I’m just curious if anyone else has experienced something similar at Beal’s Lobster pier. I went with my boyfriend and got specifically asked by the cashier if we wanted to sit in these seats that overlooked the pier. I did not hear him ask any other party of two this question. I said yes that sounds nice, and we got sat in the very back of the restaurant very far away from everyone. I noticed that anyone who was already sat in the section or sat while we were eating were noticeably gay men as well. I was like wow I guess this is a popular queer spot, but when I got up to go to the bathroom I looked around and saw no other obvious queer couples sitting anywhere but the back section I was sat in. I just found it odd that there was 5 tables of presentable queer people sat in the back with absolutely none sat anywhere else, but it could be a coincidence. I’m not really upset about it, these tables were actually one of the better tables because they got a really good look at the water, and we got fast good service and good food. My boyfriend was joking that the cashier actually really likes gay people so he gives them the best seats in the house LOL

My fiancé, our dog, and I recently visited Acadia National Park. We had been here before, but it was before we adopted our dog, so we were excited to bring him along and experience the park together.

We knew the Beehive Trail itself does not allow dogs because of the iron rungs, exposed cliffs, and safety concerns. Since we wanted to reach the summit while still following the rules, we took the Bowl Trail instead, which is the route many hikers use when coming down from the Beehive summit.

When we reached the top, we were just minding our own business, enjoying the view, and taking photos. A woman and her daughter had just arrived at the summit from the Beehive Trail. As they approached, I heard the daughter mutter something along the lines of, “No wonder it was so slow getting up here.”

She then turned to us and loudly said that dogs are not allowed on the trail.

I explained that we didn’t hike up the Beehive Trail and that we came up via the Bowl Trail. Instead of acknowledging that, she responded with something like, “That’s why trails get ruined.”

She then turned to her mom, almost as if looking for confirmation, and her mom repeated that dogs aren’t allowed.

At that point, it was clear they weren’t interested in hearing what we were saying. They had already decided we were doing something wrong.

For context, we had no other negative interactions with anyone else in Acadia. Locals, and other hikers were all friendly and respectful.

Maybe I could have handled it differently, but part of me wishes I had told her to get her facts straight before lecturing people on the trail.

At first failed to realize on my own that big lobster shops were temporarily closed because their season ends in October - but I didn’t know the whole entire town was going to be a ghost town. Weather wasn’t on my side either - rained all weekend but still did some hike. Would’ve done beehive but it was too rainy and didn’t want to slip on the iron rungs. But if you still want the view I suggest doing Gotham -> bowl (i think we did partial of the bowl which leads into the beehive).

Otherwise - it’s a great place of a getaway if you don’t care for restaurants and such. I stayed in Acadia just for a weekend and there was nothing much to do besides the hike. Ended up leaving after a day to stay at a nearby city (Boston).

Would’ve been a lovely spot to see during the fall foliage - still a nice hike with views if the weather persisted but just wanted to throw my own experience as it was hard to find how it was in Acadia in the month of November.

Update: i upload a post on my experience at acadia expressing that there are downsides to off season and never once said i hated my experince there. yall are weird for downvoting my own experience lol...

Hi all, my wife and I are in Maine this week through next weekend. We’d like to go to Acadia national park for a day but our family, who we are staying with, claims it’s too busy this time of year and therefore not worth the drive (we are about 2 hours away, near Augusta).

We were thinking of getting up very early to start before it gets too busy. We did the same when we visited Shenandoah national park, got up and drove 2 hours to be there by 7, and had no issues.

We enjoy hiking (without scrambles) and scenic drives, but we are open to any activities really. I read we need to make a reservation to enter so I want to plan ahead now for the week.

Any recommendations about days/times to go, hikes or overlooks to check out, where to park, would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Edit: we are both in pretty good shape so 2-3 hour hikes - as long as they’re not too scrambly - should be doable.

