ITINERARIES
Acadia National Park/Bar Harbor, Maine
3 Day Trip for Families
Acadia National Park is located on Mount Dessert Island on the coast of Maine. Here you can enjoy the beauty of nature surrounded by mountains, rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, lakes, and lush forests. You can see most of the highlights in 2-3 days. It is best to visit in May – September when the weather is warmer.
Deciding when to go
We recommend doing this trip when the weather is warmer, typically May – September.
Flights if Needed
The closest major airports to Acadia are Bangor (BGR) which is about 50 miles away and Portland (PWM) which is about 180 miles away. If you only have 3 days, try to get an early morning flight so you can still explore the area on the day you arrive, or arrive in the evening and stay an extra night.
OR
If you don’t mind that you’ll be on a smaller plane, or you have access to a private plane (lucky you!) you can fly into Bar Harbor Airport. It is a tiny airport that does not have major airlines but you can find public flights or charters. This airport will get to right where you need to be!
Car Rental
If you’re flying in and would like the flexibility of having a car to get around, be sure to book a car rental when you’re booking your flight. If you can fly into Bar Harbor Airport, you could try to go without a car and use the National Park buses and rent bikes to get around, but it will limit you a bit.
Lodging
We highly recommend staying at the Bar Harbor Motel if you’d like a suite with separate rooms for parents and kids. It has an outdoor pool, a playground, breakfast included, and is 1 mile from the entrance to Acadia. Another good option for families is the Acadia Inn, but there are no 2-room suites that sleep 6.
Other Reservations:
- Acadia National Park entry fee – it saves time to book it in advance and print it out. You can also visit the Visitor’s Center on-site to purchase. Buy now >
- Cadillac Mountain Summit – reservations are required to go to the top of this mountain in Acadia National Park. Try to get a reservation for 7:30 or 8am. They open 30% of reservations 90 days before. The other 70% of reservations open at 10am 2 days before the date of entry. Get your reservation here >
- Jordan Pond House – this lovely restaurant is the perfect (and only) food stop on the main loop in Acadia and can get very busy. Get a reservation for around 1pm on day 2 (your full day). Make a reservation through Open Table >
- Boat or Carriage Ride in Acadia – There is time on the last day to do either a boat ride or a carriage tour. Either one should be done in the morning before you depart the area if you can only stay for 3 days. Check out Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co. or Diver Ed’s Dive-In Theater for boat cruise reservations. Or if you don’t like boats, take a carriage tour with Acadia by Carriage.
- Comfortable clothing you can layer. It can be cool in the mornings and evenings and hot in the middle of the day during the summer. Everywhere you will go is pretty casual so no need for nice clothes.
- Athletic shoes (something good for hiking and climbing on rocks)
- Tevas or other sandals that have good traction that can get wet. These are helpful if you think your family will want to explore tide pools and beaches and get their feet wet while also climbing along rocky coastlines. These are also good for rainy days.
- Raincoats and light jackets
- Fanny Pack, cross-shoulder bag, or light backpack for storing essential items during hikes
- All chargers – phones, watches, tablets, etc.
- All Toiletries
- Sunscreen
- Sunglasses
- Medicines
- Bug spray
- Binoculars (optional of course, but fun to have to spot wildlife)
- If you have babies or toddlers, I recommend bringing a backpack or wrap carrier instead of a stroller.
Prices are always going to vary! But here are some ranges/estimates to help you budget:
- Flights (if needed) – $300-700 per person
- Rental Minivan for 3 days (if needed) – $400-600
- 3 hotel nights – $300 per night
- Food (if you’re eating breakfast at your hotel) – $60-80/adult per day, $30-40/kid per day
- Gas – this will really depend on the car you rent and the price of gas, but keep it in mind!
- Shopping – this can vary a lot depending on your shopping habits. It’s best to have a shopping budget in mind to stick to.
- Activity costs:
Acadia entry fee – $35
Boat ride – $35-75/person
Carriage ride – $48/adult, $38/child
Bike rentals – $25-40/person
Jump to a Day
Day 1
Arrive in Bar Harbor, Explore the Left Side of the Island
Unless you are taking a private plane to the Bar Harbor Airport, you will be driving in from where you live or one of the major airports – Bangor (BGR) is about 50 miles away and Portland (PWM) is about 180 miles away.
