family activities – Taylor-Made Deep Creek Vacations & Sales Blog

Festival of Trees Garrett County

The Festival of Trees Garrett County is held every Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving at the Garrett County Fairgrounds. For 2017 the festival dates are November 24^th and 25^th. Friday hours are 9-5 and Saturday hours are 9-4 with the live auction of trees starting at 6PM. Tickets are available at the door for $5 and proceeds benefit the Dove Center.

Fun for all ages, you can see beautiful trees decorated with unique themes by local businesses and organizations. Each day, the fun kicks off with breakfast with Santa. The cost is $10 per person with seatings at 9 and 10AM. You will get a full breakfast plus priority in line for a professional photo with Santa in his sleigh. Continue reading Festival of Trees Garrett County

Favorite Autumn Glory Photos

To mark the 50th anniversary of this favorite festival, we are sharing some of our favorite Autumn Glory photos from past years. If you love the Deep Creek Lake area or if you are a fan of beautiful foliage, it is an absolute must.

The five day festival includes concerts, band competitions, antique and craft shows, two parades and a lot more!

Continue reading Favorite Autumn Glory Photos

New at Deep Creek: Sang Run State Park

Sang Run State Park will officially become Garrett County’s newest state park at the ninth annual Fall Fest on September 30.

The historic Friends Store, election house, farm and waterfront area known as the greens was donated to the state of Maryland almost ten years ago. The staff of Deep Creek Lake State Park have been taking care of it ever since. The land was originally settled by John Friend in 1769 and was the center of activity for the Sang Run community for more than 100 years. The store sold food items and also bought and sold ginseng – which is a root that is prized as an herbal remedy. A shortened version of the word ginseng (Sang) also gives this area it’s unique name. Continue reading New at Deep Creek: Sang Run State Park

Upcoming Deep Creek Lake Holiday Events

Deep Creek Lake holiday events keep things festive in the mountain of Western Maryland throughout late November and early December. If you love unique, local art or are looking for fun kids’ activities, you won’t be disappointed.

It is easy to catch the spirit of the season when you experience fun activities with friends and family. The best way to start is to choose your perfect mountain home – maybe one with a cozy fireplace or bubbling outdoor hot tub – and then plan your trip around one of these favorite Deep Creek Lake holiday events.

FESTIVAL OF TREES GARRETT COUNTY
November 24-25 at the Garrett County Fairgrounds, 10AM-6PM
Benefitting the Dove Center, there are lots of family activities to enjoy. Breakfast with Santa, crafts, face painting, and more will keep the kids entertained. Plus, you can shop for holiday gifts from local artisans and vendors. Beautifully decorated trees are found throughout the exhibit hall, and they are auctioned off at 6PM on Saturday as the grand finale. MORE INFO Continue reading Upcoming Deep Creek Lake Holiday Events

25 Things to do at Deep Creek Lake with Kids

Planning a Deep Creek Lake summer vacation? Our list of 25 Things to do at Deep Creek Lake with Kids includes destinations you don’t want to miss. So read through and consider this an outline and know these activities are really memorable for all ages. For more information go to our Deep Creek Lake Things To Do page with all sorts of categories from lake activities to winter skiing. There’s also an interactive map to show you where they are.

The Deep Creek Lake area is unique in that there are more than 90,000 acres of public land that make up 7 state forests and parks. That means there are virtually limitless options for keeping your crew entertained and making memories with your favorite people.

Discover FunUnlimited’s nearly endless arcade. Offering over 97 new and vintage games, this is a great option to keep all ages entertained and you can grab some pizza while you are there too.

Play on Deep Creek’s first inflatable water park at Splash Island at Will O’ the Wisp. A new summer favorite, you can slip, slide and glide through their on-the-water obstacle course.

Pedal and paddle along the Youghiogheny River. Wilderness Voyagers will outfit you with everything you need to enjoy a bike ride along the Great Allegheny Passage (it’s a relatively easy/flat ride) that leads you to a relaxing float on the Middle Yough. Pack a lunch for this non-guided adventure, and plan to swim, relax, laugh and enjoy!

Continue reading 25 Things to do at Deep Creek Lake with Kids

A little savage, something new, and a festival!

