We had an amazing vacation to Boston and Maine a few weeks ago. As promised here is the article detailing our agenda, where we stayed, what we would recommend, etc. If you have any questions after reading don’t hesitate to reach out.
Wednesday: AM Flight from ATL to Boston to arrive by luch
Stayed: The Revere Hotel in Boston – PERFECT location, right across from Boston Common – this luxurious hotel featured a BEAUTIFUL rooftop bar and on site parking garage which was perfect for parking our vehicle and walking to everything on the Freedom Trail. It also offers wonderful views of the city from the rooms at the hotel.
After checking in and exploring the beautiful hotel we set out on foot on the Freedom Trail. This hotel location was perfect because it is right across the street from Boston Common Gardens which is the beginning of the Freedom Trail. We spent the rest of the day exploring all the sights and sounds on the Freedom Trail. We also had fun exploring Quincy Market, Beacon Hill and Acorn Street, and Little Italy. The kids LOVED seeing Paul Revere’s house and the Old North Church. There is a wonderful gift shop at the site of the Old North Church where we enjoyed a little shopping for souvenirs. If you follow the Freedom Trail all the way to the water you will come up on a wonderful playground at a school that is open to the public outside of school hours. It was a great way for the kids to burn some energy before we started out for dinner.
Thursday: We checked out of out hotel and drove to Portland, Maine making stopes in Salem, MA; NH Beaches; Rockport, Maine; and finally Portland.
We had the opportunity to complete a wonderful kids walking history tour of Salem which I highly recommend to anyone visiting. The lady who owns the company and gave the tour was WONDERFUL with the kids and has a very knowledge and and entertaining aspect to the tour that kept us all (kids and parents) engaged, learning, and having fun. You can find the link to her tour here. After the tour we did a little more exploring of our own in Salem and checked out the House of 7 Gables and the Navy Yard and a few other sites before hitting the road.
The next stop took us to Hampton, NH for a beachside lunch and playground stop. If you drive Route 1 you can’t miss it. The playground is right on the beach.
After lunch we loaded back up and continued on the road. Next stop was Cape Elizabeth, Maine which is just outside of Portland. This ended up being one of our favorite spots of the trip. There is an amazing park there that is free (just pay to park). They have a beautiful coast line walk, a gorgeous lighthouse, a FANTASTIC children’s garden (complete with a flower maze, tunnel walks and slides, and MORE), and a super cool fort to explore with secret passageways. They also have historic mansion. We spent about 3 hours at this park and could have stayed much longer. It is truly fantastic. Don’t miss it!
After Cape Elizabeth we checked into our hotel in downtown Portland and ate dinner in downtown Portland before hitting the bed.
Friday: Portland, Maine to Bar Harbor
Friday we woke up and tried out Potato donuts at a local place in downtown Portland. There was an interesting experience. 😉 After that we explored another lighthouse in Portland called Bug Light House. It was really unique and a fun place to checkout.
After doing a little shopping in downtown Portland we loaded the car back up and headed to Rockland, Maine where we did the 2 mile walk to the lighthouse over the ocean. It was a long way and there are NO restrooms but it was totally worth it. Just be prepared. They also have a dock out at the lighthouse where you can stand out deep in the ocean. Really neat and great workout but a little challenging with littles. 😉
After our hike we headed into Camden, Maine which is just a few minutes from the lighthouse for a delicious lunch overlooking the harbor. There is some wonderful shops in downtown Camden as well. We did a little shopping before driving the rest of the way to Bar Harbour.
After checking into our hotel in Bar Harbor we headed downtown for dinner and a little more shopping.
Saturday: We spent the day exploring Acadia National Park
Be forewarned. You must have a pass in advance to visit Acadia National Park and also Cadillac Mountain which thankfully we had. Our first stop was Cadillac Mountain but unfortunately it was too foggy to see any great views. After that we spent the rest of the day exploring and hiking in the park. We really loved Jordan Lake (highly encourage you to walk the left side and not right as the left is full of really neat bridges). We also really loved the cliffs towards the end of the park overlooking the water. It was absolutely beautiful!! I highly encourage you to hit up the local grocery store and pick up a picnic to bring into the park. There are many wonderful places to picnic.
After a full and exhausting day in the park we drove back to Camden, Maine for the night.
Sunday: Camden to Freeport to Kennebunkport, Maine
After watching a beautiful sunrise at our ocean front inn in Camden we hit the road and made a stop in Freeport to checkout the LL Bean flagship store. The kids enjoyed seeing the fish tanks inside the store but overall this was a stop we could have skipped.
Then we headed to Kennebunkport as we were supposed to have a lobster boat tour right after lunch but unfortunately it got cancelled due to wind a few minutes before we were supposed to depart so we came up with plan B. Plan B included a drive by tour of the Bush Compound, exploring downtown Kennebunkport, a beautiful church on the coast that is free to visit called St. Ann’s by the Sea, the Monastery in Kennebunkport, and then the kids favorite part, beach time!
After playing on the beach for a couple hours and in the waves (yes the water was cold) we checked into the Hampton Inn in Kennebunk which was beautiful, clean, and great location. We headed back downtown for dinner, did a little swimming in the hotel’s pool and called it a night.
Sunday: Boston and back to Atlanta
Our final day we headed back to Boston to checkout Bunker Hill, the USS Constitution, and then visited the Boston Tea Party Museum where got to experience a full reenactment of the Boston Tea Party. This was another highlight of the trip that I HIGHLY recommend. We even got to enjoy tea and scones in the harbor overlooking a ship. We ate some lunch and enjoyed playing over across the harbor at Martin’s Park after lunch. Martin’s Park is a children’s playground that is amazing! It has a full ship to play on and explore and lots of other things to swing, slide, and play on. Highly recommend checking this free park out.
That concluded our trip to Boston and Maine. It was wonderful! If you have any specific questions please drop them below.
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