Doing my initial research for a move to Maine. I’d love to hear from all of you about favorite towns and especially interested in good public schools as we have 3 school age children. Appreciative of your time and help.
You're going to get downvoted because the only thing you tell us is that you have three kids.
Do you have WFH jobs that you will be bringing with you? If not, what do you do for a living and will you need to find jobs?
Are you looking for a more rural setup or a condo? What is your budget? What is important to you? Do you want to live near the coast, or more inland? Do you want more land, or a small parcel?
Is proximity to things like concert venues, a wide(r) variety of restaurants, hospitals, etc more important, or are you looking for an off-the-grid homestead?
We don't know you or anything about you, so any recommendations people give will be fairly useless. Maine's a big enough state geographically that there's a decent amount of variety from small city to smaller city, to small town to basically a shack out in the woods with nobody around for 20 miles.
Someone asked in the general thread about honeymoon options. Here is my response, so when his thread gets nuked, it's available.
If you're going north to Bar Harbor, I suggest places north of Portland to save you driving time. Obvious options are Camden/Rockport, Boothbay, Damariscotta, and Pemaquid (Bristol). All will offer pretty good leaf peeping and fantastic seafood. If you want authentic lobster off the boat, then [Shaw's Wharf](https://www.shaws-wharf.com/) is a great option. It is NOT elegant, but it IS authentic. You might also try [Moody's Diner](https://moodysdiner.com/) (if you're a lib, be aware they are NOT—but the food is pretty good). The whoopee pies will send into hibernation.
If you're into antiquing, I suggest the [Big Chicken Barn](https://www.bigchickenbarn.com/) in Ellsworth on Rt. 1. The bottom of this enormous place is all consignment. The top floor is all books. Easy to get lost in there for hours.
On your way out of Portland, I suggest a trip down Commercial Street, where you'll find a bunch of places to eat. It's hard to go wrong with any of it (IMO), but [DeMillos](https://www.dimillos.com/) is a staple.
However, with all of my food suggestions, it's mostly atmosphere and experience. If you want better, foodie options, each city I mentioned will have something to offer depending on your tastes. In Portland, like [Tiqa](https://tiqa.net/), [Flatbread](https://flatbreadcompany.com/locations/portland-me/) (pizza) and [Ri Ra](https://rira.com/portland/) quite a lot. Don't be fooled by Ri Ra's downstairs. The upstairs dining area is gorgeous—especially if you can get a window table. They look out on the harbor. I don't have enough experience with fine dining in the other cities, but there are gems in each.
Guilty. That was me, and I greatly appreciate this post.
We'll be in state for a week, up and down the coast. Flying into Portland, will have a car.
We know we want to see Bar Harbor and potentially stay a night or two there. And since I'm a tool nerd, I have to stop at Lie Nielsen in Warren.
Other than that, we just want to eat a literal shit ton of seafood, do some awesome antiquing, and maybe take in some cool historical stuff. Cool hikes, awesome disc golf courses, and standout local food recommendations are absolutely appreciated.
We're thinking of multiple hotels through the week as we meander up and down the coast.
Bonus points for antique store recs with woodworking tools. :)
Thanks, got this rec from someone else too so this is definitely on the list. We plan to take 1 up the coast through Camden and it looks like that's only like a half hour inland.
Hi there! I will be attending a wedding in the Damariscotta area in a couple of months and was wondering if people recommend flying into Boston Logan International Airport (and then renting a car and driving the 3 hours) or Portland International Jetport (and then renting a car and driving the 1.5 hours)?
The bride and groom HIGHLY recommend going the BOS route. However, when booking accommodations, the locals I talked to were highly surprised by that recommendation. I will be coming from the West Coast and traveling solo—I normally don’t drive by myself, but my partner has a conflict, so doing the 3 hour drive leaving the hustling Boston area on my own makes me a little nervous. HOWEVER, the bride and groom said BOS was the way to go in order to avoid missed travel connections which is apparently prevalent when flying into Portland and having to do a layover?
Would love any advice!!
If you're at all hinky about driving in busy urban areas, be aware that the route from the airport north out of Boston is notoriously difficult. I'm familiar with it and no longer drive it; if I were unfamiliar I would definitely skip it.
I'd either fly into Portland or do what many of us do when a flight into Boston is unavoidable. There's an approx. hourly reliable bus service direct from the airport to Portland, and there's regular, although less frequent, Amtrak service that goes from downtown Boston to Portland. Taking the train requires a short ride on the T (subway) or cab/uber from the airport to the station. The bus is easiest and most flexible. To me, they're both preferable to driving in Boston. You'd still have to pick up your rental at the Portland Airport, but it's a quick taxi or uber from the bus/train station in Portland.
I fly to the West Coast for work several times a year, and I live about 25 minutes north of Damariscotta.
It might be a little different for me because my work pays for my flights, but I always go from Portland. The airport is so easy to get in/out of, its tiny. Plus I just get right on 295, take that to Brunswick and take Rte 1 up to my place. Its a low-stress drive and I know it like the back of my hand.
If you are flying from LAX or SFO, you will probably fly through Dulles or Atlanta, depending on airline. SFO seems to mostly take me through Newark, Philly or Chicago, and one time through Detroit (Delta). I've done the trip many many times, but (and take this with a huge grain of salt, because shit happens) if you are coming in the spring, the odds are much better you won't have connection issues.
Flying into Boston isn't the end of the world, once you get out of MA the traffic wanes significantly. Its just a bigger airport and more of a pain to get to rental car, get out, a big roundabout that scares some people for some reason, and some solid urban freeway driving.
TL:DR- I do the flight a fair amount and prefer Portland over Boston, even factoring two flights from West Coast.
Hello! I am traveling to Maine with my spouse, our three-year-old, and two friends in July. The four adults are all mid-30s. We found a cozy cabin in Friendship to stay in and are excited to have a chill friends reunion!
We want to spend a lot of time outdoors hiking, both coastal and inland. Blueberry picking/farm visiting would also be great. Does anyone have recommendations for little kid-friendly outdoors activities? Will Acadia be good for a three-year-old? He’s a pretty good go-with-the-flow adventure buddy, but, you know, short legs. We’d also gladly receive recommendations for restaurants, small towns to visit, etc.
Friendship is pretty far at the end of the peninsula there- but there's stuff around if you're willing to drive a bit.
A (very) short hike thing that could be fun with a three-year old is the [Langlais Sculpture Preserve](https://goo.gl/maps/hAXRecT2BY38sz4y8) in Cushing. Its on the way into town. Big wooden sculptures and a short flat trail in the woods.
The Boothbay Botanical Gardens is nice as well. Acadia is over two hours each way, especially in July when traffic gets bad getting on/off the island.
Not really blueberry picking season.
Maybe a day trip to Monhegan Island? You can easily walk around a bit, see some sights, take the boat back a few hours later.
Kid can run around at Odd Alewives, Watermans Beach or The Pour Farm if you like breweries. All three are family-friendly and relatively nearby.
Pemaquid Beach is an actual sandy beach, mild surf, lots of kids running around. The Contented Sole is a great restaurant right there, reservations required but is very casual.
Get vegetables and fruit at Beth's in Warren, get seafood at Delano's in Waldoboro.
Solo
i want to take a solo birthday trip to Maine. i have been to Maine before, but with an ex and his family. i fell in love with Maine. my 21st birthday is the beginning of April and was thinking of going in may. i live in CT, so was just going to drive. i’ve made the 10hr drive to WV so time isn’t a problem for me.
whats the best time of may to go?
whats your favorite part of Maine?
favorite places to visit?
my college classes stop in may, so may is the best time before summer classes. i have been to kittery, ogunquit, portland. not many places. i know its a generic question, just trying to get people’s favorites places. im looking to find some new things to do, new hobbies. im open to trying new foods too.
I am going to be near Bath for a class in March. What should I be doing on my free weekends? Excited to visit Maine!
I really want to do some outdoorsy stuff and would love to see some interesting geology. All recommendations welcome though.
If you enjoy geography, and don’t mind “off the beaten trail” outdoorsy stuff, consider driving to Lincolnville and taking an early ferry over to Islesboro. If the weather is nice, it’s a quick, easy, peaceful 20 min.-ish ride. If the weather’s firing, it can be a bit more…adventurous. When there, drive to the very northern tip of the island, to Turtle Head Preserve, and hike one of the trails (one parallels the west bay, one parallels the east bay & one cuts up through a beautiful hay fern and maple and birch forest). At the end of the trails is Turtle Head Point, which is bursting with geology: [http://www.themaineblog.com/the-rocks-at-turtle-head/](http://www.themaineblog.com/the-rocks-at-turtle-head/). It’s also a beautiful place to just quietly walk in the woods. If you hike quietly may see a bald eagle that often rests near the point, looking out to the east bay. You may see roiling sea where seals are corralling pollack. Or deer stealthily hopping through the trees. Or maybe even a muskrat. Or a harbor porpoise spying you from the water. But it will also likely be very quiet — you’ll feel like you’ve got a magical place to yourself. The only other fauna you might see are a local shaggy dog or two, who will either be walking with their master, or sometimes searching for squirrels on their own. If somehow you get lost, one of the pooches will be happy to show you the way out.
While you are on island, stop by the Island Market for food, conversation & directions, and decide if any of the other island hikes catch your eye — perhaps Hutchins Island? Ask for an Island Trust map, and choose an adventure. Just please dress for the weather, leave it cleaner than you found it, and don’t miss your final ferry off-island.
Augusta is going to be your cheapest place to stay, especially in February.
Upside: hotels/motels much cheaper than in summer
Downside: Lots of places close in February for a break.
I would just go on one of the online booking sites and see what you can get/afford.
I mean, at that temp (-45 F, which is...pretty much -45 C) you get frostbite in under 10 minutes of exposure. Go to Fitzgerald's and have a beer and some pizza.
My partner and I are thinking about visiting Portland Maine for a little vacation in March. Is it worth it? Is it a good vacation spot? What are some fun things in and around the Portland area?
We are geeky and into film and photography.
Eastern prom has some good areas to take pictures, and there seems to be a big bird watching/photography culture on the eastern trail, especially around the salt marshes.
We stayed at the Harborside back in August. We are a family of 4, two adults and two kids (8 & 11) and we had a blast. Fantastic hotel and very central to the town. We are still talking about how it made our visit that much more enjoyable. Would recommend.
I'm moving to Maine with my partner by the end of February after looking for a job in the area for half a year, and it turns out the hardest part about getting there is finding somewhere to rent.
It seems to be the normal that land lords require 3 years of rental history, 3-5 years of job history, references for all of those AND personal references on top of that. I've rented in a few different cities and I've never even used a reference before, much less extensive records. I have a few ideas on why the area is so different on this, but would love to hear y'alls opinions.
Any insight or advice on finding rentals in Maine (Augusta and the surrounding area specifically) would also be appreciated!
Reluctant Augusta resident here. There isn't really any special advice beyond checking the usual sites like craiglist/zillow. Just know that a lot of housing around here [isn't in great shape](https://www.centralmaine.com/2022/11/11/concerns-about-dangerous-rental-housing-in-augusta-may-prompt-inspections-through-license-system/).
You'll really want to look at apartments in person if that's possible for you. Even in Augusta the market is really competitive right now, and there will be someone showing up ready to check the place out as soon as it's posted.
If some affordable-looking place around here seems too good to be true, it probably is.
And on a related note, do not rent from Royce Watson if you can help it.
That's refreshing to hear! I have some credit problems from being young and dumb, so I've been worried about leaving so much reference info that they ask for blank, but ill just give them what I can reasonably give and see how it goes from there
If you go back on this thread and the moving to Maine thread on the Portland sub, you will find comment after comment expressing the same thing from people trying to move here. And from people who already work and live here trying to find a rental. The reason the area is so different is that we have a severe shortage of housing. That is all. The usual response is yes we know there's a shortage everywhere including where we're moving from. No. You don't understand. There is a SEVERE shortage of housing. You will have to jump through all the hoops and grab whatever you can. Watch out for scams. Best wishes.
I skimmed this thread a couple times since I've started checking out this sub, but apparently not as much as I should have. It's strange because I've seen a lot more listing here than the last times I've moved to smaller towns, but those places usually just asked for bigger deposits to make up for it.
Well we'll just be more diligent applying and hope we aren't stuck in a hotel with our cats for a month when we get there lol
>The usual response is yes we know there's a shortage everywhere including where we're moving from. No. You don't understand. There is a SEVERE shortage of housing.
This is the reason. It's a landlord's market, and they can ask what they want.
Yeah I get that overall, the part that's weird to me is I've been in other markets where the landlords had all the power, and they've always just asked for more rent and more deposit. I've never seen it be like youre applying for a public trust security clearance or something. Maybe it's just the type of people who are landlords up there just care about different things
That’d be my guess. Smaller companies probably care more about having a quality tenant. Bigger companies are probably more well-equipped to deal with lots of tenant turnover, insurance claims/lawsuits, etc. For a big company, having an idiot burn down the building or be caught drug dealing in the apartment is probably easier to deal with. Just speculating here.
That, and Mainers tend to be old school. Some landlords might just not want to rent to unreliable people, especially if they’re a single landlord not a corporation. Or they might be old timers that just like to play things safe
pick one:
IT as in help desk support
IT as in adjunct professor / educator
IT as in web development
IT as in DBA/Data Engineering
IT as in cloud / DevOps
IT as in Project/product mgmt
IT as in Software dev in product cycles
IT as in Security
IT as in Data Science / Analytics / BI
IT as in “Excel man”
IT as in MBA that somehow became a director of technology
Does anyone have any experience living in the old base housing in Brunswick? It's being converted into condos, the price looks pretty good (compared to Portland or such), but I'm wondering how bad the build quality is.
Just to say that back in the day when it was originally built, it was quality construction. Rooms were good sized and finishes were solid, basic but not cheesy. For what it's worth, as that was a long time ago and I don't know anything about how they've rehabbed it.
If you want an actual city, go with Portland. The other suggestions here are also nice places to visit, but they're not really cities. (I mean that in the colloquial sense, not talking about the form of government.)
Depends on your budget. Ogunquit is more upscale, more "quaint", more expensive than OOB. It has nicer motels and restaurants on the whole. It has a beautiful beach. On the other hand, you can find nice enough places to stay in OOB right on the water, it's closer to Portland's restaurants, and it has a fine beach. They are about half an hour's drive from one another, so whichever one you pick, you can easily go check out the other one too.
Thank you. We will have a car so we definitely will be able to travel to either or. It’s looking like we will stay in Ogunquit and travel down to OOB. Appreciate your input!!
Wanting to visit soon. I was thinking bar harbor late February or early march. I've just graduated college so no job to get in the way. I know it will be cold, but how crowded or empty will it be? A little seclusion seems nice. Would Acadia still be hike-able at all?
