Travel Itinerary in Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor

♦ Routes (free): Detailed travel itineraries in USA

General

Acadia National Park is located in the northeastern U.S., on the coast of Maine. It is situated on an island named "Mount Desert Island" which is connected to the mainland by a bridge. The park's main visitor center is located near this bridge. The park is known for its jagged coastline, scattered with islands featuring both sandy beaches and steep granite cliffs. Often, low clouds and mists blend into the landscape of the islands, sea, and bays, adding to its magic.

The national park occupies about half of the island's area, while the rest of the island contains picturesque towns and fishing villages. The largest town on the island is Bar Harbor, located in the northeast of the island, which abounds with hotels, shops, galleries, and of course, restaurants. Many of them specialize in seafood and, naturally, lobsters. The state of Maine is known for the vast number of lobster fishermen residing there and for the fresh and fine lobsters served in many of its restaurants.

Booking tours and activities from Viator:

♦ Recommended guided tour in Acadia Park:

  Narrated Bus Tour of Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park

The tour departs several times a day from Bar Harbor and lasts 2.5 to 3 hours.

♦ Small group food tour in Bar Harbor

Savor Bar Harbor Culinary Walking Tour in Maine

♥ Recommended Hotels

It is recommended to stay in the town of Bar Harbor adjacent to the entrance of Acadia Park:

 

Holiday Inn Bar Harbor Regency Hotel - A 4-star hotel with 287 rooms. The hotel overlooks Frenchman's Bay and has a private marina. It features two restaurants, a pool (outdoor), and a jacuzzi. Free parking and internet.

Best Western Acadia Park Inn - A 3-star motel located at the entrance to the town with 94 rooms. Each room has a refrigerator and microwave. The hotel has a swimming pool. Free breakfast, parking, and internet.

Bluenose Inn - Bar Harbor Hotel - A 4-star hotel overlooking Frenchman Bay with 97 rooms. Each room has a refrigerator. Rooms in the Mizzentop building have a balcony overlooking the bay and a fireplace. The hotel has outdoor and indoor pools, a jacuzzi, gym, and spa. Free internet and parking.

 

Acadia National Park

Acadia National Park was established in 1916 and was the first national park in the Eastern U.S. It spans an area of about 200 sq km. Although it is among the smallest national parks in the U.S. in terms of area, it is among the ten most visited parks in the country.

Book tours and activities in Acadia Park from GetYourGuide:

The height of the highest point in the park, the summit of Cadillac Mountain, is 466 meters, and this is the most impressive point to view the park from all directions, including the jagged coastlines, the abundance of surrounding islands and islets, and the picturesque lakes. This is also the best place in the park to watch the sunset and is the first point in the U.S. from which the sunrise can be seen.

There are 22 lakes in the park (some of them very small ponds). The most famous and visited (which has a popular restaurant nearby) is Jordan Pond. It is recommended to hike around "Jordan Pond". There is no need to circle the whole thing as it is a very long trail, but it is certainly worth walking for about half an hour to enjoy the magical views of the lake and the rich vegetation surrounding it.

The park has 165 types of plants, 60 species of marine and terrestrial mammals, and more than 150 types of birds nesting there. The park has hiking trails with a total length of 200 km and organized bicycle paths totaling over 70 km. The most popular activities in the park are hiking, cycling, kayaking or small motorboat trips, horse-drawn carriage rides, and fishing. There are many camping sites in the park, and on Mount Desert Island, there are about 4,500 hotel rooms of all types and levels, ranging from quality resorts to branches of large motel chains and intimate bed and breakfast.

Weather and when to travel in Acadia Park?

The permanent population of the island is about ten thousand residents, but over 2 million tourists visit annually, mostly in the summer and autumn months. In the summer, the park and its surroundings are extremely crowded, and it is difficult to find parking spaces along the viewpoints and near visitor centers and points of interest.

The best time to visit is in September-October when the number of visitors decreases but the weather is usually still comfortable and suitable for travel. The autumn foliage also adds beauty to the park and its surroundings. In winter, temperatures rarely rise above freezing and the park is entirely covered in snow, making it suitable only for cross-country skiing. Even in summer, there can be large fluctuations in weather. Summer temperatures can range from 7 degrees Celsius at night (on a cold day) to 30 degrees Celsius on hot days. In spring and autumn, the temperature can range between 1 and 21 degrees Celsius. Acadia Park is one of the rainiest areas in the U.S. Rain and fog can occur in any month of the year, including summer. Nevertheless, the park also has many beautiful sunny days. It is recommended to dedicate at least two days to the park and its surroundings.

Acadia National Park Itinerary

In the eastern, more touristy part of the park, which includes most of the impressive viewpoints, there is a scenic loop road, mostly one-way, 32 km (20 miles) long. The road is usually open from mid-April to November. It is worth starting the visit to the park by driving along it and stopping at as many viewpoints as possible. Many points serve as trailheads for excellent hiking trails of all difficulty levels.

