My husband and I are going to the Kennebunkport area next week and I need advice fast! We are staying for 6 nights and I would greatly appreciate ideas on things to do in the area. We will be renting a car at the airport in Portland so we will be taking drives along the coast but probably not as far up the coast as Acadia/Bar Harbor. What are the must-see and must-do things as far as beaches, sights, restaurants? Thanks to all & anyone who responds......

The clam shack at Kennebunk! Their lobster "roll" is great! http://www.theclamshack.net/

I'm sure others will give you ideas for beaches and other towns, but I want to tell you that there's plenty to see/do IN Portland. See my recent trip report:
http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...-june-2010.cfm

Thanks, yk! I so enjoyed your trip report. I will definitely eat at The Clam Shack; sounds really great.

With all due respect, as with any clam shack I suggest you order small and then order more. Fried seafood and lobster rolls can sometimes vary with the skill of the cook, and with all due respect I have had lousy clams at The Clam Shack as well as decent clams but never remarkable clams. Do not go to Maine Diner! Worst lobster roll of our life, and what used to be award winning seafood chowder was old tasting. Everything was old tasting.

Check out Rachel Carsons Sanctuary and Parsons Beach. Head to Ogunquit and walk the Marginal Way and the 3 miles of hard sand beach. Hike the trails at the Wells Reserve. Have oysters at Big Fish. Try Haddock at Joshua's in Wells. Order some lobsters steamed at Mike's and eat them by the beach at sunset.

In Portland visit the shore and Old Portland. Have DuckFat fries. Are you staying in Portland or heading straight out to Kennebunkport?

Hi LittleWing, Thought the lobster roll sounded yummy at The Clam Shack, have you tried those from there or just the clams? I certainly will take your advice & not go to the Maine Diner. What is Rachel Carson's Sanctuary? I was planning on driving to Ogunquit. I will read on Wells Reserve also. I will research all the things and places you suggested. We are staying at The Cape Arundel Inn in Kennebunkport after driving from the airport there. Any other things to do in Kennebunkport? Thanks so much for your response.....

Port Bakery in the morning for Eggs Benedict on homemade english muffins and it just gets better from there......

Be sure to take the drive down Route 9 to Goose Rocks Beach and onward to Cape Porpoise. The Wayfarer restaurant there is a best kept secret, get off Route 9 here and explore the side streets and waterside cottages.

We've given up on the Clam Shack but enjoy Alisons, Federal Jack's and Mabel's Lobster Claw. Sundaes at the Beach in Wells is worth the 15-20 minute drive from Kennebunkport, try a classic Maine flavor like Grapenuts or Maple Walnut.

Check the price on your rental car, we booked three months ahead for $300 a week and two days before arrival found a similar car online for $180.

If you have the budget, dinner at the White Barn Inn is a 5* experience. We've been 16 times from CA.

http://www.whitebarninn.com/

There is a monastery across the street from the WBI. Feel free to walk the grounds, there is a shrine there.

Our favorite Lobster Dinner is at Alisons right in Dock Square.

Drive up to Freeport, and wander through the shops and LL Bean. Have a lobster roll at Harraseeket Lunch on the dock. It's my favorite in ME. Have blueberry pie for dessert.

http://www.harraseeketlunchandlobster.com/

For restaurants I love Alisons, Hurricane's, Big Fish, and Kennebunkport Inn (they have a piano player)
White Barn is jacket only, and an unforgettable dining experience.
You can rent bikes to get in and out of town. (which I suggest strongly, rather than deal with parking), kayak, and shop a bit.

Try the fried clams and scallops at Mike's Clam Shack on Rt 1, a bit north of Ogunquit. We had some in June and they were the best (and we've eaten at lot of fried clams in various parts of New England). Print out YK's Portland trip report. We enjoyed the mail boat run but it sounds like the cruise she took had more narration. Do NOT miss the MDI ice cream shop on Extension St in Portland.

Warning: we took the coastal route south from Portland to Ogunquit. It's nice but loooong. We finally got back on Rt 1 to get to Ogunquit.

