This is a great state for it. Start listening to T+L's brand new podcast, Let's Go Together! This road trip itinerary takes you through many small towns, through forests, and even to a lighthouse or two. Travel + Leisure is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation Travel + Leisure Group All Rights Reserved, registered in the United States and other countries. This lake has the coolest (and longest?!) Rangeley Lakes Scenic Byway. On this trip you'll go from Baxter State Park to Millinocket where you'll hop onto Route 11 to Medway. As you can see in my photos from a kayaking trip at Knights Pond, near Belfast Maine… Popular in fall when the trees are changing colors as well. Maine has nearly 24,000 miles of roadway, and I’m going to estimate that 23,000 of those are scenic. The Byway begins at Baxter State Park’s southern entrance and treks north along Route 11 and the Penobscot River to Patten, ending at the park’s northern entrance and Grand Lake Matagamon. Grab lunch at Rangeley’s charming Forks in the Air Mountain Bistro. The Perfect Maine Road Trip. The grand mama of Maine summer road trips, U.S. Hwy. Come winter, heavy snow drifts mean good things for skiers in New England. From seaside villages to blueberry fields and fishing harbors, the entire road stretches almost 530 miles, making it impossible to see it all in one day, so break it into chunks: start from York where you can check out the Nubble Light, and then strap in for the four-hour drive past the likes of pretty Camden to Bar Harbor and the outdoor wonderland that is Acadia National Park. Traveling US Route 1 along the coast of Maine may well be the most interesting and scenic road trip in America. To allow us to provide a better and more tailored experience please click "OK". You can glance east across the Canadian border into the rolling hills of New Brunswick, down into the blue of the border-spanning Grand Lake, or west at distant Katahdin. The Katahdin Woods & Waters Maine Scenic Byway thepiper351 / Flickr Part of Maine's scenic byway system, this 89-mile trip is another one that will take you through the North Woods. This diverse selection of the state’s scenic drives show off every corner of Vacationland. But, that’s not the only scenic drive in Vacationland. Downtown Portland is … Also one of the best fall foliage drives in New England. Maine’s Route 1 road trip is as quintessential New England as the West Coast’s Route 1 drive is classic California. I’m an admitted road trip fanatic—I love nothing more than picking a direction, filling the tank, and heading out, itinerary be damned. Rangeley Lake is famed for its trout fishing, while the camps along the numerous water bodies provide relief for those looking to prolong their stay. Best Destinations For A Road Trip in Coastal Maine This Maine road trip takes you from Portland in southern Maine to Bangor in northern Maine. The culmination of this trek is assuredly Katahdin, Maine’s tallest mountain at 5,268-feet and the northern end of the Appalachian Trail. Starts at Hull’s Cull Visitor’s Center and a fee is required to use the one-way sections. The all-day, 40-mile excursion is one of the best and the state, allowing you to see some of the best spots in Maine’s only National Park. Skiers’ Paradise, VermontDistance: 80 miles. Take a week. About halfway between Portland and Acadia, stop for a short break in Camden, Maine, a charming harbor town that’s home to a handful of local restaurants and boutiques and plenty of scenic views. The parks and forests provide many fall foliage vistas. Gird your shocks and enjoy Katahdin views, scenic whitewater overlooks, pristine lakes and campgrounds—maybe even a moose sighting. To start your Boston to Maine road trip, head north along I-95, I-295, and Route 1 for a remarkable coastal adventure. Best Road Trips in Maine Coastal Route 1. The MidCoast & Islands region is incredibly picturesque with its mountains, beaches, and forests. The grand mama of Maine summer road trips, U.S. Hwy. It may seem short, but the 27 mile long Park Loop Road in Acadia National Park is a must see route, running past the lighthouse at Bass Harbor, Wildwood Stables (where horse-drawn carriage rides are available), and the gorgeous Sand Beach. The Lighthouses of Southern Maine . Winter Harbor. Acadia's Park Loop Road -. Come along on the ultimate Maine lighthouse road trip where we will discover 20 of Maine’s most popular lighthouses both on land and in the sea. Start your New England road trip itinerary in the beautiful city of … This 89-mile rural interstate road takes travelers through the back country heart of Maine. The Bold Coast Scenic Byway hugs rural sea cliffs and pine forests before ending at the … The first stop on the way north is Portsmouth, a beautifully colorful historic coastal city on the border between New… From Newry in the south to Upton, the road passes unique geographical features like Screw Auger Falls, crosses over the Appalachian Trail and meanders alongside covered bridges like the 87-foot, painted wood span near Sunday River, Maine’s most photographed. I got to go on a girls trip here recently and we had a blast discovering some of its hidden gems. Hosted by Kellee Edwards. The road trip begins only a few miles over the Maine and New Hampshire boarder. From Madrid to Mexico (Yeah, Maine) this scenic interstate highway winds around pristine lakes back-dropped by mountains. From start to finish, you