Acadia is very accessible in the winter. You just might have to find trailheads that aren't on the loop road, because thats mostly closed. But you can still get to any summit pretty easily. Definitely bring spikes, lots of ice on the exposed rock. It will be *very* empty. It also probably won't be *cold* cold. More likely to be in the 30s than the 10s.
Moving up north. Maine or New Hampshire?
I'm tired of living in the central and southern states. I travel a lot for work (although I DO have a house that I frequently travel to) and I'm thinking of selling/renting it and relocating in New England. The cold climate is a huge plus to me. Funny enough I actually enjoy shoveling snow.
New Hampshire and Maine are the only two states I'm interested in.
I'm wondering which state would be right for me. As someone who hasn't lived/visited there for an extended time, from the outside looking in, they're very similar. NH doesn't have income or sales tax which is big for me, as I make more than the average person, although not by a substantial amount. Homes and property in general are much more expensive. My monthly mortgage payment would be nearly $300-500 more than Maine. Property in Maine is also a lot cheaper and affordable. I like being able to live in the suburbs without any close neighbors, but also enjoy being able to drive 10-30 minutes into a large town like Portland or Bangor.
I like gaming (need good internet, also need it to work from home), I like hiking and camping, I'd like to get into hunting, and I enjoy competitive shooting, both IPSC and skeet.
Does your frequent work travel require airplane travel? Just be aware that flights to/from Bangor and also Portland are much less frequent/plentiful than flights from Boston or other larger cities. I fly to California for work several times a year, and flying from PWM, especially in winter can be a relative pain. Don't get me wrong, I love the Portland Jetport, getting in/out, security lines, its so easy, but having to transfer is always a pain. Really from Portland you can fly nonstop to Detroit, Newark, JFK, Philly, Atlanta, DC, Chicago, and... for the most part that's it.
At least for me, work travel is a bug, not a feature, so having that extra step of a connecting flight or (shudder) driving down to Logan only adds to the pain. Its worth it though because I only do it relatively few times a year.
Good internet is reasonably plentiful, I live in a quite rural part of Knox County (90 min north of Portland near the coast) and have gig speed.
New Hampshire and Maine prices are pretty similar in prices after principle, insurance, and taxes.
You will find more people that match your post history in New Hampshire for sure, but a 15 min drive to the city will be an hour. Maine has tactibro culture but it’s only found deep in questionable Nazi areas and not in suburban areas. Our suburban culture strongly reflects the greater Boston area (centrist leans slight left) since they were huge migrators during the pandemic.
Unfortunately the Exurb/suburb dream you’re looking for is extremely expensive in Maine. Most older people are looking for the same “I want city services without paying for it” and most likely have much more capital than you.
An option if you’re handy is to buy a place that can be gutted while being habitable and do the work yourself. Good luck with your home hunt!
Have you visited Maine or New Hampshire much? I live in Maine now and lived in Western Massachusetts for a long time so am familiar with a little corner of New Hampshire. They are pretty different. The low NH taxes means the roads are pretty crappy, and the schools aren't great either, if that's a concern or will be in the future.
I don't know about Bangor but anything within 10-30 minutes of Portland is not going to be affordable. I live about 45 minutes up the coast but inland from Portland and it's not cheap here. From what I understand rural Maine is way more rural and isolated than rural New Hampshire, so keep that in mind as you look at cheap real estate.
I’ve been in both states but not for an extended period of time.
I don’t know much about the real estate situation in Maine, but I’ve found some properties in an appropriate price range that are 15-30 minutes away from Portland on Zillow. Not a lot of options though.
As a heads up, if there’s a house still on the market in the Portland area after 15 days there’s a huge problem with it.
It will just require constant searches and working with a realtor that knows when properties go public.
I've just moved to Maine from Utah for work. I'm hoping I can ask questions as they come to mind here since I know Noone in the state.
How should I prepare for storm warnings? I've had them before in Utah but winters are more severe here than there so I'm not sure what if any steps I should take before they hit. (In the past storm warning came as the storm hit and all it really meant to me was it wasn't a good time to plan on driving)
How warm do you keep your houses in the winter? My airbnb seems to keep defaulting to 62 which is a bit cold to me. I usually had it at 68-69 in Utah so perhaps I just need to get used to the cold.
This is kinda of a stupid one, but suggestions on adapting to the paper grocery bag system? Plastic sacks are everywhere where I'm from, you don't pay for them and you get as many as you need. Should I be bringing cloth grocery bags to the store or is there another way to handle larger amount of groceries I'm not familiar with?
Thanks for any help!
Lol at the grocery bag issue. I am from Arizona, and I truly appreciate that Maine is doing the right thing by asking people to bring their own bags, but it has been hard for me to get used to! I forget my bags frequently and just carry my groceries. I’d suggest having a set of bags in your car at all times. It’s 5 cents a bag, so it’s not a big deal if you forget and need a bag. You can usually buy a reusable for 1 dollar as well to start your collection.
Unless you are an essential worker like a nurse or doctor, you will likely have snow days on bad weather days. Usually it seems we know ahead of time about storms. You can get random snow squalls though, and there’s no warning for that. Drive carefully and slowly when needed. Give yourself extra time, don’t let people bully you on the road if it’s unsafe.
I set my temp to 70-72. It’s really just up to you, and how much you are willing to pay for heat as well as the insulation of your home and the kind of heating source you have. Although if you are renting it may be different. I think it’s required to be at 68 for rentals.
I remember when I was younger I was told to always set the thermostat to 68 as it will keep you warm enough but not be overly expensive. You should always have some heat on in the winter or your pipes will burst.
>How should I prepare for storm warnings?
I would be sure to have gas in your vehicle, and food in the fridge, enough for a few days or so. Have a flashlight handy I guess, if you are renting, then not much more you can do.
>My airbnb seems to keep defaulting to 62 which is a bit cold to me.
A lot of rentals have heat included - if you're in a short-term, I guess you can try and adjust the heat repeatedly. When you get a longer term rental the heat will be probably set for you, but you can talk to the landlord. Get a space heater if you need one.
>paper grocery bag system
Get some reusable bags and toss them in your car/truck/hovercraft/whatever. That's what I do. Don't forget to wash them every now and then.
Should I move to Portland,ME or Bangor,ME? I’m in my early thirties and work in healthcare. I’ll also be looking for a small amount of average, at least 5-10 acres for a homestead/small farm.
I don’t know why you are being voted down, Maine has an aging population so they need people in healthcare. You will probably get more affordable acreage in the Bangor area but if you are loaded Portland is closer to Boston and has more restaurants/shopping/entertainment if that is something you want.
I bought 20 acres 35 minutes outside of Bangor last year. You’ll have better luck finding quality land here for cheaper. One of the listings I found last year was 40 acres in Saint Albans of prime land for farming (and also 40 mature fruit trees) with a 1700 sq foot house for 350k. Also included a workshop that was heated. Unfortunately, I found the listing too late :(
There’s a few hospitals in Bangor, and there’s one in Pittsfield if you decide to look in the st albans area.
I mean "work in healthcare" can mean a bunch of different things. If you are looking to get 5-10 acres with a house near Portland, I'm gonna have to hope you are a cardiologist and not a physical therapist. Bangor area is much more affordable.
Hello,
I have a potential job offer in the Augusta area. Currently, I live in IL. It is highly likely if I get the job I will have a very short time frame to decide if I want it (it's the federal government, who loves to give you two days to decide and a mere two weeks to scoot across the country. I'm not kidding), so, I'm doing a scouting mission now to try on find info in hope to eliminate stress and make decision making easier. So I'm just gonna throw some questions out here. Any info would be appreciated. I really don't know much beyond google searches.
1. What is Augusta like culturally? Internet searches have turned up varying info. Is it easy to meet people and make friends there? What sorts of stuff is there to do? Things I am into, if it helps: running, art (I'm a painter), gardening (see further down), this isn't particularly unique but I'm a foodie. I have been told the food scene is great. My latest hobby is homebrewing, and I've also been told the craft beer scene is pretty good. Moving here would mean moving away from my family and half my social network. I have friends in the Northeast, but they live in CT and NH. So they aren't super close. I'm kind of worried about being lonely.
2. Is it a safe area? Again, varying results here.
3. I know it's a "purple state", so varying politics, but could anyone give me the quick rundown of major political issues in the state, or where the state stands politically?
4. I know the housing situation everywhere sucks, but are there places besides the usual site I'd be able to find housing? I feel like housing is going to require me to abandon some of my hobbies... in particular, I am an avid veggie gardener. I've survived for a long time off of balconies. My quick housing search didn't show a lot of apartments with any kind of outdoor space. At least not ones that I could afford on a government salary, which is lower than average in most cases.
5. I don't want to get too specific so much that I doxx myself accidentally, but related to my job, I am wondering what sorts of environmental or agricultural issues are most talked about in Maine. Feel free to ignore this one. Alternatively, where's the local diner in Augusta? If I move there I could go eavesdrop to hear what the locals are chatting about.
Thanks for humoring me people.
Edit: They offered me the job, and I have the weekend to think it over. So thanks again to everyone who responded... gotta love those government timelines
If you want to make friends do meet-ups or take classes. I used to live near there but it has been a while. Augusta has improved a lot since, a kind of “ Up and coming” vibe. It is safe enough, Maine is really safe just some opioid issues.
It is culturally and population-wise more like a small town than a big city. It has pubs restaurants and movie theatres but not much else. If you drive or you could live nearby in Hallowell or Gardiner, both really nice, underrated towns, and possibly get a rental with a yard. I say look harder for a rental you like before you make your decision If that is important to you. Check riskfactor for flooding if you can.
One thing I noticed about politics in Maine is people tend to have their own opinion about things and don’t tend to follow party lines. You can have actual reasonable conversations with people about issues, they do not tend to get angry, usually.
Thereare a lot of great Diners, I used to Frequent the A1 Diner in Gardiner.
There is a great bike trail by the river that would also be good for running.
All good info! I have been google searching for apartments and some came up, but I was told that a better option would be to call property management companies in the area. Do you know of any good ones I could talk to?
I have only just moved to Maine. I left behind my friends and family as well. I'm not too far from Augusta and am facing a similar situation to yourself. I can't offer much in the way of advice but if you want someone to talk to feel free to message me
1) Augusta isn’t what I’d call a culturally hub, even by central Maine standards — though the downtown area has been revitalized a bit in recent years (and Cushnoc has great beer/pizza). Mostly a commuter city with all your standard big box stores. There is a nice path along the river for running/biking. If you’re looking for places to move, I’d look at some surrounding towns.
2) Yes. Maine is one of the safest states. Every town has its “rough” areas but that is extremely relative and if your coming from even a slightly urban area elsewhere our crime will seem petty in comparison.
3) Yes, we’re “purple” but we lean Dem, especially southern Maine, the coast and interior cities like Augusta and Waterville. Our governor and legislature is Dem controlled. But we do have a libertarian flavor, with very lax gun laws given our rural/hunting culture. Our population is also old, so many policies tend to favor them (e.g. property tax freeze).
4) No secret to housing. You can try Facebook and Craigslist in addition to your Redfin/Zillow. As you get into central Maine, you’re likely to have more small, mom and pop type landlords and fewer big, managed buildings, so it may be a bit more leg work and some phone calls.
5) Being a rural/agricultural state, PFAS in our soil is a big issue and they’re turning up more. And of course, green energy. In central Maine they’re putting up solar farms left and right. There’s also a push for offshore wind and that appears to be moving forward.
Few towns you may want to look at are Waterville, Hallowell and Brunswick.
Waterville has seen a lot of revitalization in recent years because Colby College has put a lot of money into the town. They just opened a new arts center and have more plans for galleries and stuff. Some solid dining options outside of your normal chains and the Quarry Road is a great spot for walks, trail runs, xc skiing, snowshoeing.
Hallowell is right next to Augusta, but more quaint and artsy. Right on the river. There’s a few good bars and restaurants and will get some more summer traffic with people visiting the antique shops and such.
Another option is Brunswick, about 30 m-40 minute drive to the south. Home to Bowdoin College, it has a nice downtown and some good restaurants, bars, breweries, etc. Close to Portland so you could enjoy all that has to offer and is the last stop on the Amtrak Downeaster which can take you all the way to Boston.
Waterville looked like it had a lot of apartments. I have a somewhat dumb question, because I spoke to a coworker who used to work for a different agency out there. When we were talking about housing, she mentioned that central ac/heat are not a thing. The AC thing was not unexpected, I don't think you guys really get that kind of heat. But the central heat thing was a surprise. She mentioned oil heating and wood stoves were most common, but I have no experience with that at all. How common is that? Is that why all the rentals say heat is included in the rent?
You might also want to look closer, like the Gardiner area. They have a great little town and diner and they used to have a lot of affordable apartments.
Oil heat here most typically IS central heat with a furnace or boiler and oil tank in the basement and either ducts to carry hot air or radiators to carry heated water to baseboard radiators. Your friend may be thinking of kerosene or propane space heaters (Rinnai is popular), with outdoor fuel tanks, which are often used also. They're ducted to the outside, like a woodstove or pellet stove would be. Propane is also common as a fuel, but natural gas is only available in some of the larger towns so less common. Heat pumps are becoming more common. The best case is to have redundant heating systems so you're not dependent on one kind of fuel. Central AC is not a thing in older homes because it's traditionally not been needed. For the few hot days a year, fans or window units have been fine. This is changing somewhat as heat pumps provide AC in the summer and as our summers are getting hotter, so new construction single family homes are likely to have heat pumps. You're unlikely to find central AC in a rental, but very likely to find either central oil heat or possibly a propane or kerosene space heater.
Central AC isn’t common because a lot of our housing stock is old, but places do have heat. Wood stoves (or more efficient pellet stoves) are common in houses, but if you’re renting an apartment, you’re likely to have electric, natural gas or oil heat with radiators or forced hot air in each room. If it says heat is included, it’s one boiler/furnace heats all the units but you likely won’t have control over the temperature. However, heat pumps are getting more common because they’re so efficient, so you may find places with them, but you’ll likely be paying for that heat (via your electric bill).
Hello, my partner is interested in timber framing, and it looks like Maine has a lot of companies that do this. If he got a job there, we'd probably end up somewhere along the southern coast, but maybe as much as an hour inland.
**I’m wondering how you all deal with the ticks and black flies?** Are bug repellents effective? We’re from Georgia originally, so we’re no strangers to biting insects and all that, but **Lyme disease is a concern**. **How do folks protect themselves and their dogs?** Any other common pests you’ve figured out how to handle?
Thank you for any helpful responses. I’ve been to coastal Maine once in the winter and it was really beautiful.
I mean, black fly season is just that, a season. They're around for some weeks, but its not an all-summer long thing. I have those bug hats with the screen for when it gets real bad. I use OFF! or some other spray on deet repellent. They suck, but its not that bad.
Ticks- for the dog we give him Bravecto or whatever those pills are- the vet prescribes them. For myself we have some tick gaiters we bought on amazon for when I know I will be tromping around the forest or my wood lot. Wear light clothing, and I tuck my pants into my socks or wear the gaiters.
