Hello,

I was planning on going camping with my g-f for the first weekend of July. We are both in our early 20's. We are interested in a nice beach eather near portland or boston.

We want nice sand, tourist attractions, restaurants, shops, boardwalk, etc...

if you have websites, camping grounds, it would be great!

My young friends seem to like Hampton Beach in NH. Seems to be the "in-place" for young people partying. Not sure about campgrounds.

A few years ago we stayed at the Cape Ann Camp Site in Gloucester, MA, and thought it was a very nice campground. Their website is at <www.cape-ann.com/campsite/>. They are less than a mile down the road from Wingaersheek Beach, which is a very nice beach with a view of a lighthouse. There is no boardwalk on Cape Ann, but there are lots of things to do, and it's a beautiful area. You can take a whale watch, tour Hammond Castle, and go to nearby Rockport, the quintessential quaint and charming New England Coastal town, with lots of nice shops, galleries, and restaurants (but it's a dry town, so bring your own wine or beer to have with your meals if you want it). You can walk in beautiful Halibut Point State Park, with great ocean views. You can rent sea kayaks in Rockport, or go on a guided sea kayak trip from Essex River Basin Adventures (ERBA) in nearby Essex - which also has some nice restaurants and shops, especially antique shops. Other nearby wonderful beaches are Good Harbor Beach in Gloucester, and, my favorite, Crane Beach in Ipswich.

Closer to Portland, in Southern Maine, is Old Orchard Beach. I've never actually been there, except to drive through, but I believe that it has a pier, and is chock full of tacky tourist stuff - amusement arcades, miniature golf, etc. if that's what you're looking for. I only mention it because it's at the north end of a seven mile stretch of beautiful beach - at the southern end is the tiny village of Camp Ellis, at the mouth of the Saco River, and lovely Ferry Beach State Park, with a nice, generally uncrowded beachfront. I don't know of any good shopping or restaurants in the area, though. I'm sure that there are campgrounds in the area, but I'm not familiar with any.

2 places in Maine that come to mind are Ogunquit and Kennebunkport. They are both very lovely beaches, each a short walk from a nice town with shops and restaurants. (Old Orchard is also a nice beach, but it tends to be more crowded.)

One caution: ocean water temperatures, especially in early July, can be bone-chillingly cold in Maine, NH, and northern Mass.

The nicest, wide sandy beaches are in York, Ogunquit, Wells, and Kennebunkport Maine. That entire stretch has lots to do, from scenic walks, shops, to mini golf to whale watches, and lots of good restaurants. In New Hampshire, Wallis Sands is a nice but small state beach. Hampton Beach NH and Old Orchard Beach Maine are nice wide sandy beaches, but these towns are quite crowded and somewhat honkey-tonk - lots of bikers, greasers, and loud music. I avoid them during the summer(however, if I were in my early 20's they might have more appeal).
In Maine there are all kinds of camp grounds - some nice, some just so-so. Check out Dixons in Wells or Salty Acres in Kennebunkport. As mentioned above the water is pretty cool in early July, but bearable for a few minutes if you are hardy!
The only warm beaches you will find are from the south shore of Cape Cod on down. Of course Cape Cod is a whole different area, with beaches of every description.

Thanks for the great replies!!

Is Cape Cod worth the extra drive??

Any good campgrounds in Old Orchard Beach??

Anyone have info on the train that goes from Old Orchard to Cape Code?

Or is there a similar train from NH?

You might like Bayley's Campground in Pine Point area of Scarborough, Maine. It's the next town over from Old Orchard Beach--OOB. They have a trolley that takes folks into town and to the beach, a swimming pool, snack bar, etc. Pine Point Beach is very nice and you can walk the beach to OOB if you are in the mood for pizza, Pier Fries, fried dough, small boardwalk and general fun people watching. It is a 5 minute drive to OOB in the winter--probably longer in the summer.
Zootsi is right! OOB is tacky. I love to take visiting family members there for pizza on a hot night. Nearby in Saco is Funtown, a very neatly kept amusement park with a hugre roller coaster. Kennebunkport is more sedate and less tacky. I think it's fun to try different places.
Camp Ellis that sara mentions is in Saco. It is a very small community with a nice beach but just a couple of seafood restaurants. Actually it is all one long beautiful beach with different stretches having different names.
There are a few campgrounds in Saco. I haven't visited very many, but have heard that Powder Horn is OK. Probably I should research this, but haven't yet.

The Northeaster train you ask about goes from OOB to North station in Boston. Fare is around $40 round trip. Does it also go to Cape Cod?

Enjoy your trip, whatever you decide!

There is no train service from Boston (or OOB) to Cape Cod.

THanks for the replies!!

anybody else have opinions??

What about waterparks, what is the nicest one within 2 hours drive ???

The only water park I know of is Water Country in Portsmouth, NH (right on the Maine border - I95). Not being a water park expert (my teenagers drag me there once/summer and force me down one water slide ONLY) - it has usual collection of big, scarey water slides, a wave pool (always crowded), river loop where you float around in a tube (my favorite). Very well kept up, clean, well supervised. Can get really crowded - on w/e will sometimes close admission later in the day because of crowds.

Thanks,

I am still undecided between OOB and Hampton beach.

I can't seam to find a good camping near hampton beach..

I believe that Salisbury State Park just over the border in MA is the closest camping to Hampton. It may be already booked for the summer however. The sites there are right on top of each other with no trees between most of them. They are directly on the beach and marsh. There are many camping areas in the Coastal area. Do a search of NH and pick the coast. You will not be on the ocean and may be as much as an hour away. The coast of NH is very small (about 17 miles I think)so your chances of finding a campground on the ocean are much better in ME.

Although I can not help you on specific camping location, try to find out something about place before you count on it. There is an unfortunate problem with SOME camping areas around here in that they become summer homes for semi-homeless people, especially in vacation areas. People who manage to find and afford reasonable off-season rentals are then unable to afford them when rents rise in summer tourist season.

This is certainly not the case with all areas, and some places have strictly enforced time limits to avoid this. An example is camping area at Harold Parker State Forest - frequently in paper in summer with human-interest story about pleasant and rule-following homeless people living there and being forced out - but also stories about fights, drugs, alcohol-fueled altercations

I read through this thread, not to offer advice, but because we are going to Maine in August and are thinking of camping in Acadia National Park. No one here mentioned it, is there any reason? If it's because of beach/no beach, we're okay either way. But, basically, is it safe? Would there be a better place that's not too northernly?

Acadia National Park campgrounds are beautiful - but poster requested Boston/Southern Maine.

Make sure you have reservations at Acadia.

http://www.southpoint.com/databases/macamp.htm

I believe there are several large water parks on the highway not too far from Old Orchard. There is lots to do in this area, especially if you want 'touristy' type attractions as opposed to the tranquility and scenery of Acadia. There are lots more campgrounds, beach, and things to do in the Old Orchard area than near Hampton.