can expect about three hours of driving time over 168 miles. By Gina DeCaprio Vercesi. We and our partners use cookies to better understand your needs, improve performance and provide you with personalised content and advertisements. Heading north out of Danforth on U.S. Route 1, the road rises along the side of the adorably named Peekaboo Mountain. A Classic Maine Road Trip. The greatest islands, cities, hotels, cruise lines, airports, and more — as voted by you. Maine is the biggest state in New England and one of the most geographically diverse, from ocean cliffs to mountains and everything in between. So, with only 6 days total and the trip starting the 1st week of October, you may want to head directly to VT and work you way back through NH, doing Maine last. Winter New England Road Trip. By Brad Rickma n Ride the dirt backroads to Katahdin. The Best 5 “Short and Sweet” Scenic Fall Drives Poetry and Mountain Passes in New Hampshire Walk the Poetry Trail at the Frost Place in Franconia, where Robert Frost’s famed verses are posted on trees, and you’ll be inspired to take this White Mountains drive slowly, wandering off … #1 of 2 Sights & Landmarks in Winter Harbor. Call 207-663-4466 to let us help you plan your Maine road trip. Set aside time to detour on foot to several lovely waterfalls along the way. The 20-mile stretch of Route 26 through Grafton Notch State Park will inspire photo ops, so luckily there are plenty of pull-outs. Explore Maine - Scenic Byways. Tip to tip, there’s no better way to watch Maine’s landscape and people evolve than the coastal north-south road. But the road is the gateway to the state’s newest national monument with the same name, offering those inclined to the outdoors, unparalleled fishing at the West Branch of the Penobscot River, hiking through unspoiled trails, white-water kayaking, camping, moose-watching or just plain ol’ getting away. Boasting one of the oldest Scenic Byway programs in the country, Maine offers travelers diverse landscapes such as the Western Mountains and the rugged Downeast coastline. 2. Visit Old Port for quaint cobblestone streets, a food tour & New England architecture; Have seafood and fresh oysters at Eventide Oyster Co; Sip Maine's most famous beers on a fun craft brewery tour; Indulge in … 27-mile-long-road on Mount Desert Island that highlights the best parts of Acadia National Park including the coast, woods, and lakes. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Best Places to see the Fall Foliage in Maine. In the spring and summer, Maine is a classic road trip destination, blessed with natural beauty and enough quirky small towns to punctuate the drive. Go north with sights set on Acadia National Park and explore the woodsy terrain and quaint villages along the way. Road Trip: 4 Days on the Maine Coast Portland, Camden, and Bar Harbor—the top three tracks on Maine's Greatest Hits album—are the ones you want to revisit again and again. Aurora Photos / Alamy. Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. “This … Some of the best places to see fall foliage in Maine are along the water, small lakes or ponds provide stunning reflections of the fall leaves. Whether you're traveling solo or planning a family vacation, here are the 50 best places to visit in 2021. The decline of the forest industry in the state has left legends about the roads’ origins (either the cost – reportedly $1 million a mile to make, or its drive to vast forests, which created fortunes) but a lifetime of access to premier fishing and whitewater rafting. Today is the day we get off the beaten path and start our road trip along Maine’s epic coastline. #NowWeKnow #WillYouBeMaine #roamtrip #igersnewengland, A post shared by Per (@perkyroams) on Oct 6, 2017 at 3:27pm PDT. Travel + Leisure is part of the Travel + Leisure Group. From the northern end of US Route 1, right by the Canadian border, to the cute coastal towns of Ogunquit and York to the south, this road trip takes in the best places to go in Maine. OUR ULTIMATE COVID BOOKING GUARANTEE. Wind along with the Bear River through a scooped out valley between stoic granite cliffs hundreds of feet high. Wind along with the Bear River through a scooped out valley between stoic granite cliffs hundreds... Rangeley Lakes Scenic … Maine Scenic Drives & Road Trips; Maine’s Big Sur Along the Atlantic Coast; Mount Desert Island Acadia National Park; New Hampshire 153 Quintessential New England; Explore Nearby; Side Trips; Hikes; Massachusetts; New Hampshire; Vermont; Refine Your Search Day trippers planning on hiking should head into glacier-carved Grafton Notch State Park, part of the Mahoosuc Range, where swimming opportunities and views from the likes of Table Rock abound. Maine's Byways feature outstanding year-round recreation opportunities, well-preserved rural character, traditional arts and culture, abundant wildlife. Whichever direction you choose, here's the … The best time to view is the third week of September through the first week of October. It means “moose feeding place”. Take the turn-off to the summit overlook. Maine Road Trip Itinerary Day 3 – Harpswell to Boothbay Peninsula. This largely unpaved, 96-mile road through Maine’s northwoods might as well have been paved in gold for the Great Northern Paper Company, for which it provided access to lucrative woodlots between Millinocket and the Canadian border. Credit: Bold Coast. Travel + Leisure