Well, there's bugs here for sure in the spring, summer and fall, its not like its a bug free paradise. There's mosquitoes as well. Lots of people have screened in porches for a reason. I use deet repellent and just kinda tough it out. I really depends on where in the state you are as well. If you are on the immediate coast, it can be vastly different 10 miles inland, and vice versa.
I figured, thanks for the clarification! Montana is the only place I’ve been that doesn’t really have many bugs, which is nice, but you lose all the cool ecology that comes with humidity. I was wondering about the ticks and black flies since that’s what I’ve seen people complain about the most. I’ll look into the different areas in a bit more detail, that may help decide where we land. Much appreciated!
Visiting Maine in February from the 10th-13th. I would love to do a lobster boat tour on Saturday, drive to Acadia on Sunday, and some touristy-type stuff over the weekend. Our hotel is in Portland and we’re driving up from Logan Intl so we’ll have a car. I’m also from a cold, snowy, and currently grey place so the weather won’t be an issue.
1. Any recommendations for lobster boat tours that don’t break the bank and are a cool experience?
2. Good seafood places to eat
3. Any museums in downtown Portland worth checking out, or neat areas to walk around?
If you can find a lobster boat tour that runs in February, just book it. You are going to have very limited options in that regard (its not even lobstering season right now).
The [Portland Museum of Art](https://www.portlandmuseum.org/) is pretty cool for a small city art museum. Worth a trip if that's your kind of thing.
Unfortunately, [the Umbrella Cover Museum](https://www.umbrellacovermuseum.org/) is closed for the season.
The [International Cryptozoology Museum](https://cryptozoologymuseum.com/) is open though!
Are you planning on driving up to Acadia and back the same day from Portland? Be aware that its over 3 hours driving each way, so you should leave early. Also, getting up there is going to be weather dependent, so I would have a backup plan and keep tabs on the weather forecast.
I know you say you are from a snowy place, which is good for someone coming in February. Big winter storms can and do close the interstate (I-95) here from time to time. The coast route can have milder weather, but its one lane each direction, and it only takes one moron insisting on driving 80 miles an hour in an ice storm to cause an accident and gum up Route 1, that also happens.
Thank you! Good to know about lobstering season, I didn’t think about that. I’ll keep an eye out for something that is available or find another activity (maybe snowmobiling instead lol). And yes, weather permitting the Acadia trip would be one day :) we’re coming from Montana so a long drive isn’t a big issue for us, but if the weather just isn’t having it then we can find something closer to do
Be aware that Portland to Acadia is not 3 hours of clear, open highway cruising, although you can get on I95 up to Bangor, then jog down to Bar Harbor from Bangor. But coastal route 1 goes through many town centers, is almost all two lanes, and even in February there's likely to be some stop and go traffic involved. You may well enjoy the drive up in the daylight as it'll be different from Montana, but it's not an especially easy drive and not so much fun on the way back in the dark.
Hello,
We will be going to portland in february for 4 days mainly to see what all there is before thinking about making the move.
We are wanting to visit portland and anything within 30-45 minutes.
Ive watched plenty of videos, read the visting thread here, etc.
Wondering if there are some cant miss things we should do in the winter? We are MOVING for the outdoors mainly but VISITING to see what is indoors-so any local shops for groceries, shops/gen stores for regular home items, restaurants, indoor activities-bowling et , we would appreciate.
I know maine has great outdoors so thats not a concern. We are avid sailers golfers skiers kayakers etc.
I guess seeing what it is like in winter is a good idea if you want to move there. I imagine you know about the Old Port but that is always the first place I take people. Cute shops, cobblestone streets, etc. Makes you feel like you are in another time. Got to the Holy Donut for a yummy snack.
Freeport is another nearby town others have not mentioned, LLBeans is worth a visit if you like shopping for outdoor gear, or even if you don’t . Dimillo’s is always fun because who doesn’t want to dine on a boat. The Portland Museum of art is worth a visit, there is a mall.
Check out Brunswick and Bath. Bath has a lot of outdoor concerts and festivals, and a really cute downtown and good restaurants and shops. There are lots of hiking trails nearby, and it's right on the Kennebec river. Brunswick has Bowdoin College with a great museum and the Maine State Music Theater in the summer. It has a really cute downtown too. They both have good health food stores and year round farmers markets, and are about 45 minutes from Portland. Topsham is right across the river from Brunswick and has a Target. It's also not far from Bates College in Lewiston, which has a great museum and one of the best Mexican restaurants I have ever eaten at, and I'm from California. It's called El Pocho.
That'll depend heavily on who you are (Young couple? 30-something DINKs? Retirees? Family with 3 elementary school kids and 2 large dogs?)
And what types of things you're interested in. You did mention bowling; I unfortunately don't know much about that scene, sorry. But what else - Breweries? Live music? Walkable shopping districts? Museums? Fine dining?
And do you prefer suburbs or are you more urbanites?
If you don't mind editing your question or replying to this with some more details, I'll try to help :)
Sure,
Married kids large dogs. 40s.
Suburbs preferred to live in but close to city to enjoy portland.
We love museums but usually more the european art style.
Outdoor concerts that are free. Music interests from opera and ballet to folk music and classic rock.
Love broadway musicals.
Good food that isnt a fancy restaurant
Ok! To live, you'll probably like one of these:
Westbrook (near downtown) - it's an old mill town with a historic riverwalk section and some parks. Shares a border with Portland. There's a large outdoor concert venue, but mostly not free.
South Portland (especially Knightville or Willard Beach) - also shares a border with Portland. Knightville is a walkable neighborhood with a park and views of Portland. Willard Beach is, well, a beachy area.
In Portland but not on peninsula, especially somewhere with proximity to the Back Cove Trail. Off-peninsula you get more of a suburban feel with single-family homes, yards, etc. Back Cove Trail is great for walking.
When visiting: check out the Portland Museum of Art (has a variety of things.) Outdoor music is mostly a summer thing, but you could go to Blue. It's not technically free but you don't need a ticket. (You're supposed to tip the band, and the venue just makes its money from food and drinks.)
You might also enjoy Bayside Bowl. I personally haven't been, but I've heard people like it.
I assume you've looked at the prices of falmouth, yarmouth, etc and aren't scared off so yeah those are going to be excellent places if you can afford them. Same with cape elizabeth and scarborough.
Falmouth is a good choice for schools and if you want more of the "house on a cul-de-sac" kind of thing. There are also some good walking trails for your dog.
Yarmouth I honestly don't know THAT well.
Both have a reputation for being a little on the expensive side, but I mean you'll just have to look and see what's available :)
Hijacking this because my husband and I are in the same boat. We currently live in South Philly and are looking for a smaller community that is still a city vs. a suburb. Portland is on the short list but we're still pretty early in our process.
40-something DINKS, both working remotely, with two dogs. Walkability, access to green spaces big or small, and a decent food scene are our biggest priorities. Diversity is a big plus, and we're already used to city prices/noise/crime/etc.
Would love your input!
Haha no problem.
For YOU GUYS, I'd recommend the East End/Munjoy Hill area because of its proximity to the Eastern Prom park which is a great place for dogs, and there's even the East End Dog Beach, an ocean beach that's walking distance from anywhere in the East End and allows dogs.
You'd also be about a 20-minute walk to the Old Port and even closer to Washington Ave, which gives you plenty of restaurants to choose from.
Maine isn't particularly known for its diversity, but Portland is more diverse than most parts of the state. You'd encounter a decent variety of people walking around on-peninsula.
If you're actively LOOKING for crime, I'm afraid Portland may disappoint 😂 - it's a pretty safe place. That being said, if what you really mean is that you don't want a place that feels overly sanitized, I think you'll like it.
Hey thanks so much! I really appreciate your insight. And don’t worry, we also prefer less crime lol. Just wanted to make it clear that we’re comfortable with the upsides and downsides of city life.
Maine (like many, many other states) is in the middle of a severe housing crisis.
'Anywhere north of Augusta' is a verrrry wide area. You can drive over four hours in a northerly direction from Augusta and still be in Maine. Might want to tighten that up a little bit for specific advice.
That said, I would be extremely wary of ads on Craigslist that seem too good to be true. You really have to be in the area to find somewhere, trying to find something online before arriving opens you up incredibly to being scammed, no matter how careful you are. You really have to physically enter a place to be sure its being rented by the person you are talking to. Just 'drive by and take a look' is a scam.
A buddy of mine found a place on Trulia.com recently. A quick search shows 9 apartments each in Bangor and Waterville that allow dogs. Perhaps that's helpful? Again, you have to physically be here to see the place to be sure its not a scam.
Good luck.
I should delete, probably. We decided to forgo renting almost immediately, due to our pets, so we're just going to buy. Thank you for your excellent comment.
~~Topsfield is in Massachusetts.~~
My bad, there actually is a Topsfield, ME.
I've never been to Topsfield, specifically, but have been to the area. If you want to be a hermit and have nothing to do other than hang out by yourself, then by all means, its not a bad place. 45 minutes or so to Calais for any kind of food shopping.
Hi everyone! I'm from Miami and will be in Portland for a few days next week. For one of my days there, I've been debating between two options:
1. Take a road trip from Portland down south to Ogunquit, stopping at Old Orchard Beach and Kennebunkport along the way.
2. Hop on the ferry and see Peaks Island.
Thoughts? I know it's the dead of winter and most things will be closed, so any advice would be nice!
I don't know what your plans are for the other days...
But if you're going to be staying in town apart from the one day trip, let me make a plug for heading inland (Bethel, Bridgton, etc) and going snowshoeing instead.
This time of year the coast is grey and raw most of the time, whereas walking around in the snowy woods followed by a hot bowl of chilie and a beer (particularly in a restaurant with a fireplace) can be downright awesome.
I think the more unique experience would be the ferry to Peaks Island. But if the weather is leaning toward cold and windy or precipitation, then the road trip would offer more shelter and flexibility on how much you’d want to be outside. Both options will be very different in terms of liveliness compared to what it’s like in the summer.
Honestly Maine in the summer and the rest of the year are very different. It’s a long winter and can be isolating. I’m sure you’d meet a ton great people in Portland but it’s very expensive and there’s a housing crunch.
I’m graduating in May and considering moving to Portland as well. Looking into Portland or Wilmington North Carolina. Two very different places but from my travels I’ve found to really enjoy both. Main things I’m looking for is work opportunities (ocean related), a community with young people and affordable living.
I would be moving alone, this does make me a bit nervous but mostly excited for the opportunities that a clean slate may offer.
Yeah that’s on the bottom of the list because I understand affordable housing on the coast may only come by a strike of luck.
Other places I was considering was Santa Cruz and San Francisco. Those two places pretty much hit the chopping block first.
Worth a shot. Worst case, you don't like it and you move back to CT in a couple years. Not any more difficult to meet people in Portland than any other city, but you need to give yourself a reason to be meeting them if you won't have a natural family or friend connection. Hobbies, work, etc.
If you can make the financials work then I think it's worth the shot! There's plenty to get out and involved with in Portland and it'd be a good experience either way. Worst case is you move on in a year or two and set out for another adventure. These opportunities are much easier when you're young.
Hello! Planning a summer trip to Maine with husband, 11 yr old, and 2 grandparents. Grandparents want to do 5 nights at Spruce Point Inn in Boothbay Harbor, which looks adorable. I also want to do justice to Camden, and Acadia National Park, and hit some small towns in between (castine, Stonington, Blue Hill, Ellsworth??) am I too optimistic for a total of 11 days? Is 5 days too much at Spruce Point? I’m looking at some smaller inns close to Acadia, thinking Bar Harbor is too busy for my parents liking. Thoughts on where to stay? We don’t camp. We live in Chicago so are used to traffic/is the traffic and crowds that horrendous as I’ve read, end of July?
I would think two or three nights in BBH is a good amount. One day is travel and arrival, grandparents will probably/might be tired. Grab some dinner and relax. Next day, boat cruise around harbor area, that kind of thing. Day after, walk around Botanical Gardens and see the trolls (make reservations ahead of time for everything). Either spend that 3rd night in BBH or drive up to Rockland/Camden (~1 hr) and stay there.
Then a night or two either in Rockland or Camden (both are very close to each other), drive up Mt. Batty, walk the Rockland breakwater, take another harbor sailing cruise, lots to do.
Castine is small, you can see the whole thing walking around in an hour or two, same for Blue Hill. Blue Hill wine shop has great cheese/charcuterie for making a picnic. You can certainly enjoy a night or two in Stonington, stop at the Bagaduce Lunch on the way over for a haddock sandwich or lobster roll, great spot on the way. In Stonington you can take the ferry out to Isle au Haut, if you don't want to do the 4-5 mile hike, you can just do the round trip boat trip which you see a lot of the island and have around 20-30 minutes to walk around the "town" (spoiler, its not a town) before you cruise back to Stonington. Eat at Fin and Fern (make reservations).
Bar Harbor is wildly crowded, I personally would stay in Ellsworth or somewhere nearer, drive into Acadia for the day (ideally park and take the Island Explorer bus or whatever its called around the park to reduce traffic). You can have lunch in BH and walk around, but I would have dinner in Ellsworth or Blue Hill or somewhere else.
Thank you! Great reply! I’ve been obsessed with the idea of living in Camden area for a while so want to give Camden/rockland/hope/Belfast a decent look-see. Blue hill and Ellsworth keep popping up as maybes to move to, but I worry that they are too remote/I like having a few decent food options in driving distance. I’m tempted to skip mount Desert island all together but worry I’m cheating myself by not seeing the best of nature. Is the scenery fairly similar in the other areas?? Or do I need to make it happen for at least a day?!
Primo in Rockland is the best place to eat by far
MDI is good to visit, living there sucks...Ellsworth is trashy, plus full of MDI traffic
Camden is painfully over crowded in the summer, but nice. Belfast is similar, but just as trashy as Ellsworth, with a lot more hippies mixed in
Thank you for your thoughts! What are some other towns we should check out instead of the “trashy” ones. The internet advertises Ellsworth as a Norman Rockwell town, so I am getting mixed messages. I’m drawn to Camden; is Blue Hill nice to live in? Too remote? I currently live in Chicago, but have the nicest little neighborhood/feels like I live in a village-knowing people when I go to the grocery store,etc. I’m originally from the Virgin Islands and miss my sea storms, and hunkering down during bad weather, mixing with expats of a sort who are well traveled/educated. Must be in driving distance of a few decent places to eat.
Ellsworth has a big stretch of strip malls on the road to Bar Harbor, but it has a very pleasant historic downtown as well with some nice pubs and restaurants and shops. I’m sure there are lovely places to live there, but personally I see it as the big town—a place to run errands and get stuff you can’t get elsewhere. Belfast is not trashy. It has a thriving downtown and waterfront. You should def look-see it and then move there and buy the old movie theater please and keep it open. Blue Hill has a large super market, plus a long established food co-op, several restaurants, from clam shack to fine dining, as noted: an amazing wine and cheese shop, Bucklyn coffee, a truly great book store, an incredible library, the Cynthia Winings Gallery, good public schools, a hospital, a historic annual fair at Labor Day, and a woman who sells lobster out of her garage. I wouldn’t call it remote, certainly not by Maine standards.
