Acadia National Park is located near Bar Harbor, Maine. It is a bit confusing because the park is noncontiguous, meaning that you are never really sure when you are in the park and when you are outside the park. However, we have a few tips to help you know some of our favorite spots so that you don’t miss the best things Acadia has to offer. Our Acadia National Park family guide is geared for families because we love exploring national parks with our boys.
Bar Harbor
Bar Harbor is a town located near the main part of Acadia National Park where you spend most of your time. It is obviously the busiest part as well, and sometimes reservations are required even to drive a road. Parking lots fill up fast, but you can park along much of the one-way Park Loop Road.
The town of Bar Harbor is where most people stay, and there are plenty of restaurants. Parking can be a problem, but you can also take ocean tours for whale-watching, lighthouses, or birds from downtown. Bar Harbor itself is worth exploring.
The main Acadia National Park activity to do in Bar Harbor is Bar Island. This trail only opens around low tide. Make sure to check the tide charts, and plan to hike about 1 and 1/2 to 1 hour before low tide.
Park Loop Road
Park Loop Road is the main road out of Bar Harbor into Acadia National Park. This road is a one-way road, so make sure to plan your stops accordingly. A few must-do stops along this road include Sand Beach and Thunder Hole. Sand Beach is about the only sand that you’ll find in Maine. The water is cold, but tolerable. The parking lot for Sand Beach fills up quickly, so plan to visit early in the morning. This is also the starting spot for the Beehive Trail, which we highly recommend.
Thunder Hole is another roadside attraction along the Park Loop Road that is best to visit at high tide. That’s when the water slams into the hole making a thunderous sound. Otherwise, you’re likely to hear throat clears and hiccups.
Just past Thunder Hole, make sure to stop at hike to Gorham Mountain Trail. You can also walk along the Ocean path from this parking area out to Otter Point. The views of the coast are beautiful along this route.
Little Hunters Beach was closed on our visit, but this was recommend as a less busy area to enjoy the beach and tide pools.
Jordan Pond
Another popular place is Jordan Pond. This area features a restaurant (get a reservation) with a regional favorite called popovers, that is a type of bread roll with jam or honey. One of our favorite hikes in Acadia National Park was the trail around Jordan Pond. We also walked the Jordan Stream Path, which ended at a beautiful cobblestone bridge along one of the old carriage roads.
Carriage roads, which used to be popular with the elite, are now used by bikers and hikers. We didn’t have a chance to explore them, but you should look into taking a ride or renting bikes to enjoy them if you have the time.
The Bubbles Trail was also closed when we visited, but this is one of the most popular trails in the park. It is located right by Jordan Pond and offers great views of the area.
Cadillac Mountain
Reservations are required to drive to the top of Cadillac Mountain. You can make two separate reservations. One is a for a day drive pass, and you will need to choose a window of time to visit. We drove up later in the evening and loved the amazing views at the top of the mountain. There is also a 1/2 mile trail that walks around the summit with a few informational signs.
The other reservation is for sunrise. Sunrise comes early to the eastern US, and at the top of Cadillac Mountain is the perfect place to view it. The reservation allows you to go up starting a few hours before sunrise, so you can enjoy the sun coming up. Make sure to dress for the weather and bring a jacket as the morning can be quite chilly. More information on these reservations can be found on recreation.gov.
The Quiet Side
There is another area of Acadia National Park down by Bass Harbor. This part of the park is referred to as the quiet side. It is definitely a lot less busy. Bass Harbor is farther down the peninsula than Bar Harbor, so plan on driving time when visiting. This is the perfect place to go tide pooling. Several short hikes lead to the pools. We hiked both the Ship Harbor Trail and the Wonderland Trail, and enjoyed exploring the tide pools and coast on both. There is also a nice lighthouse that takes just a few minutes to visit. The Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse is a great spot for sunset. We also added a hike up Acadia Mountain. This hike was steep like most of the trails in Acadia, but the views were stunning. And we even visited in the rain. Plan at least a half day in Bass Harbor.
Schoodic Peninsula
This area of Acadia is not located on Mount Desert Island like these other areas mentioned above. It is much less visited because the driving distances on the winding roads takes a long time. It is about 1 hour and 15 minutes. We spent three days in the park, and didn’t manage to get to Schoodic Peninsula, but you can learn more about this area of the on the national park website.
Other Things to Know
Acadia is best visited very late Spring, Summer, and Fall. The Park Loop Road is open from April 15 – Dec 1. Cadillac Mountain doesn’t open until late May. So if you want to be able to see most locations, summer and fall are the best options. Fall is stunning in Acadia National Park, so if you can time your visit over Fall Foliage peak season, you will love it. We visited in summer and had a fabulous time.
Many areas of Acadia fill up quickly, so the early bird truly gets the worm at this park. You can usually park in one spot and do a few things. Also, it is wise to use the shuttle if it is operating when you visit. It opened the week after we were there.
We found two types of hikes in Acadia National Park. They were either mostly flat, easy trails or they were steep climbs up the mountainside. We want to prepare you for some serious calf burners, but the views were always worth the climb.
If you’d like to see a list of the hikes we did with our kids, check out our post called Acadia Kid Friendly Hikes.
