help with planning for portland, Maine

Heeelp,

My husband , daughter , her friend and I are traveling to Portland in July for a week (it%26#39;s a business trip for my husband). We%26#39;re from the west coast and at first I thought it would be exciting to visit the east coast. I got on line and I don%26#39;t know if I%26#39;m missing things or what. I can%26#39;t get any info on shopping in the area. I thought for sure a broadway play would be offered at one of the theaters...but no. Then I thought surely they have a theme park I can take My 16 year old and her friend to but it seems they have amusement parks for the younger set. Museums are not their thing and are not going to keep them entertained for long. Now I%26#39;m contemplating taking off for DC or NYC with the girls, does anyone know if there is a commuter train from Portland to either location? I actually would prefer to stick around Portland. In San Francisco and Sacramento they often have tours of sailing ships during the summer months as fund raisers for the crews. Any possiblity of an activity like this in Portland? How likely is it that we will see whales if we go out in the bay on a whale watching cruise in July? Thank you,

gpthere

help with planning for portland, Maine

Gpthere,

You should be fine. My cousins%26#39; and friends%26#39; teenagers enjoy themselves here just fine. Let%26#39;s address some of your concerns one by one:

Shopping. The Old Port (near waterfront) area of Portland has many, many boutiques and fine/fun restaurants that both you and the girls should enjoy. Freeport is only a 20 minute drive north and it has tons of shopping as well, some of it discount.

Theaters. The Maine State Theater is an equity theater in Brunswick, just 30 minutes north of Portland. This summer their repertoire is West Side Story, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Grand Hotel and Hairspray. Brunswick is also home to Bowdoin College, so it has some attractions for teenagers. The Ogunquit Playhouse is another equity theater south of Portland. This summer Ogunquit is doing Menopause: The Musical, the Full Monty (with Sally Struthers), The King and I, Hairspray, La Cage Aux Folles and Gershwin%26#39;s Crazy For You. Portland has concerts at the Merrill Auditorium that you can check out at porttix.com. It also has the Portland Stage Company and the Lyric Theater. I don%26#39;t believe these are equity companies. There are many, many other community theaters around.

Theme Parks. Not a ton of these. There are two water parks in Saco, which is a short drive from Portland.

On the water. From Portland, you can take a trip on the Casco Bay Ferry LInes island ferries, which is beautiful. I know there are many other sailing ship tours and sailing opportunities, but I don%26#39;t know much about them. I%26#39;m sure others will comment on that.

One thing to keep in mind, since you%26#39;re coming from Nevada, is that it can be downright cold on and around the ocean here, even in July. The ocean temperatures don%26#39;t get above the low- to mid-60s, so you can just imagine how it feels when you combine that with a breeze. Layering is the key.

Personally, I wouldn%26#39;t consider a trip to NYC or DC in July. You%26#39;re presumably used to very hot temperatures, but we%26#39;re talking both hot and extremely humid. However, if you really want to go there, you can fly from Portland (JetBlue, United, Northwest, AirTran, Delta, USAirways) or you can take the Amtrak Downeaster or Concord Trailways bus (a nice bus) to Boston and then take the (fast) Acela train to NY and, I think, DC. You might want to consider Boston for a day trip. It has great shopping, shows, etc., and it%26#39;s a very quick train or bus ride.

I recommend that you spend some time looking at other posts on the Portland and Freeport forums here to get a better idea of things you might enjoy.

help with planning for portland, Maine

It seems you%26#39;re under the impression that every place should have for you the ';amenities'; of theme parks, Broadway plays and shopping. Northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire %26amp; Vermont) is a different way of life, and I encourage you to embrace what could be a wonderful trip! Consider some population statistics: Maine has 1.3 million people, 64,000 of whom live in Portland, its largest city. San Francisco has 750,000. We have clean air %26amp; water, low crime, ocean to the east and mountains to the west, no grid-locked traffic, and access to myriad cultural opportunites that Downeast touched on.

A little research will yield you tons of information, including shopping (yes, we have malls - even entire communities built upon outlet shopping.) July is one of our most pleasant months, and I can%26#39;t imagine a couple 16-year-olds wouldn%26#39;t love to spend a day or two at one of our gorgeous beaches! If you%26#39;ve just got to have your big-city fix, you can take a train to Boston, but NYC and DC are a full day%26#39;s journey away.

Read through the Portland postings of the past year or so. Check out some websites. Consider this a wonderful opportunity to experience a completely different part of the U.S.!

http://www.ci.portland.me.us/