Picture-Perfect Scenery

Hike and bike the peaks of 19,020-hectare Acadia National Park; its 467-meter Cadillac Mountain is the highest coastal point on the U.S. Atlantic coast. The park features more than 204 kilometers of hiking trails. It’s open year-round, so you can take in its stunning vistas no matter the season. Winter activities include cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

Outside the park, take a stroll on the Shore Path along the ocean, or walk the land bridge (at low tide) to Bar Island. Book a tour to learn the most about Mount Desert Island, or venture out on your own via the Island Explorer, a free propane-powered-bus system. Boat tours include sightseeing, kayak, canoe, fishing and sailing options. For the most adventurous, there are also climbing and air tours. Be sure to keep watch for bald eagles, dolphins and whales while bicycling and hiking the trails and carriage roads.

Exploring the Town

Bar Harbor is filled with treasures to explore. Walk along West Street and see a “Millionaires Row” of estate homes. Learn local history (and also about the Wabanaki tribe) at the Abbe Museum, Dorr Museum of Natural History or Bar Harbor Historical Society Museum. Discover how a 1947 fire destroyed much of the village.

Go to an oceanarium, zoo and lumberjack show. Sample craft beers. Buy items made by Maine artists. Eat fresh seafood caught in local waters. Visit a waterfront restaurant that doubles as a working lobster and fish pier. Eat a popover at Jordan Pond House, established in the 1890s. And be sure to save room for one of the memorable slices of blueberry pie served throughout the city.

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In the 1880s in Bar Harbor, the richest Americans, such as the Rockefellers, Morgans, Fords, Vanderbilts, Carnegies and Astors, built elegant vacation home estates, which they ironically called “cottages.”

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