Cadillac Mountain is a must-see when traveling to Bar Harbor, Maine…read more It gives a great overview of the harbor and a real rugged experience. But be prepared. Make reservations in advance online; you can't make them in person. You must buy park tickets, which are $35 (kind of ridiculous for a state park), and $6 bucks to tour the top of the mountain. They had a small gift shop and only one working restroom with two portalets close by. Some people drive it, some hike it to see the sunrise and some bike it. I would only recommend driving it given how narrow the road is and it's off the side of a cliff. It was a nice overall experience.

We opted for the one and a half hour shore excursion that takes you to the top of the highest peak…read moreon the North Atlantic Seaboard. You enter Arcadia National Park. Today it was foggy yet as we ascended up we climbed above the clouds: surreal and beautiful. There is a gift shop and a restroom.

I'm no stranger to parks and beautiful natural places, but Acadia is like a dreamscape. There's…read morestunning ocean views from crumbling gorgeous cliff sides. There are lakes, streams, ponds, scenic lighthouses, boats, bikes, trails, gardens, crazy hikes with vertical iron rungs, rolling forest hikes, lighthouses, and more! The main issue you'll run into is crowds.. lots of people want to come here, especially in July and August. Best thing to do, go in as early as possible, do some things, take a break, go back again after 3. If you're early, you can get a parking spot then work from there. If you are flexible on time, take advantage of the shuttles, but be warned, they may be full, and they don't run every 10-15 minutes, so plan accordingly. I would be in the park by 7, have plans maybe on a tour in Bar Harbor late morning or early afternoon, then head back after 4, and I got to all the must-do's, ie hiked the Beehive, the Bubbles, Cadillac Mountain sunrise and sunset (reserve this early as spots sell out, I booked mine 3 months in advance the minute they released and they were sold out shortly later, especially sunrise tickets), Jordan Pond and popovers, Bass Harbor Lighthouse, as well as some boat tours in the area, including very successful whale and puffin watching. For more hints and tips, I watched some YouTube videos, there's great info out there, especially the videos from Ash, a former park ranger, who has loads of helpful tips to get around and not spend your trip sitting in traffic or waiting in a parking spot.

Did we go in a wrong entrance or something?!…read more I was underwhelmed for sure. We walked a few trails and took some photos but ??? Im very glad we hit Cadillac Mountain - that's where it's at!!!

This was a medium effort hike to an absolutely amazing view! At the end of the trail there are two…read moreadirondack chairs just waiting for you, although we sat in the sun on the rocks soaking in the gorgeous scenery. This is very much worth your time if you are in Bar Harbor and are planning to go to Acadia. It's nestled among a residential area so pay particular attention to remaining on the path. Far off in the distance you can spot some seals; bring binoculars! You can walk out (or in) via a paved road or through the woods. We walked through the woods going in...there are a lot of roots to step over so a good pair of hiking boots will really be worth it for this short hike. Also a bit muddy after a couple of days of rain so also bring some insect repellent.

super close to acadia, showers work great and are hot :) would definitely recommend staying thereread more

Drove in to take a look but fee was $6 per person from those out of town. We were looking for a…read morehiking trail which we were told they had one about an hour hike. It looks to be a campground and boating facility. We took a look around but decided not to stay.

This was something I wanted to explore as I found it online while researching…read more We came here before entering the park and I found the short walk/hike down to the rocks easy (maybe 0.2 of a mile?) and the rocks are flat enough here that you can easily walk around a little and see the view from different angles. No one else was here while I was visiting (01 May) and I was able to take photos and enjoy the ocean. Gorgeous views.

What a stunning location. Turn before you hit the park entrance pass station,and you'll come out in…read morea parking lot that was, at the time we visited, nearly empty. The views from the lot are lovely enough, but the short (.25 mile) hike down to the cliff edge is absolutely worth it. If you are severely mobility challenged, you will probably want to stick to the parking lot overlook. If you are comfortable with a paved downhill slope, the views along the water are worth it. As you get to the end of the path, there will be natural rock steps toward the water and tidal pools. Avoid taking early shortcuts -- the path down to the incredible tidal pools is easier if you follow the path to its natural conclusion. I'd recommend wearing sturdy, waterproof shoes with a good grip, and taking extreme caution with every step -- even at the best possible viewing time (maybe an hour or so before low tide) -- the rocks will be slippery and falling is very easy. You will see tidal pools all along the shoreline, and there is a stunning sea cave accessible during low tide. I would continue to the natural end of the path and double back along the shoreline and tidal pools to get to the cave. Otherwise the scramble down is quite rough. The sea cave is worth the effort if you arrive prior to low tide. However, this is an area where the dangers of rising tide are acute. Be safe. Be smart. And enjoy!!

Have you ever visited a tidal island?…read more So interesting to cross the Bar Island Path to walk from Bar Harbor to Bar Island. Check the tide schedule for the daily times for high tide and low tide. For about 90 minutes before and after low tide, the submerged sand and gravel bar is exposed creating a path to safely pass. If you don't come back in time, you will be stranded for the next 9 hours on Bar Island.

