TravelGuides

(TGA) - Hi all-
The first week of September, my parents, husband, 2 year old daughter and I are driving from Boston, MA to Bucksport, ME for a family event. It is our first time to Maine and we are looking forward to it! Toddler cannot handle long stretches in car over 1 hour, so I think we will break it up into approximately 1 hour segments over 2 days:
day 1 - leave Boston, lunch in Portsmouth, overnight in Portland
day 2 - leave Portland, lunch in middle (either Augusta or coast), arrive in Bucksport
On Day 2, I am trying to decide if driving along the coast is better or driving through Augusta is better (faster, less traffic jams, fewer curves - mom tends to get carsick, etc)
Please advise if this is a reasonable plan? Also any advice on hotel in Portland and lunch/dinner suggestions along the way? Thank you
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You definitely can get to Bucksport from Boston very, very comfortab;y by dividing it into two days....and Portland can be a reasonable mid-point. Lots of lodging choices in the greater Portland area; tough to make a specific recommendation without knowing a little about your preferences -- large chain hotel/motel, locally owned hotel/motel, bed-and-breakfast? Closer to downtown restaurants and things to see/do or a bit further out for quicker acccess on and off the road? Check out the Portland area hotels by selecting the Hotels bar at the top left of this page.
Depending on what time you're actually leaving Boston, I'd consider staying near the Old Port district of Portland because unless you get a very late start you should be into Portland early enough to enjoy that area -- lots of shops, botiques, restaurants, etc in an area revived from its early days as a warehouse/commercial district. Some great old buildings with distinctive architecture. You also could take a ride out to Portland Head Light lighthouse in Cape Elizabeth and see a classic coastal lighthouse on the rocky coastal cliffs.
As far as your route from Portland to Bucksport, you have several possible choices....
US Route 1 will take you along the general area of the coast, but not directly on the water except for one or two glimpses. Think of the Maine coast as the palm of your hand with Rt 1 running along the knuckles nearest your wrist. Most of the smaller coastal villages, lighthouses, beaches, etc are down the peninsulas that would be your fingers, so you don't really see to many of them from Route 1. To truly appreciate them, you need to take the time to drive down one or more of them, then back to Rt 1 to continue your trip.
Most of the peninsula roads are two-lane roads, some with narrow shoulders and they follow the hills, dips and curves of the natural terrain. The villages and views can be great once you get to them, but may or may not be a good idea depending on the severity of the car-sickness issue.
Route 1 from Portland will also take you through the downtown sectoin of some of the coastal villages like Freeport (home to L.L. Bean and lots of shopping outlet stores), Wiscasset and Camden, which can be slow going at times...lower speed limits, more local traffic mixed in with through travelers, etc. On the other hand, Widcasset is one place where you do get a view of the water and a short walk around the harbor area in Camden can be a great stretch break.
A second option is to take I-295 from Portland to Brunswick, avoiding downtown Freeport, then taking Route 1 north from there. You still won't really get views of the coast, but do get to see Wiscasset and Camden.
Option three is to take I-295 from Portland to Augusta and then Rt 17 to Rockland (another good-sized coastal town with some great restaurants), and then go north on Rt 1rom there. This route avoids potential congeston in Freeport, Brunswick and Wiscasset, while still providing access to Camden and its harbor arae.
Option four also takes I-95 to Augusta, but then takes Route 3 to Belfast and Rt 1 on to Bucksport. It avoids the downtowns of Freeport, Brunswick, Wiscasset and Camden, but offers some views of Penobscot Bay north of Belfast.
Of these choices, Options 1 and 2 offer the highest chances of getting slowed down in small town downtown areas. And Route 1 does have hills and curves in places.
Option 3 offers four-lane, divided highway driving (with more gradual hills and curves and a more consistent speed limit) from Portland to Augusta. Route 17 east of Augusta does have some hills and curves, but none are any worse than what you'll encounter on Rt 1.
Option 4 offers Interstate driving from Portland to Augusta, then a major numbered route from Augusta to Belfast and good traveling on Rt 1 from Belfast to Bucksport.
None of these routes will take more than two-and-one-half hours most days. Given your parameters, if I were me, I'd probably choose Option 4 (with Option 3 as my second choice). With Option 4, I'd look for lunch in Augusta (or maybe Belfast); with Option 3, I'd probably look for lunch in Rockland just because it's closer to the ocean.
Am sure others will offer other recommendations -- and once you decide on your route, and give us a few more details about the kind of lodging you're looking for in Portland, I'm sure you'll get more specific recommendations.
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MainerOnTheGo - thank you so much for the wonderful and detailed advice! I think we will go with the option 4 drive, it does sound the quickest and easiest route for our purposes... As for a hotel in Portland, my husband and parents lean toward the large chain hotel/motel option though locally owned is fine too (as a comparison, we are staying at the Fort Knox Inn in Bucksport). We specifically need high speed internet access in the rooms for sure. I would love to stay somewhere near the Old Port district, am considering the Holiday Inn near the art museum? How far is the airport from the Old Port area? The Embassy Suites at the airport sounds like it could be an option too... Any other choices in the $150 range or less? If there were even a hotel that had a suite with 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms for $250 or less that would be perfect! Any advice on where to eat in Portsmouth, Portland, and Augusta?
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