The Best Maine Vacation: How-To for Awesome Adventure

Updated: April 13, 2024

And now for part 3 of this series: exploring Maine. Road-tripping around Maine is amazing, but can be overwhelming if you have not decided exactly what you want to do (or at least a top few activities).

It’s easy to drive into Maine and immediately get distracted by the beauty and all of the options. If you haven’t decided exactly what you want to see or do, read about our Maine vacation for ideas and inspiration.

Part 1: Planning the Maine Road Trip Itinerary

Part 2: Road Trip to Maine: Testing the Itinerary

Part 3: The Maine Vacation…

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Day 3 of Maine Vacation

Days 1 and 2 of our Maine vacation were all about the traveling. Although we didn’t hit our goal of reaching Acadia National Park by the end of day 2, we weren’t far off by reaching it mid-day on day 3.

Once we made it to Acadia, it was all about the fun. Warning: we like to stay busy and squeeze in as many things as humanly possible into our trips… follow along! —>

Sand Beach

Day 1 we drove straight to Sand Beach, found a parking spot fairly easy, and immediately started preparing for the Ocean Path Trail hike. After lacing up my new hiking boots (super excited!!), and loading our backpack, we headed for the only sand beach in Acadia.

Once down there, we realized the trailhead was not at the beach, but took some time to explore the sands and rocks anyway. We returned to the parking lot to look at the map and find the trailhead (not difficult to find). And off we went.

Ocean Path Trail

Ocean Path Trail is an easy hike that hits a few main attractions within Acadia National Park: Thunder Hole, Otter Cliffs, Otter Point, and Otter Cove.

This trail runs between the shoreline and Park Loop Road which weaves around the park. There are parking lots scattered throughout, allowing easier (closer) access to these attractions. But we chose to hike for the full experience.

@brandi_youre.a.fine.girl

Oof. That view. #hiking #acadia #girlswhohike #oceanview #nationalpark #sunrises2sunsets

♬ love on the brain sped up – xxtristanxo

We found many small offshoot trails that lead to rock cliffs with amazing overlooks of the ocean and shoreline. For more details on this hike visit the National Park Service- Ocean Path Trail.

After exploring the 4.4-mile round-trip hike for a couple of hours, we returned to the van to drive through more of the park.

Jordan Pond

Continuing on Park Loop Road, we came across Jordan Pond. We had read of this pond prior to our trip, but it didn’t pique our interest enough to plan a stop. With the sun setting, we decided to make a quick stop.

We visited the gift store and then made the short hike down to the pond to watch a gorgeous sunset behind the mountains.

Bar Harbor Campground

As we left Jordan Pond, we decided (a little late in the day) that we needed to find a place to sleep for the night. We called Bar Harbor Campground, who let us know they are a first come, first serve campground (no reservations allowed) that closed in 10 minutes. Luckily, we were estimated at 7 minutes away.

When we arrived, we were told there was a possibility of ONE campsite available. If it was open, we were to lay our claims and then come back to pay.

We found the ONE site, which was at a perfect location with a beautiful view (and a deer grazing the grass in front of the campground).

I stayed at the site while my pilot went back to the office to pay. We ended the night eating our grilled burgers with a spectacular view.

Day 4 of Maine Vacation

Beehive Loop

The morning of day 4 was the much anticipated (and my top activity for our Maine vacation) Beehive Loop hike. I had looked forward to this hike since I first saw the pictures a couple of weeks ago. I hadn’t done any hiking like this before, and couldn’t wait!

We arrived before 8 a.m. and easily parked in the same parking lot as yesterday (Sand Beach parking lot). The trailhead was easy to find since we had scoped the area out yesterday.

Once we hit the climbing portions of the hike, I understood why others had recommended an early start. With everyone going at their own pace, and climbing the rungs limited to one person at a time, you will have to wait. BUT, I’m glad we had to do some waiting. This allowed us to rest and take in the sight (and snap plenty of pictures).

We encountered people of all ages and levels on this hike. From the extraordinarily fit to the not-so-fit, from the fearless to those slightly afraid of heights. This trail is definitely not recommended if you have a strong fear of heights. I considered this a moderate-intensity hike.

We thoroughly enjoyed this hike and its spectacular views! The hike met and exceeded my expectations. There is a level of danger on this hike, but I never felt like I was in real danger. Just pay attention and be careful!

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Coastline Drive

After finishing Beehive Loop and returning to the van, we made a quick lunch and then headed out for our Maine vacation coastline drive to West Quoddy Head Lighthouse.

With no definite route in mind, we looked at a map and picked the road that ran the coast (Highway 1). This turned out to be less than we had expected, with a minimal coastline view. We did, however, enjoy the scenery and landscaping along the way.

West Quoddy Head Lighthouse

The next stop of the day was the West Quoddy Head Lighthouse. The pilot wanted to see a lighthouse, and I wanted to stand at the easternmost point in the US. We visited the (very) small museum and then explored the grounds around the lighthouse. Unfortunately, the tower was not open for tours.

