Maine Sightseeing & Tours

Maine invites exploration. Motor the state’s scenic highways and absorb the colors of the changing seasons. Rent a kayak or canoe and paddle out into the middle of almost nowhere in search of a shoreside camping spot. Join a walking tour and hear tales of ghosts and pirates while you stroll down an age-old waterfront. Take to the blue ocean and sail past centuries-old lighthouses on your way to find some visiting whales. Whether it’s a walking tour in Portland or a high-flying ride in a colorful hot-air balloon, go forth, explore, and make some memories.

Boat Tour Outfitters

Maine's boat tour companies are there to make sure you get the most out of your vacation. Rent a canoe or kayak and head out on your own to do a bit of fishing on a quiet pond. Join a paddling tour that just may involve a bit of camping in the great outdoors. Outfitters also offer kayak rentals and lessons along Maine’s coast, perfect for exploring the uninhabited islands near the shore. If you prefer a larger craft, why not join a windjammer cruise? The wind powers these vintage ships, and their arched sails billow high above the polished wooden decks. Find a boat tour operator in Maine to suit your special passion. Read More >

Covered & Historic Bridges

The almost delicate lines of the Penobscot Narrows Bridge are a modern marvel. The Wire Bridge, built on the remnants of the original 1866 structure, is the last of its kind in the United States. Grist Mill Bridge is an eye-catching bit of history, created from hewn timbers and river stones. No less appealing are the dozens of vintage covered bridges that dot Maine’s scenic landscape. These are the survivors, dating from an era when horse and carriages, buckboards, and your own two feet took you from point A to point B. Artists immortalize the time-worn wooden frames. Couples walk hand-in-hand, listening to their echoing footsteps in the man-made tunnels of one of Maine’s historic treasures. Read More >

Guided Trips & Tours

To really know a place, you must experience it through the eyes of a local. Taking a guided trip or tour in Maine lets you discover the unique, the hidden, and even the supernatural. Explore Maine’s history on a walking tour to museums, lighthouses, and haunted mansions. Discover the many ways the locals enjoy chocolate. Take to the water and go looking for whales and other playful creatures of the deep. Motor by off-shore islands and giggle at the puffins. Head into the interior, where your guide takes you on a canoe ride up a quiet lake in search of munching moose or migrant water birds. Experience the best Maine has to offer. Read More >

Fall Foliage Touring

Plan your Maine vacation for the fall season and watch Mother Nature as she pulls out her palette and paints her trees red and gold. Head out on your own with a map, your sense of adventure, and, of course, your camera. If you prefer leaving the driving to others, join a tour bus winding along those same painted highways. Take to the air in a plane and cruise above the changing landscape, the bright hardwoods standing out against the groves of evergreens. Better yet, climb into the basket of a hot-air balloon and silently drift with the air currents, snapping photos along the way. Read More >

Lighthouses

No vacation to Maine would be complete without a visit to a lighthouse or two. These stalwart sentinels of the sea, found on craggy points or offshore islands, have guided ships along Maine’s coast since the 1700s. Approach a lighthouse from the ocean, and you see that lighted tower the same way mariners did when ships were powered by the wind. Some can be reached by land, such as the short and rather squat “Bug Light” that guards the Portland breakwater. Others, like the Lubec Channel Light, completely surround water and sit on a man-made island. No matter which lighthouse you choose to visit, you will find a taste of Maine’s maritime history and plenty of photo opportunities. Read More >

Scenic Byways & Highways

How does a highway become more than a means to get from one place to another? When that highway offers such incredible scenery that you can’t resist pulling over to have a look, you know it’s worth the trip. That is the case in Maine. Coastal roadways lead past hidden coves, sandy beaches, and pint-sized villages, with the occasional large city making an appearance. Head inland and discover yourself surrounded by a combination of evergreen and hardwood trees, accented by hundreds of lakes and ponds. In the fall, Maine’s roadways pull out all the stops. Trees ablaze in all their autumn finery take sightseeing to a whole new level. Traveling along Maine’s scenic roadways is definitely about the journey. Read More >

Scenic Cruises

Maine is a scenic wonderland, whether viewed from the deck of a sailing ship plying her way along the craggy coast or from a paddle-wheeler cruising on a quiet lake. Ocean cruises take you into the Gulf of Maine, home to visiting humpback whales, scores of dolphins, and curious sea lions. Sail past lighthouses perched on rocky outcrops, colonies of nesting red-beaked puffins, and uninhabited islands. Head to Maine’s interior waterways and cruise past tree-lined shores and marshes, prime moose habitat. Keep your eyes open for these horse-sized creatures that love to dive for their dinner in the shallows. Read More >

Scenic Flights

See Maine from a bird’s perspective. Take to the air in a vintage biplane or a modern Cessna and follow the undulating coastline, counting lighthouses along the way. Helicopters are another option, known for their ability to approach close to their subjects and hover in place, making them the perfect picture-taking machine. Gliders, long-winged aircraft that, once in the air, use the power of the wind, are quiet, leaving you alone with your thoughts as you cruise over the landscape. Hot air balloon rides are equally silent, their open-air baskets letting you feel the wind in your face. No matter how you decide to take to the skies, Maine has a scenic wonderland just waiting for you. Read More >

Unique Natural Areas

You can visit parts of Maine that man has virtually left untouched. Much of Maine’s 5,500-foot coastline is the domain of napping seals, soaring eagles, and nesting seabird colonies. Quoddy Head State Park offers towering cliffs overlooking pounding surf. Acadia National Park is home to Cadillac Mountain, the first bit of the United States’ soil to welcome the sun. Head inland to Grafton Notch State Park and find towering waterfalls and equally impressive gorges, all complemented by abundant wildlife and a sense of serenity. This is just the beginning. Maine has countless natural areas that will keep you coming back again and again. Read More >

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