Frommer's Maine Coast Day by Day

8/8/2019 Frommer's Maine Coast Day by Day

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Maine Coast

26 Smart Ways to See the Region



1Strategies for Seeing

the Maine Coast



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The Maine Coast

Previous page: Paying a little more for an ocean view is well worth the cost.



9

S t r a t e gi e s

f or S e e i n

g M ai n e

Going to the Maine coast for a week isn’t like going to

Daytona, Maui, or even Boston; it’s far bigger, chillier, foggier,

less expensive, and more thinly populated, to take just a few exam-

ples. Here are a few strategies and rules of thumb that can help you

get the most enjoyment out of this unique place.

Rule #1: Get yourself somewheels. Public transit in Maine

exists, but it’s frankly not all that

great. (This is a big and mostly rural

state, so you can’t really blame

them for that.) Unless you’re plan-ning to confine yourself to Port-

land—in which case you could use

city buses, but even then, you’d still

end up walking a lot—you’re going

to need bicycle, scooter, or automo-

bile wheels almost anywhere that

you want to go.

Rule #2: Think about visitingduring the off-season. Maine is

a prime summer destination, of

course, but it’s pretty wonderful in

late spring and fall, too. And you

can sometimes save big on coastal

hotel rooms by visiting the coast

before July or after Labor Day.

Weekdays, of course, also tend tobe much cheaper than weekends—

even in high summer season.

Rule #3: Don’t try to do toomuch. After all, the Maine coast is

a place to relax. That means travel-

ing and sightseeing slowly. Some of

my very best memories here involve

slow, solitary walks along beaches

or up mountains when I had no itin-

erary and no watch on my wrist,

and the next day’s plans weren’t

pressing me to hurry back to my

room or campsite. Staying in onetown—and one room—for 3 days

isn’t a bad idea at all.

Rule #4: Adjust your expecta-tions slightly downward. Luxury

inns and gourmet restaurants are

here in increasing numbers, but there

are also plenty of villages (Downeast

and on out-of-the-way peninsulas)that still offer lodgings best described

as throwbacks to the old days—days

when a traveler would sleep in a

sparely furnished room, sharing hall-

way bathrooms and communal break-

fasts with fellow travelers. That’s not

an unpleasant experience at all, so

long as you come in expecting it. Any-way, on this coast, Mother Nature is

the star attraction.

Rule #5: Pay more for a view(or don’t). It’s up to you, but know

what you’re getting before you get

here. Even resort rooms on the

Maine coast sometimes look out on

Renting a bike is a great way to see the sights along Maine’s coast.



10

S t r a t e g i e s

f o r S e e i

n g M

a i n e

tried to nudge you gently toward

things that aren’t obvious tourist

stops—local coffee shops and din-

ers, little-known historical spots,

somewhat-secret beaches. You cansee just the “greatest hits” if you

want, but you’ll probably have a bet-

ter story to tell afterward if you

deviate from them.

Rule #9: Bring a good cam-era. I’ve traveled and photo-

graphed all over the world.

Recently, I realized that many of my

favorite shots came from right here

on the Maine coast, often in anony-

mous places. The interplay of water,

sunlight, fog, stone, snow, and sand

never fails to create something I’ve

never seen before—and won’t see

again, after the next 1 ⁄ 8th of a second.

Rule #10: Be like a Boy Scout. You know, “Be Prepared”? I’m talk-

ing about the weather here. We all

dream of perfect, sunny days on the

beach, but in reality, Maine is a

pretty humid place (it’s next to a big

pile of water called “the ocean,”

after all). You can expect to be

rained out maybe a third of the time

in summer, sometimes much more

often than that in a bad year. Bring

umbrellas, a sweater, a change of

dry shoes, a TV Guide, and a thick

novel, just in case. •

gorgeous ocean vistas and sometime

look out over big parking lots. Prices

usually reflect these differences in

scenery—but not always. When

booking, always ask about your viewand try to negotiate a better one if

possible. You could scrimp, of

course, but here’s my take: Going to

Maine and then skipping the views

doesn’t make much sense.

Rule #6: Get out on thewater. Maine is all about the sea,

so at some point, you need to feel

that salty, bracing sea spray on your

face to really experience the place.

Whether it’s on a ferry boat, a deep-

sea fishing excursion, a boogie

board, or a friend’s yacht, it doesn’t

especially matter; just get out there.

Rule #7: Engage locals. Youdon’t need to put on a fake accent

and wear a Red Sox hat to fit in (in

fact, don’t do those things if you’re

not from New England). Mainers are

surprisingly open and humorous,

you’ll find, even if they seem pretty

quiet at first. It’s a cultural thing. Get

past that hard shell (here’s where a lit-

tle Red Sox knowledge really comes in

handy), and people are usually pretty

friendly deep down. And you can

always talk about weather.

Rule #8: Get off the beatentrack. Throughout this book, I’ve

Water taxis are a convenient way to experience the sea in Maine.

Frommer's Maine Coast Day by Day

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