Vidor5

My husband & are are considering a vacation in Maine in August. We will probably drive thru Canada from Northern MIchigan. Its just the 2 of us, 50ish. We like adventure, new things to see, new relationships with people. We have 10 days and would like to be on the coast, eat lobster, stay somewhere simple or quaint. Would consider camping or small places but we are kind of on a budget this year. Maybe we could mix it up a bit. Like nature, maybe a little out of shape. What areas would you reccommend that are coastal or mountain. We are on Lke Michigan here and used to live in Colorado so we miss mountains. So anything you could recommend that would be reasonable we would appreciate it. Thanks. Lisa

djkbooks

For mountains, I'd head for the Green Mountains in Vermont (Stowe is our favorite town) or the White Mountains in New Hampshire (we love Franconia to the west, Jackson to the east).

Everyone has their own favorite Maine Coastal towns. Ours are Camden, Boothbay Harbor, Kennebunkport, and Ogunquit.

irecommend

I highly recommend that if you are traveling through Canada to get to Maine that you must stop in Quebec City. I guarantee it will be the highlight of your trip and it is reasonably price and very different from anything you have seen before in North America. There are many great posts on this and you should check it out!

sumreknot

Oh dear, we too are from Michigan and flew into Bangor last Sept...rented a car and went to Moosehead Lake...what a delight...we took a small plane ride..unbelievably inexpensive, over the entire lake...no moose but the scenery was breathtaking..from there we hit the coast..from Bar Harbor on down, stopping off at coastal towns. We had no reservations,stopped along the way and ended up staying in Ogunquit for our last 3 days. It was delightful..and offseason was unbelievably inexpensive, compared to July and August. Great accomodations, the weather was perfect. Lobster will never be the same at home...Any questions please email...we don't like to repeat vacations, as there is so much out there to see..but I would go back to Maine in a heartbeat!

dfrostnh

We just returned from a week in the mid-coast area. First, if you decide to camp I highly recommend Searsport Shores (I think you can rent a camper from them) just north of Camden or Chewonki in Wiscasset. Both are conveniently located to Rt 1. Maine has something like 4,000 miles of coastline. From Searsport, you can make a day trip to Acadia or explore the Blue Hill peninsula. Take the auto road up Mt Battie in Camden for a magnificent view overlooking the harbor. Heading south it's only a short hike to Owls Head Light for another terrific view. Our favorite lobster place is tiny Waterman's Beach not too far from the Owls Head Transportation Museum. Wear a hat and sunglasses to Waterman's and pick a table near the water. There's nothing else around except wonderful scenery. Chewonki in Wiscasset is further south but convenient to Boothbay and Bath. We did drive up to Ellsworth for a day trip but it's a lot of Rt 1 driving. Boothbay is expensive and crowded but the points of land on either side are nice to explore. Visit the new Maine Coastal Gardens nearby (not quite finished) for beautiful trails easy to walk. You can also do a boat trip to Monhegan Island ($32/person RT) and take a picnic lunch. We would get on the road by 9am and head down ones of those fingers that jut out, find a good place for lobster and head back to camp around 3pm. I was surprised to see a lot of vacancy signs at the small local motels since it was 4th of July week. Maybe August is more popular. Unfortunately, lobster and fried clams have gotten expensive but there are plenty of local places to eat. We had lunch out on the road but cooked breakfast and dinner at the campground. If you choose a place with cooking facilities you could also take advantage of the wonderful farmers markets. You can get a list at the visitors centers. The one in Brunswick was outstanding, everything from fresh produce, meat, baked goods, goat cheese to plants and jellies. There are also plenty of places to buy shellfish and lobster if you want to cook your own. Many of the lobster shacks will steam your lobster and you can bring your own soda, etc and eat on their picnic tables. Both campgrounds I recommended are small, less than 50 sites and are popular with locals but don't have those annoying seasonal sites decorated with lights and whirlygigs. I think you would be best off staying near Rt 1 for the convenience of heading in any direction rather than staying far down on one of the points which can be 8-15 miles from Rt 1.

amyprib

We just got back from a 4th week in Maine, our first visit. We stayed a day in Portland (neat town), and then the rest of the week in Bar Harbor/Acadia area. If you like nature and hiking and/or biking, Acadia Natl Park is a great place. We hiked for two days straight and map-wise barely covered much ground! The highest mountain there is only 1532ft, but there are a lot of fun and challenging or easy hikes to do, all with great views (since it's an island). I read that the trails would be swamped during this time, and we didn't run into too many people - and we were on a few of the popular trails.

There's also plenty of kayaking, cruising, and other sites to see in that area. They have a couple campgrounds there, with some others in surrounding areas, I believe. You might consider checking it out to see if you might be interested. There are a ton of carriage trails to bike on, which is another great way to see the park. http://www.nps.gov/acad/

You can find a ton of info on the web. Camping might be the way to go if you're on a budget, since August is peak season for hotels/inns/BBs, but it never hurts to check.

Bar Harbor is the "busy" side of the island, and if you go to the west side it's quieter. If you were to go, I'd suggest giving it 3+ days at least, depending on what you want to do.

jacqui72

sumreknot: where did you stay in ogunquit? With 3 nights only in Maine, what is the best combo of towns? Camden/Ogunquite? Is a day trip to Boothbay Harbor feasible?

ajaq

I second the vote for Bar Harbor/Acadia and couldn't have said it better myself! There is a ton to do there and, although I would like to stay longer, I generally go from long weekends (3,4 days) and find that is plenty of time to hike, bike, explore, beach, dine, shop, etc... It's a neat area with a bit of everything! We love it and will be going back next year (if not before!)

janier

If it works into your schedule I highly recommend the White Mountains in New Hampshire and in particular the Jackson area. We stayed a the Eagle Mountain House last year on an anniversary trip to Maine/New Hampshire. It was wonderful. Their website is www.eaglemt.com

sumreknot

We stayed at the Meadowmere...it was not directly on the water but nice location...remember that it was after Labor Day, so the rates were really slashed!

waggis

The view from Cadillac Mountain in Acadia NP is gorgeous. Try to have afternoon tea at Jordan Pond Restaurant. They serve popovers with strawberry jam outside on the meadow. www.jordanpond.com and www.acadiamagic.com/jordan-pond.html

FlyingMaltese

I agree that Acadia National Park is very beautiful. I loved the summit of Cadillac Mountain and the views of the mountain and lake from Sandy Beach. It is not unfeasible to combine this trip to Nova Scotia. But, do not do this unless you could dedicate three days to driving its highlands.

Also, please make reservations. I thought we could wing it when we went several years ago. But, it was distressing every night that we needed a reservation, we were unsure if we would wind up sleeping in the car.

marcyandtim

We were there in 2004.
Acadia, acadia, Acadia
I could have spent our whole trip there.

I also liked kayaking at Boothbay.
We stayed in the Tugboat. We picked the rooms that were newly renovated. We also ate at this Italian restaurant there that was really good and went candle pin bowling. Boothbay is good for 2 days tops.

Camden is good if you like to shop a lot.