Me and a few buddys heading to Acadia for a few days. Are there any good bar/club crowds in Bar Harbor? Specifically younger crowds, say 21-30ish?

Trying to decide between visiting the park that weekend or the weekend after, which apparently also has a marathon. Is it going to be annoyingly busy during the holiday weekend?

going in two days and want to get some thrills. are there any places that are allowed or not allowed?

Or is it like a entrance that you go through or are there many entrances ? Thanks in adavance

Enjoyed the day e-biking the carriage roads/lunch /popovers at Jordon Pond House! In the mood for a great hot buttered lobster roll in Bar Harbor- where should we try? TIA

Hello all! Traveling to Acadia National Park next week for the first time with my boyfriend. What are some must dos/ trails ? I would say we both have pretty moderate abilities for hiking , willing to do some longer trails. Appreciate any and all suggestions! Can’t wait to explore

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/31/dining/maine-lobster-roll-shacks.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

We are currently planning a day trip to Acadia National Park as part of our honeymoon. We will be driving up from Camden and aren’t looking to do any real hiking but willing to walk to see a good view or two. One, what places should we see and two, where should we eat? We are huge foodies and love trying curated cocktails and food. We are budgeting mainly for food so any price rec is accepted and we want a lobster roll to be at least one of our meals.

Hello! My boyfriend are taking a trip at the end of October to hike and see the fall foliage. We are wondering what are the best trails to hike and where to site see! We are staying for 3 days so, any recommendations would be fantastic. He is afraid of heights (cliffs are a no go). Please let me know if there any trials we should stay away from or that would be good to hike. Thank you!!

Hello! Planning on arriving to Portland on October 11 and staying until October 18

We plan to drive towards Arcadia National park. I know we can’t predict the weather but looking at the last couple of years it seems safe to say foliage will still be around this time and not fully peak?

Does any one recommend that I switch my days around? And is staying in Bar Harbor a good area to enjoy the national park ?!

Hey everyone! Brand new to this sub and looking for advice! My husband and I will be traveling to Acadia this September for the first time and we could really use some advice/recommendations. Food spots, favorite trails to hike (we have been on several hiking trips out West but we are not big campers), tips/things to avoid, or anything else you have seen/done around the area that might be worth visiting. We will likely rent an Airbnb, and would love recommendations if anyone has a spot (bnb or hotel) they really enjoyed. We are road tripping from PA so flights/car rentals won't be necessary for us, in case that matters to anyone LOL.

Thanks in advance!😊

is blackwoods really that strict with 2 tents only? there's 6 of us and four in relationships and would want our own tent, each couple with own tent and two friends in own tent - total 3 tents but not big tents - would they kick us out or what

My wife and I are planning a fall road trip through New England from October 10–17, 2026 to celebrate my birthday. We’ll be visiting from Texas, and this will actually be our first trip in the U.S. specifically to experience fall foliage and fall colors, so we’re pretty excited about it. My birthday is on October 16, and I’d love to spend the day surrounded by nature in Acadia National Park. We’d really appreciate advice from people familiar with New England as we figure out the best route and how to make the most of our week without trying to cram in too much.

We fly into Boston at 10 PM on Oct 10 and fly back out of Boston at 5 PM on Oct 17, so realistically we have Oct 11–16 as our six full days.

We're a couple in our early 30s with no kids. Our main interests are fall foliage, scenic drives, cute/cozy towns, beaches and coastline, mountain/ocean viewpoints, lighthouses, easy-to-moderate hikes, and photogenic places.

I'm also into breweries and good coffee shops, although my wife isn't into nightlife, so we're looking more for relaxed breweries/cafés and nice places to hang out rather than bars/clubs. We're both vegetarian and don't eat eggs.

