor Clay Date runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The August project is a handmade wind chime. Registration is required, and an adult must participate with children. Groups may work on one project together or purchase additional kits.
Sunday also includes Lore Oyster House hours, lighthouse access, artifact storytelling, and Tennison cruises. Pick the clay workshop or one of the maritime options as the fixed point, then add only what the timing comfortably allows.
The recurring options fill the gaps
A useful summer guide needs more than special-event dates. Solomons also has recurring programs that work when a free afternoon appears unexpectedly.
Take a Wm. B. Tennison cruise
The historic Wm. B. Tennison generally departs at 2 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays in August. The one-hour route passes through Solomons inner harbor, by the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, beneath the Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge, and toward Point Patience.
Capacity is 40 passengers. A 3:10 p.m. cruise may run when the first sailing fills, and an additional 3:10 p.m. departure is scheduled on weekends. Tickets are $9 for adults and $5 for children through age 12. All cruises are subject to weather and the captain’s discretion.
Visit the refurbished Lore Oyster House
The Lore Oyster House is six-tenths of a mile south of the main museum campus. The refurbished 1934 seafood packing house is a National Historic Landmark with exhibits tracing oyster receiving, shucking, washing, packing, and shipping.
Admission is free, and an interpreter is onsite. Between the July and August concerts, published dates include July 26 and 29, plus August 1, 2, 5, 12, 15, 16, and 19. Hours vary by date and can change with weather and tides, so check the official schedule before leaving home.
Keep the lighthouse visit distinct from a beach trip
Cove Point Lighthouse’s grounds and visitor center are generally open Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 1 to 4 p.m. in August. Admission is free, and the site offers lighthouse history and views of the Calvert Cliffs.
There is no beach access. Plan it as a historic-site visit rather than a beach afternoon.
August 22 is a two-event finale
The final concert bookend is also the busiest day in this guide.
The 10th anniversary Solomons Dragon Boat Festival begins with team activities and opening ceremonies around 8 to 8:30 a.m. Racing starts at 9 a.m. and continues through the day, with the awards ceremony expected between 3 and 4 p.m.
The free festival can include up to 30 teams, a vendor village at historic Our Lady Star of the Sea, children’s activities, food vendors, and race viewing from the River Walk boardwalk. Brothers Osborne performs at Calvert Marine Museum at 7 p.m., and the museum closes at 3 p.m. for concert preparation.
Parking deserves more attention than usual that Saturday. Festival organizers direct visitors to the grass lot across from Calvert Marine Museum. Accessible shuttles are scheduled from 7:30 a.m. until approximately 4 p.m. The boardwalk is identified as the best place to watch the races.
Anyone attending both events should treat the day as one continuous Solomons outing. Arrive early, use the designated parking plan, and allow time between the festival’s afternoon close and the evening concert.
A short save-the-date list
| Date | Best anchor | Planning note |
|---|---|---|
| July 24 | Blooms and Bugs or the Warren Zeiders concert | The museum closes at 3 p.m. |
| July 31 | Maryland Mammals or the aquatic-birds walk | Choose one because the times touch |
| August 7 | Museum programs followed by Food Truck Friday and Art Blooms | Best full nonconcert day |
| August 8 | Great American Yard Sale and Art Blooms | The timing supports both |
| August 14 to 16 | Nature walk, toy boats, or Outdoor Clay Date | Build the weekend around one anchor |
| August 22 | Dragon Boat Festival and Brothers Osborne | Arrive early and plan parking in advance |
Schedules, capacity, weather decisions, and food-vendor lineups can change. Check the linked organizers before heading out, especially for ticketed programs, cruises, and limited-capacity activities.
Solomons rewards a measured plan. One thoughtfully chosen event, with enough time to enjoy the waterfront and the people already gathered there, usually makes for a better summer day than an overfilled itinerary.
If a question about your Calvert County or Chesapeake Bay real estate plans becomes part of the conversation, Jeannine Wayson offers more than two decades of local experience, attentive guidance, and the national reach of Coldwell Banker.
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