If you want to plan a really lovely trip that will take you along some of the most beautiful eastern coast, Maine is the place to go. So here go the 5 Steps: Let’s travel to Maine and see all the beautiful Northeast coast line.
I am not putting Budget as number 1. Now some may fuss about this, but, I don’t like to be boxed in. A budget is a guide for me but not written in stone.
- Step 1. Plan Itinerary
- Step 2. Budget
- Step 3. Book Your Flight
- Step 4. Rent A Car
- Step 5 Book Accommodations
- Go For It
Picking Your Flight
Where you fly into will decide on how your trip will start. We live in South Carolina, so Logan International Airport in Boston is where we decided to fly into.
Now that we have done that I probably would not fly into that airport again. Not because it was a bad experience necessarily, but because of the day we were departing. We stayed at a hotel that was less than 40 minutes from the airport. We had an 11:00 am flight out of Boston. The morning we were flying out we left our hotel at 8:00. It was a week day and the traffic was bumper to bumper. I thought we were going to miss our flight it was so bad.
The only time I get anxiety on a trip is right before getting on a airplane. I don’t know why, but I imagine the worst things happening to us before we sit down on that plane and buckle our seat belts. If I was going to book a flight I probably would fly into Portland, Maine today. There are a lot of really cheap and good flights from our state to Boston, but I do not like the stress of trying to get there on time. Sitting in traffic like that is a nightmare and just increases my anxiety level.
Finding Budget Airline Tickets
Finding budget airline tickets is not hard, it’s just confusing and time consuming. That is why I made these worksheets in my resource library, so that while you are searching the sites you can keep track of the prices offered on each one. To get the budget airline worksheets the password for my resource library is at the bottom of this post.
Drive The Coastline
After you get there the best way to see Maine is on the interstate so you will need to rent a car.
This is the route that we took to St Andrews by the Sea. We chose the ocean city in Canada because it is a large whale watching site. I did not want to miss seeing the whales and the reviews for this area were great. I will talk about that later.
Renting A Car
We rented the cheapest SUV that they had. We both felt better riding in an SUV but did not need a luxury car of any kind. I also booked all of this online before we left.
It is much better to book your car before you leave your house. They ask a million questions when you get to the desk if you have not already done this online. It is much easier to make all those decisions in your living room at home. We used , https://www.expedia.com/ to book our rental car.
Our 5 day Itinerary
Day 1
We arrived in Boston in the afternoon. From South Carolina it was only an hour flight. So we decided to eat supper in Boston and then start out the next morning.
The hotel we stayed in was not far from the airport and fortunately had a free shuttle that would take us downtown for dinner. Since we were not interested in driving around Boston we took advantage of this offer.
We ate at a lovely Italian restaurant and then went back to our hotel for a good nights rest. Some things you may want to consider are the timezone changes and anything like that. We were in the same zone so that was not a problem for us.
Day 2
Portsmouth NH
We hit I-95 as soon as we got up and headed north in our rented Ford Escape, which was perfect. I tend to get a little car sick in cars low to the ground.
Once we got to Portsmouth we headed towards the ocean.
Seabrook, NH
Seabrook is the picture of a coastal town in the Northeast. It was lovely and quiet.
Just a short distance down the road was Fort McClary State Historic Site.
The structure of Fort McClary is beautiful and overlooks the harbor. It is not hard to walk to entire site and gives a good idea of how the battle was fought there.
York, Maine Cape Neddick Lighthouse
Right up the coast is one of the things we really wanted to see.
The Cape Neddick Lighthouse is on the National Registry
It is also known as the Nubble, it rest on Nubble Island.
Looking at the lighthouse makes me think of some movies over the years that probably featured this very lighthouse.
After leaving York Maine and the beautiful Cape Neddick Lighthouse we headed farther North.
Kennebunkport, Maine
I am sorry our mugs are in all of these pictures. At the time I was not thinking about sharing all of these pictures with ya’ll. We went to Kennebunkport to see the harbor town. There are whale boats that go out here but we were waiting to do that in Canada.
We did drive to the summer home of the former President’s Bush. They forgot to put our name on the guest list so we could not go in. (Just Kidding!!) There are many spots to get out and walk around all along this route.
Saint Andrews and Boothbay Harbor Maine
Now if you are getting totally bored with this, I will tell you , this is the kind of trip that you just meander on. That is exactly what we did. Boothbay and Saint Andrews have breathtaking views of the harbor and honestly that is what we went to see.
Boothbay harbor is no exception. The views are beautiful. The city is full of little shops and restaurants. It is the perfect place to wander and get a feel for Maine.
Just stop at places along the interstate that interest YOU.
Day 3
Saint Andrews By The Sea, New Brunswick Canada
Now to some of the world travelers out there this may not seem like much, but Joey and I were really excited to be in Canada. This is the New Brunswick Area. We actually picked this city because several whale watching companies are here.
I did not want to be disappointed to go out on the ocean and not see any whales. The time of year we went was not the perfect time, but I read that the farther North we went the more likely we were to see some of these magnificent creatures.
Whale Watching
I can not impress upon you how awesome this part of my trip was. When we initially arrived at St Andrews by the Sea I went directly to one of the whaling companies. All of the big ship companies were booked solid.
At first I was really disappointed because it looked as if we were not going to be able to go. Then we say the catamaran company called Fundy Tide Runners. It was a SMALL water craft that about 5 couples were on together. We were in full water gear that inflated if we touched the water, and I mean if we got tossed out. I was petrified initially, but after our excellent guide started teaching and talking I calmed right down.
We were so close to the whales. It was amazing!!! If I could figure out how to post the 44 second video I would. Just let me tell you about it.
You go so far out in the ocean that you can not see land. There is complete silence on the water except for my own beating heart and then, well, there it is the sound of the whales coming up for water. The sound of their blow holes and spray of water is surreal. I still can not believe how close we were to the water and the whales.
Be brave and go on the catamaran. I promise you will not regret it. The Bay of Fundy is the main body of water there. We were told it is premium feeding grounds for all kinds of whales. Just thinking about that part of my trip thrills my heart.
Day 4
Bar Harbor Maine and Wiscasset Maine
The locals call it, “Baa Haaba”. Bar Harbor is the classic Maine Coastal Town. There are shops, restaurants and hotels galore. We enjoyed just sitting and watching boats, ships, yachts and people in Bar Harbor. This is where we sat down and had some good ole Maine lobster, delicious.
Red’s Eats
You have to go to Wiscasset Maine and visit Red’s Eats is probably one of the most famous places to eat in Maine. You will get the most divine lobster roll you have ever eaten. Everyone from Maine told us we had to go there. There is not measuring how much lobster goes on that roll, it is just piled on there.
This is the line everyday at Red’s. Just look it up, you will see how famous it is.
Day 5
Acadia National Park
You do not want to go to Maine and miss Acadia National Park. It is the home of the largest sandy beach in Maine. Now in South Carolina that is not saying much, but in Maine it is a big deal.
Most of their coast looks a lot like the picture here.
Maine is know for the coast line and all of its natural beauty. This trip was one of my all time favorites. I believe you could probably stay in any coastal town along the way and be pleased.
If you have never gone to Maine, Go. The coast is like nothing I have ever seen. The food was good everywhere we went and if I go again I will stay in Airbnb’s. We stayed at major hotel chains this time, next time we will do that different. There were so many adorable mom and pop motels and lots of lodges.
Book your next flight to Maine, stay there and travel their coast line.
Before you start get your own Airline Travel Worksheets.
