Acadia National Park is known as the Crown Jewel of the Atlantic Coast. If you have ever been there, you know why. You can enjoy the beautiful shoreline, forests and mountains which are all included in the 47,000 acre park.
In my blog post, I share 10 of the best things that you can do in Acadia National Park. I also share some of the places that you can stay to be able to enjoy the park.
About Acadia National Park
Acadia is one of the most visited national parks in the U.S. There are around 4 million people who visit the park each year.
The park is located on Mount Desert Island and preserves almost half of it. Acadia is also found on part of Isle au Haut, as well as Schoodic Peninsula. 16 islands in the area make up the park.
Acadia contains the highest peaks that you will find along the Atlantic Coast. There are 27 miles of historic motor roads, 158 miles of hiking trails and 45 miles of carriage roads.
You can hike, swim, kayak, fish, mountain bike, take a horse carriage ride, rock climb and canoe in the park during the summer. Winter activities include: cross country skiing , snowshoeing, snowmobiling, and ice fishing.
There are a few different campgrounds in the park. There are no lodges or hotels that are located inside Acadia.
The cost to get into the park is $35 per car load. The pass is good for a full week. You can also buy a national park pass that is good for a year and costs $80.
Things to Do in Acadia National Park
1. Hike
Acadia National Park has over 150 miles of trails located in the park. There are all kinds of different hikes that you can do. You can find easy, moderate, and strenuous hikes.
You can find hikes that go along the coast, around ponds, in the woods, or up a mountain. There are even hikes where you can do all of those things in the same hike.
There are a few out and back trails but most of the hikes in the park are loop or lollipop trails. Many of the different loops intersect one another so you can easily extend a hike if you want to.
I wrote a post titled “7 Great Hikes to Do in Acadia National Park” that will give you details about some of the different hikes that you can do.
2. Horse Carriage Ride
My wife, daughter Cassidy, and myself visited Acadia for the first time together. We took a horse drawn carriage ride through Acadia on that trip.
We had a great time and we learned a lot along the way. The company that gives horse drawn carriage rides is Carriages of Acadia.
There are 45 miles of carriage roads in the park. The roads were constructed by J.D. Rockefeller. No cars are allowed on these roads in the park. Only the horse drawn carriages, bikers and hikers are allowed to use them.
You have 3 different tours that you can choose to go on. First, is an hour tour called the Day Mountain Loop Tour. The tour takes you around Day Mountain.
The second tour is a two hour tour called Mr. Rockefeller Bridge Tour. This is the tour that we took. The tour goes by 3 of 17 stone faced bridges that are found in the park. You also have a chance to get out and see one of the bridges up close and personal.
The last tour is a two hour tour called Day Mountain Summit Tour. At the top of Day Mountain, you have a chance to dismount and view the Cranberry Isles below.
When we went on our tour, the girl driving the wagon gave the history of the park and carriage roads in the park. She also answered any questions that people asked.
I have a blog post titled “It’s a Small World”. In the post, I share a story about where the owner of Carriages of Acadia gets the horses they use.
You can find pricing and times for the tours on their website.
3. Watch the sunrise on Cadillac Mountain
Cadillac Mountain is the highest peak in Acadia at over 1,500 feet. Going to the top of the mountain is one of the most popular things to do in the park.
One of the most popular times to go to the top of the mountain is during sunrise. Cadillac Mountain is the first place in the U.S. where you see the sunrise from early October to early March.
The other popular time to visit the top of the mountain is during sunset. Even if you can’t do either of those times, going to the top of the mountain gives you great views of the surrounding area no matter what time of the day it is.
There are two parking areas, a gift shop and a .5 mile trail that you can hike at the top of the mountain. You can read more about the Cadillac Mountain trail in my blog post “7 Great Hikes to Do in Acadia National Park.”
There is plenty of area to lay down a blanket or sit in a lawn chair to take in the view. You will need to make a reservation no matter what time of day that you go to the top of Cadillac Mountain. This is separate from the park pass that you will need to get into the park.
You can go to Reservation.gov to make a reservation. I share how the reservation system works in the blog post above. I also share how you can get one of the coveted sunrise time slots along with other time slots during the day.
4. Drive the Park Loop Road
If you only had a day to see Acadia National Park, the one thing that I would tell you to do is drive the Park Loop Road. It is my favorite drive in the park.
The road is 27 miles long and as the name of the road would indicate, it does a loop in the park. One of the great features of the Loop Road is that you can see many of the more popular attractions in the park while driving the road.
