Best Small Towns in Maine
The best small towns in Maine are Bar Harbor for Acadia National Park, Camden for Penobscot Bay and its windjammer fleet, Ogunquit for its beach and the Marginal Way, Bath for shipbuilding history, and Greenville for Moosehead Lake. Most of the list sits on the coast, but two picks head inland to the mountains and the big lake. Here are 10 worth the trip, grouped by region.
- Best season: July through mid-October; coastal foliage usually peaks from mid-October through the end of the month
- Regions: Southern Coast, Casco Bay, Midcoast, Down East & Acadia, Inland Maine
- Closest big cities: Portland, Boston, Bangor
| Town | Region | Best for | Nearest airport |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bar Harbor | Down East & Acadia | national park trips, hiking, biking the carriage roads, whale watching, sunrise | Bar Harbor (BHB), about 20 min |
| Camden | Midcoast | hiking, sailing, fall foliage, harbor strolls, winter toboggan races | Rockland/Owls Head (RKD), about 20 min |
| Ogunquit | Southern Coast | beach days, coastal walks, art, summer theater | Portsmouth, NH (PSM), about 30 min |
| Kennebunkport | Southern Coast | coastal drives, beaches, boat tours, shopping, holiday events | Portland (PWM), about 40 min |
| Boothbay Harbor | Midcoast | boat tours, puffin and whale watching, gardens, families, island day trips | Portland (PWM), about 1 hr 15 min |
| Bath | Midcoast | maritime history, architecture, museums, beaches nearby, day trips from Portland | Portland (PWM), about 45 min |
| Rockland | Midcoast | art museums, lighthouses, island day trips, seafood, festivals | Rockland/Owls Head (RKD), about 10 min |
| Freeport | Casco Bay | shopping, easy hikes, families, birdwatching, day trips from Portland | Portland (PWM), about 25 min |
| Bethel | Inland Maine | skiing, hiking, fall foliage, rockhounding, river floats | Portland (PWM), about 1 hr 30 min |
| Greenville | Inland Maine | moose watching, lake cruises, seaplane rides, hiking, snowmobiling | Bangor (BGR), about 1 hr 30 min |
Down East & Acadia
1. Bar Harbor
Bar Harbor is the main town on Mount Desert Island and the gateway to Acadia National Park. Drive the Park Loop Road, catch sunrise on Cadillac Mountain, then walk the 1881 Shore Path or cross the sandbar to Bar Island at low tide.
Pop. 5,089 (2020 Census) Hancock County Founded 1796 (incorporated as Eden; renamed Bar Harbor 1918) Nearest airport: Bar Harbor (BHB), about 20 min Known for: Acadia National Park, Cadillac Mountain, Gilded Age cottages, the Shore Path, whale watching
- Best for: national park trips, hiking, biking the carriage roads, whale watching, sunrise
- Don't miss: Acadia National Park and the Park Loop Road; Cadillac Mountain; Bar Island Sandbar
- Heads up: Driving to Cadillac's summit needs a vehicle reservation, bought online, from late May to late October.
Midcoast
2. Camden
Camden is a Knox County harbor town where the Camden Hills meet Penobscot Bay. Drive or hike up Mount Battie for the view Edna St. Vincent Millay wrote about, then walk the harbor where the windjammer fleet has sailed since 1936.
Pop. 5,232 (2020 Census) Knox County Founded 1791 (incorporated) Nearest airport: Rockland/Owls Head (RKD), about 20 min Known for: windjammer fleet, Mount Battie, Camden Hills State Park, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Camden Snow Bowl
- Best for: hiking, sailing, fall foliage, harbor strolls, winter toboggan races
- Don't miss: Camden Hills State Park and Mount Battie; Windjammer Cruises on Penobscot Bay; Camden Public Library and Amphitheatre
- Heads up: The Mount Battie Auto Road closes for winter around December 1.
3. Boothbay Harbor
Boothbay Harbor is a Lincoln County boating town at the tip of a peninsula. Take a puffin or whale cruise, cross the 1901 footbridge, and spend a day at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens next door in Boothbay.
Pop. 2,027 (2020 Census) Lincoln County Founded 1889 (incorporated) Nearest airport: Portland (PWM), about 1 hr 15 min Known for: puffin and whale cruises, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Maine State Aquarium, harbor footbridge
- Best for: boat tours, puffin and whale watching, gardens, families, island day trips
- Don't miss: Cap'n Fish's Cruises; Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens; The Footbridge and Downtown
- Heads up: The Maine State Aquarium's summer season ends around Labor Day.
4. Bath
Bath is the City of Ships, a Kennebec River shipbuilding town since 1743 and home of Bath Iron Works. The Maine Maritime Museum, a replica of the 1607 ship Virginia and a well-kept 19th-century downtown make it an easy day stop.
Pop. 8,766 (2020 Census) Sagadahoc County Founded 1781 (town); 1847 (city) Nearest airport: Portland (PWM), about 45 min Known for: shipbuilding, Bath Iron Works, Maine Maritime Museum, City of Ships, 19th-century downtown
- Best for: maritime history, architecture, museums, beaches nearby, day trips from Portland
- Don't miss: Maine Maritime Museum; Maine's First Ship; Downtown Bath
- Heads up: Popham Beach, 14 miles south, is Maine's busiest state park beach; arrive early.
5. Rockland
Rockland is the Knox County seat on Penobscot Bay, a former lime town turned arts center. See the Wyeths at the Farnsworth, walk the breakwater to its 1902 lighthouse, and catch a state ferry to Vinalhaven or North Haven.