Try to aim to arrive in the area by 3pm.
We highly recommend staying at the Bar Harbor Motel if you’d like a suite with separate rooms for parents and kids (more info in the Advanced Prep section). Another good option for families is the Acadia Inn, but no 2-room suites that sleep 6.
Get your luggage into your room and then head out to explore!
It will take about 30 minutes to drive to this trail head from Bar Harbor. This trail is an easy 1.3 mile figure-8 loop along a beautiful rocky cove. If you’re short on time or daylight, you can skip this hike or only do part of it. Map >
This classic landmark of Acadia is perched on a rocky cliff. The best views are if you take a short hike down the coastline a bit and look back up at the lighthouse. The lighthouse is still used as a residence so you cannot go inside.
We recommend eating at the Upper Deck if you’d like an indoor, table-service dinner. This is a kid-friendly dinner spot on the water on your way back to your motel. They have good lobster rolls and other delicious options.
Or if the weather is nice, you can head to Beal’s Lobster Pier where you stand in line to order and eat outside or on a covered patio on the pier. When you order you can pick out your own lobster from the tank and watch them take it out to go cook it. Our son thought this was awesome! Our daughter was horrified.
Drive back to Bar Harbor to your hotel. If it’s a clear night, you may want to pull over somewhere before you get into the town to look at the stars!
Day 2
Park Loop Road
Breakfast is served in the check-in building if you’re staying at Bar Harbor Motel. Make sure you eat something and pack a few snacks and water before you leave. There aren’t a ton of food options in the park and you’re going to do a lot this morning!
What to wear:
I recommend layers. If the sun is out it can get quite warm in summer, but a wave of fog can roll in and suddenly it’s cool. Wear shoes with good tread so you can safely climb on rocks.
The entrance to the summit is only a few minutes from the motel. Have your reservation ready to show on your phone as you enter.
Park and explore the summit! There are marked trail areas but much of the summit is open rock and you can wander around. It’s a big rocky area and can get crowded, so keep a close eye on kids.
As you’re exiting Cadillac Mountain, turn to the right to start driving the Park Loop Road. This road becomes one-way and has many great places to stop and see beautiful sites.
If it’s a busy day, where you stop may be dependent on where you find parking. If you find parking at one stop, you can use the trail along the coast to get to other spots and then walk back to your car. Or you can drive and re-park at the next stop and hope you can find a spot, but not likely during summer. If you find parking at Sand Beach, the walk to Otter Point is
If it’s a really busy day, it may be best to drive to the Hulls Cove Visitors Center and take the bus that goes around Park Loop Road and stops at various sites. This could take more time however, so make sure you leave plenty of time to make your lunch reservation.
Some of the places you may want to explore:
- Schooner Head Overlook – you’ll have to briefly turn off the Park Loop Road to get to a parking lot that has a short trail to this overlook. The overlook gives you beautiful views of the coastline and is a good place to climb on rocks.
- Sand Beach – this is the only real sandy beach area around so if you want to just play on the beach or swim in the cold ocean, this is the spot for you! For our family, we didn’t stay here very long because the rocky coastline is more interesteing to us since we live near sandy beaches, but it was still pretty to see.
- Thunder Hole – this carved-out inlet creates a “hole” in the rock formations on the coastline that makes a thunderous sound as the waves wash through it. If it’s a calm day and the tide is low, you may not get to hear the thunderous sounds but it’s still a beautiful area. To view the hole you have to walk down some stairs and out on a small inlet that is protected by railings, so keep an eye on kids that like to climb railings.
- Otter Cliff and Otter Point – All the areas between Thunder Hole and Otter point are wonderful for exploring and enjoying the rocky coastline. Our kids favorite part was getting to climb on the rocks, look for tidepools, and explore. But always use caution – don’t get too close to edges or the ocean, and be careful with wet rocks.
Walk back to your car in time to drive to Jordan Pond House in time for your lunch reservation.
Jordan Pond House is the only place to get food along the Park Loop Road and it’s delicious and in an idyllic location! Hopefully you used the Advanced Prep tab and got a reservation for around 1pm. If not, they do have a store with some grab and go food.