We are sailing into fall and are now starting to see the first changing of the leaves. This weekend is the big SavageMan Triathlon where athletes flock to our mountainous area to tackle our hills with their bikes, swim in Deep Creek and race down our roads! Definitely a competitive sport and one that is intense to watch! Of course we welcome these athletes and their families with open arms! We love that they can participate in such a great charitable event and experience the beauty of our area at the same time. We are also being gifted with dream like weather this week with bright blue skies and lots of sunshine. Temperatures have been ideal and in the mid-70s. This is also the perfect time for evening bonfires. Many of our vacation rentals have outdoor fire pits so if you are planning on visiting us, make sure you let your Reservationist know this so she can help you find one with this particular amenity. Call us at 1-866-351-1119 or go online www.deepcreekvacations.com and click this option when you are putting in your requirements for your search. Speaking of going online, have you checked our newly launched website. As before, it is very user friendly but also has a fresh new look. Not only is it easy to search for a home with your certain criteria but you also see our vacation packages, check out our photo gallery, read our policies and procedures and more. You can also easily navigate over to our Real Estate section for those that are thinking of buying or listing a home. As I continue to somewhat boast, there is also a very thorough and informative 3D virtual floor plan that we now offer for our homes (not all have one right now but they all will in the near future). This is a great tool to have when you trying to see if a house would work out for you and your family. You can go in and maneuver throughout the rooms and floors, perfect for trying to decide who may be sleeping where. I highly recommend you check out (plus it’s kind of fun!)
The Autumn Glory Festival will be here shortly. The entire festival kicks off on Wednesday October 7^th and the big parade held in Oakland is Saturday the 10^th. There are so many fun filled family activities to do that weekend! By tradition if you do join in the celebration, don’t forget to pick up your turkey dinner. There are numerous dining establishments in the area who join in with awesome local tradition and offer a full turkey dinner with all of the trimmings! Again, give us a call and let us help you find your Deep Creek home! We can’t wait to see you at the lake!

Saying So Long to Summer! Make the last days count!

The local kids in our area recently returned to school this week along with many other counties here in Western Maryland. Seems too early for school but at least we have another weekend to squeeze in some summer fun before Labor Day arrives. If you are visiting our area for the week, don’t forget to stop by the Farmer’s Market in downtown Oakland on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10am – 1pm. So many great choices of fresh fruits, veggies, baked goods and more. Because every vendor doesn’t come every week (although most do), you always get a variety of different tables. There was a vendor from Pennsylvania there on Wednesday that was pedaling some stunning pottery pieces. Candles, handmade carved wooden crafts, quilts, and list goes on. It’s also a great chance to check out some of the neat shops in Oakland like the Book Market & Antique Mezzanine which offers everything from the latest best sellers to a large selection of kid’s books and toys. The back of the store showcases some amazing antiques for sell. Definitely a neat store and worth the stop! It’s a perfect time to capture some of the charm of our small town flair.

If you haven’t made your plans for Labor Day yet, I suggest that you call now as our availability is starting to become limited. It’s one last chance to make unforgettable summer memories and I can think of no place better to do this than here at Deep Creek Lake. Imagine you and your family spending the weekend boating and water tubing on the water. Rent a jet ski for an early morning romp around the McHenry cove or maybe a relaxing kayak trip is just what you need. F JetSki or the outdoor adventurers, hiking and mountain biking are great options especially if you head to one of the many state parks in the area. Swallow Falls State Park showcases the largest free fall standing waterfall in the state of Maryland and is absolutely breathtaking to see. Wisp Resort offers a bevy of fun activities whether you choose to zip line down the mountain, ride the mountain coaster, play a friendly game of disc golf, and so much more. Only 3 ½ hours from the Washington D.C. / Baltimore area and 2 ½ from Pittsburgh, it’s a relatively short drive. Give us a call today (1-866-351-1119 or go online www.deepcreekvacations.com ) and let us help you find the perfect vacation home for your next Deep Creek stay. Lakefront homes are going fast so make sure you call today! We can’t wait to see you at the lake!

Shop Till You Drop @ Schoolhouse Earth!

As the sun continued to dance through the clouds, my need to escape the office and enjoy it become a possibility today when I had to make a stop at Schoolhouse Earth to pick up some flyers for our office. Enjoy the sun and get to go to one of my all-time favorite shops in our area? I love the perks of my job! Even pulling into the parking area, you can see that there is a large array of lawn ornaments on display outside. I am a true sucker for outdoor décor including flags, wind chimes, you name it! (And yes, even garden gnomes!) Here you will a large variety to choose from. With 3 separate buildings, it feels like a bit of a magical village! I head to the first building and I am lost in shopping heaven! So many jewelry choices! Big loud bold necklaces or dainty little birthstone chains, rings, earrings, something for everyone’s taste! Walking in further and here you will find a variety of beautiful scarves and purses! Completing this circle I find a wall of candles to choose from! It’s like finding all of my favorite things in this one little spot! I basically just walked in a daze throughout all of the buildings simply in awe over how many things I saw that I suddenly desperately felt that I needed and must have immediately! The building to the right was another delight! Here you could find an expansive collection whether you were looking for some home décor such as curtains or specialty dishes for your kitchen collection. Speaking of which, for those Foodies out there, they have an amazing collection of specialty dips, mustards, crackers, etc. Also for the wine lovers, they have a fun and unique array of wall plaques, wine glasses, wine glass accessories (these apparently are quite popular), and more! For the kids section, they have a great collection of games, puzzles, books, and toys to choose from! I try to think of myself as a grown up but I saw A lot of kid’s items that I was ready to rip open and play with! So many cool things to choose from!

