Garrett Park, MD

Tucked quietly between Bethesda and Rockville, Garrett Park feels like a storybook village nestled within the busy DC suburbs. Home to roughly a thousand residents, this historic Montgomery County town is an officially designated arboretum, with quiet residential streets framed by mature trees and Victorian-era cottages. Many of the leafy roads take their names from Sir Walter Scott novels, and with Rock Creek Park right along the town's edge, scenic wooded trails are just a short walk away.

ATTRFamartin / CC BY-SA 4.0

Community life revolves around Penn Place, a beloved gathering spot that holds the town offices, a local bistro, and the post office where neighbors bump into each other picking up their daily mail. Commuters enjoy an easy trip into Washington thanks to the in-town MARC train station and nearby Red Line Metro stops, with shopping and dining close at hand around Pike & Rose. Paired with top-ranking Montgomery County schools, Garrett Park delivers a peaceful, tight-knit small-town atmosphere right near the capital.