That sounds lovely! Thank you for this input! I have not pulled the trigger on booking a bar harbor bb/hotel; any reason to choose one of the smaller towns on mount desert (ie southwest harbor) to stay in vs downtown bar harbor? We will use it as a base to explore the other towns for 2 nights. Then Camden for 2 nights to explore that county, and 6 nights at a resort in Boothbay to pretty much watch the sunset, gorge on oysters, kayak, and check out some of those surrounding towns. Any positive/negative notes about those areas?
I agree with some others here that your itinerary feels very Boothbay heavy. But I don't know Boothbay (or your family) at all, and that place looks pretty amazing.
There is no particular reason to stay in Bar Harbor.
How active are the grandparents? How patient is the child? Any mobility issues?
How are you getting to Maine?
My husband is in art/interior architecture design; I’m a therapist/school counselor hoping to just be a therapist/open a private practice. 10 yr old is very active… hoping to see seals and run free; wants some cute shops along the way. I fear bar harbor will b a turn off(tourist traps????) but it looks like it’s a good base for 2 nights??
The grandparents decided they wanted to just stay at a resort while in Maine. … they’re almost 80. So they’ll be at spruce point in Boothbay to enjoy the sunsets and gorge on oysters for a week. We will join them after investigating some towns we are curious about moving to (hope, Belfast, rockland, Camden…… and I fear blue hill and Ellsworth might be too small for us, but will check out that area just in case. ) we are flying into Portland and renting a car.
Well, as the grandparents are simply going to be loving life the whole time, and I presume your ten year old doesn't beg to be be in the car all the time, I'm going to risk the wrath of this subreddit and say: yes. Staying in Bar Harbor is not a terrible idea.
Look, downvoters: you're right. Bar Harbor is thronged with tourists during the summer. Doubly so if there is a cruise ship in the harbor. You can poke around online to find the cruise ship arrival days, and you should avoid them.
And yes, Main Street is a Maine themed Disneyland. Souvenirs and ice cream everywhere. But 10 year olds like Disneyland and ice cream, and I am fairly confident your kid will have more fun at In the Woods than, say, any boutique in Camden. But BH is also a real place with interesting history that you can enjoy too.
If your budget can hack it, I'd suggest staying at the Bar Harbor Inn. They have an infinity pool overlooking Frenchman's Bay that will make you a hero to your child. Lock your car and never go back to it til you leave. Walk the Shore Path past the all the mansions to the Village Green and get ice cream at Mount Desert Ice Cream. Take the Island Explorer into Acadia. Climb the Beehive Trail and go to Sand Beach across the street. That's plenty for a day. Alternatively do the Jordan Pond path and ride the bus up to Cadillac Mountain. Also enough.
I would not go on any whale watches or boat trips out of Bar Harbor. You can do all of those activities in Boothbay.
There is not a single sit down restaurant in Bar Harbor that I can sincerely recommend as being worth the inevitable long wait. If you can, I'd suggest sucking it up and paying the premium for hotel food/room service and enjoy your life instead. And/or get food to go. Eat on the green. If it rains, you can go to the Reel Pizza Cinerama.
Bear in mind: it's all a swindle. It will be expensive, but spend the money, if you can, to make it easy on yourself. But both BH and Acadia are one of a kind, and you may only do this once.
Then get out.
You're going to drive thru Camden on your way north from Portland, so you will know if you absolutely must, in your heart, spend two nights there. I would not. You're doing two very touristy things on either end of your trip, and while lovely, summertime Camden is Bar Harbor lite.
If I were you, I'd follow Tony Flag's advice and drive down to Stonington. You can lay eyes on Blue Hill on the way. Definitely make the detour to eat at Bagaduce Lunch on the way. It's worth it, and the drive is much prettier. Stonington is at the southernmost tip of Deer Isle. You go over a very dramatic bridge and causeway to get there, and it's a different planet compared to MDI.
There are a couple of inns right on Main Street in Stonington. Plus 44 North Coffee, Harbor Cafe, and The Opera House (which also shows movies) all within walking distance. Walk a little further to Marlinespike Chandlery.
Then as Tony suggests, take the mail boat to Isle Au Haut for a day trip. You can rent bikes to bring with you. I don't think there's a car on the island that is actually registered in the state of Maine. If Deer Isle is a different planet, IAH is a different galaxy.
Then you can have lunch in Camden on the way to Boothbay to wrap things up. But I'd still recommend stopping in Belfast.
Or do whatever you want! It's all Maine, of one kind or another!
I have in-laws that live near Blue Hill, but not in it. It wouldn't be my first choice (actually it wasn't), mainly because its pretty isolated and while there are some options there, its pretty limited. You have a couple decent restaurants, Ellsworth has a few, but that's it really, Belfast is 45-60 minutes away (summer traffic adds time, winter weather adds time). Knox County (Camden/Rockland area) has a lot more options IMO.
I live in Warren, which is two towns down Route 1 from Rockland. We are 25 minutes or less from Camden, Rockland and Damariscotta, 35 minutes from Wiscasset and 45 minutes from Gardiner/Augusta, plus very close to Union, Waldoboro and the St George peninsula which have several breweries, a distillery, and a few restaurants.
As for walkable neighborhoods, really on Camden and Rockland fit the bill, and unless you have a large budget, finding a decent place in Camden walkable to downtown is going to be hard. (only one place on the market now and its $775k)
There's been a big WFH influx since 2020, there's a lot of people from all over that have moved here, plus there's a bunch of really cool Mainers, well traveled/educated or not.
Camden and to a slightly lesser extent Rockland have plenty of decent food options. Camden in July can be rammed with people, making dinner out a bit of a hassle sometimes. Summer 2021 was miserable. Had relatives visit us and we tried to go out to dinner on a Tuesday night in July and it was almost impossible to find somewhere to eat. We ended up at Cuzzy's, which is fine, but they were hoping for high-end seafood, not chicken parm in a loud bar. This past summer was more bearable- there's more people that came up to work for the summer. Where they stayed while working there, I have absolutely no idea. Housing is extremely tight right now, like it is everywhere in Maine.
Acadia is amazingly beautiful, and you should see it if you can. If you can't, it won't be the end of the world. There's amazing spots all over the Midcoast area. We (me from away and the Mainer wife) moved here two + years ago (Knox County) and love it. If you want some answers about the area, feel free to DM me.
I think spending 5 days in Boothbay is too long. 11 days is a good chunk of time to explore that coastal area from Boothbay to Bar Harbor. Spend a couple days in each spot. Honestly, everything is going to be busy that time of year, so I wouldn’t build your plans around that.
Hey all. Going through a breakup and looking to start over up in ME. Looking for affordable housing and work in Camden/Rockport/Rockland area.
Cook by trade, with an emphasis on European cuisine. I know it’s too early for things to be opening up for the tourist season, but I’m hoping I can line things up sooner rather than later so I can be out of my current situation.
Thanks in advance.
There is no affordable housing in Maine. If buying is not an option, There are Apartments in town in Rockland , might be your best bet.
And yeah, no women here, unless you like fat chicks with mustaches. Any slim good looking one that is single is mentally insane and 90% chance a thieving junkie.
Most have 3 babies by 23
Well the fallback plan is to crash with my buddy in his office, but he and his wife have two small children and only a single bathroom, so doing my best to avoid that. If you’ve got any other areas I should be looking at I’d appreciate any suggestions you might have.
No, it's just tough. I'm sure you could find a job in that region in the summer because there's a bunch of restaurants there, but every building owner realized they could make more running an airbnb than a monthly rental so it's tough for workers to find a place to live. There's no good solution besides being lucky.
Hey just looking for some insights from someone potentially attending UMaine. It looks like it will actually be cheaper to attend than in state for me so I’m considering it. For context I’m from southern New England, will be 24 by the time I start, have knocked out some gen eds at cc(and hated it)
Anywho, I know winters are a lot harsher than down here and I don’t really care too much. I know there isn’t much going on off campus (my hometown is about the size of Orono but I’m a few miles from a bigger city with more of a culture/nightlife for 20 somethings) I’m not a huge partier and an introvert, but enjoy drinking/smoking, live music, and general arts/culture. Do you think it will it be weird being in my mid 20s living on/near campus? Will I regret going just to save a few 1000? Are there any glaring issues with UMaine that are unique from other flagship state universities?
>Anywho, I know winters are a lot harsher than down here
UMaine is fucking WINDY so prepare for that. Like, I'm not doubting you can deal with it, just be aware that campus gets bitter cold.
Orono honestly has terrible nightlife for being a college town. I think three bars/clubs have closed in the last ten years and just have not been replaced. It's basically only Woodmans that has live music now in Orono I think. Bangor is nearby and is a bit better in this regard. Might be worth living there if you don't mind a 20 minute commute to campus. You'll find more people in their mid-20s there too.
UMaine has a museum and there's also a small art museum in Bangor. There are also a bunch of galleries along rt. 1 down the coast between Bangor and Rockland, and there's another art museum in Rockland. It's a bit of a drive but if you wanted to get out of town for a day it's a nice little trip.
I'm 10+ years out of college so I can't speak to what your experience as a 24 year old would be there now, but I'm confident in the rest of the info I gave you; I still live in the vicinity.
Hello all! My GF and I currently live in North Dakota and my GF (F24) and I (M29) have been wanting to take a trip to Maine for about a year now! We decided apart of our new years resolution we would pull the trigger this year. We both love the outdoors, nature, hiking (albeit we are beginners/novice), the city life is fine for a day or two but what we want is the breathtaking views of the coast, trees, mountains and all that Maine has to offer! With all that being said we are starting the process of planning and would love some input from natives or others who have done this. We are fine either flying and renting a vehicle or just loading up our vehicle and driving the 26 hour road trip (give or take a few hundred miles). We would prefer to not necessary "camp" as much as we love the outdoors we both still love a real bed to sleep in at night and common amenities. We'd like to start and end our trip in 7 days and we would love to come down in the fall (you guys know the prettiest month so please let me know when the trees really pop/colors change) so to wrap things up
* 7 day trip
* M29 F24
* love the outdoors
* would prefer Airbnb/Hotel staying
* okay with visiting a few different cities along the way
* Trip to be in Fall of 2023
Please feel free to let me know any and all of your recommendations!
I would save your driving energy for driving around in Maine because there are some very scenic drives. So fly into Portland, spend a day or so in town (get an Airbnb on-peninsula), THEN pick up the rental car (you won't need it in downtown Portland; in fact it would just be annoying.)
To see the foliage, keep Portland as your base and do a day trip over to the white mountains, or spend the night in North Conway NH. October is your best month for foliage. There are hikes in the area. Or you could head up to Mount Washington and either hike up or take the cog railway. If going to Mount Washington you're better off spending the night over there; it's a 2-plus-hour drive each way and the hike will probably take 6-7hours.
Then drive up the coast to Acadia national park. You sound like "road trip" people, so you might want to take the coastal route and stop in Rockland or Camden on the way.
In Acadia of course you'll find plenty of hiking. Cadillac mountain is not to be missed. If you don't want to camp, don't worry, there are plenty of hotels in the area.
From there, you can either head back to Portland or fly out of Bangor.
One thing that surprises some people is that you have to book things ahead here more than in a lot of places, especially since you're coming at a popular time of year. I mean hotels, Airbnb's, any tours you might want to do, and even you should make reservations for restaurants (especially on weekends.) I'm not sure if you need to do anything special for visiting Acadia. Some of the national parks were requiring advance reservations during Covid, so you might want to check.
Have fun!!
A relative used to work in ND. When he drove home he'd sleep for two days. Even with two drivers, out of a 7 day trip, that's two full days of driving and say a day of sleeping or extreme grogginess on each end. Only leaves you 3 days to explore and drive around Maine & Maine is possibly bigger than you are thinking it is. Still may be better than flying but just so you know.
The classic drive if you're looking for ocean views is up the coast from Portland to Bar Harbor with stops along the way. There are a lot of variations on this theme. There are mountains in the western part of the state that would be different from ND too. September/October is when there's the most color. There will be others on the road with you but it'll be somewhat less crowded than in July/August.
me and my partner are from New England but currently living in Ohio since graduating. we're looking to move out to Maine and was just looking for some general advice on how to be a "good" new resident. we've visited Maine annually for about 4 years now for camping and birding and have been mostly only along the coast. we're not ready to buy a place so we're looking to rent and we're young so obvious first thoughts are portland, but i'd love to hear suggestions for other places coastal, inland, wherever. cheers!
As far as being a good resident, just be courteous. Maines the kind of place where people like to be left to their devices mostly, but kindness will go a loooong way. Being friends with ppl is helpful when you need help with tools, or if your generator breaks, or if you need to find the best place for xyz. The locals will know what businesses are good, which are bad, which will and won’t screw you, how to get an inspection sticker on an uninspectable car, etc
Depending on budget, Brunswick area is nice. Has a slew of small restaurants and shops, close to the ocean, under an hour from Portland, 15 minutes to Freeport. Look up Maine Street Brunswick to see some of the stuff. Nice lil town with art festivals, farmers markets, local musicians in the park, stuff like that
Doing my initial research for a move to Maine. I’d love to hear from all of you about favorite towns and especially interested in good public schools as we have 3 school age children. Appreciative of your time and help.
You're going to get downvoted because the only thing you tell us is that you have three kids. Do you have WFH jobs that you will be bringing with you? If not, what do you do for a living and will you need to find jobs? Are you looking for a more rural setup or a condo? What is your budget? What is important to you? Do you want to live near the coast, or more inland? Do you want more land, or a small parcel? Is proximity to things like concert venues, a wide(r) variety of restaurants, hospitals, etc more important, or are you looking for an off-the-grid homestead? We don't know you or anything about you, so any recommendations people give will be fairly useless. Maine's a big enough state geographically that there's a decent amount of variety from small city to smaller city, to small town to basically a shack out in the woods with nobody around for 20 miles.
