I want to go to Maine and EAT! Where to?

My wife, my son (5 years old) and I want to take a trip to Maine. We were thinking about going to Rockport for the Lobster Festival, but everything I have read tells me to stay away that week. Truth is we just want to go somewhere that%26#39;s pretty, where we can all relax (we live in Miami and need a break) and where we can just eat GREAT food, especially LOBSTER!!!!

We are not into hiking, riding, etc. We are the walking around town type. We just want a place where we can wake up late, go have a nice breakfast every morning, then take a nice slow drive everyday to enjoy the scenery. Where should we go? Any suggestions? We will probably take a 5 day trip. Your help is a ppreciated.

I want to go to Maine and EAT! Where to?

Fly into Portland, take a day to drive Route 1 to Camden stopping at anything interesting along the way.

Spend a couple of nights in Camden.

Drive back to Portland and spend a couple of nights in Portland.

Fly home with more lobsters. :)

I want to go to Maine and EAT! Where to?

You might consider using the Portland area as your base, and taking day trips from here. Portland may be the biggest city in Maine, but it%26#39;s only about 65,000 people...a very safe city to walk around at any time of day or night. There is a lot of history and historic buildings/tours, a great Children%26#39;s Museum for your son if you have a rainy day, and every kind of restaurant imaginable----from the place that is in Gourmet Magazine%26#39;s ';Top 20 in the U.S.'; to just great local places, and of course lobster lobster lobster everywhere.

Just walking around the Old Port or exploring the wharves is a great way to explore---your five year old may like standing and watching as the fish are unloaded from the boats. From Portland it is a very easy drive (as little as 20 minutes to some nice ones) to great beaches. You can drive down to Kennebunkport (25 minutes) to see the home of George Bush The First and enjoy that fine little New England town with its lovely shops and nice restaurants. There is more outlet shopping than you could do in a lifetime, as well as the iconic L.L. Bean store, in Freeport (20 minutes north). Lovely lakes are 45 minutes to an hour away, and Maine%26#39;s western mountains...beautiful vistas and nice little villages... begin within an hour%26#39;s drive. The islands of the bay are a mere ferry ride away---take Casco Bay Lines%26#39; mail boat run and see them all for a very small amount of money----it%26#39;s so nice, on a beautiful day, to pack a lunch and just ride the ferry around the bay as it makes its stops.

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I am not trying to discourage you from the Lobster Festival (which is in Rockland, not Rockport---these two towns are near each other, but since parking is a problem during the Festival you would likely want to stay right in Rockland---and if so should make your reservations SOON).

These towns are on Penobscot Bay, which is one of the most beautiful areas of Maine.....where the mountains begin to meet the sea. Geographically, it is postcard-worthy. Camden is also in this area---a bit crowded and touristy (though in a slightly upscale way). Sailing is a very big thing here, and I know that area more from the sailing perspective. I am sure you could find ways to get out on the ocean for a day in this area. No beaches though (of course since you are from Miami I am guessing you don%26#39;t care). The Farnsworth Museum in Rockland has an important collection of Wyeths. There are heaps of nice restaurants in the area, particularly at some of the inns.

I think that the Portland area gives you more options...I actually think there are more good restaurants around here of the hole-in-the-wall variety (so many sitting right on the water or on the wharf where the lobstermen are hauling in your dinner)-----some may appear at first glance to be a bit dwon-scale but any good Mainer will tell you these are the best places to eat lobster!

Wow. Now we are really excited! Thanks for the great reply! I think we will do just that, start in Portland. Any idea of where we could stay? Any recommendations? Also, what are the can%26#39;t miss places when we go there either in the city or within a few hours. Thanks again!

My husband and I went to Maine on our vacation last year and we enjoyed it so much we are planning to go again this summer and see some areas we didn%26#39;t have time for last year.

In the Portland area, a place we really enjoyed was Portland Head Light. This is a historic lighthouse. You can%26#39;t go up in the lighthouse itself, but there is a museum in the keeper%26#39;s quarters and a gift shop, and the views are outstanding (if the weather is clear). There are some walking paths within the park where the lighthouse is located (Fort Williams Park). I think Portland Head Light is actually in Cape Elizabeth, but it is near Portland.