You are close enough to make a day trip to Portsmouth NH. If you don't take a boat ride around Casco Bay, you have several options from Portsmouth. Also see Strawbery Banke if you want to visit a historic settlement/see demonstrations. From there you can take Rt 1B thru Newcastle. Very pretty ride and lots of very old homes plus the beautifully renovated historic Wentworth by the Sea Hotel. Also take the drive along the coast thru Rye past the mansions.

North of Portland the beaches get very rocky, more like the Maine coast people imagine. Rockland is about 2 hours from Portland and perhaps too far for a day trip but we love that area. Closer would be a visit to the lobster shack at Five Islands. The object of our visits to Maine is to eat lobster as often as possible and enjoy the scenery on the way. You should make at least one day trip north of Portland because southern Maine is very built up and busy. It is less so the further north you go.

For dessert have fresh blueberries. Good snack: fresh berries and vanilla yogurt.

Thanks to everyone. It sounds like not many like The Clam Shack for lobster rolls. I will take everyone's suggestions and write down all the different restaurant names. It sounds like I picked the wrong area of Maine to see quintessential Maine Coast rocky scenery? How far should we drive to be able to take in that type of coastal scenery? Is it worth driving as far as the Acadia/Bar Harbor area? We also want to do a whale watching trip. Where is the best area to do that? Again, I do appreciate all the advice....

A nice drive from Kennebunport would be Cape Elizabeth, and the Two Lights Lobster Shack for a lobster roll in the quintessental rocky scenery. Probably about an hour's drive from K-port? Actually you could take a scenic 2 hour ride up and then a quicker route returning.

There is whale watching right there in Kennebunkport; one departure in the AM, another at 3:00 or so. Nunan's is another casual lobster place, as is a "lobster in the rough" kind of place just a little further on in Cape Porpoise area; it's on the water. Everything is easy to find, and people are helpful. Port Bakery, mentioned above, is indeed good--also for lunch stuff and sweets. I do all my Christmas stocking-stuffer shopping in Dock Square...there's lots of neat shops. We like the beach owned by the Colony Hotel but open to the public; it's small but there are rocks to climb on, etc. Also, the Friday night Mariner's Buffet at the Colony is supposed to be great; we're going for the first time this year.

I think the Clam Shack's lobster rolls are good, but I can't vouch for the fried clams. Our lobster rolls were extremely fresh, with no fillers, and you get the entire 1-lb lobster meat in the roll.

With due respect to other opinions, I ate the lobster roll at Maine Diner last month and it was excellent - lobster with a tiny bit of mayo. Also had good blueberry pie.

This oughtta wet your appetite:

http://www.lobstershacktwolights.com/

I think josiekwf should get lobster roll & fried clams from ALL of the places we mentioned, and then come back here and post a Maine lobster roll & fried clams report!

I agree about the lobstershacktwolights! Although southern maine has long hard sand beaches there is still plenty of rocky coast to enjoy in between. Perkins cove and the Marginal walk will fit the bill. We have been going to the LobsterShack for years to enjoy their chilidogs and lobster rolls and chowder a milky not thick chowder. A good option if you happen to be there and are hungry.



Glad you had a better experience mes25. I've been a patron of Maine Diner for years and have watched them slip drastically. Always a fan of their seafood chowder, this time it was old and chewy and just tasted like leftovers. The lobster tasted like it had been shucked days ago and left in the fridge to dry out. They've made a lot of money over the years and serving old food, down to a limp pickle just is not right.

I haven't had a lobster roll at the Clam Shack this season, so retract that. What makes a true lobster roll, is lobster that jumped out of the ocean and then was steamed that morning before you showed up for lunch. The lobster should be still a little warm when a hint of mayo is added and left for no more then an hour or two in the fridge. Perhaps I'm a bit of a lobster snob, but when it is good it is amazing, and when it is not, tourists will be dissappointed and not know what they truly missed.

For a change from the salt water, take a ride to Wolfboro, NH and see Lake Winnipesaukee ,just about an hour or so trip.