Pop. 6,936 (2020 Census) Knox County Founded 1848 (incorporated); 1854 (city) Nearest airport: Rockland/Owls Head (RKD), about 10 min Known for: Farnsworth Art Museum and the Wyeths, CMCA, Rockland Breakwater, Maine Lobster Festival, island ferries
- Best for: art museums, lighthouses, island day trips, seafood, festivals
- Don't miss: Farnsworth Art Museum; Center for Maine Contemporary Art; Rockland Breakwater and Lighthouse
- Heads up: Lodging fills up fast around the Maine Lobster Festival in early August.
Southern Coast
6. Ogunquit
Ogunquit is a small York County beach town with a mile and a half of sand and the 1.25-mile Marginal Way along the cliffs. Perkins Cove, a seaside art museum and the 1933 Ogunquit Playhouse round it out.
Pop. 1,577 (2020 Census) York County Founded 1980 (incorporated, split from Wells) Nearest airport: Portsmouth, NH (PSM), about 30 min Known for: Marginal Way cliff walk, Ogunquit Beach, Perkins Cove, Ogunquit Playhouse, art colony
- Best for: beach days, coastal walks, art, summer theater
- Don't miss: Marginal Way; Ogunquit Beach; Perkins Cove
- Heads up: Summer crowds are heavy in a small town; walk between the beach, Marginal Way and Perkins Cove.
7. Kennebunkport
Kennebunkport is a York County resort town on the Kennebunk River, centered on Dock Square. Drive Ocean Avenue past the Bush family's Walker's Point, ride vintage streetcars at the Seashore Trolley Museum, and come back in December for Christmas Prelude.
Pop. 3,629 (2020 Census) York County Founded 1653 (incorporated as Cape Porpus) Nearest airport: Portland (PWM), about 40 min Known for: Dock Square, Walker's Point and the Bush family, Seashore Trolley Museum, Christmas Prelude, Cape Porpoise
- Best for: coastal drives, beaches, boat tours, shopping, holiday events
- Don't miss: Dock Square; Ocean Avenue and Walker's Point; Seashore Trolley Museum
- Heads up: Goose Rocks Beach parking requires a town permit.
Casco Bay
8. Freeport
Freeport is the Cumberland County town where L.L.Bean opened in 1912, and its 24-hour flagship still anchors a walkable outlet downtown. Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park, the Desert of Maine's dunes and Mast Landing's trails are minutes away.
Pop. 8,737 (2020 Census) Cumberland County Founded 1789 (incorporated) Nearest airport: Portland (PWM), about 25 min Known for: L.L.Bean flagship, outlet shopping, Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park, Desert of Maine
- Best for: shopping, easy hikes, families, birdwatching, day trips from Portland
- Don't miss: L.L.Bean Flagship Store; Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park; Desert of Maine
- Heads up: Mast Landing Audubon Sanctuary doesn't allow dogs, even leashed.
Inland Maine
9. Bethel
Bethel is a mountain village on the Androscoggin River, at the foot of the Mahoosuc Range. Sunday River's skiing and Chondola are just up the road, and the Maine Mineral & Gem Museum holds the largest piece of the Moon on Earth. Grafton Notch's waterfalls and a walkable covered bridge round it out.
Pop. 2,504 (2020 Census) Oxford County Founded 1796 (incorporated) Nearest airport: Portland (PWM), about 1 hr 30 min Known for: Sunday River skiing, Maine Mineral & Gem Museum, Grafton Notch, Mahoosuc Range
- Best for: skiing, hiking, fall foliage, rockhounding, river floats
- Don't miss: Sunday River; Maine Mineral & Gem Museum; Grafton Notch State Park
- Heads up: Sunday River and Grafton Notch are outside the village, so you'll need a car.
10. Greenville
Greenville sits at the southern end of Moosehead Lake, the largest lake in Maine, and is the gateway to the North Woods. The 1914 steamboat Katahdin still cruises the lake, floatplanes fly out of Greenville Junction and guided tours go looking for moose at dawn and dusk.
Pop. 1,437 (2020 Census) Piscataquis County Founded 1836 (incorporated) Nearest airport: Bangor (BGR), about 1 hr 30 min Known for: Moosehead Lake, steamboat Katahdin, seaplanes, moose watching, Mount Kineo
- Best for: moose watching, lake cruises, seaplane rides, hiking, snowmobiling
- Don't miss: Steamboat Katahdin and the Moosehead Marine Museum; Seaplane rides with Currier's Flying Service; Guided moose tours
- Heads up: Greenville is the last full-service town before the North Woods; cell service is spotty beyond it.
- July–August: Peak season on the coast. Beaches, boat tours and windjammer trips are all running, and towns like Bar Harbor and Ogunquit are at their busiest, so book rooms early.
- Late September–October: Foliage moves north to south. The north usually peaks in the last week of September, the western mountains around Indigenous Peoples’ Day weekend, and the coast from mid-October on. Acadia’s Park Loop Road stays open until December 1.
- Winter: Bethel is the pick, with Sunday River nearby. Kennebunkport’s Christmas Prelude runs in late November or early December. Many coastal shops and restaurants close for the season.
What is the prettiest small town in Maine?
Camden is a strong answer: Mount Megunticook rises right behind the harbor. Ogunquit is close, with the 1.25-mile Marginal Way running along the shore.
What small towns in Maine are best for a weekend?
Bar Harbor gives you Acadia National Park. From Boston or Portland, Kennebunkport and Ogunquit are the easiest pair to do together.
What is the smallest town in Maine worth visiting?
Greenville has about 1,400 people and sits at the foot of Moosehead Lake. The steamboat Katahdin, built in 1914, still runs on the lake.
What are the best small towns in inland Maine?
Bethel is a mountain village near Sunday River, on the southern rim of the Mahoosuc Range. Greenville is the gateway to the North Woods.