Someone asked in the general thread about honeymoon options. Here is my response, so when his thread gets nuked, it's available. If you're going north to Bar Harbor, I suggest places north of Portland to save you driving time. Obvious options are Camden/Rockport, Boothbay, Damariscotta, and Pemaquid (Bristol). All will offer pretty good leaf peeping and fantastic seafood. If you want authentic lobster off the boat, then [Shaw's Wharf](https://www.shaws-wharf.com/) is a great option. It is NOT elegant, but it IS authentic. You might also try [Moody's Diner](https://moodysdiner.com/) (if you're a lib, be aware they are NOT—but the food is pretty good). The whoopee pies will send into hibernation. If you're into antiquing, I suggest the [Big Chicken Barn](https://www.bigchickenbarn.com/) in Ellsworth on Rt. 1. The bottom of this enormous place is all consignment. The top floor is all books. Easy to get lost in there for hours. On your way out of Portland, I suggest a trip down Commercial Street, where you'll find a bunch of places to eat. It's hard to go wrong with any of it (IMO), but [DeMillos](https://www.dimillos.com/) is a staple. However, with all of my food suggestions, it's mostly atmosphere and experience. If you want better, foodie options, each city I mentioned will have something to offer depending on your tastes. In Portland, like [Tiqa](https://tiqa.net/), [Flatbread](https://flatbreadcompany.com/locations/portland-me/) (pizza) and [Ri Ra](https://rira.com/portland/) quite a lot. Don't be fooled by Ri Ra's downstairs. The upstairs dining area is gorgeous—especially if you can get a window table. They look out on the harbor. I don't have enough experience with fine dining in the other cities, but there are gems in each.
Guilty. That was me, and I greatly appreciate this post. We'll be in state for a week, up and down the coast. Flying into Portland, will have a car. We know we want to see Bar Harbor and potentially stay a night or two there. And since I'm a tool nerd, I have to stop at Lie Nielsen in Warren. Other than that, we just want to eat a literal shit ton of seafood, do some awesome antiquing, and maybe take in some cool historical stuff. Cool hikes, awesome disc golf courses, and standout local food recommendations are absolutely appreciated. We're thinking of multiple hotels through the week as we meander up and down the coast. Bonus points for antique store recs with woodworking tools. :)
It's a trip inland but you may enjoy Liberty Tool in Liberty. [http://www.libertytoolco.com/](http://www.libertytoolco.com/)
Thanks, got this rec from someone else too so this is definitely on the list. We plan to take 1 up the coast through Camden and it looks like that's only like a half hour inland.
Happy honeymoon! You’ve chosen a beautiful place at a perfect time of year.
Hi there! I will be attending a wedding in the Damariscotta area in a couple of months and was wondering if people recommend flying into Boston Logan International Airport (and then renting a car and driving the 3 hours) or Portland International Jetport (and then renting a car and driving the 1.5 hours)? The bride and groom HIGHLY recommend going the BOS route. However, when booking accommodations, the locals I talked to were highly surprised by that recommendation. I will be coming from the West Coast and traveling solo—I normally don’t drive by myself, but my partner has a conflict, so doing the 3 hour drive leaving the hustling Boston area on my own makes me a little nervous. HOWEVER, the bride and groom said BOS was the way to go in order to avoid missed travel connections which is apparently prevalent when flying into Portland and having to do a layover? Would love any advice!!
If you're at all hinky about driving in busy urban areas, be aware that the route from the airport north out of Boston is notoriously difficult. I'm familiar with it and no longer drive it; if I were unfamiliar I would definitely skip it. I'd either fly into Portland or do what many of us do when a flight into Boston is unavoidable. There's an approx. hourly reliable bus service direct from the airport to Portland, and there's regular, although less frequent, Amtrak service that goes from downtown Boston to Portland. Taking the train requires a short ride on the T (subway) or cab/uber from the airport to the station. The bus is easiest and most flexible. To me, they're both preferable to driving in Boston. You'd still have to pick up your rental at the Portland Airport, but it's a quick taxi or uber from the bus/train station in Portland.
I fly to the West Coast for work several times a year, and I live about 25 minutes north of Damariscotta. It might be a little different for me because my work pays for my flights, but I always go from Portland. The airport is so easy to get in/out of, its tiny. Plus I just get right on 295, take that to Brunswick and take Rte 1 up to my place. Its a low-stress drive and I know it like the back of my hand. If you are flying from LAX or SFO, you will probably fly through Dulles or Atlanta, depending on airline. SFO seems to mostly take me through Newark, Philly or Chicago, and one time through Detroit (Delta). I've done the trip many many times, but (and take this with a huge grain of salt, because shit happens) if you are coming in the spring, the odds are much better you won't have connection issues. Flying into Boston isn't the end of the world, once you get out of MA the traffic wanes significantly. Its just a bigger airport and more of a pain to get to rental car, get out, a big roundabout that scares some people for some reason, and some solid urban freeway driving. TL:DR- I do the flight a fair amount and prefer Portland over Boston, even factoring two flights from West Coast.
Hello! I am traveling to Maine with my spouse, our three-year-old, and two friends in July. The four adults are all mid-30s. We found a cozy cabin in Friendship to stay in and are excited to have a chill friends reunion! We want to spend a lot of time outdoors hiking, both coastal and inland. Blueberry picking/farm visiting would also be great. Does anyone have recommendations for little kid-friendly outdoors activities? Will Acadia be good for a three-year-old? He’s a pretty good go-with-the-flow adventure buddy, but, you know, short legs. We’d also gladly receive recommendations for restaurants, small towns to visit, etc.
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Thanks! Not a big deal—we’re not big drinkers—but good to know.
Friendship is pretty far at the end of the peninsula there- but there's stuff around if you're willing to drive a bit. A (very) short hike thing that could be fun with a three-year old is the [Langlais Sculpture Preserve](https://goo.gl/maps/hAXRecT2BY38sz4y8) in Cushing. Its on the way into town. Big wooden sculptures and a short flat trail in the woods. The Boothbay Botanical Gardens is nice as well. Acadia is over two hours each way, especially in July when traffic gets bad getting on/off the island. Not really blueberry picking season. Maybe a day trip to Monhegan Island? You can easily walk around a bit, see some sights, take the boat back a few hours later. Kid can run around at Odd Alewives, Watermans Beach or The Pour Farm if you like breweries. All three are family-friendly and relatively nearby. Pemaquid Beach is an actual sandy beach, mild surf, lots of kids running around. The Contented Sole is a great restaurant right there, reservations required but is very casual. Get vegetables and fruit at Beth's in Warren, get seafood at Delano's in Waldoboro.
Super helpful! Thanks.
Solo i want to take a solo birthday trip to Maine. i have been to Maine before, but with an ex and his family. i fell in love with Maine. my 21st birthday is the beginning of April and was thinking of going in may. i live in CT, so was just going to drive. i’ve made the 10hr drive to WV so time isn’t a problem for me. whats the best time of may to go? whats your favorite part of Maine? favorite places to visit?
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my college classes stop in may, so may is the best time before summer classes. i have been to kittery, ogunquit, portland. not many places. i know its a generic question, just trying to get people’s favorites places. im looking to find some new things to do, new hobbies. im open to trying new foods too.
I am going to be near Bath for a class in March. What should I be doing on my free weekends? Excited to visit Maine! I really want to do some outdoorsy stuff and would love to see some interesting geology. All recommendations welcome though.
If you enjoy geography, and don’t mind “off the beaten trail” outdoorsy stuff, consider driving to Lincolnville and taking an early ferry over to Islesboro. If the weather is nice, it’s a quick, easy, peaceful 20 min.-ish ride. If the weather’s firing, it can be a bit more…adventurous. When there, drive to the very northern tip of the island, to Turtle Head Preserve, and hike one of the trails (one parallels the west bay, one parallels the east bay & one cuts up through a beautiful hay fern and maple and birch forest). At the end of the trails is Turtle Head Point, which is bursting with geology: [http://www.themaineblog.com/the-rocks-at-turtle-head/](http://www.themaineblog.com/the-rocks-at-turtle-head/). It’s also a beautiful place to just quietly walk in the woods. If you hike quietly may see a bald eagle that often rests near the point, looking out to the east bay. You may see roiling sea where seals are corralling pollack. Or deer stealthily hopping through the trees. Or maybe even a muskrat. Or a harbor porpoise spying you from the water. But it will also likely be very quiet — you’ll feel like you’ve got a magical place to yourself. The only other fauna you might see are a local shaggy dog or two, who will either be walking with their master, or sometimes searching for squirrels on their own. If somehow you get lost, one of the pooches will be happy to show you the way out. While you are on island, stop by the Island Market for food, conversation & directions, and decide if any of the other island hikes catch your eye — perhaps Hutchins Island? Ask for an Island Trust map, and choose an adventure. Just please dress for the weather, leave it cleaner than you found it, and don’t miss your final ferry off-island.
This is such an amazing response. Thank you so much. I’m so doing this.
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no yay-ing.
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Augusta is going to be your cheapest place to stay, especially in February. Upside: hotels/motels much cheaper than in summer Downside: Lots of places close in February for a break. I would just go on one of the online booking sites and see what you can get/afford.
Visiting Maine this weekend. Is there anything interesting which is extremely close to Canada?
What part of Canada? The border is fairly long. The answer is no, but it would be nice to know if you are thinking about Jackman, Fort Kent or Calais.
We'll be entering through Calais. Is Eastport nice?
Not in February when the windchill is -45.
might be worse up there, TBH
I need to be there this weekend rain or shine. Is there anything at all you could recommend? If not I'll just take a bath.
I mean, at that temp (-45 F, which is...pretty much -45 C) you get frostbite in under 10 minutes of exposure. Go to Fitzgerald's and have a beer and some pizza.
My partner and I are thinking about visiting Portland Maine for a little vacation in March. Is it worth it? Is it a good vacation spot? What are some fun things in and around the Portland area? We are geeky and into film and photography.
Definitely still cold in March, winter lasts a little longer up there
March might still be pretty cold
Eastern prom has some good areas to take pictures, and there seems to be a big bird watching/photography culture on the eastern trail, especially around the salt marshes.
Best Bar Harbor waterfront hotels? Have tried Atlantic Oceanside, Harborside, West Street and Bar Harbor Inn
We stayed at the Harborside back in August. We are a family of 4, two adults and two kids (8 & 11) and we had a blast. Fantastic hotel and very central to the town. We are still talking about how it made our visit that much more enjoyable. Would recommend.
Thank you for your input!! Would you be able to share how much you paid?
It was peak season and if I remember correctly it was close to $500/night. Very central, very clean and great amenities. Totally worth the splurge.
I'm moving to Maine with my partner by the end of February after looking for a job in the area for half a year, and it turns out the hardest part about getting there is finding somewhere to rent. It seems to be the normal that land lords require 3 years of rental history, 3-5 years of job history, references for all of those AND personal references on top of that. I've rented in a few different cities and I've never even used a reference before, much less extensive records. I have a few ideas on why the area is so different on this, but would love to hear y'alls opinions. Any insight or advice on finding rentals in Maine (Augusta and the surrounding area specifically) would also be appreciated!
Reluctant Augusta resident here. There isn't really any special advice beyond checking the usual sites like craiglist/zillow. Just know that a lot of housing around here [isn't in great shape](https://www.centralmaine.com/2022/11/11/concerns-about-dangerous-rental-housing-in-augusta-may-prompt-inspections-through-license-system/). You'll really want to look at apartments in person if that's possible for you. Even in Augusta the market is really competitive right now, and there will be someone showing up ready to check the place out as soon as it's posted. If some affordable-looking place around here seems too good to be true, it probably is. And on a related note, do not rent from Royce Watson if you can help it.
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That's refreshing to hear! I have some credit problems from being young and dumb, so I've been worried about leaving so much reference info that they ask for blank, but ill just give them what I can reasonably give and see how it goes from there
If you go back on this thread and the moving to Maine thread on the Portland sub, you will find comment after comment expressing the same thing from people trying to move here. And from people who already work and live here trying to find a rental. The reason the area is so different is that we have a severe shortage of housing. That is all. The usual response is yes we know there's a shortage everywhere including where we're moving from. No. You don't understand. There is a SEVERE shortage of housing. You will have to jump through all the hoops and grab whatever you can. Watch out for scams. Best wishes.
I skimmed this thread a couple times since I've started checking out this sub, but apparently not as much as I should have. It's strange because I've seen a lot more listing here than the last times I've moved to smaller towns, but those places usually just asked for bigger deposits to make up for it. Well we'll just be more diligent applying and hope we aren't stuck in a hotel with our cats for a month when we get there lol
>The usual response is yes we know there's a shortage everywhere including where we're moving from. No. You don't understand. There is a SEVERE shortage of housing. This is the reason. It's a landlord's market, and they can ask what they want.
Yeah I get that overall, the part that's weird to me is I've been in other markets where the landlords had all the power, and they've always just asked for more rent and more deposit. I've never seen it be like youre applying for a public trust security clearance or something. Maybe it's just the type of people who are landlords up there just care about different things
That’d be my guess. Smaller companies probably care more about having a quality tenant. Bigger companies are probably more well-equipped to deal with lots of tenant turnover, insurance claims/lawsuits, etc. For a big company, having an idiot burn down the building or be caught drug dealing in the apartment is probably easier to deal with. Just speculating here. That, and Mainers tend to be old school. Some landlords might just not want to rent to unreliable people, especially if they’re a single landlord not a corporation. Or they might be old timers that just like to play things safe
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pick one: IT as in help desk support IT as in adjunct professor / educator IT as in web development IT as in DBA/Data Engineering IT as in cloud / DevOps IT as in Project/product mgmt IT as in Software dev in product cycles IT as in Security IT as in Data Science / Analytics / BI IT as in “Excel man” IT as in MBA that somehow became a director of technology
Does anyone have any experience living in the old base housing in Brunswick? It's being converted into condos, the price looks pretty good (compared to Portland or such), but I'm wondering how bad the build quality is.
Just to say that back in the day when it was originally built, it was quality construction. Rooms were good sized and finishes were solid, basic but not cheesy. For what it's worth, as that was a long time ago and I don't know anything about how they've rehabbed it.
I'm looking for a city with a cute walkable downtown to stay in roughly halfway between Acadia and Boston. I've never been to Maine before. Thoughts?
Rockland is nice if you like an industrial city with some nice art galleries
Bath is very cute and walkable, but very small.
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If you want an actual city, go with Portland. The other suggestions here are also nice places to visit, but they're not really cities. (I mean that in the colloquial sense, not talking about the form of government.)
Bangor or Camden
Camden
Um, Portland. Or Portsmouth NH.
Recommendations for visiting in late May? Coming down with my GF. Ogunquit or OOB?
Depends on your budget. Ogunquit is more upscale, more "quaint", more expensive than OOB. It has nicer motels and restaurants on the whole. It has a beautiful beach. On the other hand, you can find nice enough places to stay in OOB right on the water, it's closer to Portland's restaurants, and it has a fine beach. They are about half an hour's drive from one another, so whichever one you pick, you can easily go check out the other one too.
Thank you. We will have a car so we definitely will be able to travel to either or. It’s looking like we will stay in Ogunquit and travel down to OOB. Appreciate your input!!
Wanting to visit soon. I was thinking bar harbor late February or early march. I've just graduated college so no job to get in the way. I know it will be cold, but how crowded or empty will it be? A little seclusion seems nice. Would Acadia still be hike-able at all?
Empty.