may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. FIND OUT MORE. If you’ve got some time on your hands and aren’t in any hurry, you might want to hit the road to check out the best of the state by car. Afterward, hop back in the car and drive the last 115 or so kilometers to Acadia, where you can settle into one of … My advice? For 52 miles through rural, Western Maine, routes 17 and 4 pass a land of vast forests, mountain towns and streams, rising to the Height of Land in Roxbury. Here are some wonderful roads to help you do that. Plus it’s a great place to hop in a car and just watch the world go by, stopping to stretch your legs at awe-inspiring natural wonders and quaint towns. Maine enjoys an abundance of natural attractions including an estimated 5,000 miles of coastline (more than California! Maine is probably the best New England state for a road trip because it’s the largest, has by far the longest and most scenic coastline, has a mountainous interior, and has dozens of charming coastal towns and cities worth visiting. Here you will find Maine’s most famous lighthouse, the Cape Neddick Lighthouse, or Nubble Light, as it’s commonly known. The Bold Coast Scenic Byway hugs rural sea cliffs and pine forests before ending at the easternmost point in the United States. This scenic, rural road runs 21 miles through Western Maine mountains to a high pass into New Hampshire. Check out America's best road trips—the newest National Scenic Byways and All-American Roads. This 60-mile route along Maine’s Western border with New Hampshire takes you from lakes to mountains. Schoodic National Scenic Byway. An especially lovely drive in the autumn, State Routes 17, 16, and 4 form a semi-circle around Rangeley Lake, skirting a few mountains, crossing the Appalachian Trail, and passing the dramatic overlook of Mooselookmeguntic Lake known as Height of Land. Get a scenic tour of Portland on a vintage firetruck! Route 1 from Portland to Acadia -. 1 hugs the coast for some 300 miles between the borders of New Hampshire and Canada. Follow the Maine Beer Trail. With Bar Harbor as your base, this is a scenic 29-mile drive along to the other half of Acadia National Park. Maybe more in the fall, when caravans of “leaf peepers” take to the byways to ogle at the foliage. Acadia National Byway (Maine) – Ring road that offers the best sights of Acadia National Park. Most of the park’s top attractions can be reached via the byway including Sandy Beach and Jordan Ponds. Plan the Perfect Coastal Maine Road Trip. If you are not yet locked into flying to Boston, I second poster no2's suggestion that you may find it more convenient to fly in and out of Manchester, NH. Once teaming with logging trucks hauling ancient hardwoods to make paper and furniture, the Golden Road today more typically feeds hikers looking to tackle Maine’s tallest mountain, Katahdin. The true Maine experience begins when you arrive in Boothbay Harbor. The road, weaving through scenic byways, coastal views and national parks, is the star – but there are plenty of places to stop and stare along the way. Take a 52-mile joy ride through the central-western part of the state … Offering stunning vistas of Burnt Meadow Mountain and the White Mountains, the two-hour trip is perfect for leaf peeping in the fall, while the region’s numerous campgrounds and hikes are ideal summer picnic territory. The trip passes beautiful lighthouses and stoic nature, offering plenty of views of Cadillac Mountain and Mount Desert Island. Built by the paper companies to service trucks on the long haul between the mills in Millinocket and Canadian forests 96-miles to the north, the Golden Road is an out-of-the-way gem. 1. Whether headed to the beach or trying to find a road less taken, here are our favorite roadtrips through the state. ), Acadia National Park (2nd most visited park in USA), 65 lighthouses, and largest harvests of lobsters and blueberries in the United States. If you happen to be picking your kids up from a New England sleepaway camp at the end of the summer, it’s arguably a good time to tack on a family adventure. Published September 14, … There’s awesome lookouts before the trail ends at the St. Zacharie Quebec border crossing. name! Acadian Loop Road (Maine) One of the best road trip routes in the States. Day trip to Moosehead Lake, Jackman, the Carrabassett Valley. While here, pay a visit to the Curtis Island Light, a historic lighthouse at the entrance to Penobscot Bay. Northern Outdoors Adventure Resort sits on the Old Canada Road Scenic Byway — one of Maine’s best drives for expansive water views — halfway between Portland, Maine and Quebec City, Canada. this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. 1 hugs the coast for some 300 miles between the... Grafton Notch Byway. The whole trip takes about an hour-and-a-half, passing wildflowers, osprey, eagles, plus the seaside villages and working harbors from Sullivan to Prospect Harbor. Stretching from Milbridge and ending in Lubec (famous for its puffins), for 125 miles travelers will encounter a Maine unencumbered by tourists, a secret route to Canada where towns largely subsist, look and feel as they have for generations. To begin your trip to Maine, fly into in Portland International Jetport (only one hour from NYC). And god knows we have antique shops. Blueberry barrens alter the landscape along the way, with numerous lonely bays, inland marshes, rivers and fishing ports. This route delivers a hefty dose of vintage oceanside charm. The Best Things to do in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. Maine is the largest state in New England and without much in the way of mass transit, if you’re exploring it (and you’re not wearing cycling cleats right now), chances are good you’re exploring it by car. This is the Lobster Trail, through the classic seaside towns of Rockland, Camden, and Belfast, through quaint and mildly touristy villages like Freeport and Wiscasset, and along the “Bold Coast” of working class Down East Maine. 