Some of the sites include Sand Beach, Otter Cliff, Otter Point, Thunder Hole, Cadillac Mountain and Jordan Pond. 20 miles of the Park Loop Road is one way. A great feature of the one way section of the road is that you can park in the right hand lane.
Parking lots fill up fast during the busy time of the day. Being able to park in the right hand lane can save you time and frustration.
You will want to make sure that you have snacks and water with you. There are not that many places in the park to get those things.
You will have to do a little more walking if you stop at any of the more popular sites during the busy part of the day . So, the earlier that you can get into the park the better to beat the crowds.
5. Jordan Pond
Jordan Pond is located southwest of Bar Harbor. The pond covers 187 acres, has 3.6 miles of coastline and has beautiful views of the surrounding mountains.
If you stand at the boat dock at the end of the pond, you have a picturesque view of the North and South Bubbles. The Jordan Pond Path is an easy trail that circles the pond. You can read about the trail in my post “7 Great Trails to Hike in Acadia National Park.”
There are also other trails in the area that you can hike. There is Jordan Cliffs Loop, Bubbles Trail and the Pemetic Mountain Loop to name a few.
Besides hiking around the pond, you can also canoe or kayak on the pond. You aren’t allowed to swim in it. Jordan Pond is located on the Park Loop Road. The section of the road the pond is located on is open to two way traffic.
The quickest way to access the pond is going through the Cadillac Mountain Entrance. You can also get to the pond through the Stanley Brook Entrance.
There are two different parking lots located at Jordan Pond. The south lot is only for people eating at the Jordan House restaurant.
The north lot is open to anyone but the lot fills up quickly during the busy part of the day. I had to circle the lot numerous times before I found a spot. No parking is allowed along the road.
Getting into this area of the park is crucial if you want to beat the crowds.
6. Sand Beach
Sand Beach is the first major stop after entering the park through the Sand Beach Entrance on the Park Loop Road. This part of the road is one way. You can park in the right hand lane on the road or in the parking lot.
The lot fills up quickly. If you get to the park during the busy time of day, your best bet is park on the road and walk to the beach.
The beach itself stretches for 900 feet. It is sandwiched between two cliffs of pink granite with magnificent evergreens all around. The views from the beach are really beautiful.
You can swim at the beach but with the water being 55 degrees in the summertime, you may just want to stay on dry ground. There are a nice wide set of steps that lead down to the beach from the parking lot. There are also restrooms available.
This area also has a couple of different hiking trails. The Ocean Path Trail starts from the parking lot of Sand Beach. The Great Head Trail can be accessed by going all the way down the beach. This trail gives you some great views of the coast.
You can also go across the crosswalk from the Sand Beach parking lot to access the Beehive Trail. This trail isn’t for the weak of heart.
You can read more about each one of those hikes in my blog post titled “7 Great Hikes to Do in Acadia National Park.”
7. Thunder Hole
Thunder Hole is located on the Park Loop Road just south of Sand Beach. You can drive to the hole or you can stop to see it if you are hiking on the Ocean Path.
Thunder Hole is a partially submerged cave. The hole thunders about an hour or two before high tide. As the water comes in during this time, it can be splashed 40 or more feet in the air.
It is pretty cool to see if you are there at the right time. The first time that we were in the park, we got to see why it is called Thunder Hole. This last time we weren’t at the hole at the right time so it wasn’t thundering.
There are steps and landings to stop and enjoy the show once you get to the hole. You can also climb on some of the rocks but they can get slippery so you want to be careful.
8. Otter Cliff
Otter Cliff has some of the best views not only in the park but also on the east coast. The granite shoreline rises 110 feet in the air with evergreens scattered throughout the coastline.
The area isn’t as busy as some of the other places on this list. There are plenty of places to sit down and just take in the scenery.
Otter Cliff is located on the Park Loop Road. The road splits in front of the cliffs, if you drive to the cliffs. The top road gives you access to a small parking lot.
The lower road is a thru road. You can park in the right hand lane which is your best bet in finding a spot. You can also get there if you are hiking on the Ocean Path Trail.
9. Eat at Jordan Pond House
The Jordan Pond House is located near, you guessed it, Jordan Pond. It is the only restaurant inside Acadia National Park. The house is situated in such a way that you have nice views of Jordan Pond and of the North and South Bubbles while you eat.
During the summer, there are tables with umbrellas out in the lawn that you can sit at and enjoy your food. They offer a tea menu, lunch menu and dinner menu. We ate there for lunch. There was about a 30 minute wait to get a table. The shortest waits for a table are before 11:30 am and after 4:00 pm
The food is good and has a 4.0 rating on Google. It is a little pricey but that is usually the case inside a national park. One thing I would recommend is their famous popovers. They are very good and they are light and fluffy.