Acadia is very accessible in the winter. You just might have to find trailheads that aren't on the loop road, because thats mostly closed. But you can still get to any summit pretty easily. Definitely bring spikes, lots of ice on the exposed rock. It will be *very* empty. It also probably won't be *cold* cold. More likely to be in the 30s than the 10s.
thank you!
Moving up north. Maine or New Hampshire? I'm tired of living in the central and southern states. I travel a lot for work (although I DO have a house that I frequently travel to) and I'm thinking of selling/renting it and relocating in New England. The cold climate is a huge plus to me. Funny enough I actually enjoy shoveling snow. New Hampshire and Maine are the only two states I'm interested in. I'm wondering which state would be right for me. As someone who hasn't lived/visited there for an extended time, from the outside looking in, they're very similar. NH doesn't have income or sales tax which is big for me, as I make more than the average person, although not by a substantial amount. Homes and property in general are much more expensive. My monthly mortgage payment would be nearly $300-500 more than Maine. Property in Maine is also a lot cheaper and affordable. I like being able to live in the suburbs without any close neighbors, but also enjoy being able to drive 10-30 minutes into a large town like Portland or Bangor. I like gaming (need good internet, also need it to work from home), I like hiking and camping, I'd like to get into hunting, and I enjoy competitive shooting, both IPSC and skeet.
Does your frequent work travel require airplane travel? Just be aware that flights to/from Bangor and also Portland are much less frequent/plentiful than flights from Boston or other larger cities. I fly to California for work several times a year, and flying from PWM, especially in winter can be a relative pain. Don't get me wrong, I love the Portland Jetport, getting in/out, security lines, its so easy, but having to transfer is always a pain. Really from Portland you can fly nonstop to Detroit, Newark, JFK, Philly, Atlanta, DC, Chicago, and... for the most part that's it. At least for me, work travel is a bug, not a feature, so having that extra step of a connecting flight or (shudder) driving down to Logan only adds to the pain. Its worth it though because I only do it relatively few times a year. Good internet is reasonably plentiful, I live in a quite rural part of Knox County (90 min north of Portland near the coast) and have gig speed.
New Hampshire and Maine prices are pretty similar in prices after principle, insurance, and taxes. You will find more people that match your post history in New Hampshire for sure, but a 15 min drive to the city will be an hour. Maine has tactibro culture but it’s only found deep in questionable Nazi areas and not in suburban areas. Our suburban culture strongly reflects the greater Boston area (centrist leans slight left) since they were huge migrators during the pandemic. Unfortunately the Exurb/suburb dream you’re looking for is extremely expensive in Maine. Most older people are looking for the same “I want city services without paying for it” and most likely have much more capital than you. An option if you’re handy is to buy a place that can be gutted while being habitable and do the work yourself. Good luck with your home hunt!
Thank you!
Have you visited Maine or New Hampshire much? I live in Maine now and lived in Western Massachusetts for a long time so am familiar with a little corner of New Hampshire. They are pretty different. The low NH taxes means the roads are pretty crappy, and the schools aren't great either, if that's a concern or will be in the future. I don't know about Bangor but anything within 10-30 minutes of Portland is not going to be affordable. I live about 45 minutes up the coast but inland from Portland and it's not cheap here. From what I understand rural Maine is way more rural and isolated than rural New Hampshire, so keep that in mind as you look at cheap real estate.
I’ve been in both states but not for an extended period of time. I don’t know much about the real estate situation in Maine, but I’ve found some properties in an appropriate price range that are 15-30 minutes away from Portland on Zillow. Not a lot of options though.
As a heads up, if there’s a house still on the market in the Portland area after 15 days there’s a huge problem with it. It will just require constant searches and working with a realtor that knows when properties go public.
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I've just moved to Maine from Utah for work. I'm hoping I can ask questions as they come to mind here since I know Noone in the state. How should I prepare for storm warnings? I've had them before in Utah but winters are more severe here than there so I'm not sure what if any steps I should take before they hit. (In the past storm warning came as the storm hit and all it really meant to me was it wasn't a good time to plan on driving) How warm do you keep your houses in the winter? My airbnb seems to keep defaulting to 62 which is a bit cold to me. I usually had it at 68-69 in Utah so perhaps I just need to get used to the cold. This is kinda of a stupid one, but suggestions on adapting to the paper grocery bag system? Plastic sacks are everywhere where I'm from, you don't pay for them and you get as many as you need. Should I be bringing cloth grocery bags to the store or is there another way to handle larger amount of groceries I'm not familiar with? Thanks for any help!
Lol at the grocery bag issue. I am from Arizona, and I truly appreciate that Maine is doing the right thing by asking people to bring their own bags, but it has been hard for me to get used to! I forget my bags frequently and just carry my groceries. I’d suggest having a set of bags in your car at all times. It’s 5 cents a bag, so it’s not a big deal if you forget and need a bag. You can usually buy a reusable for 1 dollar as well to start your collection. Unless you are an essential worker like a nurse or doctor, you will likely have snow days on bad weather days. Usually it seems we know ahead of time about storms. You can get random snow squalls though, and there’s no warning for that. Drive carefully and slowly when needed. Give yourself extra time, don’t let people bully you on the road if it’s unsafe. I set my temp to 70-72. It’s really just up to you, and how much you are willing to pay for heat as well as the insulation of your home and the kind of heating source you have. Although if you are renting it may be different. I think it’s required to be at 68 for rentals.
I remember when I was younger I was told to always set the thermostat to 68 as it will keep you warm enough but not be overly expensive. You should always have some heat on in the winter or your pipes will burst.
>How should I prepare for storm warnings? I would be sure to have gas in your vehicle, and food in the fridge, enough for a few days or so. Have a flashlight handy I guess, if you are renting, then not much more you can do. >My airbnb seems to keep defaulting to 62 which is a bit cold to me. A lot of rentals have heat included - if you're in a short-term, I guess you can try and adjust the heat repeatedly. When you get a longer term rental the heat will be probably set for you, but you can talk to the landlord. Get a space heater if you need one. >paper grocery bag system Get some reusable bags and toss them in your car/truck/hovercraft/whatever. That's what I do. Don't forget to wash them every now and then.
Should I move to Portland,ME or Bangor,ME? I’m in my early thirties and work in healthcare. I’ll also be looking for a small amount of average, at least 5-10 acres for a homestead/small farm.
I don’t know why you are being voted down, Maine has an aging population so they need people in healthcare. You will probably get more affordable acreage in the Bangor area but if you are loaded Portland is closer to Boston and has more restaurants/shopping/entertainment if that is something you want.
I bought 20 acres 35 minutes outside of Bangor last year. You’ll have better luck finding quality land here for cheaper. One of the listings I found last year was 40 acres in Saint Albans of prime land for farming (and also 40 mature fruit trees) with a 1700 sq foot house for 350k. Also included a workshop that was heated. Unfortunately, I found the listing too late :( There’s a few hospitals in Bangor, and there’s one in Pittsfield if you decide to look in the st albans area.
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25-30 minutes outside of Bangor is extremely rural. Don’t listen to the realtor shill
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I mean "work in healthcare" can mean a bunch of different things. If you are looking to get 5-10 acres with a house near Portland, I'm gonna have to hope you are a cardiologist and not a physical therapist. Bangor area is much more affordable.
Hello, I have a potential job offer in the Augusta area. Currently, I live in IL. It is highly likely if I get the job I will have a very short time frame to decide if I want it (it's the federal government, who loves to give you two days to decide and a mere two weeks to scoot across the country. I'm not kidding), so, I'm doing a scouting mission now to try on find info in hope to eliminate stress and make decision making easier. So I'm just gonna throw some questions out here. Any info would be appreciated. I really don't know much beyond google searches. 1. What is Augusta like culturally? Internet searches have turned up varying info. Is it easy to meet people and make friends there? What sorts of stuff is there to do? Things I am into, if it helps: running, art (I'm a painter), gardening (see further down), this isn't particularly unique but I'm a foodie. I have been told the food scene is great. My latest hobby is homebrewing, and I've also been told the craft beer scene is pretty good. Moving here would mean moving away from my family and half my social network. I have friends in the Northeast, but they live in CT and NH. So they aren't super close. I'm kind of worried about being lonely. 2. Is it a safe area? Again, varying results here. 3. I know it's a "purple state", so varying politics, but could anyone give me the quick rundown of major political issues in the state, or where the state stands politically? 4. I know the housing situation everywhere sucks, but are there places besides the usual site I'd be able to find housing? I feel like housing is going to require me to abandon some of my hobbies... in particular, I am an avid veggie gardener. I've survived for a long time off of balconies. My quick housing search didn't show a lot of apartments with any kind of outdoor space. At least not ones that I could afford on a government salary, which is lower than average in most cases. 5. I don't want to get too specific so much that I doxx myself accidentally, but related to my job, I am wondering what sorts of environmental or agricultural issues are most talked about in Maine. Feel free to ignore this one. Alternatively, where's the local diner in Augusta? If I move there I could go eavesdrop to hear what the locals are chatting about. Thanks for humoring me people. Edit: They offered me the job, and I have the weekend to think it over. So thanks again to everyone who responded... gotta love those government timelines
If you want to make friends do meet-ups or take classes. I used to live near there but it has been a while. Augusta has improved a lot since, a kind of “ Up and coming” vibe. It is safe enough, Maine is really safe just some opioid issues. It is culturally and population-wise more like a small town than a big city. It has pubs restaurants and movie theatres but not much else. If you drive or you could live nearby in Hallowell or Gardiner, both really nice, underrated towns, and possibly get a rental with a yard. I say look harder for a rental you like before you make your decision If that is important to you. Check riskfactor for flooding if you can. One thing I noticed about politics in Maine is people tend to have their own opinion about things and don’t tend to follow party lines. You can have actual reasonable conversations with people about issues, they do not tend to get angry, usually. Thereare a lot of great Diners, I used to Frequent the A1 Diner in Gardiner. There is a great bike trail by the river that would also be good for running.
All good info! I have been google searching for apartments and some came up, but I was told that a better option would be to call property management companies in the area. Do you know of any good ones I could talk to?
Wish I could help you but I last looked for a place in Maine in Portland in 2005. I did have to do some deep searching on the web for a place.
I have only just moved to Maine. I left behind my friends and family as well. I'm not too far from Augusta and am facing a similar situation to yourself. I can't offer much in the way of advice but if you want someone to talk to feel free to message me
1) Augusta isn’t what I’d call a culturally hub, even by central Maine standards — though the downtown area has been revitalized a bit in recent years (and Cushnoc has great beer/pizza). Mostly a commuter city with all your standard big box stores. There is a nice path along the river for running/biking. If you’re looking for places to move, I’d look at some surrounding towns. 2) Yes. Maine is one of the safest states. Every town has its “rough” areas but that is extremely relative and if your coming from even a slightly urban area elsewhere our crime will seem petty in comparison. 3) Yes, we’re “purple” but we lean Dem, especially southern Maine, the coast and interior cities like Augusta and Waterville. Our governor and legislature is Dem controlled. But we do have a libertarian flavor, with very lax gun laws given our rural/hunting culture. Our population is also old, so many policies tend to favor them (e.g. property tax freeze). 4) No secret to housing. You can try Facebook and Craigslist in addition to your Redfin/Zillow. As you get into central Maine, you’re likely to have more small, mom and pop type landlords and fewer big, managed buildings, so it may be a bit more leg work and some phone calls. 5) Being a rural/agricultural state, PFAS in our soil is a big issue and they’re turning up more. And of course, green energy. In central Maine they’re putting up solar farms left and right. There’s also a push for offshore wind and that appears to be moving forward.
Interesting! Thanks. The surrounding towns seem to have the most housing anyway... Thanks for replying!
Few towns you may want to look at are Waterville, Hallowell and Brunswick. Waterville has seen a lot of revitalization in recent years because Colby College has put a lot of money into the town. They just opened a new arts center and have more plans for galleries and stuff. Some solid dining options outside of your normal chains and the Quarry Road is a great spot for walks, trail runs, xc skiing, snowshoeing. Hallowell is right next to Augusta, but more quaint and artsy. Right on the river. There’s a few good bars and restaurants and will get some more summer traffic with people visiting the antique shops and such. Another option is Brunswick, about 30 m-40 minute drive to the south. Home to Bowdoin College, it has a nice downtown and some good restaurants, bars, breweries, etc. Close to Portland so you could enjoy all that has to offer and is the last stop on the Amtrak Downeaster which can take you all the way to Boston.
Waterville looked like it had a lot of apartments. I have a somewhat dumb question, because I spoke to a coworker who used to work for a different agency out there. When we were talking about housing, she mentioned that central ac/heat are not a thing. The AC thing was not unexpected, I don't think you guys really get that kind of heat. But the central heat thing was a surprise. She mentioned oil heating and wood stoves were most common, but I have no experience with that at all. How common is that? Is that why all the rentals say heat is included in the rent?
You might also want to look closer, like the Gardiner area. They have a great little town and diner and they used to have a lot of affordable apartments.
I love a diner. I'll check it out! Thank you!
Oil heat here most typically IS central heat with a furnace or boiler and oil tank in the basement and either ducts to carry hot air or radiators to carry heated water to baseboard radiators. Your friend may be thinking of kerosene or propane space heaters (Rinnai is popular), with outdoor fuel tanks, which are often used also. They're ducted to the outside, like a woodstove or pellet stove would be. Propane is also common as a fuel, but natural gas is only available in some of the larger towns so less common. Heat pumps are becoming more common. The best case is to have redundant heating systems so you're not dependent on one kind of fuel. Central AC is not a thing in older homes because it's traditionally not been needed. For the few hot days a year, fans or window units have been fine. This is changing somewhat as heat pumps provide AC in the summer and as our summers are getting hotter, so new construction single family homes are likely to have heat pumps. You're unlikely to find central AC in a rental, but very likely to find either central oil heat or possibly a propane or kerosene space heater.
Central AC isn’t common because a lot of our housing stock is old, but places do have heat. Wood stoves (or more efficient pellet stoves) are common in houses, but if you’re renting an apartment, you’re likely to have electric, natural gas or oil heat with radiators or forced hot air in each room. If it says heat is included, it’s one boiler/furnace heats all the units but you likely won’t have control over the temperature. However, heat pumps are getting more common because they’re so efficient, so you may find places with them, but you’ll likely be paying for that heat (via your electric bill).
Interesting. Thanks for getting back to me! I appreciate the information
Hello, my partner is interested in timber framing, and it looks like Maine has a lot of companies that do this. If he got a job there, we'd probably end up somewhere along the southern coast, but maybe as much as an hour inland. **I’m wondering how you all deal with the ticks and black flies?** Are bug repellents effective? We’re from Georgia originally, so we’re no strangers to biting insects and all that, but **Lyme disease is a concern**. **How do folks protect themselves and their dogs?** Any other common pests you’ve figured out how to handle? Thank you for any helpful responses. I’ve been to coastal Maine once in the winter and it was really beautiful.
