Maine: Bar Harbor & Acadia National Park

Make your own arrangements for travel to Bar Harbor. If you’re flying to Maine, Bangor International Airport is the closest airport. For suggestions on traveling to Bar Harbor, please refer to your VBT Handbook.

Guests driving to the tour may leave their car in the Bar Harbor Inn’s parking lot for the duration of the tour at no charge.

As you begin biking Acadia National Park, you’ll meet your Local host and any other VBT guests arriving on the same day in the lobby of the Bar Harbor Inn (1 Newport Drive, Bar Harbor, ME, 207.288.3351 in the lovely seaport town of Bar Harbor. At 1:00 p.m., join your VBT Local host for a Welcome Orientation and head out on a short ride.

The Welcome Orientation with your VBT Local host includes:
• An overview of the itinerary
• Bike fitting and equipment familiarization
• Review of the Ride with GPS navigation app
• Important contact information in case you need to reach your VBT Local host
• Safety briefing
• Local suggestions (restaurants, things to do, etc.)

Enjoy one of Bar Harbor’s many fine restaurants for dinner tonight.

Today’s Ride Choices

All Day Bar Harbor to Schooner Head — 8.3

What to Expect: Ride to Schooner Head Scenic Overlook along paved roads and enjoy the lovely ocean views before returning the way you came.

Cumulative Distance Range: 8.3

After breakfast, catch a morning bike ferry (45 minutes) across Frenchman Bay to Schoodic Peninsula (for guests traveling with their own E-bike, please note that E-bikes currently are not allowed on this ferry, an alternative ride from Bar Harbor is provided), the only section of the park on the mainland. This less-trafficked area is a favorite for locals. You’ll ride along the shoreline through classic Down East fishing villages, enjoying the sights and sounds of sea birds, crashing surf, and working lobster boats as you ride to wherever you choose to stop for lunch. Enjoy the peace and serenity of Schoodic Point before riding back to Winter Harbor for the return ferry (45 minutes) to Bar Harbor where you’ll find several delightful options for dinner.

Today’s Ride Choices

All Day Schoodic Loop — 13.4 | Schoodic Loop and Corea — 34 | Grindstone Neck Loop — 5.4 | Witch Hole Pond loop (ALT ride for E-bike riders with their own E-bike) — 8.4

What To Expect:

Schoodic Loop

Begin your day with a 45-minute ferry from Bar Harbor across Frenchmen Bay to Winter Harbor, on the Schoodic Peninsula. Here, you will experience rural riding on the mainland while remaining in Acadia National Park. After leaving Winter Harbor, at just over a half mile you turn due south on the peninsula, reaching the southernmost Schoodic Point at about 6 miles. You then follow the east side of the coast, and loop back toward Winter Harbor at 11 miles, then under 3 miles back to the ferry.

Schoodic Loop and Corea

Begin your day with a 45-minute ferry from Bar Harbor across Frenchmen Bay to Winter Harbor, on the Schoodic Peninsula. Here, you will experience rural riding on the mainland while remaining in Acadia National Park. After leaving Winter Harbor, at just over a half mile you turn due south on the peninsula, reaching the southernmost Schoodic Point at about 6 miles. You then follow the east side of the coast and reach Corea at 16.5 miles, where you may choose to have lunch. The return route is due west, 8 miles directly across the peninsula back to Winter Harbor.

Grindstone Neck Loop

Begin your day with a 45-minute ferry from Bar Harbor across Frenchmen Bay to Winter Harbor, on the Schoodic Peninsula. Here, you will experience rural riding on the mainland while remaining in Acadia National Park. This short loop takes you from the ferry through Winter Harbor and down to Grindstone Point for lovely views of Mt. Desert Narrows and back through Winter Harbor. Add it on to one of the Schoodic Point loops or as a standalone ride.

Witch Hole Pond loop

What to Expect: Depart the Bar Harbor Inn skirting the edge of town and joining the Carriage Roads at the Duck Brook Carriage Road trailhead. A counterclockwise loop provides views of Witch Hole Pond and surrounding wetlands with an option to stop at the Hulls Cove Visitor Center before returning to Bar Harbor.