There is a small parking lot at the restaurant. You can also find parking at the north lot for Jordan Pond. If you are going during the busy time of day, it may take you a while to find a spot.
10. Bike the carriage roads
This is the only thing on the list that I haven’t done. There are 45 miles of carriage roads in the park. The nice thing about the roads is that no cars are allowed on them. You will find walkers, runners, horse drawn carriages and bikers.
The roads weave through the park and give you access to mountains and valleys, beautiful vistas, as well as over and under 17 stone bridges.
The roads have a crushed rock surface. You can bring your own bike or rent one from a local bike shop. Class 1 Ebikes are allowed on the roads but Class 2 and 3 aren’t allowed.
Places to Stay Near Acadia
Bar Harbor is the main town close to Acadia National Park. It is only a couple minute drive into the park from Bar Harbor. There are numerous hotels, motels, bed and breakfast, cottages, and Airbnbs to choose from in Bar Harbor.
We rented a home outside of Bar Harbor through a real estate company this past stay. There are also numerous campgrounds in the area to stay at if you want to sleep under the stars.
So, here are some of the highest rated places to stay in the area.
Bar Harbor Manor– The hotel is located in Bar Harbor and is walking distance to the downtown area.
Atlantic Eyrie Lodge– We stayed at this hotel the first time we were in Bar Harbor. The hotel is set up on a hill that has a great view of Frenchman’s Bay. The rooms were nice and clean.
Bar Harbor Inn– The inn is an iconic place to stay in Bar Harbor. You have great views of Frenchman’s Bay since the inn is located right by the water.
Bar Harbor Motel– The motel is located one mile from Acadia National Park and two miles from downtown Bar Harbor. You can access the park through the hotel’s hiking and biking trails.
Bar Harbor Grand Hotel– This hotel has a great downtown location and is one of the newer hotels in the area. The hotel is based on the historic Radick House.
Sand Bar Cottage Inn– The inn is a former home with 19 different guest rooms. It is a short walk to the waterfront, stores and restaurants.
The Inn on Mount Desert– You are only a five minute walk from the waterfront, shops and restaurants. The rooms have a coastal theme. Plus, there is free continental breakfast.
Hampton Inn Bar Harbor– The hotel is located a mile from the downtown and waterfront area. They have a pool and offer free breakfast.
Hearthside Inn– The inn is a 1907 home. It is located on a side street in the downtown area. There is a free breakfast served every day.
Bass Cottage Inn– This boutique inn is steps away from the waterfront, stores, and restaurants. They have a free gourmet breakfast each morning.
The Primrose– This bed and breakfast is located in downtown Bar Harbor. You are steps away from shops, restaurants and other attractions. They serve a free breakfast each morning.
Atlantic Oceanside and Event Center– The hotel is located on the ocean. It is one mile from Acadia National Park and downtown Bar Harbor.
Eden Village Motel and Cottages– This is a more budget friendly option. There are 11 cottages along with 10 motel rooms. It is a 15 minute drive into Bar Harbor.
Home Rental
We rented a home this past summer that we really enjoyed as a family. There were 7 of us that stayed at the place. The name of the house is Tide Race. I thought that the name of the place was appropriate for our family since my wife’s maiden name is Race.
It is located at the end of Somes Harbor on SR 3. It was a 15 minute drive into Bar Harbor and 10 minutes to Acadia National Park. The home was built in 1941 by famed architect George Howe. The look of the home is very mid century modern. I personally love that style of architecture.
The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. There are great views of the harbor from the living room since it has a wall of windows. Down the steps from the family room there is access to an outside covered porch area with chairs to relax in and take in the view.
The house comes with a dock. There is a nice path that leads to it. We got a lot of use out of the three kayaks that came with the house.
We drove 3 vehicles and there was plenty of room in the parking area for the 3 cars. It could even fit four. The house has much of its original charm. We didn’t mind that at all and would rent it again if we had the chance.
The name of the real estate company that lists the house is the Knowles Company. The agent we dealt with was Blakeslee Bell. She was really great to work with. You can see rates for the home and read more about it by clicking the link.
Final Thoughts
Acadia National Park is a great place to visit. I would have to say I enjoyed it even more the second time that I was there. As you can see, the park has much to offer.
You have so much that you can see and do. It doesn’t matter if you are traveling alone, with your spouse, or with a family. You will have a great time.
If you want to learn tips on how to save on travel, see travel itineraires and learn how to use credit card points and miles, make sure to go to my blog Travelwidstom.
