Bar Harbor, Maine

Bar Harbor Maine - A family-friendly Itinerary

Bar Harbor Maine is one of my favorite places in the world. We had a fantastic family trip there that I want to share with other families who are looking for quality time together. Bar Harbor still feels like a quaint New England town with great food and beautiful views. The weather is mild during summer compared to much of the United States which makes it perfect for hiking.

Acadia National Park has some great places to enjoy the view.

Cadillac Mountain

Our View from a lobster boat

Downtown Bar Harbor at night

Things to do in Bar Harbor Maine

This is a list of the best things to do in Bar Harbor based on our experience. We live in Florida so we love seeing different landscapes and scenery.

Walk over to Bar Island during low tide. When you get there you can hike to the top of the hill where you will experience a gorgeous view. When you get back from your hike you can stack rocks before walking back. Be mindful of time, when the tide comes back you can get stuck on Bar Island and it's expensive to have to call for help.
Drive to Bass Harbor Headlight; this was one of the highlights of the trip for me. The lighthouse is what you see in movies and the kids enjoyed climbing the rocks all around it.
Spend time in Acadia National Park. When we visited, Cadillac Mountain required a pass and you had to reserve your time. If you are an early riser, the sunrise is breathtaking on Cadillac Mountain. We went to the Thunder Hole which was super cool but not as dramatic as I expected because it was summer and the waves were not very big
Shore Path - there is a walkway around the edge of town where you can walk and take in the ocean views. We took a lot of pictures there. The kids stacked rocks there too and we truly enjoyed our time there.

More Things To Do In Bar Harbor

Additional Things To Do in Bar Harbor

One of our favorite things to eat is Lobster and Maine had the tastiest lobster I had ever eaten. I would recommend going to Thurston's Lobster Pound where you can pick your live lobster and have it cooked just for you.
After eating at Thurston's we all wanted to know how lobstering works so we found a lobster boat that would take our family out. We had fun on Lulu's Lobster Boat.
Have you ever been whale watching? Bar Harbor had a great tour where we were able to see whales in the ocean. You can do this at https://www.barharborwhales.com/
One of the evenings you are in Bar Barhor, book a ghost tour. Bar Harbor was founded in 1796, because of its rich history over the last 200+ years, it has so many ghost stories. We all enjoyed this part of the tour and it gave us the ability to explore the spookier side of Bar Harbor. We enjoyed Bar Harbor Ghost Walks!
Walking around Bar Harbor any time of day is a neat experience. Our kids enjoyed rolling down the hill overlooking the boats in the harbor.
Our family enjoyed playing at a beach that was only there at low tide. The tides in Bar Habor are wild! They can be as high as 12 feet!!
Also if you are walking around and looking for places that are just neat and have some cool architecture