New England Travel and Vacation Gazette and Other Wicked Good Content

Source: acadiamagic.com via Heather on Pinterest When creating our New England Pinterest pinboards , I came across one photo that I keep coming back to:  a colorful picture of downtown Bar Harbor, Maine.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I do! Bar Harbor is the lively commercial center of the Acadia National Park area. Just minutes from Acadia where the ocean meets the mountains, Bar Harbor has an enviable and impossibly beautiful harbor location with enough shops and restaurants to keep the most insatiable shopper and diner happy throughout the vacation. Tree-lined in many parts and with a relaxing town common, Bar Harbor might be too hectic from Memorial Day to Labor Day Weekend for those in touch with the spectacular natural, pristine setting of Acadia National Park, but let's remember, too, that it's not exactly one of those tacky, souvenir-laden tourist traps. Sure, you'll get elements of that here, but, all in all, Bar Harbor has an attractive, often beautiful...

Photo: Early foliage color Tuesday on Munsungan Lake in Piscataquis County north of Baxter State Park. Credit: Maine Department of Conservation Editor's preface: While New Hampshire and Vermont are household names when it comes to fall foliage leaf peeping, we suggest keeping in mind the other four New England states -- that Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts and Rhode Island have some traditionally mighty fine fall foliage. To keep up to date on fall foliage colors in New England, we recommend calling all the following state hot lines: Connecticut 888.288.4748 , Maine 1.888.MAINE.45,Massachusetts 800.227.6277, New Hampshire 800.258.3600 , Rhode Island (Department of Tourism) 800.556.2484 , Vermont 800.837.666 And now back to our regularly scheduled program... Fall Foliage in Maine! Just got some great news from our New England neighbors at the Maine Office of Travel and Tourism in Augusta, Maine, that fall foliage color in the northern half of Maine is ranging from 30 to 75 perce...

Article and photo (of Short Sands Beach, York Beach, Maine), by Eric H. Before turning over a new leaf by planning ahead your New England travel and vacations into the fall foliage season, consider that summer often lingers on in Maine in the form of some of the season's warmest ocean waters. Not that every day will bring relatively warm ocean water in the next week or so, but check out the daily forecast and you just might find the ocean temperatures in the low 60s. Yes, that sounds mighty cold for swimming, but, then again, Maine was never known for its Hilton Head Island bath-water-like ocean beaches. Over the Labor Day weekend, we found the water temperatures at Short Sands Beach in York Beach, Maine, at 61 degrees. The air temperature was 60 degrees. So, jumping into the waters wasn't difficult for us, given the nearly identical water and air temperatures. If you find a warm to hot day in September, then the Post-Labor Day Weekend bridge between fall and summer is a great ...

Just received word from our friends at the Maine Office of Tourism that the country's largest open house of lighthouses will take place at Maine Open Lighthouse Day , Sept. 12 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. With lighthouses open to the public from Kittery to Lubec, many communities, businesses and lighthouse volunteer groups are planning special events and activities on that day, and local lodging establishments are offering travel packages. Sounds like a "beacon" of great travel opportunity to us! Additionally, a number of museums and visitor centers at lighthouses will be open on September 12. For more information on Maine Open Lighthouse Day, we recommend logging onto www.lighthouseday.com .

Article and Photos (from Port In a Storm Book Store in Somesville) by Eric H. Not to be confused with the more urbane Somerville, MA, Somesville, Maine, isn't even officially a town: it's part of the municipality of Mt. Desert Island! Regardless of its designation, Somesville sure looks like a real New England coastal town with its quaint look enhanced by amazing views of Somes Sound, mountains, inlets and other rural scenery that remain unspoiled. There's not much to do in Somesville except take in the views and visit the wonderful Port In A Storm Book Store -- one of the best examples of a successful, friendly independent book store that we've found in New England. Of course, it helps to have those great water views (including a waterfall) within a stone's throw of the book store. Port In A Storm is up to date on many of the latest books, but offers an especially impressive selection of books about Maine. Acadia National Park is the real draw within Mt. Deser...

Intro by Eric H., Bath holiday event info, courtesy of VisitMaine.com We've written before in The Weekly New England Travel and Vacation Blog about Bath, Maine, as a wonderful, coastal mid-Maine travel and vacation destination. A truly authentic small Maine city with a vibrant, historical downtown, travelers often think of Bath as a summer travel spot, given its proximity to beaches and all the great benefits that come with it -- seafood restaurants, lodging with a water view, and refreshing ocean breezes. The reality is, however, that places like Bath thrive year-round as a residential community -- and, surprise, a place to visit even during the colder months. A good case in point is the holiday season. We recently received information from VisitMaine.com on a special holiday event to be held in Bath: Bath's Old Fashioned Christmas Turns Green The city of Bath's Old Fashioned Christmas celebration is living up to its name and getting greener in 2008. The month-long event...

Colorful fall foliage leaf peeping opportunities still exist in Maine, most notably in southern Maine and all coastal locations over the next several days, according to the Department of Conservation's final fall foliage report of the season. We recommend viewing the map in this post to see current conditions and to visit MaineFoliage.com for continuous updates -- or VisitMaine.com for the latest events and activities for your Maine vacation. Two key events coming up are: Blue Hill's 3rd Annual Foliage Food and Wine Festival, Oct. 16-19 http://www.bluehillpeninsula.org/ The City of Hallowell's annual Fall Festival, Oct. 17-19 http://www.hallowell.org/ Both events are located in regions with peak foliage, at this writing, thus, enhancing great events even more!