If you do go to Cape Elizabeth, you might enjoy eating at the Lobster Shack. You can eat outside at the picnic tables if the weather is nice. There are two lighthouses there which you can%26#39;t visit but the view is scenic. Here is a website for Lobster Shack with menu and directions; click on ';Area Information'; for additional info.

www.lobstershack-twolights.com/index.htm

The accommodations question is as usual dependent on how much you want to spend. As a general rule, the closer you are to downtown/the Old Port, the pricier things will be. There are also quite a few beautiful little inns/B%26amp;Bs, but these might be trickier to find as I think many of them don%26#39;t allow children.

The chain hotels, which are probably the least expensive, are out by the mall in South Portland. From here it is only a 10 or 15 minute drive to the Old Port, so it%26#39;s not that big a deal. This area of course isn%26#39;t very scenic (you know----it%26#39;s the MALL) but would be less expensive. Another less expensive option would be Freeport (20 minutes into Portland).

As to what not to miss, yikes. There truly are a lot of choices. I agree with the previous poster about Portland Head Light, and also the Lobster Shack (note on the Lobster Shack: if you want beer or wine they do not serve it; however you can bring your own).

I do think you should spend at least some time out on the water. You can take one of the tour boats, or as I mentioned before you can pick up some goodies somewhere (there are tons of places that sell take-out, including gourmet items) and just enjoy the commuter ferry or the mail boat run.

A trip up the coast is worthwhile---Camden, Rockport, etc are about an hour and 45 minutes away.

A longer trip (2 hours I think) would be to the White Mountains of New Hampshire. In Gorham you can, for a fee, DRIVE up Mt. Washington which is the highest mountain in the northeast.

The lakes west of Portland are nice and many have public beaches.

For listings of the historic things to do/see, you might try the website for Greater Portland Landmarks (www.portlandlandmarks.org). I think their organized tours would be too boring for a 5 year old (I know this since I GIVE some of these tours!) but you might pick up one of their brochures for a self-guided walking tour.

For a real honky-tonk but memorable experience, you could try Old Orchard Beach with its famous pier. They have amusement park type rides there right on the beach. Buy tee shirts, eat french fries with gravy, see men and women who shouldn%26#39;t be wearing bikinis wearing them, and try to understand the Canadian French being spoken all around you.

Ditto on the Mt. Washington recommendation. It%26#39;s a fun side trip,excep that you need to go on a clear day or the summit will be in the clouds.

im thinkin like a five year old now...

portland

http://www.foodinportland.com/flatbread.html

http://www.mngrr.org/

boothbay harbor

www.maine.gov/dmr/rm/aquarium/index.html

http://www.ornescandystore.com/

camden

http://www.merryspring.org/

owls head

lighthousegetaway.com/lights/ME/owl3.jpg

belfast

http://www.perrysnuthouse.com/

(but only if it%26#39;s on the way...)

everything else

www.mainelykids.com/index.php…

talkingtree.com/gallery/…index.cfm

to save on time getting lost and to save on gas:

mapshop.com/Atlas/…me_150.gif

Re: Lodging in Portland, I%26#39;ve stayed once at three of the main hotels in the Old Port area, and been satisfied with all of them. I was at the Holiday Inn about 15 years ago or more. It was nice then, and I am assuming it has held up well with the years. More recently, I stayed at the Eastland, and older hotel that has been undergoing renovation in stages (as others on this forum have described). If new and shiny is important to you, don%26#39;t go there. But if you are okay with the occasional blemish, or something that has not quite been modernized, then you will be very happy here, and may just get a good deal. This winter, we stayed at the new Hilton Garden Inn, right across from the ferry terminal. Great location. A brand new hotel, so very clean and modern. Many rooms have views to the water. And the location can%26#39;t be beat.

In general, I would recommend any of these three if you would prefer to be able to walk right out your hotel and walk into the Old Port. The chains, at the Mall, are close enough to downtown. But parking, especially in summer in the Old Port, may not be fun, and you may find yourself throwing the car into a lot, maybe several times a day.

Ogunquit or boothbay Harbor. Ogunquit might be more attractive to Miamians, a bit more buzz, more going on...Boothbay has shops and restaurants but is much quieter. Both have lobster up the ying yang.....when you make your decision we%26#39;ll then let you know where to eat.