Hey guys! My youngest sister, Corryn, and I took a road trip up to the Bar Harbor, Maine area a couple of weeks ago and we had the best time. Today, I wanted to share a recap of our trip highlighting some recommendations on what to do if you’re ever visiting the area, along with some of my favorite snapshots of the trip.
DAY 1 – road trip
We grew up visiting family in the Camden, Maine area so on our drive up to Bar Harbor, we had to make some stops along the way. Our first stop was in Rockport Maine to see the Andre the Seal statue. We grew up watching the movie and visiting this exact spot with our family on every trip to Maine. I hadn’t been since my college years so it was sweet to finally spend some time here again. P.S. I highly recommend watching the Andre the Seal movie – it’s so wholesome.
Then we stopped at Vesper Hill Children’s Chapel in Rockport. It’s an outdoor chapel surrounded by beautiful gardens and greenery. It’s a lovely place to stop and sit in nature.
We surprised some family members and stopped and visited for a couple of hours. It was so nice to catch up and look through old family pictures. Surprisingly, we didn’t have any issues with traffic on our drive at all and we made it to our Airbnb in Ellsworth, Maine right at check-in time! Our Airbnb was exactly what we needed for our visit and the location was great. It was only a 30-minute drive to Bar Harbor!
After we got settled in our Airbnb, we went out shopping for a few last-minute necessities and went thrifting at Goodwill. I scored some kids’ books and a few clothing pieces for the kids. I can’t help myself! We got Thai for dinner and had a relaxing night as we prepped for the next day.
DAY 2 – hike, exploring, dinner, shopping
The next morning we set off to grab park passes to go on our hike. My sister hikes regularly and while I enjoy hiking, I hadn’t been hiking in years! Corryn went to the College of the Atlantic so she was familiar with the area and good hikes for beginners (aka me lol). She chose the Beech Mountain Trail in Southwest Harbor, ME. The first few minutes into the hike, I was out of breath and was wondering what I got myself into, haha. It was a decently steep side on the way up. I focused on my breathing and got into a rhythm really quickly. I love it when my heart is pumping and when my body pushes itself. It’s the best kind of exercise for me. I loved every bit of the hike! Getting to the top of Beech Mountain was absolutely rewarding.
The weather was beautiful and the views were incredible! We hung out at the top for a bit – taking in the views and taking some photos and video clips. Then we headed down the mountain… in the wrong direction. 😅 My sister quickly noticed and we turned around. We didn’t mind at all because we got some extra exercise and the beauty of the trail. I thought I would’ve been exhausted after but I was actually the opposite. I was ready for the rest of the day!
I have my hiking outfit linked via my LTK for you!
After our hike, we stopped by Beech Hill Farm to get some fresh produce to make lunch. Corryn worked at Beech Hill Farm when she was in college so it was very special for her to visit again. She even got to see someone she had worked with.
We went back to our Airbnb and had some downtime while we had lunch and got ready for the rest of the day. Then it was time to head to Bar Harbor! We walked around the tourist shops for a bit so I could get an idea of what I wanted to bring home for the kiddos. Then we went to La Bella Vita for an early dinner. We got to sit outside and it was perfect. I got the Spaghetti Pomodoro and it was delicious! I’ll never say no to pasta. Ever.
Corryn wanted to show me the Shore Path along the water of Bar Harbor and it was beautiful. There’s nothing like the Maine ocean air. Sure crisp and pure. Then we headed back to the Airbnb and had some good talks before going to sleep.
DAY 3 – breakfast, beach, cliffs, shopping, and dinner
We started our morning off with a delicious breakfast at 2 Cats Restaurant, which was my sister’s favorite breakfast place when she lived up there. I got baguette french toast and I ate every bit of it! French toast is forever a favorite of mine. 2 Cats has a strawberry butter and it’s amazing. Highly recommend.
Then we set off to Sand Beach! We ended up parking about a quarter of a mile down the road to ensure we got a parking spot. The walk wasn’t bad at all, especially since it was another perfect day out. I loved being where the forest meets the ocean. It was the epitome of peace.
We spent a good bit here because it was such a relaxing spot to be. I took a lot of photos with my disposable camera and I can’t wait to get them developed. Corryn is always trying to snag those silly selfies. 😂 I love it!
Next up, we walked the Ocean Path up to Otter Cliffs. It was absolutely beautiful. The mix of the ocean air and seeing the ocean peeking through the pines was magical. Once we got to the cliffs, I could’ve easily stayed there all day. Sitting on the cliffs overlooking the ocean is a safe spot in my soul for me. Breathtaking and peaceful.
I made us matching bracelets for the trip… “the way life should be”. We had to snap a picture of them. 💛
After taking in all of the views of Otter Cliffs, we drove back into Bar Harbor for coffee and a bite to eat. We stopped at Choco-Latte and it was delicious. I snagged an iced americano with strawberry cold foam and a chocolate croissant. Both were incredible! I’m totally kicking myself because I somehow forgot to take a picture of them, haha.
We walked around some more of the tourist shops so I could get Taya and Jace each a gift from the trip. I got Taya a fox and Jace a baby seal. I had planned on getting a corded pullover for myself but I decided to heal a bit of my inner child and I got myself a weighed seal stuffed animal. ❤️
Corryn was eager to visit where she went to school, so she gave me a tour of the College of the Atlantic. We hung out near the dock for a while, walking around and looking for neat shells and rocks. It was the perfect resting spot.
On our way back to our Airbnb, we decided to grab ice cream and it was a very good idea. Blueberry Hill Dairy Farm had the best blueberry and peach ice creams! The perfect treat to tide us over until dinnertime. For dinner, we wanted to keep things easy and find a place we could walk to from where we were staying. We chose Margaritas in Ellsworth and sat outside. I had a cheese quesadilla and my go-to Malibu and Coke… the best way to close out our trip!
The next morning, we headed back to Massachusetts. Our trip went exactly how we had planned (and hoped) for it to go and we were so grateful. We checked everything off our list that we wanted to do and the whole trip we were surprised it was going so smoothly. The traffic on the way home was the only thing that wasn’t ideal, haha.
We took our trip from August 10th – 13th and it ended up being the perfect time to go. It wasn’t as touristy as we thought it would be, so it was very enjoyable altogether.
If you’ve been wanting to take a trip up to the Bar Harbor area, you have to go. Plan that trip!
