leebee
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 14, 1999
Thanks, everyone; @leebee you are a wealth of information! I'm narrowing in on a few potential areas now. There are tons of cute cottages on VRBO and Airbnb for pretty reasonable prices (cheaper than Disney deluxe, anyway). There are so many beautiful places in Maine that it's hard to choose! Luckily, a lot of stuff is within fairly easy driving distance of each other.
Now I've got to decide if we want to stay in once place for the whole week or so and use it as a "home base," or stay in two or three places for a few days each. They both have advantages.
We'd like to do some hiking, some kayaking/canoeing/paddle-boarding, explore quaint little towns and cute shops, see lighthouses, maybe go boating, see anything and everything related to the Stephen King books, walk out on piers (I love piers), maybe go to an old-fashioned boardwalk/amusement park (I've seen one in pictures, not sure where it is), see local points of interest, and eat, eat, EAT lobster and anything else yummy we come across. We're not so much interested in outlet type shopping, general museums that don't pertain to local history etc., or attractions of the type that we can find at home.
I'm kind of afraid that once I see Maine I'm going to want to move there, and I KNOW I'm not equipped to handle the winters!
OK, this is long, sorry, but...
I spent my summers at York Beach. Now, we live in Orono which is a 5 minute drive north of Bangor, and my sister and brother both still live in York. My sister has a shop in Portsmouth, NH now but has also had shops in Ogunquit (both downtown and in Perkins Cove) over the years, so I am pretty familiar with that area as well as up here.
I don't know where you are coming from or flying into, but if you are flying you might want to consider Manchester, NH instead of Boston or Portland, ME. MHT is a great airport, lots of airlines fly in, and it's cheaper to rent a car here. It also keeps you out of the quagmire and parking lot of Boston traffic. I know my way around, but when my sister and BIL (from New Orleans) arrived last week they got turned around and ended up SOUTH of Logan airport instead of going north! To give you some idea of the driving distance/timeline, I can go from MHT to Portland in under 2 hours, from Portland to Bangor in about 2 hours, from Bangor to Bar Harbor in about an hour (ALL depending on traffic). Speaking of traffic, it's bad in the summer. On Friday afternoons, northbound from Boston to Portland you can add on about an hour; same southbound on Sundays. Getting to Bar Harbor from Bangor, usually about 60-90 minutes, can take up to 2 hours or better. From most of Maine, there are basically two roads into Ellsworth and then one road into Bar Harbor. Just be prepared for bad traffic if you are traveling on weekend days or holiday times (DO NOT DRIVE TO BAR HARBOR ON THE 4TH OF JULY. It's OK to already BE there, but don't try to GO there!).
If you want to do a driving trip, fly into somewhere and drive to Bar Harbor. It's a great location for kayaking, paddle boarding, etc, and there are plenty of boat trips (several hours to full days) to go out and see whales, puffins, or whatever is in season. My DD has even gone out on a working lobster boat for the experience. It's also nice to spend a day driving/walking around Acadia National Park (Sand Beach, Thunder Hole, Seal Harbor, Cadillac Mtn.), walk the Marginal Way and be amazed at the mansions. It's also nice to drive around the island to the quiet sides, like Southwest Harbor. There are nice hotels, chain hotels, motels, and B&Bs everywhere. Nothing's cheap, some are stupidly expensive in the summer. If you are only staying there for a few days, I'd rent a place IN town instead of out on Rt.3 somewhere (where it's cheaper). It's fun to be right in town, be able to walk to shops, restaurants, breweries, etc. You're going to spend the money anyway, and in 3 months you won't miss the extra $50 you spent to stay in-town.
Stephen King? You want to be in Bangor, either on your way TO Bar Harbor or when you leave. (Maybe drive up to Bangor, stay the night in a hotel, then see King's house and drive out to BH the next day). There isn't a whole lot of SK related stuff to see/do, other than pose for pics outside his home. Although the settings of his books are local-ish, most are imaginary and just built on local spots. One spot that IS real is from the beginning of Pet Sematary), where the jogger is running in front of the dorm on the UMaine campus. I lived in that dorm, sat in the Great Room there while reading this book, and could see what SK was describing BUT it's not like there's anything there to tie it into the books or commemorate it or anything. The Kings are pretty low-profile around here, although they are HUGELY philanthropic to UMaine and the community in general, underwriting things like community parks, Children's Museum, Bangor Ballet, University scholarships (my DD was a King Scholar), etc.
After leaving the Bangor area, you could drive south down the coast and catch some lighthouses. Camden is pretty (drive up Mt Beattie for a breathtaking view of the coast) and then on to Owl's Head Light, Portland Head Light (Cape Elizabeth- southeast of Portland), and The Nubble (in York) are a few worth mentioning/seeing. If you are interested in Old Orchard, it's south of Portland. You could end up in the Ogunquit/York area, which would give you the Nubble, several beaches (Ogunquit Beach, or Long Sands or Short Sands, both in York), shopping, quaintness, outlets in Kittery, tax free shopping in Portsmouth (and more quaintness). We went to Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth last summer and it was totally worth it. It's an historical living history museum right in downtown Portsmouth.
If I wasn't doing a driving trip, I'd get a cottage in the York/Ogunquit area, walking distance to a beach, and spend my days on the beach or driving around the area, shopping, eating, etc. (NOT that I've stayed there or know the owners, but I do know that Rocky Acres in York, listed on airbnb, is within a 5 minute walk of Long Sands beach- I am 99% sure you'd be able to hear the waves at night, pretty much!). WE've also stayed at the Lighthouse Inn & Carriage House and The Anchorage Inn, both in York, and I'd stay in both again. Most of the places in Ogunquit are reputable, but always check things out on TripAdvisor. Remember that many of these are old-timey motel-type accommodations (unless they are a chain hotel, most of which aren't within walking distance of a beach). They might be a little run down, but most now have a/c and wifi. ALSO remember that the Atlantic Ocean is COLD. We often rate the coldness by how far up your legs you are numb; anything lower than the knees means I'll go in, if only for a brief, brave dip. If I'm numb to the knees or hips, we just wade for a bit, or stay in the shallows, hahaha! Water in August is usually the warmest, but there's no pattern or predictability. If you want to do a lot of swimming, you might be better off with a lake vacation!
Winter? It su@#s up here, but it's not so bad in the Portland area. Their weather is pretty similar to Boston's weather. Up here... not so much, it's great in the summer but can be killer cold and snowy in the winter!
