Lexma90

I may be in Portland, ME on a business trip in July, so I'm thinking about making a long weekend out of it. Would likely arrive in Boston on a redeye Saturday am, rent a car, and head north. My elderly but quite spry parents may join me. I won't know for sure about the trip until probably the week before, so can't book anything in advance, which will limit our options. I need to be in Portland by 10 am Tuesday am.

A long time ago, as a young adult, I lived in Boston, and made many trips to Maine, primarily Kennebunkport, but also Bailey Island, Boothbay Harbor, and Bar Harbor. I would like to return to Kennebunkport for nostalgia's sake, but dread the crowds.

The main goal is to enjoy the Maine ambiance, lots of lobster, and sit by the water.

I've thought about staying Saturday night in Portland, visiting various towns between the airport and Portland. Then the next two nights, somewhere further north that's within 1 - 1.5 hours of Portland. OR, all three nights in Portland, and make day trips from there. OR, just head north?

Suggestions for locations or strategies?

emalloy

Head out to Two Lights Lobster Shack and sit outside and watch the waves bash against the rocks while lobster juice and butter drip off your elbows. I'm salivating just thinking about it.

dfrostnh

This really depends on your definition of ambiance and, for me, it's not July in Kennebunkport especially a weekend. You might schedule a quick visit to walk and drive around for old times sake. I would aim for early in the morning while most people are still in bed or at breakfast unless you might want to visit some shops. Last sunday in Wells wasn't too bad but we went to a popular restaurant before 4pm to make sure we didn't have to wait for a table (had a local for a guide).

And it depends on what you like to see and do. There's a garden tour of Cape Elizabeth on July 14. Maine Coastal Gardens near Boothbay are wonderful but the traffic on a Saturday to get over the bridge from Wiscasset is going to be horrendous. I vote for Rockland and lobster at McLoon's in South Thomastonn (Waterman's Beach closed). We went to McLoon's on July 4th last summer and it was very busy but we still got a picnic table just not close to the water (small lobster shack + picnic table seating and beautiful small working harbor). You can do a short hike to Owls Head light, visit a winery or head over to Rockport where you can sit on a bench and enjoy watching the boats. The quickest way without traffic is I295 to Rt 1, probably getting off in Brunswick which is what we usually do BUT on a Saturday morning there is probably going to be a lot of traffic on Rt 1 so I would do the interstate thru Gardiner. Enjoy Rt 1 when you head south on Monday to Portland. I wouldn't try it Tuesday morning when you would be in commuting traffic. Don't forget, from Rockland you can do a visit to Camden and enjoy the view from Mt. Battie.

clarkgriswold

Find something that's cancelable and book it, Maine has little-to-no last minute availability in July. And I would do this a.s.a.p.
I wouldn't choose Portland if you're looking for quiet/ no crowds.
Even the drive up from Boston on a summer Saturday morning can be frustrating...this is not the Maine of your youth. In fact it might be everything that you're trying to avoid.
See if maybe the Higgins Beach Inn has availability (I'm not sure what their cancellation policies are....) Or something a bit outside of Kennebunkport itself such as Cape Porpoise Motel or Arundel Inn.
Depending how early you arrive in Boston, the Saturday plan to meander on the way to Portland might be a total bust. There will be morning tie-ups at the toll booths heading north.....or lots of traffic trying to avoid tie-ups on the backroads getting around the toll areas....and then Ogunquit and Kennebunkport could be parking lots by Saturday afternoon.......bumper to bumper frustration. And I would not, as dfrost suggests "vote for Rockland" if it is Lobster Fest that weekend.

Lexma90

Thanks for the suggestions - I forgot about Cape Porpoise (and Nunan's Lobster Hut), good memories of that area.

In terms of what we want to do, my mom and I are big walkers, but dad has bad knees, so he can't walk far. I'm a runner, but I'll do that early morning, on my own. Not shoppers, though would likely wander through various towns. Like history. Love to eat!

I haven't called every inn, but those that I have checked, have hefty cancellation fees, and I'm already within the no-cancellation windows for a bunch. Though I found one possibility in Rockland.