Included Meals: Breakfast

Today’s route biking Acadia National Park passes Compass Harbor, site of George Dorr’s Old Farm ruins. If you wish, a short hike (one-mile roundtrip) takes you to Dorr Point with views of Compass Harbor and the Porcupine Islands. Continue on the Park Loop to Sand Beach, where you can relax on the shore. After the Fabbri Memorial Picnic Area, you may cycle back to Bar Harbor or, for additional miles, continue on the Park Loop Road past Cadillac Mountain Summit Road. If you’re feeling strong and want to bike to the summit, the road is a steady ascent of 1,000 feet in 3.5 miles but the view from the top is worth the effort. Be forewarned that unless you go early in the morning, the road may be busy with cars. This afternoon, you may choose among several activities (at your own expense) including sea kayaking in Frenchman Bay or a sunset cruise on the schooner Margaret Todd. You may also decide to spend time browsing Bar Harbor’s charming gift shops and boutiques.

Today’s Ride Choices

Short Option Park Loop Road to Sand Beach short option — 14.4

Long Option Park Loop Road base of Cadillac Mountain long option — 22.6 | Long Option with out-and-back ascent of Cadillac Mountain Road — 29.6

What to Expect: Today features a nice ride along the Park Loop Road to Sand Beach where you can spend time on the sand or hike along the cliffs. You’ll return to your cycling route on Park Loop Road and visit Thunder Hole, Otter Cliffs and Fabbri Memorial.

Included Meals: Breakfast

Today, the tranquility of biking Acadia National Park is evident as you cycle the famed car-free carriage roads which were established by John D. Rockefeller. Your loop takes you around Eagle Lake to Jordan Pond where you can enjoy a picnic lunch or a stop at Jordan Pond House for some elegant fare, including their famous lobster stew and golden, lighter-than-air popovers. Then, continue on the Carriage Trails to your inn. In Northeast Harbor, you’ll find attractive boutiques, galleries, gardens, and eateries. Your hotel overlooks a beautiful protected harbor full of sailboats and yachts. Take advantage of the inn’s amenities, which include a clay tennis court and outdoor swimming pool, and dine at a local restaurant.

Today’s Ride Choices

All Day Bar Harbor Inn to Jordan Pond House — 15.1 | Jordan Pond to Northeast Harbor — 4.7

What to Expect: Today you bid farewell to Bar Harbor and head to beautiful Northeast Harbor. After 3 miles, you’ll merge with the carriage roads of Acadia National Park and enjoy miles of car-free riding, passing Eagle Lake and Aunt Betty’s Pond on the way to Jordan Pond, which has a delightful restaurant for lunch with fabulous views. Continue cycling on the carriage roads and a section of the main road on your way to the inn.

Included Meals: Breakfast

You may choose to leave your bike behind as you explore the Down East landscape by boat and on foot today.

After breakfast at the inn, you may enjoy a visit to the Azalea and Thuya Gardens. For exploration on the water, you may choose to book a narrated sea cruise with a short stop on Little Cranberry Island, or you can consult the schedule to catch the mail boat from Northeast Harbor’s port to the island hamlet, home to a year-round community of lobstermen, boat builders, and craftsmen. While on the island, you may want to visit the Islesford Historical Museum before boarding the mail boat back to Northeast Harbor (a 30-minute ride).

Those craving more time in the saddle may enjoy a nice out-and-back ride along the waters of Somes Sound to Suminsby Park. Enjoy a lobster dinner in town or at your classic Maine inn.

Today’s Ride Choices

Non-biking options Optional visits to the Azalea and Thuya Gardens, Little Cranberry Island, and Isleford. —

Biking Sargent Drive — 11.5 miles

What To Expect:

Biking option

An easy out-and-back ride takes you along the water in Northeast Harbor, rounding the point at Gilpatrick Cove and then north along Somes Sound. Your turn-around point is at Suminsby Park, where you return the way you came, perhaps stopping at the Somes Sound Lookout. 

Included Meals: Breakfast

This morning, you can choose the carriage trails one last time or the more direct Park Loop, both options provide views of Eagle Lake and Bubble Pond on your way back to Bar Harbor.

Back in Bar Harbor, the innkeepers of the Inn ask that you depart by 1:00 p.m., so VBT has arranged for showering and changing facilities between noon and 1:00 p.m. For suggestions on traveling from Bar Harbor, please refer to your VBT Handbook. If you arrange for private transportation to Bangor International Airport, travel time from Bar Harbor is approximately 1.25 hours. For this reason, we suggest leaving a minimum of three hours before any flight departure.

Today’s Ride Choices

Combined Ride and Shuttle Option Asticou Inn to Jordan Pond House (to catch Island Explorer shuttle) on Carriage Roads — 4.5

Northeast Harbor return to Bar Harbor on Carriage Roads — 14.9 miles

Included Meals: Breakfast