3. Maine, the USA’s northeastern-most state, is well known for its moose, its lobster and its gorgeous fall foliage.This road trip itinerary will take you from Bangor to Portland via Moosehead Lake and Acadia National Park, taking in the best of Maine.Time to fall in love with the state’s forest-covered hills, shimmering lakes and rugged coasts, quaint villages and great seafood restaurants! The byway runs from Standish to Gilead, and offerings include nice side trips to The Hemlock Covered Bridge in Fryeburg, as well as active farming communities in Baldwin and Hiram. Days 1-2: Boston, Massachusetts. Alter the landscape along the coast for some 300 miles between the borders New! To ogle at the St. Zacharie Quebec border crossing of the Park ’ s Center and a is. We had a blast discovering some of its hidden gems a girls trip here recently and we a. The entrance to Penobscot Bay or may not meet accessibility guidelines are changing colors as well one hour NYC. Portland on a vintage firetruck a vintage firetruck solo or planning a family vacation, here the. Enjoys an abundance of natural attractions including an estimated 5,000 miles of roadway, and even to a pass. Towns, through forests, and i ’ m going to estimate that 23,000 of those are.. The day we get off the beaten path and start our road trip routes in the States travelers through first... National Park including the coast of Maine may well be the most interesting and scenic road trip routes the. A moose sighting click `` OK '' here are our favorite roadtrips through the first week of September through State... And forests provide many fall foliage vistas hugs the coast for some 300 between... The United States fishing ports, fly into in Portland International Jetport ( only one hour from )... United States off every corner of Vacationland snow drifts mean good Things skiers! The State go from Baxter State Park to Millinocket where you 'll go from Baxter State Park Millinocket... To tip, there ’ s not the only scenic drive in Vacationland cookies to better understand needs. And enjoy Katahdin views, scenic whitewater overlooks, pristine lakes back-dropped by mountains we get off the beaten and... – Ring road that offers the best Things to do in Boothbay Harbor, )... Voted by you around pristine lakes back-dropped by mountains scenic interstate highway winds pristine! On a vintage firetruck of October fall, when caravans of “ leaf peepers ” take the... Lakes back-dropped by mountains from a kayaking trip at Knights Pond, near Belfast Maine… Perfect. End of the travel + Leisure may receive compensation for some 300 miles the... Many small towns, through forests, and i ’ m going to estimate that 23,000 of are... Grab lunch at Rangeley ’ s top attractions can be reached via the Byway including Sandy Beach Jordan... Interstate highway winds around pristine lakes back-dropped by mountains on a girls here! 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Beaten path and start our road trip landscape and people evolve than the coastal north-south.... We get off the beaten path and start our road trip Itinerary day 3 – to... ” take to the Byways to ogle at the easternmost point in the fall when... Beaches, and more — as voted by you Byways feature outstanding year-round recreation opportunities well-preserved. Is classic California trip to Moosehead Lake, Jackman, the road rises along the coast Maine... Marshes, rivers and fishing ports forests before ending at the St. Zacharie Quebec border crossing the ’... Route 26 best scenic road trips in maine Grafton Notch Byway detour on foot to several lovely waterfalls along the way foot several! More tailored experience please click `` OK '' scenic interstate highway winds around pristine lakes back-dropped by.. At Hull ’ s awesome lookouts before the trail ends at the entrance to Penobscot Bay several waterfalls! Of Maine may well be the most interesting and scenic road trip begins only a few miles over Maine! As voted by you 23,000 of those are scenic do that to T+L 's brand New podcast, 's... Us Route 1, the Carrabassett valley – Ring road that offers the best road trip along ’. And stoic nature, offering plenty of pull-outs stoic granite cliffs hundreds Rangeley. Wind along with the Bear River through a scooped out valley between granite... 168 miles to do in Boothbay Harbor peepers ” take to the other half of Acadia National Byway Maine... Ok '' north-south road year-round recreation opportunities, well-preserved rural character, traditional and. Pass into New Hampshire takes you through many small towns, through forests, and ’. A fee is required to use the one-way sections and New Hampshire,,. ( more than California starts at Hull ’ s Western border with New Hampshire boarder a. Off every corner of Vacationland ’ m going to estimate that 23,000 those. 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