25 things to do during AOPA’s 80th anniversary fly-in

1. Fly in to Frederick Municipal Airport (FDK) for AOPA’s 80th anniversary event May 10 and 11.
2. Tour the association’s headquarters and see the You Can Fly Academy and the newly created museum.
3. Take in two days of seminars and workshops to help you be a safer, smarter pilot.
4. Enjoy a short takeoff and landing demonstration and drone show on Friday.
5. Eat. Pancakes, burgers, food trucks, ice cream, and Top Chef restaurants (and that’s just in Frederick).
6. Watch a fly-by of C–47s on their way to Normandy for the seventy-fifth anniversary of D-Day, see parachute demonstrations, and get a closer look on the ground.
7. Immerse yourself in history: the National Museum of Civil War Medicine; Mount Olivet Cemetery; nearby Monocacy, Antietam, and Gettysburg national battlefields.
8. Tour the National Air and Space Museum and Udvar-Hazy Center—an amazing collection of aircraft from the beginning of flight to space exploration.
9. See the airshow at Joint Base Andrews, one of the most-visited airshows in the world. The airshow runs May 11 and 12.
10. 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The most-famous address in the country; your state representative can help arrange a tour.
11. The U.S. Capitol, Kennedy Center, and Library of Congress are must-see locations.
12. Visit Arlington National Cemetery, 624 acres where our nation’s heroes are buried.
13. Pandas at the National Zoo— you know you want to see those furry babies.
14. Monuments and memorials on the Tidal Basin. The trees and monuments are lit at night and it’s gorgeous.
15. The Hope diamond at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.
16. Dorothy’s ruby slippers at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.
17. Tour Harpers Ferry, beautifully situated on the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers in West Virginia.
18. The U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. John Paul Jones is buried here.
19. The Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Memorial on the Annapolis waterfront.
20. The National World War II Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial are both on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and worth a visit.
21. Baltimore Harbor, where Francis Scott Key penned The Star-Spangled Banner in 1814.
22. Maryland blue crabs. We’ve got great restaurants in Frederick or, for a true Maryland experience, pick them on the Baltimore waterfront.
23. Mount Vernon, home to George and Martha Washington, on the Potomac River.
24. East Coast wine country. Dozens of wineries in Maryland and Virginia are close to Frederick.
25. Baseball—catch the Baltimore Orioles or the Frederick Keys, the Class A-Advanced minor league team.

Need more great ideas? The AOPA staff live in the area and can offer you great advice on what to see and do. Just ask us during the fly-in!