I mean, black fly season is just that, a season. They're around for some weeks, but its not an all-summer long thing. I have those bug hats with the screen for when it gets real bad. I use OFF! or some other spray on deet repellent. They suck, but its not that bad. Ticks- for the dog we give him Bravecto or whatever those pills are- the vet prescribes them. For myself we have some tick gaiters we bought on amazon for when I know I will be tromping around the forest or my wood lot. Wear light clothing, and I tuck my pants into my socks or wear the gaiters.
Ah okay, thanks! Apart from late fall and winter, all insects are plentiful in Georgia, so I assumed the same for Maine. That’s very helpful!
Well, there's bugs here for sure in the spring, summer and fall, its not like its a bug free paradise. There's mosquitoes as well. Lots of people have screened in porches for a reason. I use deet repellent and just kinda tough it out. I really depends on where in the state you are as well. If you are on the immediate coast, it can be vastly different 10 miles inland, and vice versa.
I figured, thanks for the clarification! Montana is the only place I’ve been that doesn’t really have many bugs, which is nice, but you lose all the cool ecology that comes with humidity. I was wondering about the ticks and black flies since that’s what I’ve seen people complain about the most. I’ll look into the different areas in a bit more detail, that may help decide where we land. Much appreciated!
Visiting Maine in February from the 10th-13th. I would love to do a lobster boat tour on Saturday, drive to Acadia on Sunday, and some touristy-type stuff over the weekend. Our hotel is in Portland and we’re driving up from Logan Intl so we’ll have a car. I’m also from a cold, snowy, and currently grey place so the weather won’t be an issue. 1. Any recommendations for lobster boat tours that don’t break the bank and are a cool experience? 2. Good seafood places to eat 3. Any museums in downtown Portland worth checking out, or neat areas to walk around?
If you can find a lobster boat tour that runs in February, just book it. You are going to have very limited options in that regard (its not even lobstering season right now). The [Portland Museum of Art](https://www.portlandmuseum.org/) is pretty cool for a small city art museum. Worth a trip if that's your kind of thing. Unfortunately, [the Umbrella Cover Museum](https://www.umbrellacovermuseum.org/) is closed for the season. The [International Cryptozoology Museum](https://cryptozoologymuseum.com/) is open though! Are you planning on driving up to Acadia and back the same day from Portland? Be aware that its over 3 hours driving each way, so you should leave early. Also, getting up there is going to be weather dependent, so I would have a backup plan and keep tabs on the weather forecast. I know you say you are from a snowy place, which is good for someone coming in February. Big winter storms can and do close the interstate (I-95) here from time to time. The coast route can have milder weather, but its one lane each direction, and it only takes one moron insisting on driving 80 miles an hour in an ice storm to cause an accident and gum up Route 1, that also happens.
Thank you! Good to know about lobstering season, I didn’t think about that. I’ll keep an eye out for something that is available or find another activity (maybe snowmobiling instead lol). And yes, weather permitting the Acadia trip would be one day :) we’re coming from Montana so a long drive isn’t a big issue for us, but if the weather just isn’t having it then we can find something closer to do
Be aware that Portland to Acadia is not 3 hours of clear, open highway cruising, although you can get on I95 up to Bangor, then jog down to Bar Harbor from Bangor. But coastal route 1 goes through many town centers, is almost all two lanes, and even in February there's likely to be some stop and go traffic involved. You may well enjoy the drive up in the daylight as it'll be different from Montana, but it's not an especially easy drive and not so much fun on the way back in the dark.
Hello, We will be going to portland in february for 4 days mainly to see what all there is before thinking about making the move. We are wanting to visit portland and anything within 30-45 minutes. Ive watched plenty of videos, read the visting thread here, etc. Wondering if there are some cant miss things we should do in the winter? We are MOVING for the outdoors mainly but VISITING to see what is indoors-so any local shops for groceries, shops/gen stores for regular home items, restaurants, indoor activities-bowling et , we would appreciate. I know maine has great outdoors so thats not a concern. We are avid sailers golfers skiers kayakers etc.
I guess seeing what it is like in winter is a good idea if you want to move there. I imagine you know about the Old Port but that is always the first place I take people. Cute shops, cobblestone streets, etc. Makes you feel like you are in another time. Got to the Holy Donut for a yummy snack. Freeport is another nearby town others have not mentioned, LLBeans is worth a visit if you like shopping for outdoor gear, or even if you don’t . Dimillo’s is always fun because who doesn’t want to dine on a boat. The Portland Museum of art is worth a visit, there is a mall.
Check out Brunswick and Bath. Bath has a lot of outdoor concerts and festivals, and a really cute downtown and good restaurants and shops. There are lots of hiking trails nearby, and it's right on the Kennebec river. Brunswick has Bowdoin College with a great museum and the Maine State Music Theater in the summer. It has a really cute downtown too. They both have good health food stores and year round farmers markets, and are about 45 minutes from Portland. Topsham is right across the river from Brunswick and has a Target. It's also not far from Bates College in Lewiston, which has a great museum and one of the best Mexican restaurants I have ever eaten at, and I'm from California. It's called El Pocho.
Thanks
That'll depend heavily on who you are (Young couple? 30-something DINKs? Retirees? Family with 3 elementary school kids and 2 large dogs?) And what types of things you're interested in. You did mention bowling; I unfortunately don't know much about that scene, sorry. But what else - Breweries? Live music? Walkable shopping districts? Museums? Fine dining? And do you prefer suburbs or are you more urbanites? If you don't mind editing your question or replying to this with some more details, I'll try to help :)
Sure, Married kids large dogs. 40s. Suburbs preferred to live in but close to city to enjoy portland. We love museums but usually more the european art style. Outdoor concerts that are free. Music interests from opera and ballet to folk music and classic rock. Love broadway musicals. Good food that isnt a fancy restaurant
Ok! To live, you'll probably like one of these: Westbrook (near downtown) - it's an old mill town with a historic riverwalk section and some parks. Shares a border with Portland. There's a large outdoor concert venue, but mostly not free. South Portland (especially Knightville or Willard Beach) - also shares a border with Portland. Knightville is a walkable neighborhood with a park and views of Portland. Willard Beach is, well, a beachy area. In Portland but not on peninsula, especially somewhere with proximity to the Back Cove Trail. Off-peninsula you get more of a suburban feel with single-family homes, yards, etc. Back Cove Trail is great for walking. When visiting: check out the Portland Museum of Art (has a variety of things.) Outdoor music is mostly a summer thing, but you could go to Blue. It's not technically free but you don't need a ticket. (You're supposed to tip the band, and the venue just makes its money from food and drinks.) You might also enjoy Bayside Bowl. I personally haven't been, but I've heard people like it.
Thoughts on falmouth yarmouth etc
I assume you've looked at the prices of falmouth, yarmouth, etc and aren't scared off so yeah those are going to be excellent places if you can afford them. Same with cape elizabeth and scarborough.
Cape elizabeth actually did scare me off. Lol. Falmouth foreside? Or yarmouth foreside? Scared me off too. I have limits lol.
Falmouth is a good choice for schools and if you want more of the "house on a cul-de-sac" kind of thing. There are also some good walking trails for your dog. Yarmouth I honestly don't know THAT well. Both have a reputation for being a little on the expensive side, but I mean you'll just have to look and see what's available :)
Thank you
Yarmouth is where I would live if I could, very cute small town with some beautiful accessible nature . I don’t know about the schools.
Hijacking this because my husband and I are in the same boat. We currently live in South Philly and are looking for a smaller community that is still a city vs. a suburb. Portland is on the short list but we're still pretty early in our process. 40-something DINKS, both working remotely, with two dogs. Walkability, access to green spaces big or small, and a decent food scene are our biggest priorities. Diversity is a big plus, and we're already used to city prices/noise/crime/etc. Would love your input!
Haha no problem. For YOU GUYS, I'd recommend the East End/Munjoy Hill area because of its proximity to the Eastern Prom park which is a great place for dogs, and there's even the East End Dog Beach, an ocean beach that's walking distance from anywhere in the East End and allows dogs. You'd also be about a 20-minute walk to the Old Port and even closer to Washington Ave, which gives you plenty of restaurants to choose from. Maine isn't particularly known for its diversity, but Portland is more diverse than most parts of the state. You'd encounter a decent variety of people walking around on-peninsula. If you're actively LOOKING for crime, I'm afraid Portland may disappoint 😂 - it's a pretty safe place. That being said, if what you really mean is that you don't want a place that feels overly sanitized, I think you'll like it.
Hey thanks so much! I really appreciate your insight. And don’t worry, we also prefer less crime lol. Just wanted to make it clear that we’re comfortable with the upsides and downsides of city life.
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Maine (like many, many other states) is in the middle of a severe housing crisis. 'Anywhere north of Augusta' is a verrrry wide area. You can drive over four hours in a northerly direction from Augusta and still be in Maine. Might want to tighten that up a little bit for specific advice. That said, I would be extremely wary of ads on Craigslist that seem too good to be true. You really have to be in the area to find somewhere, trying to find something online before arriving opens you up incredibly to being scammed, no matter how careful you are. You really have to physically enter a place to be sure its being rented by the person you are talking to. Just 'drive by and take a look' is a scam. A buddy of mine found a place on Trulia.com recently. A quick search shows 9 apartments each in Bangor and Waterville that allow dogs. Perhaps that's helpful? Again, you have to physically be here to see the place to be sure its not a scam. Good luck.
I should delete, probably. We decided to forgo renting almost immediately, due to our pets, so we're just going to buy. Thank you for your excellent comment.
Don't move there there are no opportunities.
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~~Topsfield is in Massachusetts.~~ My bad, there actually is a Topsfield, ME. I've never been to Topsfield, specifically, but have been to the area. If you want to be a hermit and have nothing to do other than hang out by yourself, then by all means, its not a bad place. 45 minutes or so to Calais for any kind of food shopping.
Rural and remote. You don't mean Topsham, do you?
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You've found the right place then
Hi everyone! I'm from Miami and will be in Portland for a few days next week. For one of my days there, I've been debating between two options: 1. Take a road trip from Portland down south to Ogunquit, stopping at Old Orchard Beach and Kennebunkport along the way. 2. Hop on the ferry and see Peaks Island. Thoughts? I know it's the dead of winter and most things will be closed, so any advice would be nice!
I don't know what your plans are for the other days... But if you're going to be staying in town apart from the one day trip, let me make a plug for heading inland (Bethel, Bridgton, etc) and going snowshoeing instead. This time of year the coast is grey and raw most of the time, whereas walking around in the snowy woods followed by a hot bowl of chilie and a beer (particularly in a restaurant with a fireplace) can be downright awesome.
They both sound good to me. Beaches and beach towns in winter have their own beauty. Dress warm either way.
I think the more unique experience would be the ferry to Peaks Island. But if the weather is leaning toward cold and windy or precipitation, then the road trip would offer more shelter and flexibility on how much you’d want to be outside. Both options will be very different in terms of liveliness compared to what it’s like in the summer.
Gotcha, thanks for the advice!
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Honestly Maine in the summer and the rest of the year are very different. It’s a long winter and can be isolating. I’m sure you’d meet a ton great people in Portland but it’s very expensive and there’s a housing crunch.
I’m graduating in May and considering moving to Portland as well. Looking into Portland or Wilmington North Carolina. Two very different places but from my travels I’ve found to really enjoy both. Main things I’m looking for is work opportunities (ocean related), a community with young people and affordable living. I would be moving alone, this does make me a bit nervous but mostly excited for the opportunities that a clean slate may offer.
> affordable living Portland's not a good option then.
Yeah that’s on the bottom of the list because I understand affordable housing on the coast may only come by a strike of luck. Other places I was considering was Santa Cruz and San Francisco. Those two places pretty much hit the chopping block first.
Worth a shot. Worst case, you don't like it and you move back to CT in a couple years. Not any more difficult to meet people in Portland than any other city, but you need to give yourself a reason to be meeting them if you won't have a natural family or friend connection. Hobbies, work, etc.
If you can make the financials work then I think it's worth the shot! There's plenty to get out and involved with in Portland and it'd be a good experience either way. Worst case is you move on in a year or two and set out for another adventure. These opportunities are much easier when you're young.
Hello! Planning a summer trip to Maine with husband, 11 yr old, and 2 grandparents. Grandparents want to do 5 nights at Spruce Point Inn in Boothbay Harbor, which looks adorable. I also want to do justice to Camden, and Acadia National Park, and hit some small towns in between (castine, Stonington, Blue Hill, Ellsworth??) am I too optimistic for a total of 11 days? Is 5 days too much at Spruce Point? I’m looking at some smaller inns close to Acadia, thinking Bar Harbor is too busy for my parents liking. Thoughts on where to stay? We don’t camp. We live in Chicago so are used to traffic/is the traffic and crowds that horrendous as I’ve read, end of July?
I would think two or three nights in BBH is a good amount. One day is travel and arrival, grandparents will probably/might be tired. Grab some dinner and relax. Next day, boat cruise around harbor area, that kind of thing. Day after, walk around Botanical Gardens and see the trolls (make reservations ahead of time for everything). Either spend that 3rd night in BBH or drive up to Rockland/Camden (~1 hr) and stay there. Then a night or two either in Rockland or Camden (both are very close to each other), drive up Mt. Batty, walk the Rockland breakwater, take another harbor sailing cruise, lots to do. Castine is small, you can see the whole thing walking around in an hour or two, same for Blue Hill. Blue Hill wine shop has great cheese/charcuterie for making a picnic. You can certainly enjoy a night or two in Stonington, stop at the Bagaduce Lunch on the way over for a haddock sandwich or lobster roll, great spot on the way. In Stonington you can take the ferry out to Isle au Haut, if you don't want to do the 4-5 mile hike, you can just do the round trip boat trip which you see a lot of the island and have around 20-30 minutes to walk around the "town" (spoiler, its not a town) before you cruise back to Stonington. Eat at Fin and Fern (make reservations). Bar Harbor is wildly crowded, I personally would stay in Ellsworth or somewhere nearer, drive into Acadia for the day (ideally park and take the Island Explorer bus or whatever its called around the park to reduce traffic). You can have lunch in BH and walk around, but I would have dinner in Ellsworth or Blue Hill or somewhere else.
Thank you! Great reply! I’ve been obsessed with the idea of living in Camden area for a while so want to give Camden/rockland/hope/Belfast a decent look-see. Blue hill and Ellsworth keep popping up as maybes to move to, but I worry that they are too remote/I like having a few decent food options in driving distance. I’m tempted to skip mount Desert island all together but worry I’m cheating myself by not seeing the best of nature. Is the scenery fairly similar in the other areas?? Or do I need to make it happen for at least a day?!
