What to do in Maine!
Are you seeking adventure and excitement...or a laid-back week of rest and private wanderings? Perhaps you’re looking for something in-between …a mix of family activities and some adult relaxation time?
On Mount Desert Island, Maine you can have the kind of vacation you want while creating some great family memories. Come discover why, for well over 100 years, Mount Desert Island, Maine has been a home and playground to many of America's wealthy and famous.
If you're a returning visitor to Mount Desert Island you already know the scenic beauty and diversity of activities that await you; if you're planning your first trip to Bar Harbor, Acadia National Park, or Mount Desert Island, Maine, it will surely not be your last!
Staying at Acadia Memories rental cottage means your kayak trip begins with a 2-min. walk down the street!
Bar Harbor, on the east coast of Mount Desert Island, Maine, is the cultural and entertainment center of the island. Although it is the island's largest town, it is actually quite small. You could walk from one end of town to the other in about half an hour...but along the way you encounter historic and picturesque cottages, beautiful water vistas, interesting and unusual shops, art galleries featuring the work of local artists, antique shops, museums, pubs, a micro brewery and restaurants...many, many restaurants...of every imaginable cuisine. You will be tempted to linger, browse, indulge and spend the entire day exploring and enjoying your way wandering around town!
Besides being a destination in itself, historic Bar Harbor, Maine is also the gateway to Acadia National Park which makes up nearly half of Mount Desert Island. One of America’s premiere national parks, Acadia is the crown jewel of New England's many vacation destinations, and...
"the most stunningly beautiful place east of the Mississippi"
There may be other vacation cottages available, but your stay at Acadia Memories vacation cottage places you right in Bar Harbor, Mount Desert Island, Maine and only minutes from Acadia National Park.
When you stay at Acadia Memories you can bike to the park's carriage roads without the bother of hauling bikes and searching for parking!
As you drive onto Mount Desert Island you will begin to glimpse its beauty. Along the coastline and around every bend you discover spectacular views of rocky shoreline, granite crags and cliffs. From the Shore Path watch as a 4-masted schooner sets sail for open seas--later on, board her for your own sailing adventure! Ride bikes on over 45 miles of carriage roads running through Acadia's interior. Pause to appreciate a graceful stone bridge spanning a gorge and waterfall—one of 18 stone bridges. Peer through morning mist on a pond to watch beavers work on their lodge.
When you stay at Acadia Memories, everything in town is within a few minutes walk of the cottage!
Experience sunrise atop Cadillac Mountain—a visual and emotional experience that draws participants back time and time again. Ride a horse-drawn carriage up Day Mountain or hike a secluded forest path of the 120 miles of trails crisscrossing the island and its 17 mountains. Paddle a canoe on Long Pond, one of 20 lakes and ponds, or board an ocean-going catamaran to experience the thrill of watching whales on the open seas. These are some of the many ways you can enjoy the beauty and adventure of historic Bar Harbor, Acadia National Park and Mount Desert Island, Maine!
Your hosts,
Jann and Austin
More Things To Do in Maine
- Take rock climbing lessons and/or go on a guided rock climbing outing
- Go on a sea kayaking excursion
- Pack a lunch and spend the day canoeing or paddleboarding
- Enjoy an evening of comedy at Improv Acadia
- Take a whale, dolphin or puffin watching cruise
- After dinner, stroll down Cottage Street to enjoy ice cream cones, a cool sea breeze and a free evening concert in one of the parks
- Go on a scenic bi-plane or glider ride around the islands
- Visit MDI's museums and the oceanarium
- Take the kids swimming at Sand Beach or exploring the sea life in tidal pools
- Go on a fishing excursion
- Bike, hike or walk the carriage paths and trails in Acadia National Park
- Have a family cookout on the side deck of Acadia Memories cottage
- Golf at the Kebo Valley Golf Club (the 8th oldest club in the US)
- Go miniature golfing with the whole family at Pirate’s Cove
- Take a scenic boat tour or boat trip to surrounding islands
- Explore the shops, galleries and street scenery in Bar Harbor
- Laugh and learn at Diver Ed’s Dive-In Theater – humorous family entertainment and an informative introduction to life under the sea
- Spend family-time searching for sea glass along the shorelines
- Visit Asticou Gardens and Thuya Gardens,
- Explore some of the smaller towns on Mount Desert Island
- Enjoy popovers at Jordan Pond House
- Drive Acadia's Park Loop Road and enjoy the breathtaking views
- Attend a movie or entertainment event at the historic Criterion Theatre Criterion Theatre
- Let the kids enjoy pizza and a movie, a 5 min. walk to the Reel Pizza Cinerama while you enjoy some adult time back at Acadia Memories cottage
- Walk across the sand bar at low tide to explore Bar Island and picnic on a bluff with a unique view of Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Island, Maine
We hope a few of these ideas inspire you to try something new...to discover the less traveled parts of Mount Desert Island as well as all the adventures it has to offer. Vacation you're way...the possibilities of what to do in Maine are simply endless!
With three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a fully outfitted eat-in kitchen, side deck with gas grill, family room, living room, and off-street parking, your family is sure to enjoy your Maine vacation while staying at Acadia Memories vacation cottage.
There are many places to stay on Mount Desert Island, Maine...but few places like Acadia Memories vacation cottage, which combines the accommodations of a full-size house with a great Bar Harbor location at an affordable price!
Visit us on Facebook for more information about the cottage and things to do on your Bar Harbor vacation!
