Bar Harbor, Maine: Wouldn't You Like to be There Now?

Source: acadiamagic.com via Heather on Pinterest

When creating our New England Pinterest pinboards, I came across one photo that I keep coming back to:  a colorful picture of downtown Bar Harbor, Maine.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Bar Harbor is the lively commercial center of the Acadia National Park area. Just minutes from Acadia where the ocean meets the mountains, Bar Harbor has an enviable and impossibly beautiful harbor location with enough shops and restaurants to keep the most insatiable shopper and diner happy throughout the vacation. Tree-lined in many parts and with a relaxing town common, Bar Harbor might be too hectic from Memorial Day to Labor Day Weekend for those in touch with the spectacular natural, pristine setting of Acadia National Park, but let's remember, too, that it's not exactly one of those tacky, souvenir-laden tourist traps. Sure, you'll get elements of that here, but, all in all, Bar Harbor has an attractive, often beautiful walkable downtown with almost all of the shops and restaurants running on a pride of ownership platform. The town also has some amazing historic inns that add a touch of class like the Primrose Inn and Bar Harbor Manor. Bar Harbor is really the perfect companion and foundation for your Acadia National Park vacation.

My favorite downtown things to do? Visiting the West End Drug Store (105 Main St.) for the old-fashioned soda fountain, Island Artisans (99 Main St.) for hundreds of locally-made handmade crafts, Roslie's (46 Cottage St.) for delicious hand-tossed pizza and tunes on the Wurlitzer jukebox, and Testa's (53 Main St.) for delicious lobster, seafood and pasta.

That's just a fraction, however, of what's in Bar Harbor.  You could spend several hours here, but in the name of fair and balanced, I would first get out to see Acadia National Park and then leave enough time to enjoy downtown Bar Harbor. That way, you get the best of both vacation worlds!

Log onto the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce web site for more information on Bar Harbor, Acadia National Park and the surrounding region.

Related articles and resources:
Visiting Cadillac Mountain at Acadia National Park
Exploring Sand Beach at Acadia National Park
Relaxing at Jordan Pond, Acadia National Park
Book a hotel room in Bar Harbor

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New England Trip Planning Inquiry for Coastal Maine, New England Patriots, Scenic Drives, Historical Preservation

We recently received another excellent New England travel inquiry, which we will happily answer right here...

Q: Hi!  We are planning a summer vacation.  Myself, my husband and our 14-year-old son want to visit the New England area.  I want to go on the scenic coast and eat Maine lobster, my son and my husband are BIG New England Patriots fans, and must see anything and everything to do with Bill, Tom, and Wes Welker.  We also are interested in the history of New England.  Can you please, please help me????? Last year my husband planned a three week, wonderful European vacation. I want this vacation to be just as breathtaking.  We will be driving from Northwest Indiana, on or around the last week of July, for 10 to 12 days.  Can you give me the most scenic driving directions?  I know I am asking a lot, but I need help!!!!!!!! Any little bit you can help me, would be soooo appreciated.
Thank you so much for your time.

A: You bet, glad to help! You will certainly find no shortage of travel attractions and destinations, in regards to your planned New England vacation. One coastal region of Maine that we highly recommend is Acadia National Park. The coastal scenery is absolutely spectacular, especially the the 27-mile loop that offers endless ocean and mountain scenery.  For lobster, try the Docksider in the quaint community of Northeast Harbor. It's a classic, Maine lobster shack.

The Patriot Place shopping and entertainment complex at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass., should please your New England Patriots fan family members. Here, you can visit the Hall at Patriot Place that wonderfully honors the New England Patriots and football in New England through an incredible playbook of entertaining and educational state-of-the-art video and audio mediums, fan-friendly exhibitions and memorabilia. While at Patriot Place, check out the Patriots Pro Shop, the official store of the New England Patriots. For dining at Patriot Place, CBS Scene is lots of fun (although it can get quite noisy). CBS Scene comprises 15,000 sq. ft. of dining space with three levels of lunch and dinner dining, and 135 SONY Plasma, LCD and graphic projector displays (including table side televisions) playing the best of CBS radio and television entertainment, sports and news programming through the years.  Oh, yes, the food is really good here!
Check out our "Historic New England Towns" article for a taste of the great preservation in New England.  Regarding scenic drives, we recommend reading our "Best New England Scenic Drives" article at VisitingNewEngland.com. We cover a lot of ground here, including the unspoiled part of Cape Cod, the Stowe, Vt., area, and the Mohawk Trail in Massachusetts.