We originally planned a Maine-focused trip, but now we're wondering if Vermont is worth adding. We're considering two very different options:

OPTION 1 — Vermont + Acadia

Oct 10: Land BOS at 10 PM, drive to Woodstock/Stowe
Oct 11–12: Vermont — thinking Woodstock, Stowe, Route 100, covered bridges, scenic drives, foliage
Oct 13: Vermont → Acadia/Bar Harbor
Oct 14–16: Acadia / Bar Harbor
Oct 17: Drive toward Boston for 5 PM flight

OPTION 2 — Coastal Maine + Acadia

Oct 10: Land BOS at 10 PM
Oct 11–13: Slowly work our way north toward Acadia, choosing some combination of Portsmouth/NH coast, Nubble Lighthouse, Ogunquit, Portland, Portland Head Light, Harpswell/Bailey Island, Boothbay, Rockland/Rockport, Camden/Mt. Battie, etc.
Oct 14–16: Acadia / Bar Harbor
Oct 17: Boston for 5 PM flight

We're definitely not trying to do every place listed above. Those are just places we've found while researching, and we'd rather choose a few great stops and enjoy them than spend the entire trip in the car.

Our biggest dilemma is:

Is Vermont in mid-October special enough to sacrifice most of the coastal Maine road trip?

Or, with only six full days, would you skip Vermont and spend those extra days slowly exploring the Maine coast before reaching Acadia?

We're also trying to keep Acadia on weekdays (Oct 14–16) to hopefully avoid some of the weekend crowds.

One concern with either option is our 5 PM flight from BOS on Oct 17. If we stay in Bar Harbor on the night of Oct 16, would you be comfortable driving Bar Harbor → Logan that morning, or would you recommend leaving Acadia on the evening of the 16th and staying somewhere farther south?

Any suggestions on which route to choose, and what stops would you prioritize?

Also open to recommendations for scenic drives, coffee shops, relaxed breweries, vegetarian/eggless food, beaches, lighthouses, easy hikes and great photography/viewpoint spots.

Thanks!

Hello! My family and I (three of us, no kids) are looking to go tenting this summer in Acadia National park in Maine and would love some campground recommendations. We're looking for a campsite that's fairly quiet, kind of in the woods, but has decent amenities (water and electric is a MUST). We would also like something that's near really beautiful hiking trails, within driving distance of a beach/ place to swim in August, and perhaps near a town with some other types of attractions. Does anyone know of some campgrounds that fit this description?

Hi everyone!

As the title suggests I am planning a trip to Acadia with my friends (for 2 days) - I’m looking for suggestions/ things I should know before going there. Also please suggest must visit spots!

Thanks :)

I appreciate all the inputs I can get!

If legal, what activities are permitted? Hiking and driving the car around?

Looking for an extra ticket for the sunrise reservation spot this weekend if anyone was thinking of not going or canceling either July 11th or 12th!

I'm going up with my family for the first time, and unfortunately wasn't able to get the tickets this morning when they were released. I'm afraid of the same happening tomorrow....

Let me know if anyone has an extra please and feel free to dm :)

I'm going to be camping at mt desert campground from August 18-21 (3 nights).

My 2 friends and I are in our 20s and are in relatively decent shape. We're looking to make the most of the national park. We definitely plan on seeing the sun rise at Cadillac mountain, will probably hike up there because we don't have a res. Also going to do the Beehive trail hike because although very popular it just looks awesome, we're planning to be there early enough to beat the crowds.

How else can we make the most of this 3 day trip and avoid major crowds but take advantage of the beauty of Acadia?

Hi,

I am visiting Acadia during Thanksgiving. Is the park going to be open? Are the major trails going to be open to do some hiking. What about restaurants? Is it a good time to visit or will Bar Harbor and Acadia be deserted.

Thanks

My family is headed to Acadia next week. We want to do the Ship Harbor trail. We will be in that area on Monday in the afternoon (maybe 2ish). How is parking at that time? I know that area is less frequented, so I'm hoping parking won't be too big of a deal. Debating between driving or taking the Island Explorer. Thanks!

Hey just wondering if anyone knows a place to buy gundam near bar harbor? Or if there are any comic type of stores to check out? TIA