That saves me a ton of money coming from Dallas. You can be in Portland Maine in about an hour and a half from Boston.

Also, good choice on your daughter's part. I love visiting Maine. Portland is a perfect sized city with a great attitude; and you'll find tons of "rocky beaches" almost anywhere you go along the coast.

Take the tourbuses around, and plan to spend more than one day if you can.

http://www.nps.gov/acad/index.htm

Starts in Kittery with a bunch of outlet malls including L.L. Bean's. Continuing along there are a series of lighthouse including the Nubble Light and Cape Elizabeth (Portland Head) light-2 of the most photographed in the world.



That's Cape Elizabeth from one of my old shots...

Along the way you will be passing a load of nice scenery, plenty of restaurants, and many antique shops. In Kennebunk there is a very enjoyable trolley museum that could be a half day trip in itself. Depending on stops this should probably take about a good morning and put you on the outskirts of Portland for lunch. That's my two cents worth...

On the same trip you pass Owl's Head...


http://owlshead.org/discover/collections


In case you would like to see a Mercury Capsule from the 60's or a Stanley Steamer in the brothers home state...

Check flying into Boston but also check Portland and Bangor prices. Sometimes they are surprisingly similar. Acadia National Park is a must and Reid State Park in Georgetown is lovely. But so is Camden Hills State Park and Rockland and so many other places. There are mailboats and tourboats to the islands. Maine is a beautiful state. I have lived here most of my adult life and still discover places that are amazing. My favorite city is Bangor and Stephen King's house is always on the tour. I think most people miss the beauty of Central Maine and places like Baxter State Park, Moxie Falls, and Moosehead Lake.
Timing is everything. I feel more positive about Maine's attributes now that there is no longer any snow in my yard (since the weekend).

Begin the trip with a stop in Portsmouth, N.H. Maybe a tour of the harbor from Portsmouth.

Across the river is Kittery, Maine. This was already mentioned in an earlier post. The Kittery Trading Post is as good as L.L. Bean but it is better because in the adjoining driveway is Bob's fried seafood. Fried oysters and wild rice. Also other stuff.

Kennebunk has a nice beach but, as I recall, it is not rocky.

Portland. I first visited Portland in the mid '70's. Unfortunately, it is now over-run with Starbucks and other gentrified stuff you find in other cities. BUT, it also has harbor tours and a few places where the locals hang out. Great night life but I am not sure it is a night life for an 18 year old.

As mentioned, take Rt 1 from Portland to points east. Freeport is the home of LL Bean. It is a city with the same mall stores that are probably 5 miles from where you live so don't plan to spend much time there unless your daughter is into mall products.

Moody's Diner is a favorite stop for locals and visitors. On Tuesday, they have Grape Nut pudding.

--- I forgot. Ogonquit, which is between Kittery and Portland. It has the Marginal Way. Marginal Way was a W.P.A. project that established a walking path of about 2 miles along the coast. Every turn of the path offers a different view of the coast. BRING YOUR CAMERA.

Now back to Rt. 1. As mentioned, Acadia National Park in Bar Harbor. If you go there on a clear night, you can see the Milky Way and Andromeda. It is the first location on the east coast of the U.S. to see the morning sun.

Farther east is Eastport. The lighthouse there gets fogged in 180 days per year.

Side Trip..... You may want to skip a day in Maine and if weather prediction is clear, go to Mt. Washington in N.H.

Last edited Fri May 1, 2015, 08:35 AM - Edit history (1)

Great information. I'll be planning the trip over the weekend. Looks like we have something in common - a state with great natural beauty and an insane Governor (although our Legislature is just as bad as the Gov).

I look forward to a nice 3-4 days touring your state. I traveled a lot on business over the years and Maine is the only state east of the Mississippi which I haven't been to.

I would fly into Bangor international airport. It's about a 90 min drive to Bar Harbor where Acadia
National park is. This is really a breath taking scenic scene of the rocky shores of Maine.
you have several sights to see if you travel by car along rte 1 back to portland air port- via this rte would be roughly 160-200 miles including from Bangor to Bucksport to Camden to bath and then to portland. you can do this easily in 3 days if you plan your flights right. their are numerous side trips for food and sightseeing - be sure and try a shore dinner if you enjoy seafood.
I'M partial to the eastport area because of the 27 ft tides ,red beach,MACHIAS CUTLER ETC.
But you can always extend it to a week or make another visit when she graduates from college!
enjoy your trip

Booked the flights this weekend and will work on where to stay this week. We are looking forward to the trip.

My daughter and I had a terrific trip last week. Landed in Portland, took the drive up the coast (the scenery and inns around Rockland were incredible) and ended up for two nights in Bar Harbor. Then on to Quebec City for two more nights (what a socialist hellhole; i.e., one of my favorite cities in the world) and then a drive back down the west coast of Maine straying into eastern NH.

Thanks for all of your advice in this thread a while back. My wife and I will likely take a similar trip next year (I hear you guys are closed for the winter )

And, as a bonus, it looks like you will be impeaching/jailing your moronic Governor. He really needs to move to the South; he would fit in Dixie much better than he does there.

Thanks again.