Your fun continues to flow outside when you walk to the back area of the shops to see the little petting/feeding area. While they do have a few alpacas and a donkey on site, they chose to stay back and just do their own thing. I did however, get to witness Spencer, the Rooster as he strutted about. Charlie Brown the goat also came by to say Hi! Both seemed more concerned with the fresh watermelon rine they had been given just a few minutes prior to be completely honest but it was nice that they were willing to swagger by.

Schoolhouse Earth is not just an average stop that you come across, it’s an entire shopping experience. It’s the kind of specialty shop that you go to and are able to find that one perfect gift that you know will make your best friend’s day. It’s a neat place where the cashiers are pleasant and helpful and you just know that they really like their job. If you are lucky enough to meet Stephen, the owner, he will happily guide you around and help you find exactly what you are looking for! We always believe it is important to support our local shops but we also recommend Schoolhouse Earth because it truly is one of our favorite shops around Deep Creek Lake and we want you to experience the best while you are here!

There is still time to find your dream vacation home rental for your summer stay here at Deep Creek Lake. Give us a call (1-866-351-1119 or online www.deepcreekvacations.com) and let us help you! We can’t wait to see you at the lake! #deepcreeklake #vacationrentals #lakelife #shoptillyoudrop

Prepping for Deep Creek Lake Summer Vacations!

Everyday seems to be a new whirl of excitement around the Taylor-Made offices. We are enjoying some amazing spring weather lately with temperatures in the low to mid-70s. Bright blue skies and lots of sunshine, almost like something out of postcard. We are very lucky.

Each department has been gearing up and prepping for guests who will soon be arriving for their Deep Creek Lake summer vacations.

Reservation Specialists have been busy helping families plan their last minute summer vacations, from finding the perfect vacation home to planning activities to do while they are staying here at Deep Creek Lake. Luckily they are all very familiar with each home, the location, and the amenities each one has to offer. As we all like to “Play where we work”, they are also very knowledgeable about the various restaurants and activities to do in the area. Best place to get fresh produce in the area? Ask, we can tell you. Aunt Bessie likes quirky, off the wall shops? Yep, we know that one too! This is what makes our Reservationists so spectacular at their jobs!

Still speaking of busy, our lawn crews have been crazy doing spring clean ups! We love it when guests pull up to our vacation rental homes and say “Awww…it feels like home!” We want our homes to look manicured and inviting and that is why our lawn crew puts so much time and energy into each job. New mulch, cleaning up debris, fresh cut; just to name of few of the many tasks they take on daily! They are greatly appreciated for their hard work.

Our Owner Reps/ Inspectors may be taking on the toughest job of any right now as they are multi-tasking the many jobs that need to get done to prepare the home for summer rentals. Hours are spent pouring over kitchen items in order to make a full inventory of what is needed for the fully stocked kitchen! Carpet cleanings are being scheduled as well as window washing! Deep cleaning throughout the entire home including all comforters and other bedding. A lot of items to keep track of for each home! It’s because they know the homes inside and out that help them pull all of this together so efficiently.

As I mentioned, a whirl wind of activities going on here at our Taylor-Made home base these days. We kind of like this way. As always, we are offering some awesome last minute discounts for your spring getaway! Visit for 3 days and stay for the price of 2 for the remaining month of May. Give us a call (1-866-351-1119 or online www.deepcreekvacations.com) and let us help you plan your next “Deep Creek Excursion”! We can’t wait to see you at the lake! #deepcreeklake #readyforsummer #familyfun

Plan your “Spring Fling”!

If you are at all familiar with Deep Creek Lake and our mountainous region, then you may know that our seasons tend to run a little different than most areas. While most regions get to experience Spring in March and April, our Spring starts closer to May. Once it finally comes to bloom, it is nothing short of spectacular. It’s the simple acting of waiting. Now the wait is over and it’s time to call to book your family’s spring getaway at the lake! Docks are in the water and most marinas are now open and ready to start the boating rental season. Rent a pontoon to take the whole family out and experience Deep Creek from the “inside perspective”! Truly a delight! The trees have buds, wildlife is scampering about, and the mountains are turning a beautiful lush green! Don’t think that there is anything to do? Hiking at one of the many state parks, golfing at our top notch golf courses, boat rides, horseback riding, and our list of activities is long and full of all kinds of family fun!

We are running some amazing specials now as well. If you haven’t made plans for the Memorial Day weekend, you can now reserve 3 nights for the price of 2! Give us a call and let us help you find your dream vacation home (1-866-351-1119 or online www.deepcreekvacations.com) Speaking of “Dream Home”, don’t forget that we also now sell real estate. Imagine not only getting to visit your favorite vacation area but you get to live there too!

Spring is finally upon us! Come experience the true beauty that Mother Nature offers us here at Deep Creek Lake! Call today, we can’t wait to see you at the lake! #deepcreeklake #taylormadevacationrentals #springfling #marylandmountains