Coastal Maine doesn’t want a tough promote. With its clapboard cottages, working harbours and lighthouses that appear to glow in foggy gentle, that is New England at its most iconic.
However it’s not nearly postcard moments – this highway journey delivers ambiance.
Suppose early-morning walks via pine-scented forests, crackling fires in century-old inns, and roadside lobster rolls that style like summer season, even when the wind’s biting.
This route from Portland to Bar Harbor is extra than simply scenic – it’s the type of highway journey the place each little city feels prefer it belongs in a novel, and each bend within the highway reveals one other lighthouse, one other harbour, another excuse to tug over.
Route Overview
Portland → Cape Elizabeth → Boothbay Harbor → Pemaquid Level → Camden → Rockport → Belfast → Bar Harbor
Supreme journey size: 6–9 days
Finest time to go: Might to October – peak season is July & August, however autumn colors in September are unbelievable
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Begin: Portland – inventive coastal kick-off
Begin your highway journey in Portland, Maine’s largest metropolis – though that seems like a stretch once you’re wandering its cobbled Outdated Port, smelling salt air and sourdough.
Portland punches properly above its weight in relation to meals, with all the pieces from high-end seafood spots to craft breweries and hip espresso outlets.
Stroll alongside the working waterfront, pop into Normal Baking Co. for a morning pastry, and take a look at the native makers within the Portland Arts District.
If you happen to’re after a correct meal earlier than hitting the highway, Eventide Oyster Co. serves up icy platters and brown butter lobster rolls value queuing for.
For a trendy and centrally situated keep, e book a room at The Press Resort, a former newspaper constructing turned boutique retreat with native artwork and luxe particulars.
Cease 1: Cape Elizabeth – lighthouses & cliff walks
Only a 20-minute drive from Portland, Cape Elizabeth is your first correct lighthouse second – and it doesn’t disappoint.
Portland Head Mild is without doubt one of the most photographed lighthouses within the US, and once you see it perched on the rocky headland, you’ll get why.
It’s dramatic, windswept and appears like one thing straight out of a Winslow Homer portray.
There’s a coastal path via Fort Williams Park that provides you a number of angles on the lighthouse and a superb excuse to stretch your legs.
If you happen to’re craving extra maritime allure, think about a Maine Lighthouse scenic cruise to see much more of those coastal icons from the water.
Bonus: there’s a lobster roll meals truck proper within the automobile park, and sure, it’s value it.
Optionally available cease: Head barely inland to Cape Elizabeth Land Belief trails for a little bit of light woodland strolling.
Cease 2: Boothbay Harbor – boats, boutiques & laid-back vibes
Drive about 90 minutes northeast and also you’ll attain Boothbay Harbor, a basic seaside city that manages to be tourist-friendly with out shedding its native soul.
The harbour’s filled with sailboats, fishing vessels and the occasional lobster boat chugging alongside prefer it’s 1950.
Stroll the footbridge, browse the indie outlets, or take a ship tour out to see puffins or whales.
The city additionally has a surprisingly good artwork scene and top-of-the-line botanical gardens in New England – the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens – if you happen to’re craving some greenery.
Eat: Seize a desk at Boothbay Lobster Wharf or Ports of Italy if you happen to’re seafooded out and desire a change.
Cease 3: Pemaquid Level – rugged coastlines & basic Maine drama
Subsequent up is Pemaquid Level, some of the dramatic coastal spots within the state.
The lighthouse right here is perched on jagged slabs of rock that slope proper into the Atlantic – the type of place the place you’ll be able to sit for ages simply watching the waves slam towards the shore.
It’s quieter than Portland Head Mild however arguably simply as stunning. There’s a little bit museum within the previous keeper’s home and a close-by café for a fast chowder repair.
Detour concept: Swing via Damariscotta on the way in which – a beautiful riverside village with an old-school normal retailer and the very best oysters within the area.
Cease 4: Camden – mountains meet the ocean
If there’s one city that sums up the “coastal Maine” aesthetic, it’s Camden.
With white church steeples, a yacht-filled harbour and hills that roll down into the ocean, it’s absurdly fairly.
However there’s extra to it than attractiveness – Camden Hills State Park provides mountaineering with correct views.
Do the Mount Battie Path (or drive to the highest) for a sweeping lookout over the city and Penobscot Bay.
The city itself is nice for gradual afternoons – bookstores, previous inns, and wood-panelled bars the place you’ll be able to sip native cider and watch the fog roll in.
Keep: At the very least one night time at Hideaway Inn Maine or if you happen to can, e book right into a B&B with a fire.
Cease 5: Rockport – small, artsy & filled with character
Simply down the highway from Camden, Rockport is tiny however value a cease.
It’s dwelling to a photogenic little harbour, a couple of beautiful galleries, and the statue of Andre the Seal, a real-life harbour seal who was type of an area movie star within the ’70s.
It’s not a spot to hurry via – go for a stroll, seize a espresso, perhaps catch a low-key live performance if you happen to time it proper.
Optionally available lunch: Attempt Salt Wharf if it’s open, or head again into Camden for extra choices.
Cease 6: Belfast – quiet allure & inventive power
Belfast is a type of locations that surprises you – not flashy, not full of vacationers, however quietly cool.
There’s a inventive power right here, because of a mixture of native artists, writers and individuals who moved up from greater cities and by no means regarded again.
You’ll discover vintage outlets, indie bookshops and cafés that wouldn’t be misplaced in Brooklyn – however with a view of the bay.
The Belfast Rail Path is nice for a delicate stroll or cycle alongside the water, and the waterfront has simply sufficient bustle to maintain it attention-grabbing.
Closing cease: Bar Harbor – gateway to Acadia & the grand finale
The ultimate cease is Bar Harbor, a historic seaside resort city that now serves because the unofficial base for exploring Acadia Nationwide Park – and it’s a becoming finale to the journey.
The city itself is busy in summer season however nonetheless charming – with shingle-style inns, pop-up galleries and an ice cream store on each nook. However the true star right here is Acadia.
Drive the Park Loop Highway, hike Cadillac Mountain for dawn (you’ll want a reservation in peak season), or cycle the Carriage Roads for a slower, quieter solution to see the park.
Eat: Deal with your self to a seafood feast at Galyn’s or seize a lobster roll from Thurston’s Lobster Pound in close by Bernard for one thing extra all the way down to earth.
Keep: Two nights minimal at Acadia Inn if you need extra time to discover the park and take in the city.
Closing ideas
This stretch of Coastal Maine is all the pieces you hope it’ll be – lighthouses glowing within the nightfall, boats creaking in harbours, locals who say “ayuh” unironically.
However it’s additionally greater than a postcard. It’s the quiet, misty mornings. The peerlessly timed crab roll after a windswept hike. The artwork gallery you didn’t count on in a village of 300.
Take your time. Go away house for detours. And all the time cease for pie – that is New England, in spite of everything.