Our next activity was another hike. We chose the Coast Guard Trail, which started near the parking lot we were in. This trail led us through beautiful greenery and had offshoot trails that led out to rock bluffs with incredible ocean views.

After returning to the van, we cooked lunch in the parking lot and took off on our next adventure. We had ample time before our whale-watching tour in 24 hours, so we decided to try and spot some moose. After a quick internet search on the best place to do so, we decided to drive 3+ hours to Baxter State Park.

Baxter State Park

Our biggest mistake on this trip was adding Baxter State Park to the itinerary without enough research.

We planned to make it to the park, do some moose hunting, get groceries somewhere nearby, and then camp at the park. Had we looked it up, we would have read that this is not a true “state park.”

Baxter State Park does not offer RV/hookup camping, doesn’t allow dogs, and is very remote. The park is a self-funded wilderness area.

Our research came after 3 hours of driving as we were nearing the park. At this point were low on food and had no place planned to stay for the night.

Realizing we were too far in to turn back, we decided might as well drive through the park anyway.

After paying to enter, getting a map, and having a conversation with the ranger, we headed for moose spotting location suggestion #1.

This turned out to be a unique (and isolated) hike deep into the woods, to a pond where moose had recently been spotted.

While sitting on “Big Rock” for a bit during sunset, and constantly dodging the swarm of bugs at our faces, with no moose spotted, we decided to head to location #2 (despite it almost being too dark to see).

By the time we arrived at spot #2, it was indeed too dark to see anything. Eager to leave this park, we headed back to make it out of the gates in time (closes at 10 p.m.).

No grocery shopping was available, so dinner consisted of protein bars and pistachios for me and a late-night McDonald’s drive-thru for the pilot. After some more driving, we found a rest stop for a late ending to this day.

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Day 5 of Maine Vacation

Stephen King’s Home

The first stop of Day 5 was just an hour away in Bangor, Maine for a good breakfast (since dinner the night before was a bust). After finding a cute local shop with delicious bagels, we headed for the King residence.

This was easy to find (and really cool to see!). We kept this stop short, walking around the gated home for about 10 minutes, to avoid looking like creepers.

And then it was off to Bar Har for some exploration and then the much-anticipated cornerstone activity of our Maine vacation: whale watching.

Whale Watching

Arriving a couple of hours before whale tour time, we decided to roam the coastline streets of Bar Harbor for some tourist shopping. At noon we hopped in the (already incredibly long) whale-watching line for the 1 p.m. tour.

Walking the streets of Bar Harbor in a tank top had been comfortable, but we had read to bring plenty of layers along for whale watching.

I packed a bag with a long sleep pullover, a sweatshirt, and a raincoat. Seeing the others with their big bags of food made me wish I had researched more and thought to pack snacks for our trip.

Checking in and boarding the boat didn’t take long and was an easy process. We found some seats on the outside of the boat for the trip.

Once we took off, the temperatures changed quickly. Within 15 minutes I had put on every layer of clothing I had packed. And I was still cold. Moving inside to get out of the cold wind was nice, but every seat was taken, leaving standing room only.

We alternated between going indoors and outdoors (sitting outdoors, standing inside) until finally we lucked out and got an indoor seat. Our total time on the boat was 5-6 hours, with the last hour spent trying to nap on the table inside.

Despite the reported 90-95% success rate we had read about, we had no luck with seeing whales (just a few birds and seals). Although the company does have a guarantee (offers free tickets to another viewing, good for 3 years), the likelihood of us having this opportunity again in that period is small.

Lobster Dinner

Although this was one of my top activities, and a bucket list item, I had never been so glad to get off of the whale-watching boat.

Although I did not enjoy this activity at all, the company and tour guide were friendly and informative. Next, we cleaned up and headed straight for Stewman’s Lobster Pound for a fantastic fresh lobster dinner.

This restaurant sits next to Bar Harbor Whale Watching and offers a 15% discount for anyone who presents their whale watching ticket.

Sand Bar Cottage

Instead of hitting the road for some driving (as planned), we decided to rent a room at the Sand Bar Cottage to pamper ourselves with a long, hot shower and real bed for the last night of our Maine vacation.

This cute little place had the best hostess and sent us off the next morning after serving us an amazing breakfast! We were rested, fed, and ready to hit the road for our trip home.

Final Thoughts on our Maine Vacation

Our Maine vacation was a whirlwind of new scenery and new activities. And we loved it!

Some activities exceeded our expectations (everything about Acadia National Park!), and some didn’t (whale watching). But I wouldn’t have it any other way and I appreciate the opportunity to explore this state and experience all of its beauty!

Even without the moose and the whales, this was the best Maine Vacation.

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Are you taking a Maine Vacation soon? Contact me if you have any questions or need suggestions!

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