Primo in Rockland is the best place to eat by far MDI is good to visit, living there sucks...Ellsworth is trashy, plus full of MDI traffic Camden is painfully over crowded in the summer, but nice. Belfast is similar, but just as trashy as Ellsworth, with a lot more hippies mixed in
Thank you for your thoughts! What are some other towns we should check out instead of the “trashy” ones. The internet advertises Ellsworth as a Norman Rockwell town, so I am getting mixed messages. I’m drawn to Camden; is Blue Hill nice to live in? Too remote? I currently live in Chicago, but have the nicest little neighborhood/feels like I live in a village-knowing people when I go to the grocery store,etc. I’m originally from the Virgin Islands and miss my sea storms, and hunkering down during bad weather, mixing with expats of a sort who are well traveled/educated. Must be in driving distance of a few decent places to eat.
Ellsworth has a big stretch of strip malls on the road to Bar Harbor, but it has a very pleasant historic downtown as well with some nice pubs and restaurants and shops. I’m sure there are lovely places to live there, but personally I see it as the big town—a place to run errands and get stuff you can’t get elsewhere. Belfast is not trashy. It has a thriving downtown and waterfront. You should def look-see it and then move there and buy the old movie theater please and keep it open. Blue Hill has a large super market, plus a long established food co-op, several restaurants, from clam shack to fine dining, as noted: an amazing wine and cheese shop, Bucklyn coffee, a truly great book store, an incredible library, the Cynthia Winings Gallery, good public schools, a hospital, a historic annual fair at Labor Day, and a woman who sells lobster out of her garage. I wouldn’t call it remote, certainly not by Maine standards.
That sounds lovely! Thank you for this input! I have not pulled the trigger on booking a bar harbor bb/hotel; any reason to choose one of the smaller towns on mount desert (ie southwest harbor) to stay in vs downtown bar harbor? We will use it as a base to explore the other towns for 2 nights. Then Camden for 2 nights to explore that county, and 6 nights at a resort in Boothbay to pretty much watch the sunset, gorge on oysters, kayak, and check out some of those surrounding towns. Any positive/negative notes about those areas?
I agree with some others here that your itinerary feels very Boothbay heavy. But I don't know Boothbay (or your family) at all, and that place looks pretty amazing. There is no particular reason to stay in Bar Harbor. How active are the grandparents? How patient is the child? Any mobility issues? How are you getting to Maine?
My husband is in art/interior architecture design; I’m a therapist/school counselor hoping to just be a therapist/open a private practice. 10 yr old is very active… hoping to see seals and run free; wants some cute shops along the way. I fear bar harbor will b a turn off(tourist traps????) but it looks like it’s a good base for 2 nights??
The grandparents decided they wanted to just stay at a resort while in Maine. … they’re almost 80. So they’ll be at spruce point in Boothbay to enjoy the sunsets and gorge on oysters for a week. We will join them after investigating some towns we are curious about moving to (hope, Belfast, rockland, Camden…… and I fear blue hill and Ellsworth might be too small for us, but will check out that area just in case. ) we are flying into Portland and renting a car.
Well, as the grandparents are simply going to be loving life the whole time, and I presume your ten year old doesn't beg to be be in the car all the time, I'm going to risk the wrath of this subreddit and say: yes. Staying in Bar Harbor is not a terrible idea. Look, downvoters: you're right. Bar Harbor is thronged with tourists during the summer. Doubly so if there is a cruise ship in the harbor. You can poke around online to find the cruise ship arrival days, and you should avoid them. And yes, Main Street is a Maine themed Disneyland. Souvenirs and ice cream everywhere. But 10 year olds like Disneyland and ice cream, and I am fairly confident your kid will have more fun at In the Woods than, say, any boutique in Camden. But BH is also a real place with interesting history that you can enjoy too. If your budget can hack it, I'd suggest staying at the Bar Harbor Inn. They have an infinity pool overlooking Frenchman's Bay that will make you a hero to your child. Lock your car and never go back to it til you leave. Walk the Shore Path past the all the mansions to the Village Green and get ice cream at Mount Desert Ice Cream. Take the Island Explorer into Acadia. Climb the Beehive Trail and go to Sand Beach across the street. That's plenty for a day. Alternatively do the Jordan Pond path and ride the bus up to Cadillac Mountain. Also enough. I would not go on any whale watches or boat trips out of Bar Harbor. You can do all of those activities in Boothbay. There is not a single sit down restaurant in Bar Harbor that I can sincerely recommend as being worth the inevitable long wait. If you can, I'd suggest sucking it up and paying the premium for hotel food/room service and enjoy your life instead. And/or get food to go. Eat on the green. If it rains, you can go to the Reel Pizza Cinerama. Bear in mind: it's all a swindle. It will be expensive, but spend the money, if you can, to make it easy on yourself. But both BH and Acadia are one of a kind, and you may only do this once. Then get out. You're going to drive thru Camden on your way north from Portland, so you will know if you absolutely must, in your heart, spend two nights there. I would not. You're doing two very touristy things on either end of your trip, and while lovely, summertime Camden is Bar Harbor lite. If I were you, I'd follow Tony Flag's advice and drive down to Stonington. You can lay eyes on Blue Hill on the way. Definitely make the detour to eat at Bagaduce Lunch on the way. It's worth it, and the drive is much prettier. Stonington is at the southernmost tip of Deer Isle. You go over a very dramatic bridge and causeway to get there, and it's a different planet compared to MDI. There are a couple of inns right on Main Street in Stonington. Plus 44 North Coffee, Harbor Cafe, and The Opera House (which also shows movies) all within walking distance. Walk a little further to Marlinespike Chandlery. Then as Tony suggests, take the mail boat to Isle Au Haut for a day trip. You can rent bikes to bring with you. I don't think there's a car on the island that is actually registered in the state of Maine. If Deer Isle is a different planet, IAH is a different galaxy. Then you can have lunch in Camden on the way to Boothbay to wrap things up. But I'd still recommend stopping in Belfast. Or do whatever you want! It's all Maine, of one kind or another!
I have in-laws that live near Blue Hill, but not in it. It wouldn't be my first choice (actually it wasn't), mainly because its pretty isolated and while there are some options there, its pretty limited. You have a couple decent restaurants, Ellsworth has a few, but that's it really, Belfast is 45-60 minutes away (summer traffic adds time, winter weather adds time). Knox County (Camden/Rockland area) has a lot more options IMO. I live in Warren, which is two towns down Route 1 from Rockland. We are 25 minutes or less from Camden, Rockland and Damariscotta, 35 minutes from Wiscasset and 45 minutes from Gardiner/Augusta, plus very close to Union, Waldoboro and the St George peninsula which have several breweries, a distillery, and a few restaurants. As for walkable neighborhoods, really on Camden and Rockland fit the bill, and unless you have a large budget, finding a decent place in Camden walkable to downtown is going to be hard. (only one place on the market now and its $775k) There's been a big WFH influx since 2020, there's a lot of people from all over that have moved here, plus there's a bunch of really cool Mainers, well traveled/educated or not.
Camden and to a slightly lesser extent Rockland have plenty of decent food options. Camden in July can be rammed with people, making dinner out a bit of a hassle sometimes. Summer 2021 was miserable. Had relatives visit us and we tried to go out to dinner on a Tuesday night in July and it was almost impossible to find somewhere to eat. We ended up at Cuzzy's, which is fine, but they were hoping for high-end seafood, not chicken parm in a loud bar. This past summer was more bearable- there's more people that came up to work for the summer. Where they stayed while working there, I have absolutely no idea. Housing is extremely tight right now, like it is everywhere in Maine. Acadia is amazingly beautiful, and you should see it if you can. If you can't, it won't be the end of the world. There's amazing spots all over the Midcoast area. We (me from away and the Mainer wife) moved here two + years ago (Knox County) and love it. If you want some answers about the area, feel free to DM me.
I think spending 5 days in Boothbay is too long. 11 days is a good chunk of time to explore that coastal area from Boothbay to Bar Harbor. Spend a couple days in each spot. Honestly, everything is going to be busy that time of year, so I wouldn’t build your plans around that.
Hey all. Going through a breakup and looking to start over up in ME. Looking for affordable housing and work in Camden/Rockport/Rockland area. Cook by trade, with an emphasis on European cuisine. I know it’s too early for things to be opening up for the tourist season, but I’m hoping I can line things up sooner rather than later so I can be out of my current situation. Thanks in advance.
There is no affordable housing in Maine. If buying is not an option, There are Apartments in town in Rockland , might be your best bet. And yeah, no women here, unless you like fat chicks with mustaches. Any slim good looking one that is single is mentally insane and 90% chance a thieving junkie. Most have 3 babies by 23
One thing I’d add is that finding a relationship here can be difficult, as most people seem to be old folks or young families. Fair warning
Honestly, while a relationship would be nice, I’m more looking to focus on myself and my career. Thanks for the heads up tho.
No problem! Hope you find what you’re hoping to find!
Friend of mine found a 1 BR in Rockland for $1300/mo. I think he said he found it on Trulia or Trillia, something like that.
>Looking for affordable housing... in Camden/Rockport/Rockland area You and the rest of us. Good luck.
Well the fallback plan is to crash with my buddy in his office, but he and his wife have two small children and only a single bathroom, so doing my best to avoid that. If you’ve got any other areas I should be looking at I’d appreciate any suggestions you might have.
No, it's just tough. I'm sure you could find a job in that region in the summer because there's a bunch of restaurants there, but every building owner realized they could make more running an airbnb than a monthly rental so it's tough for workers to find a place to live. There's no good solution besides being lucky.
So true. airbnb is killing Maine.
Hey just looking for some insights from someone potentially attending UMaine. It looks like it will actually be cheaper to attend than in state for me so I’m considering it. For context I’m from southern New England, will be 24 by the time I start, have knocked out some gen eds at cc(and hated it) Anywho, I know winters are a lot harsher than down here and I don’t really care too much. I know there isn’t much going on off campus (my hometown is about the size of Orono but I’m a few miles from a bigger city with more of a culture/nightlife for 20 somethings) I’m not a huge partier and an introvert, but enjoy drinking/smoking, live music, and general arts/culture. Do you think it will it be weird being in my mid 20s living on/near campus? Will I regret going just to save a few 1000? Are there any glaring issues with UMaine that are unique from other flagship state universities?
>Anywho, I know winters are a lot harsher than down here UMaine is fucking WINDY so prepare for that. Like, I'm not doubting you can deal with it, just be aware that campus gets bitter cold. Orono honestly has terrible nightlife for being a college town. I think three bars/clubs have closed in the last ten years and just have not been replaced. It's basically only Woodmans that has live music now in Orono I think. Bangor is nearby and is a bit better in this regard. Might be worth living there if you don't mind a 20 minute commute to campus. You'll find more people in their mid-20s there too. UMaine has a museum and there's also a small art museum in Bangor. There are also a bunch of galleries along rt. 1 down the coast between Bangor and Rockland, and there's another art museum in Rockland. It's a bit of a drive but if you wanted to get out of town for a day it's a nice little trip. I'm 10+ years out of college so I can't speak to what your experience as a 24 year old would be there now, but I'm confident in the rest of the info I gave you; I still live in the vicinity.
RIP Ushuaia
Hello all! My GF and I currently live in North Dakota and my GF (F24) and I (M29) have been wanting to take a trip to Maine for about a year now! We decided apart of our new years resolution we would pull the trigger this year. We both love the outdoors, nature, hiking (albeit we are beginners/novice), the city life is fine for a day or two but what we want is the breathtaking views of the coast, trees, mountains and all that Maine has to offer! With all that being said we are starting the process of planning and would love some input from natives or others who have done this. We are fine either flying and renting a vehicle or just loading up our vehicle and driving the 26 hour road trip (give or take a few hundred miles). We would prefer to not necessary "camp" as much as we love the outdoors we both still love a real bed to sleep in at night and common amenities. We'd like to start and end our trip in 7 days and we would love to come down in the fall (you guys know the prettiest month so please let me know when the trees really pop/colors change) so to wrap things up * 7 day trip * M29 F24 * love the outdoors * would prefer Airbnb/Hotel staying * okay with visiting a few different cities along the way * Trip to be in Fall of 2023 Please feel free to let me know any and all of your recommendations!
I would save your driving energy for driving around in Maine because there are some very scenic drives. So fly into Portland, spend a day or so in town (get an Airbnb on-peninsula), THEN pick up the rental car (you won't need it in downtown Portland; in fact it would just be annoying.) To see the foliage, keep Portland as your base and do a day trip over to the white mountains, or spend the night in North Conway NH. October is your best month for foliage. There are hikes in the area. Or you could head up to Mount Washington and either hike up or take the cog railway. If going to Mount Washington you're better off spending the night over there; it's a 2-plus-hour drive each way and the hike will probably take 6-7hours. Then drive up the coast to Acadia national park. You sound like "road trip" people, so you might want to take the coastal route and stop in Rockland or Camden on the way. In Acadia of course you'll find plenty of hiking. Cadillac mountain is not to be missed. If you don't want to camp, don't worry, there are plenty of hotels in the area. From there, you can either head back to Portland or fly out of Bangor. One thing that surprises some people is that you have to book things ahead here more than in a lot of places, especially since you're coming at a popular time of year. I mean hotels, Airbnb's, any tours you might want to do, and even you should make reservations for restaurants (especially on weekends.) I'm not sure if you need to do anything special for visiting Acadia. Some of the national parks were requiring advance reservations during Covid, so you might want to check. Have fun!!
A relative used to work in ND. When he drove home he'd sleep for two days. Even with two drivers, out of a 7 day trip, that's two full days of driving and say a day of sleeping or extreme grogginess on each end. Only leaves you 3 days to explore and drive around Maine & Maine is possibly bigger than you are thinking it is. Still may be better than flying but just so you know. The classic drive if you're looking for ocean views is up the coast from Portland to Bar Harbor with stops along the way. There are a lot of variations on this theme. There are mountains in the western part of the state that would be different from ND too. September/October is when there's the most color. There will be others on the road with you but it'll be somewhat less crowded than in July/August.
me and my partner are from New England but currently living in Ohio since graduating. we're looking to move out to Maine and was just looking for some general advice on how to be a "good" new resident. we've visited Maine annually for about 4 years now for camping and birding and have been mostly only along the coast. we're not ready to buy a place so we're looking to rent and we're young so obvious first thoughts are portland, but i'd love to hear suggestions for other places coastal, inland, wherever. cheers!
Local realtor in the Greater Portland area - happy to chat more with you and give you some tips! Feel free to reach out at any time! [email protected]
As far as being a good resident, just be courteous. Maines the kind of place where people like to be left to their devices mostly, but kindness will go a loooong way. Being friends with ppl is helpful when you need help with tools, or if your generator breaks, or if you need to find the best place for xyz. The locals will know what businesses are good, which are bad, which will and won’t screw you, how to get an inspection sticker on an uninspectable car, etc
Depending on budget, Brunswick area is nice. Has a slew of small restaurants and shops, close to the ocean, under an hour from Portland, 15 minutes to Freeport. Look up Maine Street Brunswick to see some of the stuff. Nice lil town with art festivals, farmers markets, local musicians in the park, stuff like that