There's a downloadable map and phone app but we found it very confusing. Shiloh has a CD you can buy/rent that tells you "Turn left and you'll see the Minnesota Monument on your right in 75 yards", stuff like that. It was excellent and we'll be back one day to do that one start to finish. We saw or could find no such thing at Antietam.

I am sure that the visitor's center has an audio driving tour for purchase but such is not needed for touring the battlefield while the luminaries are on display. The luminaries themselves tell the story. As you begin the tour, the luminaries are fewer in number and fairly well spread out. As you continue, the number of luminaries increase and are much closer together until they literally fill the landscape. This symbolizes the men who lost their lives during this bloodiest of battles. The drive is incredibly moving - and definitely worth the trip. (Note: if you have not been to Antietam before, you might want to arrive earlier in the day for a driving or walking tour. The luminary tour is at night - too dark to distinguish many of the more noted sites)

I did not see picnic tables anywhere in the park, though I wasn't specifically looking for them.

It was $15/car when we went, but for 10 minutes I doubt you'd need to pay-- it took that long for us to walk in, stand in line at the front desk and pay.

For the most part. The majority of it is by car.

Open All Year The Visitor Center is open daily from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Park Grounds are open daylight hours. Phone (301) 432-5124 Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Day Special Programs Memorial Day Commemoration (Monday of Memorial Day Weekend at the National Cemetery) Independence Day Commemoration (First Saturday in July) Anniversary of the Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg), September 17 The Memorial Illumination (First Saturday in December)

The visitor centre is a great place to start with the displays and the film. Don’t feel there is truly anything for preschoolers per se part from the fields outdoors for them to romp over. Antitam is hallowed ground and to recollect the events that transpired there is overwhelming to say the least.

The battlefield is very expansive and you do need a car. If you go to the battlefield Welcome Center you can arrange for a guide and state that you need one with a vehicle. I find this is the best way to learn about the battle, you drive to then walk the ground in different areas. It's usually around $25 to $30 an hour. We usually do a 2 to 3 hour tour with the guide. You get one to one information answers to specific areas your interested in. All Battlefields have these guides available. You're not too far from Gettysburg and if you have time a few days I'd do both. They are pivotal battlegrounds in the civil war. If you do Antietam you should take a drive over to Harpers Ferry as well. The guide we had offered it as part of the plan for the day but we went in our own. Hope this helps

It all depends on you and how much time you went to spend at each location in the park. If you do not get out of the car and just continue to drive even with an audio tape to describe what you are looking at I would say allow at least 2 hours. Could probably be done in an hour and half but that would be rushing it a bit and you would loss some of it. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

yes, I have seen people with pets here. I do not know if you would be able to take your pets with you if you are on a tour bus. I do not think you can have pets in the building.