We knew about the strong tides, but had no idea it was so cool! This is a must in Bar Harbour…read more While you pay for parking everywhere in the Northeast, if you have EV, the museum charger is free and a nice walk to the sand bar and shopping/dining. You would think with an exposed ocean floor there would be more to see, but it was pretty much the same across. Oyster, mussel, clam, mollusk shells and snails. Bring water shoes as it sharp if you plan on going into the tide pool areas, or tennis shoes are fine. We went out about an hour before low tide. Just beautiful!!

We had a nice day here, driving the loop, hopping into the cold water and hiking beehive…read more The hike was the most memorable. Dare seeker kind of heights with no railings. I had with me a fanny pack that impeded my movement - the cliff side overhangs were small enough for me to feel a wee nervous about the pack's width further from the safety of the rock face. My husband had a metal water bottle he had to keep one hand on. Also quite a bit of a burden. Should have left it so he could have both hands on some of these scrambles. My pre-teens loved the steps and ladders made from bent metal bars forced into rock. It was like a jungle gym with real life stakes. And the view! It was gorgeous. Worth the climb, even if the journey wasn't stupendously adventurous.

To Acadia National Park Management,…read more I am writing to express my frustration with the parking situation we encountered today at the Visitor Center. We arrived in our motorhome specifically looking for the designated RV parking, only to find that cars were occupying the spaces marked for RVs. Because of the size of our motorhome, we cannot simply pull into a regular automobile parking space, so when cars take the limited RV spaces, it can leave us with nowhere to park at all. What made this especially frustrating was the inconsistency in parking enforcement that we observed throughout the park. Along the Park Loop Road, we noticed vehicles receiving warning stickers when they were parked improperly or were sticking only a few inches into the roadway. Yet at the Visitor Center, we did not see a single car parked in the designated RV spaces receive a ticket, warning, sticker, or any other indication that the parking restriction was being enforced. If Acadia National Park is going to designate certain spaces specifically for RVs, those spaces need to be enforced. RV parking is already extremely limited, and cars have many more parking options available to them than visitors traveling in motorhomes. We understand that Acadia is extremely busy and parking is challenging. However, that makes consistent enforcement even more important. It is difficult to understand why minor parking violations elsewhere in the park appear to be actively enforced while cars occupying spaces specifically reserved for RVs are allowed to remain without consequence. We hope the park will address this issue by monitoring the RV parking area more closely, clearly marking it as RV-only parking, and enforcing those restrictions just as consistently as parking restrictions elsewhere in the park. Visitors traveling by RV should have a reasonable opportunity to use the parking spaces that the park has specifically designated for them. Thank you for taking this concern seriously.

What lovely gardens inside Acadia National Park! The signage is excellent with many examples of the…read morevarious plants, flowers, trees etc. the paths are also nice as well. I would highly recommend!

Less than an acre, this is a nice short stop along the Park Loop Road. During our visit in late…read moreJune, there were a few flowers blooming. The plants are labeled for easy identification. Parking is readily available.

Gorgeous views! It's worth paying the extra fee to get up on Cadillac Mountain. If you can snag the…read moremorning sunrise, DO IT, because this is the highest point on the eastern seaboard - Cadillac Mountain sees the first sunrise of the day. It's amazing.

Does Cadillac Mountain have spectacular views ? Of course, that's not in question. But the amount…read moreof people at the top of Cadillac this afternoon was overwhelming, that's even with reservations being required for access. I saw license plates from over a dozen different states, some as far away as Utah and Texas. I read some Yelp reviews stating there was "ample parking", not sure how that could ever be, we had to circle around the top several times before getting a parking space, and that's in late September during the week (there was only a handful of school age children out and about on the mountain today). I feel you can get the same viewing experience in the Penobscot Bay area at Camden Hills State Park w/o all the crowds (we went there the same time frame two years ago). Just my 2 cents. And I saved my comments concerning the Eco-Store gift shop for a separate review. The amount of people on Cadillac today detracted from the experience.

Absolutely gorgeous trail through stunning forest that goes around Jordan Pond in Acadia National…read morePark. The trail is a little over 3 miles around. Jordan Pond trail connects to several other trails too, including the trail to Bubble Rock. A portion of the trail is on sturdy wooden planks to easily walk on, a very short section of the trail does have large boulders to navigate but most of the trail is a level dirt path. There are obvious signs of wildlife everywhere, such as beavers having chewed through trees, frogs along the waters edge, birds, wild turkey & roaming deer. We saw people of all ages walking (with their dogs too) the entire trail & we brought 4 little girls (ages 5-12) who all easily navigated the trail! No swimming allowed in this pond & bring a water bottle! There is a gift shop, food & bathrooms by the parking lot only.

The walk around Jordan Pond is beautiful and stress free. We stopped here with a group of 5 and 2…read moredogs. We made sure that we got to the parking lot early (8 AM) on a weekday to ensure easy parking. During a past trip, we arrived in the parking lot at 11 AM and it was utter chaos. We did not want to make that mistake again. The early start meant that the trail was very quiet with low traffic when we visited in early June.