Frommers Star Ratings System
Every hotel, restaurant, and attraction listed in this guide has been ranked for quality and value. Heres what the stars mean:
| Recommended |
| Highly Recommended |
| A must! Dont miss! |
AN IMPORTANT NOTE
The world is a dynamic place. Hotels change ownership, restaurants hike their prices, museums alter their opening hours, and busses and trains change their routings. And all of this can occur in the several months after our authors have visited, inspected, and written about, these hotels, restaurants, museums and transportation services. Though we have made valiant efforts to keep all our information fresh and up-to-date, some few changes can inevitably occur in the periods before a revised edition of this guidebook is published. So please bear with us if a tiny number of the details in this book have changed. Please also note that we have no responsibility or liability for any inaccuracy or errors or omissions, or for inconvenience, loss, damage, or expenses suffered by anyone as a result of assertions in this guide.
Late fall foliage is ablaze with color in Maine, as some lobstermen begin to hang up their buoys for the season.
CONTENTS
Watching a Downeast summer sunrise over Tenants Harbor.
A Look at The Maine Coast
T h eres a reason they call it Vacationland. Season after season, you cant turn a corner in coastal Maine without stumbling into some postcard-perfect New England tableau. Stately federal architec ture, stoic fishermen on wharves, lighthouses proud against (Winslow) Homeric weather-beaten shores. In these hinterlands of Yankee country, eccentricity and bohemian funk have made inroads in a culture of modesty and taciturnity, so expect splashes of local color: lurid lobster buoys dangling from tree limbs like psychedelic lichen; front-yard art installations cobbled together from lifes flotsam, gaudy flea markets edging Route 1 like Gods own yard sale. And yet, for all the seaside human carnival, youll never want for a quiet pocket of deep forest or sublimely dignified shoreline. Its a multiverse of overlapping ecosystems, from rounded coastal mountains to finger-like tidal inlets, the domain of everything from prehistoric horseshoe crabs to the occasional lumbering moose. Those guys look pretty good on the postcards, too.
Mooses flirt in Baxter State Park (), one of the states best spots for hiking, climbing, and nature-watching.
Portland and the Southern Coast
Maines largest city, Portland manages to feel urban and hip without losing its historic harbor town character. See .
A vintage sign welcomes visitors to charming Kennebunkport (), full of boutiques, colonial B&Bs, and shingled summer mansions.
Ogunquits main beach () stretches for three long sandy miles, with room for everyone to spread a towel.
Ramping up the citys cultural cachet, the Portland Museum of Art () would be outstanding in a community 5 or 10 times Portlands size.
The Portland Sea Dogs, a AA Red Sox farm team, play at delightfully old-timey Haddon Field. See .
A craft beer mecca, Portland has many hangouts like Gritty McDuffs Brew Pub in the Old Port (), with live music and the house brew on tap.
Summer family fun in the Kennebunks ()inevitably at some point involves an encounter with a crustacean.
Near Yorks popular beaches, Nubble Light () is one of the worlds most photographed lighthouses.
Rocky headlands protect Ogunquits tiny Perkins Cove (), offering sweeping sea views and an escape from the harbor villages often-thronged gift shops and seafood shacks.
Midcoast
At low tide, horseback riders take a seaside canter at Popham Beach State Park (), one of the few sandy strands in the rockbound lower Midcoast.
The touch tank at the Maine State Aquarium () in West Boothbay Harbor gives kids a hands-on encounter with tidal zone marine life.
On Penobscot Bay, shady Castine () is a classic New England village. Walking tours begin on the town green at the Castine Historical Society.
Boats are the only way to reach remote, picturesque Monhegan Island (), beloved by landscape artists; rent a bike or kayak to explore once youre here.
Next page