Nan

First time to go to Maine. Want to be near the water. What is good in July? What town to pick? Looking for quaint, maybe a small cottage. Want to rest and relax.

KC

look for a place in Deer Isle.. south of Bar Harbor. Quiet, water, quaint without the tourist bustle of Bar Harbor. There are cottages and inns, try a realtor in the area of Deer Isle or Stonington.

Nan

Many thanks for the suggestion of Stonington. I found a great B&B. Their website looked great. It was what we wanted.. great view, quiet, etc.Thanks.

Liz

Nan: We stayed in Stonington last year after a few days in Bar Harbor, mainly to take the mail boat to Ilse au Haut to hike. We really enjoyed it, but hope you know there is very little to "see" in the immediate area, and not many restaurants. Not that there's anything wrong with that, just so that is what you want. Have a good trip!

DougD

Maine has a very long coast, over 1000 miles if you stretched it out! Do you want a quiet place on a rocky cove, a motel near a sandy beach, or a b&b in a town? Basically, the strtch from the NH border to Portland has lots of wide sandy beaches, lots of motels, and lots of crownds. However, there are many very nice b&b's and cabins off on side roads. We enjoy Cabot's cove in Kennebunkport, a group of small cabins around a small salt pond. As you head up further, the coast becomes more rocky, and sandy beaches are less frequent. Pemmiquid Point and Bailey's island are two very nice spots in the Brunswick area with lots of cabins and b&b's. July will be very nice, but realize the ocean is still quite cold (but swimable if your hearty!), ther may be a week or so in late summer when the water temps actually approach the mid 60's. One area I would keep away from is Old Orchard Beach, unless you are into the tacky, honkey tonky seaside resort scene!

Nan

We don't expect to "do" too much. We won't have the kids with us so we just want to relax. We made reservations in Stonington. How long would it take to get to Bar Harbor? Do we even need to go there.? We only have 3 days and 4 nights. We read about Ile au Haut and considered hiking. Also you can rent bikes in Stonington. We are not out to try to get everything in, only to enjoy the moment. We won plane tickets to any where on the east coast and picked the fartherest place that would be cool in July. We live in the South.
Thanks again.

Harriett

On our first trip to Maine last summer, we (accidentally) drove through the town of Belfast, somewhere along the coast north of Portland, and fell in love! Fabulous shops, interesting restaurants, made us feel like we were in Ireland, within an hour or so of Freeport (I think!). Not sure of how to find places to rent, but I'm sure it's out there - and what a beautiful place! WE are trying to find a way to go back for a week this summer. Let me know if you pursue this . . .