It is worth starting at the Otter Point viewpoint overlooking the ocean and the bay of the same name: Otter Cove. Afterwards, it is recommended to walk the Ocean Path, which follows the coastline from Otter Cove to Sand Beach, a lovely white sand beach surrounded by mountains and cliffs.

Even if you are not interested in hiking along the coast, do not miss stopping to visit this picturesque beach. The route passes through Thunder Hole, a crevice in the rock where at high tide the sea erupts like a roaring "geyser." It is best to reach it about an hour or two before peak high tide. The trail length is about three km each way.

In the south of the scenic loop road, it is recommended to hike a very short trail called Hunters Beach Trail leading to a beach named Hunter Beach Cove, a wild beach completely covered with stones of all sizes and types.

It is also worth dedicating time to the western side of the island, known as "the quiet side." It is nice to walk the Wonderland trail, an easy two-kilometer path passing through a forest and reaching a rocky shore surrounded on all sides by the ocean. It is also worth visiting the Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse, from which a very short hiking trail leads to a viewpoint overlooking the jagged coast and surrounding islands. The lighthouse was built in 1858 and is considered one of the most photographed lighthouses in Maine.

 

It is recommended to combine a kayak trip in one of the lakes in the park. A kayak trip on Long Pond by the company National Park Canoe & Kayak Rental is especially recommended.

Alternatively: a sea kayak trip.
A recommended company: National Park Sea Kayak Tours

If you prefer a trip in a large vessel, it is highly recommended to take a tour with the company
Lulu Lobster Boat which includes lobster fishing and seal watching.

During the cruise, you will learn a lot in a fun and experiential way about lobsters, fishing methods, and marine ecology, all while observing magical landscapes and spotting various birds, including bald eagles and marine animals.

In the national park, there is also an Indian museum called ABBE Museum (a branch is also located in the town of Bar Harbor), which describes the history and lives of the Wabanaki Indians who were the first settlers in the area long before the Europeans arrived.

The Town of Bar Harbor

In the town of Bar Harbor, adjacent to the national park, there is plenty to see and do. It is a fancy and picturesque town with a harbor from which tour boats and fishing boats depart.

Along the Main Street crossing the town and the streets branching from it, there are plenty of souvenir shops, galleries, restaurants, cafes, and also a wine and beer shop where you can taste a variety of local drinks for a modest sum. For seafood lovers, this is the place to eat a whole lobster that you will disassemble from its shell using appropriate tools provided with the dish.

 

♦ For booking from Viator: Small group food tour in the town of Bar Harbor

Savor Bar Harbor Culinary Walking Tour in Maine

 

An excellent and easy hiking trail (1.5 km each way) starting from Bridge Street in the town leads to Bar Island, a small island located near the town. Since the difference in water level between high and low tide in the area is very large, at low tide you can walk on a wide strip of sand from the town to the island. You can walk the path starting from an hour and a half before peak low tide until an hour and a half after peak low tide (after that you can swim back or wait for the next low tide...). From the island, there is a beautiful view of Bar Harbor.

Another recommended hiking trail named Shore Path circles the town's coastline from near the Bar Harbor pier on West Street to Wayman Lane. From this path, which passes by parks and near beautiful hotels and well-kept houses, there is a wonderful view of the wild coast and nearby islands.
The times of high and low tide for each day, as well as sunset and sunrise times and information on the various activities organized by the Rangers, the national park guards, can be found in the Acadia Weekly newspaper distributed for free at the park visitor centers and in Bar Harbor.

Did you know? Ten facts about lobsters in Maine:

1. Every year, fishermen along the Maine coast supply about 45 million kilograms of lobsters.
2. In Maine, there are more than 5,000 licensed lobster fishermen.
3. It takes a lobster between 4 to 7 years to reach a weight of 450 grams.
4. A female lobster lays between a few thousand to 100,000 eggs in a single spawning. Only ten percent of them will develop and survive beyond the age of six weeks.
5. The largest lobster caught on the Maine coast was 90 cm long. The heaviest lobster caught weighed 19 kg. It is currently on display at the Boston Museum of Science.
6. A lobster can be right-handed or left-handed: some have the larger claw on the right hand and some on the left.
7. A lobster can shed its claw as a defensive measure. It can then regrow the claw over several years.
8. A male lobster sheds its shell and grows a new one every year. A female only once every two years. It takes the new shell about 8 weeks to harden.
9. Lobsters only turn red after cooking. When caught, they are usually a yellowish-green color.
10. Lobster fishing laws in Maine are extremely strict: it is forbidden to catch lobsters below a certain size or above a certain size. There is a special ruler that determines who will be returned to the sea. It is forbidden to catch females before spawning. All this is intended to preserve the lobster population and ensure its balance.

 

 

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