Week in October in Maine

Old Apr 9th, 2014, 07:13 PM
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Week in October in Maine

My wife & I are planning a week long trip to Maine in October. We are looking for suggestions on where we should visit. We will fly into Portland and rent a car. Probable travel dates are Oct. 4 thru 12, but we are flexible. We are mid-50's and enjoy sight-seeing, walking, eating, shopping (a little). We usually like to stay in bed & breakfasts when we travel. I would probably plan to spend a couple of nights in each location, so we could stay in 3 or 4 different places over the course of our trip. We've never been to Maine, so we would appreciate any travel advice.
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Old Apr 10th, 2014, 10:28 AM
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Columbus Day, Monday, October 13, is a holiday in New England and the height of the leaf peeper tour bus season, so leaving on 10/12 is a good idea.

I will begin by suggesting two full days in Portland, two in the Brunswick area, two more in Rockland or Camden, and maybe a night on an island -- Vinalhaven or the more remote Monhegan, if anything is open.
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Old Apr 10th, 2014, 03:44 PM
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Great. Thanks for the tips.
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Old Apr 11th, 2014, 06:03 AM
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I agree with most of Ackislander's advice. You can do a Maine search and pick up quite a few tips. The great lobster shacks will be closed during the week but you might find one open on a weekend. If it's too cold to sit at a picnic table I would go to someplace with indoor dining.

Your week might be a little late for color in NH's White Mountains. In Portland you are only an hour away. If you check the foliage reports just before you get here, you might go see some color in NH. Maybe a foliage cruise on Lake Winnipesaukee but I would avoid NH on the weekend. There will be too much traffic. This could be a day trip while you are still in Portland so if you consider that, I would add an extra day to Portland.

If you just want to drive and do a little walking, my favorite route is from Rt 16 south of Conway NH to Tamworth and over to Center Sandwich. Then you can drop down to Meredith. There's a few shops there. If you like upscale high quality crafts, there's a League of NH Crafts shop. You could go back on the Kancamagus Hwy. The loops if your in NH is a half day so there is time for shopping (North Conway? but skip the outlets) and back to Portland in time for dinner.

We love the Harpswells area east of Brunswick but there's very little shopping. Get a map to conservation areas for some short hikes. This is a far quieter area that southern Maine. Places in southern Maine like Wells, Kennebunkport, Ogunquit or beautiful but also have lots of traffic and congestion.

Book now, lodging books early for foliage season.
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Old Apr 12th, 2014, 02:39 PM
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Thanks so much!
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Old Apr 12th, 2014, 03:39 PM
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With that amount of time you should be able to go as far as Acadia National Park/Bar Harbor. I would do at least two days up there, probably two in Camden/Rockport and the rest in Portland with day trip to NH as suggested above.

Fall color changes first inland, then along the coast. So the NH White Mountains/Lakes regions are often a week or more "ahead" of the coast. There are many websites that will tell you where the color is best (the dates change year to year) that you can check just before your trip.
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Old Apr 13th, 2014, 07:32 AM
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book the rental car now, one that you can cancel if necessary, lock in a decent rate as they get pricey for a couple of weeks in October as the availability tightens up.
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Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 05:51 PM
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Thanks for all the helpful tips!
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Old Apr 25th, 2014, 04:51 PM
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See the real North Woods - Greenville and Moosehead Lake
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