Reviews of the three activities you can book around Fort McHenry
The three, reviewed
Inner Harbor Sightseeing Cruise
Forty-five minutes on the water. Fort McHenry is named and passed — no stop, no landing, no entry.
from $34Read the full review ›
Helicopter Tour Over Downtown & Landmarks
The highest average here, resting on 25 reviews. Everyone liked it; almost nobody said why.
from $78Read the full review ›
Fells Point Culinary Food Tour
Baltimore, not the fort. Long, specific reviews, generous portions, and the steepest price of the three.
from $109Read the full review ›How the three compare on their reviews
The homepage compares them on what they are. This compares them on what people who went actually wrote.
| Closest to the fortBaltimore: Inner Harbor Sightseeing Cruise | Baltimore: Helicopter Tour Over Downtown & Landmarks | Discover Baltimore: Fells Point Culinary Food Tour | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.8 | 4.9 | 5.0 |
| Reviews behind it | 251 | 25 | 44 |
| Price | $34 | $78 | $109 |
| Relation to the fort | Passes it from the water | Flies over it | None at all |
| What reviewers dwell on | The crew, and the harbour history | How much they enjoyed it, briefly | The guides, and the size of the portions |
| Recurring gripe | It could have been longer | It could have been longer | Nothing negative published |
| Fort admission | Not included | Not included | Not included |
| Book this → | View → | View → |
How these reviews are put together
Every quote on these pages is copied out of the reviews GetYourGuide publishes in each listing’s own structured data, with the spelling and punctuation left exactly as the reviewer typed it. I do not merge two reviewers into one voice, I do not move a quote from one activity to another, and I do not name the company running any of them — you are booking through GetYourGuide either way. Ratings, review counts and prices were read off the listings in August 2026 and will drift.
What I cannot do is review the thing most people came here for. There is no third-party Fort McHenry ticket to book and therefore none to rate. The fee is the Park Service’s, it is $15 per adult aged 16 and over at the gate, and it covers the star fort and outer battery and nothing else.
If you read one of them
Read the cruise review. It is the cheapest, the shortest and the only one where the fort is a named part of what you are paying for — and it still does not land there. After that, all three compared, or whether the fort itself is worth your morning.
The three listings themselves
Live prices and availability, straight through to GetYourGuide. None of them includes admission to the fort.
Sees the fort from the waterBaltimore: Inner Harbor Sightseeing Cruise
Flies over the fortBaltimore: Helicopter Tour Over Downtown & Landmarks
Baltimore — not the fortDiscover Baltimore: Fells Point Culinary Food Tour
Frequently asked questions
Does any of these tours include entry to Fort McHenry?
No. Not one of the three includes National Park Service admission. Entry is bought at the gate for $15 per adult aged 16 and over, valid 7 days, free for under-16s. The cruise passes the fort from the water and the helicopter flies over it; the food tour is in another neighbourhood entirely.
Which one is closest to being a Fort McHenry tour?
The Inner Harbor sightseeing cruise. Fort McHenry is a named sight on the route, seen from the water, on a 45-minute loop that costs about $34. It does not stop and it does not land.
Why does the helicopter tour have the highest rating?
Because only 25 people have rated it. A 4.9 on 25 reviews is a much thinner claim than the cruise’s 4.8 on 251, and one poor flight would move it noticeably. Treat the number with the review count attached to it.
Where do the quotes come from?
From the reviews GetYourGuide publishes in each listing’s structured data. They are reproduced word for word, including the typos, and never moved between activities.