While most local residents do their best to escape the area during the summer, Bethesda, Rockville, Silver Spring and Gaithersburg are among 20 popular “summer destinations” in Maryland, according to the website CheapHotels.org.
The website this week listed the destinations—and the average summer hotel rates in those locales. Bethesda was the ninth most expensive with an average price of $137 per night, Rockville was 14th with an average price of $107, Silver Spring was 15th with an average price of $104 and Gaithersburg was 17th with an average price of $102. The survey included hotels with at least three stars.
So why are people vacationing in Montgomery County during the summer when so many residents are trying to get out? The answer is simple: proximity to Washington, D.C.
“The fact that we’re so close to the D.C. line kind of sells,” said Ginanne Italiano, the president and CEO of The Greater Bethesda Chamber of Commerce.
Kelly Groff, the president & CEO of the tourism agency Visit Montgomery, said Wednesday that summer tourists frequent the county due to its proximity to the District of Columbia, but also for recreational events such as soccer and lacrosse tournaments that are held at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Germantown.
Groff said the hotel rates are actually lower during the summer because there is less demand countywide.
“They [Bethesda hotel rates] drop, but probably not by as much, because they’re right on the D.C. border,” she said.
The top three expensive destinations listed were Saint Michaels, with an average price of $202, National Harbor, with an average price of $198 and Ocean City, with an average price of $163.
Dan Schere can be reached at Daniel.schere@moco360.media