In warm months, you can dine outside at pincic tables with a view of Jordan Pond. They serve lobster, lobster rolls, and other great Maine classics.
After lunch, check out the gift shop!
After a nice leisurely lunch, time to get out and enjoy more natural beauty!
The Bubbles Trail
This 1.5 mile trail will take you to the tops of North and South Bubble (the two little mountains you saw from Jordan Pond) and Bubble Rock. The trail starts in a forest and ends up in exposed granite areas. Some of the areas are steep and it includes some stairs. Instructions from nps.gov:
- The hike starts at the Bubbles Divide parking lot.
- Follow the Bubbles Divide Trail for .25 miles as it becomes steeper with steps just before the junction of the Bubbles Trail to North Bubble.
- Take a right at this junction on the Bubbles Trail.
- Continuing onto North Bubble, the trail becomes steep with open granite ledges and will be slick in wet weather. There are excellent views of Jordan Pond, Pemetic and Sargent Mountains, and the Cranberry Isles.
- Return back down from the summit of North Bubble to the first junction. Turn right and follow the Bubbles Divide Trail towards South Bubble and Bubble Rock for .7 miles.
- After reaching the summit of South Bubble, turn back and follow blue blazes for Bubble Rock, a precarious glacial erratic.
- Return on the Bubbles Divide Trail all the way back to the parking lot.
If the Bubbles Trail sounds too strenuous, you can walk down from Jordan Pond House to Jordan Pond and there is a trail that goes all around the pond. The full loop around the pond is 3.5 miles. It may be more fun to just do part of the trail and let your kids explore around the pond and look for wildlife.
Relax a bit, change clothes if needed, then head out for dinner.
Head into the town of Bar Harbor for dinner. There are a lot of options in this cute town! Here are a few good familiy-friendly options to check out:
- Geddy’s – Menu, Reservations
- Side Street Cafe
- Paddy’s Irish Pub and Restaurant
- Galyn’s
- Reading Room Restaurant (a little fanicer and amazing views!)
Day 3
By Boat, Bike, or Carriage
This day has several options depending on interest and time. If you can stay longer, you can do them all!
Have breakfast and pack up! Keep an eye on the time depending on which activity you plan to do next.
Make sure you dress for the activity you will be doing. Boat ride = hat, jacket, sunglasses. Biking = athletic clothes.
If you are visiting during the summer and your family doesn’t get easily seasick, doing a boat ride is what we most recommend.
If you’d like to see whales or seals, there are several cruises to choose from at Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co. Seeing whales isn’t guaranteed and seeing whales will usually require a longer cruise (3-5 hours) because you typically need to go out further to find them.
If you’d like a shorter cruise and want something that will keep kids entertained the entire time, we highly recommend Diver Ed’s Dive-In Theater! Diver Ed is a great entertainer who will take you out to a dive spot, let your kids push him into the water, then dive down and bring up sea creatures for kids to see and touch! He then returns the creatures safely to the water. You will laugh and learn and be thoroughly entertained during this 2 hour cruise!
If you’re not a fan of boats or if you have extra time before you need to go home, consider riding bikes on the carriage roads.
The carriage roads are 45 miles of groomed gravel roads that go through the interior of Acadia and allow you to explore parts of the park you don’t see on the regular roads or trails. They are perfect for biking and you will find many other people biking, as well as horses and carriages.
Rent Bikes
You can rent all sizes of bikes including children’s trailers and tagalongs from Acadia Bike Rentals in Bar Harbor. You can also rent class 1 e-bikes from Acadia eBike Adventures.
Pick a Loop
There are several loops the National Park Service recommends. You can stop by the Visitor’s Center for a map, grab a map when you rent a bike, or view a digital map on this page: https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/bike-carriage-roads.htm
Explore the carriage roads the authentic way – on a horse-drawn carriage!
Acadia by Carriage offers 1 or 2-hour carriage tours that are narrated and will teach you more about the park and its history. The carriages are accessible to wheelchairs and infants on laps are free.
Whatever your travel plans are for getting home or heading to another destination, you have now seen a lot of Acadia National Park and hopefully you will have great memories to take home with you!
If you can stay longer, try several of the options above and do some more hikes!
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