navi_jen

If you are flying into Bangor, you should really explore the Rockland>Rockport>Camden>Castine>Blue Hill areas. Maine is 1/2 the size of Britain, but once you get off Rt 95/395, it takes a fairly long time to get anywhere due to the touristy, twisty back roads. Trying to do Campobello to Katadin is just too much (not to mention that the last 30 miles into Katadin are sorta a driving mess thru old mill towns and logging roads). Don't get me wrong, Katadin hiking is goregous, but it's way the heck out there...much better if you are camping for a long weekend/week or rafting down the Penobscot.

Camden is much quieter, less touristy and a heck of a lot closer than Old Orchard (climb Mt Battie for great views, take a windjammer cruise, eat at the Heartstone Inn and Camden Deli). You can take the kids swimming (pack a pinic from the Deli, you cannot go wrong!) at Barrett's Cove (inland lake about a mile from Camden) or at Lincolnville Beach (3 miles north of Camden). Rockland is home to the the Farnsworth Art Museum (I like to think of it as a mini-Portland).

Castine is OLD, civil war era Maine (Dennet's Wharf has great views and good food). Blue Hill rivals Camden for the prettiest town in Maine. 2 good art galleries, eat at the Boatyard Grill and Arborvine.

The driving loop from Surrey>Orland>Castine>Penobscot>Brooksville>Brookl in>Blue Hill>Surrey>Elsworth is stunning. ..Rivals MDI for views, but with a lot less tourists. Stop at the Bagaduce reversing falls (the deli in Brooksville has good, fresh seafood) If you go to MDI, stay in Southwest Harbor, more 'old Maine'...Beal's Lobsters are the real deal. My suggestion is to avoid Bar Harbor (or do it as a day trip) as it is a touristy zoo. Take the kids hiking on the carriage roads, they are pretty tame but yield gorgeous views.

Same goes for the loop from Wiscasset (yay Red's!) to Newcastle/Darmariscotta. I love those two villages, absolutely gorgeous. Round top ice cream is the best EVAH, with Flying Cloud Inn and Damariscotta Inn as good bets for lodging. Pemaquid Point is stunning and there are 2 good hotels in New Harbor (Bradley Inn is stunning, and Hotel Pemaquid more rustic but great views). Near New Harbor, try Shaw's fish, any of the co-ops.

Bottom line, you could spend a whole week in Midcoast Maine, including Portland. Slow down and enjoy vactionland is my recommendation.

Good luck!

Vaucluse

Thanks for all the advice guys. We'll be staying 3 days in Bar harbor, 2 days in Boothbay harbor and 2 days in Portland.

philemer

The online reviews say the lobster rolls are small. True? What are they priced at? We'll be there in mid-October. https://www.yelp.com/biz/eventide-oy...are%20small%22

TIA

JY1024

The Yelp reviews and pictures are accurate. Lobster roll is pretty small and costs ~$15 each.

navi_jen

Vaucluse, sounds like a great itinerary. Let us know if you have other questions...otherwise, we look forward to a full post-game analysis

gfunkdave

But it's soooo good.

Vaucluse

We just get back from our trip. Acadia national park is pretty good. Bar harbor is cute little town, however, the dining options are definitely tourist price. On our way to boothbay harbor, we went to Mt Battie (awesome view, better than Cadillac mt.) and Rockland breakwater lighthouse. Unfortunately, the weather were not cooperating on our time there. It was raining & cold. We love Portland. Dining options are much more aligned with the prices. We did Casco bay ferry lines (Cheaper & better view than the cruise we did in Bar harbor) Portland Head Light house is the highlight of this trip. It's very picturesque. It's going to be in my desktop background tomorrow.

For eating options, I found my lobster preference is boiled or steamed. Thus, Maine Lobster roll is not really my favourite. We did Lobster rolls at Red eats, Harraseeket Lunch & Lobster, Eventide and Bite into Maine. Eventide is the best by a mile. Bite into Maine is second. Harraseeket has better dining place than Red eats. Red eats is overhyped and expensive for what it offers, IMHO. Thurston was close when we went there, thus, we tried Beale's only. It's pretty good. Street & Co - Lobster Diavolo is awesome and pretty generous in its portion. Becky's is pretty cheap and fast for breakfast/brunch. We can see ourselves back into Portland just for their dining options.

Analise

Becky's is one our morning go-to's. They've had the same waitresses for YEARS. They opened a deck upstairs which is great in the summer.

Thurston's is our favorite lobster pound in Maine. How bizarre they were closed….on a summer weekend????

Haraseeket Lunch and Lobster has a nice setting out there. It's just beautiful. Reds is a on bridge — that's it. I've never understood the hype. The lobster rolls aren't nearly as good as HL&L or Bob's down in Kittery.

Thanks for sharing how your trip went!

9Benua

Apparently they are closed every sunday.

Thanks for the OP, saving this thread for future Maine trip.

Analise

That's new. They're only open for maybe 4 months of the year. I guess they feel they make enough money to be closed for 1/2 the weekend every weekend.

fastflyer

Street & Co is wonderful. Glad you liked Bite Into Maine in Fort Williams Park in Cape Elizabeth also.

Vaucluse

Yes, we went there on that lucky sunday. Thankfully, we have enough time to go back and go to Beale's instead.

Bite into Maine's Wasabi & curry flavour are pretty good.