Southern Maine has been welcoming vacationers during all four seasons for more than a century. The region offers everything from shopping to sunbathing to soaking up the scenery. It’s also where you’ll find Portland, the urban centerpiece of the state as well as the starting point for those arriving by air into Portland’s International Jetport.
Travelers preferring to use Boston as a jumping off point can rive from Beantown to the Pine Tree State in 90 minutes, or hop on the Amtrak Downeaster for a relaxing train ride. By car, Route 1 is the major artery running through the region and the link to some of the most exquisite beaches along the Atlantic – at Kittery, York, Ogunquit, Kennebunk, Biddeford, and Old Orchard.
Southern Maine fun for serious shoppers begins at the border, where Kittery’s retail outlets number more than 120. At the other end of the region is Freeport, home to world-famous L.L. Bean.
Throughout Southern Maine you can find forts, lighthouses, colorful villages, summer theaters, antique stores, historic homes, and museums. Accommodations range from antique-filled bed and breakfasts to campgrounds. If you like the outdoors, you can go fresh or salt water fishing, kayaking, canoeing, sailing, white-water rafting, swimming, or sunbathing, golfing, hiking, or biking. In winter, you can ski, snowboard, drive a dog sled, skate and ice fish.
Finally, if you enjoy eating, Southern Maine has more to offer than just boiled lobster and fried clams. The region features a number of award-winning restaurants and chefs, year-round farmers’ markets, and plenty of “pick your own” blueberry, raspberry and apple farms.