Overview
Hoopers Island is a chain of three small populated islands in Maryland's Chesapeake Bay. The principal community, of about 400 people, is known as Fishing Creek.
2 sights · 2 things to do · 1 places to eat
Updated from Wikivoyage on 1 October 2026 · Something wrong or missing? Improve it on Wikivoyage
Best things about Hooper's Island
Hooper's Island Lighthouse
The lighthouse dating from 1901 is easy enough to find, since you can see it from just about anywhere on the island if you look to the west. It is one of the U.S.'s rare pneumatic caisson lighthouses.
Phillips Seafood Factory
No longer in operation, the birthplace of the venerable Chesapeake seafood institution, which operates seafood restaurants throughout the Mid-Atlantic, offers tours during the summer.
Hoopers Island Expeditions
Hoopers Island Expeditions offers fishing charters & guide services for the local waters. The Washingtonian ranked Hoopers Island Expeditions as one of the top things to do on the Chesapeake Bay.
Sawyer Charters & Tours
Provides fishing trips on the bay to catch striped bass & other species or take a scenic cruise, narrated tour of the area, or crab feast aboard the 50-ft Sawyer vessel, with USCG-licensed captains sharing the histor…
Plan your trip
Best time to visit & weather
Most comfortable: Apr–Oct. Summer highs reach about 90°F; winter lows dip to about 30°F. Very hot (Jul) — plan outdoor time for mornings. Wettest: Jul and Jun. (climate data from nearby Washington, D.C.)
Blue bars: average daily high and low (°F). Purple columns: average monthly rain and melted snow (inches).
Getting there
- From you: to see whether to drive or fly, and how long it takes.
- SBY Salisbury Ocean City Wicomico Regional Airport, Salisbury — 38 mi away. Directions
- OCE Ocean City Municipal Airport, Ocean City — 59 mi away. Directions
- DCA Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Washington — 59 mi away (major hub). Directions
Hoopers Island is a good long drive from the nearest town, but it's a beautiful ride. Hoopers Island Rd (MD-355) is the one land route in. It's a simple route from Cambridge—just take MD-16 south, then turn left on MD-335. The bridges from island to island are beautiful!
Full “Get in” guide ↓Budget & where to stay
No prices are listed for this place yet. See the Sleep guide ↓ for options.
Sample 1-day itinerary
Day 1
- Morning Hooper's Island Lighthouse, Phillips Seafood Factory
- Lunch Old Salty's
- Afternoon Hoopers Island Expeditions, Sawyer Charters & Tours
Stops are grouped by area so each day needs little backtracking. Check opening hours before you go.
Food for you
Cuisine (tap to filter)
What to ask about, for your diet
Diet labels come from each listing's description and cuisine; “likely” means the cuisine usually has good choices, not a promise. Check with the restaurant. Open the food finder
Map
Every listing with a location. Tap a pin for its Google Maps link.
Understand
The community here has deep roots, running back to the mid-17th century, when Henry Hooper found it a nice place for a tobacco plantation. In the hundred years, Hooper Island converted from a tobacco community to a fishing economy, hauling crabs and especially oysters out of the once rich Bay. Today the community, like nearly all the proud Chesapeake watermen communities, is under threat from fish stocks depleted by pollution and from rising waters.
Get in
Hoopers Island is a good long drive from the nearest town, but it's a beautiful ride. Hoopers Island Rd (MD-355) is the one land route in. It's a simple route from Cambridge—just take MD-16 south, then turn left on MD-335. The bridges from island to island are beautiful!
See
Hoopers Island isn't full of sightseeing attractions—it is the sightseeing attraction. Its setting is beautiful, and a great place to take in a Chesapeake sunset.
See Hooper's Island Lighthouse
The lighthouse dating from 1901 is easy enough to find, since you can see it from just about anywhere on the island if you look to the west. It is one of the U.S.'s rare pneumatic caisson lighthouses.
See Phillips Seafood Factory
No longer in operation, the birthplace of the venerable Chesapeake seafood institution, which operates seafood restaurants throughout the Mid-Atlantic, offers tours during the summer.
Do
Eat and drink
Eat Old Salty's
Great views over the water and as-fresh-as-it-gets seafood hauls are the reasons to come here. That and the fact that it's the only full-service restaurant on the island. Nothing about the place is fancy, but who needs a fancy restaurant when you could experience the local hospitality of the Chesapeake watermen! There is also a general store with food and gasoline, a post office, and a hardware store with very limited hours. There are also a number of active crab wholesale packing houses, and a marina.
Sleep
Unless you have family here, you won't find a place to stay overnight on the islands, unless you rent one of the few homes available for a weekend or week's stay. The closest overnight off the island is about 25 minutes away near Taylor Wildlife Preserve just off Smithville Rd on the way to Cambridge:
Go next
- Beautiful Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge is back up the road towards Cambridge.
Nearby
Lexington Park
City / town · 19 listings · 13 mi away
Solomons
City / town · 7 listings · 14 mi away
St. Mary's City
City / town · 8 listings · 14 mi away
Point Lookout
City / town · 11 listings · 18 mi away
Cambridge
City / town · 20 listings · 20 mi away
Leonardtown
City / town · 7 listings · 23 mi away
Smith Island
City / town · 4 listings · 25 mi away
Prince Frederick
City / town · 8 listings · 27 mi away
My experience
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