So sounds like the best plan may be to visit Ogunquit or Kennebunkport if we get there before 9, perhaps, or skip that area on the way north, and just beeline away from the airport (honestly, easier if it's just me, but with parents along, may be a bit more work), up to Rockland or wherever. And visit those towns, if we want, on the way back down to Portland for my meeting.

clarkgriswold

You could check Rockland, and a few other areas, to see if any inns show availability for checking in on that Saturday night. I'd imagine that there are a few, and that a week from now their availability will be showing half of what it is showing today. Get a few places in mind that suit you and keep an eye on things, you may end up just having to stay wherever there is room at the inn. How far in advance of the date will you finally know if you can travel or not? High Tide Inn near Camden has a 3-day cancellation policy as does Ledges By the Bay near Rockland.

Lexma90

Ok, our trip is a go, we have flights and hotels. We'll spend two nights in Rockland, then one in Ogunquit. Because every time I talked to my parents, they would ask if I'd ever walked on Marginal Way (yes), and that they had done that before, and really enjoyed it. So I finally took the hint, and we'll spend the night there, with probably an evening and a morning walk on the Marginal Way.

My redeye arrives in Boston Logan quick early, unless of course it's late. When would you say the traffic heading north on I-95 will start to get heavy?

Thanks much.

rachellynn99

We always fly into Portland- get a rental car and stay in Freeport. It's a little quieter and a quick drive to Portland. There are several lobster shacks right on the water in Portland- but can get busy. They do have a walking foodie tour that is nice if you like to sample local fare.

J62

If you do drive Rt 1 through Wiscasset, plan to be through the town by 10am, 10:30 at the latest lest you hit the traffic mentioned above.
There are 2 shortcuts we use going north that can shave time off.
- 1. Old Bath Rd, if the traffic is backed up bad on 1 into town
- then
- 2. Lee Rd, to go around downwtown and come out right next to Sarah's

Coming the other way, you're really stuck, with traffic bad from the same 10:30 or 11 hr, to about 4-5 on busy weekends. It can take 20min to get across the bridge.

Bath is another option - you could eat lobster at Taste of Maine (the place with the huge inflatable lobster on the roof), or head out to closer to the ocean to some place like Five Islands, or to Bailey Islands to Cooks.

Lexma90

Thanks for the additional comments. We've been on our trip, and had a great (and nostalgic) time.

I had to fly into Boston, but that worked out just fine. My parents flew out the evening before, and had dinner in the Back Bay. Saturday am, we met at the rental car location, and were on the road a little after 7 am. The traffic was steady but not heavy. We were able to do what I hoped - take our time driving up the coast, stopping wherever and whenever we wanted, enjoying the Maine scenery.

We needed to stop for a bio-break, so got off onto Route 1 about 10 miles south of Ogunquit. We had breakfast (dad really needs breakfast of eggs every day) in Ogunquit, of course at the Omelette Factory, then continued north on Route 1. We drove through Wiscasset, saw the big line at Red's, the traffic was only a bit backed up, but heavy going south. We veered down to Boothbay Harbor, wandered around there, and had great lobster rolls at Shannon's Unshelled.

We spent two nights in Rockland, and had many meals involving lobster there. We visited the Owl's Head lighthouse, and spent a delightful several hours at the Owls' Head Transportation Museum. Probably not everyone's cup of tea, but we're from the Detroit area, my dad worked for Ford for 20 years, and I work for an airline, so it suited us very well. It was good to see the variety of cars; in Detroit, we mostly hear about Ford.

On our way south, we apparently timed it well, there was very little backup in Wiscasset. We stopped, debating a bit about sharing a lobster roll from Red's (changed our minds when we saw the length of the line), but had a nice time wandering around town, including the park at the edge of town. My real goal today was lunch at Mabel's, in Kennebunkport, which my husband and I ate at quite a few times a long time ago. Kennebunkport was a bit of a zoo, but we lucked out on parking, and had a delicious lunch and a nice walk around town there.

Ogunquit was (not surprisingly to me) was my least favorite of our visits, but we had a pleasant visit there, as well. I was able to find a hotel for one night within a block or two of the Marginal Way, so we walked the full length. The weather was delightful.

I worked most of the day on our last day, as planned (that was the reason for the trip), but still had time to go for a run down the Marginal Way. We all flew out of the Portland airport - it's a great option, and for anyone visiting Maine, I would highly suggest using this airport!

clarkgriswold

thanks for the trip report, sounds like everything worked out just fine

bachslunch

Great trip report, thanks for sharing. Looks like you chose well.

dfrostnh

Thanks for the trip report. It's always fun to read which suggestions a person took. Owls Head Transportation is not my favorite but it is my husband's. I think the last time we were there we saw a Lombard Log Hauler and some of the antique airplanes were flying. I was surprised they could stay in the air because they were so slow.