Have fun planning your New England vacation, and please contact us if we can be of further help.


Additional resources: 
Find a hotel in  Connecticut,  Maine,  Massachusetts , New Hampshire,Rhode Island,  Vermont 


For every hotel reservation made, We donate five percent of our commission to  Brookview House, a homeless shelter for families located in Dorchester, Mass. The Brookview House mission is to assist homeless families in the development of skills necessary to break the cycle of poverty.

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The Cadillac of Maine Mountains

Article and Photo By Eric H.

Cadillac Mountain, at Acadia National Park on Mt. Desert Island, Maine, isn't close to being the highest mountain in New England, but the experience of being there will bring your Maine travel experiences to new heights.

Only 1,532 ft. high, Cadillac Mountain could seemingly be slam-dunked by Boston Celtic Kevin Garnett, but its modest height is all you need to view the unusual mix of ocean and mountains that have made Mt. Desert Island and its prized jewel, Acadia National Park, so famous for its natural, spectacular scenery. Cadillac Mountain, in fact, is one of 17 mountains on Mt. Desert Island, and is the first place in the United States to view the sun rise from Oct. 7 through March 6, according to AcadiaMagic.com

At the opposite end of the day, the sun sets are truly magical -- many times with blazing orange skies gradually fading into a sense of quiet, nighttime Maine solitude. This time of the day brings out some of the best views of the mountains, Bar Harbor, and the Cranberry Islands -- it's like one of those paintings that seems too dramatic to be authentic. The day time brings some scenic splendor, too, as the ocean, the inland scenes and skies offer such deep color and personality that it makes you wonder if the places where we live are dulled by all the pollution.

If traveling to Acadia National Park, we highly recommend Cadillac Mountain as a "must-see." The drive up is about 3.5 miles and there are also hiking opportunities. Whatever mode you decide to arrive, Cadillac Mountain is an instant Maine memory!

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Reveling in Coastal Maine's Sounds of Silence

Article by Eric H.

Clifton Dock in Northeast Harbor, Maine, will never get press headlines as a tourist destination. It was never meant to be that way, thankfully, for those who are less interested in being a tourist and more interested in becoming part of the fabric of this region.

Clifton Dock -- a grand representation of pristine Mt. Desert Island near Adacia National Park -- offers one nothing more than a dock, Maine coastal water views, boats in the water, a weathered red bench and refreshing salt-sea air. If this scene could be translated to wealth, we'd be millionaires. Gone is the traffic, the souvenir shops, the expensive tourist attractions, the neanderthal six-pack crowds and people "who want to be seen" that many times impede the very reason we try to "get away': to attain some sense of peace and relaxation.

Just as an actor learns to play his part, there are travelers who become so ensconced in their role of visiting a new area that they consider these destinations part of their inner soul. Clifton Dock corrects our "travel set point" - that is, bringing us back to a place that was excitingly natural in our formative years and even more exciting now after years of over stimulation in our out-of-control, ever-growing suburban environment. This begs the question a wise friend once exclaimed: why do we say we're returning to civilization when this is civilization?

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The Magic of Jordan Pond, Acadia National Park, Maine

Jordan Pond in Acadia National Park, Maine, might be far away for most people, but it will surely be close to your heart, forever, once you visit this magical place.

Best known for the Jordan Pond House restaurant (open mid-May through late October) with its famous popovers, afternoon tea and Maine seafood, Jordan Pond, itself, is really the star attraction with its peaceful body of water, hiking trails to view different yet amazing perspectives along the way, dramatic open fields and big skies, and easy hike up the "Bubbles" where you can get a commanding view of the fresh water pond.

Acadia National Park is one of the jewels of the eastern seaboard with its mix of ocean and mountains; Jordan Pond might be the apex of this wonderful travel experience.

The Jordan Pond House Restaurant and Jordan Pond are located on the Park Loop Road in Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island.

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