Maine/Canada itinerary - help me focus, please!

I flew into Portland from Chicago. Small, pleasant airport. We also picked up our vacation car rental at the airport and headed south to Boston. I suppose one advantage of flying into Boston would give you an opportunity to visit Salem or Kennebunkport on the way to Portland. It's an easy drive on I-95. Seems easier to fly into Portland imo.

We spent 2 nights in Portland then one night in Wells Beach (very nice leisure beach) before heading to Salem/Boston. Seemed long enough, although it rained one day whcih jacked up our Peaks Island trip.

Also consider Manchester New Hampshire as an airport. Use whichever is the cheapest for flight and auto.

6 nights in Maine is o.k. except more is better !

Look at staying in Rockland ( Rockland Harbor Hotel ) and York as well as Acadia area

We really enjoyed our time in New Brunswick. With only 4 days, I would just go there, instead of splitting your time with Nova Scotia. We stayed in St. Andrews on 2 separate trips. A visit to Campobello (FDR’s summer home) makes a nice day trip from St. Andrews. We also stayed in a couple of nights in Alma, nice short hikes in that area, view the Bay of Fundy tides, Hopewell Rocks. St Martins is another nice town along the coast. We spent one night in St John. That would not be my first choice of where to stay but it would be convenient for the ferry.

Have you determined how you will get back home? Will you return the rental car in Portland? It’s a long drive — the inland route will save you some time. Boston or Manchester would be longer. How will the rental car work? We drove our own car so I don’t know about taking rental cars to Canada.

Hope you have a nice trip.

In the past, a car US to Canada was never a problem. Just let the car agency know what you plan to do. Portland is better than Boston unless you have specific things in mind. Given the time you have, I would skip Canada - it deserves more than 4 nights. From Portland, follow Hwy 1 along the coast to Acadia NP and you will have lots of great activities and sights. Wiscasset for lobster rolls at Red's or Sprague's. New Harbor & Pemquid Point for traditional New England pix. Camden for shopping. Searsport for Maritime museum & restaurant. And much more to do and see all over.

As a proud Haligonian, I am of course partial to spending time in Nova Scotia. However, with the distance to cover between locations and such little time, I think you would end up disappointed in what you could see with only 2 nights (or even 4).

I would recommend spending all your time in the Maine/NH region or spending all your time in the 3 maritime provinces, NS, NB, and PEI. You could easily fill a 2 week itinerary between these three provinces and have a wonderful adventure!
A few ideas include time spent on the Cabot Trail on Cape Breton Island, a few days in Halifax to explore the Citadel, waterfront and Peggy's Cove, time in Lunenburg or the Annapolis Valley before making your way to New Brunswick and Hopewell Rock, ending your time in PEI. Tons to see and do!

Whatever you choose, have a fantastic time!

PQ

Fly into Portland. I think coastal Maine is better in midcoast and Acadia. Maine is known for its rocky coast. Maybe spend 3 nights in the Boothbay Harbor area & 3 nights in Bar Harbor/Northeast Harbor/ Southwest Harbor on Mount Desert Island, which is where most of Acadia National Park is located.

Fly into Boston or Portland?

We don't know where you're starting from - you may find better schedules, possibly non-stops, and perhaps better prices flying into Boston. There is an amazing amount of stuff to see in and around Boston, if you wanted to add some urban flavor to your trip.

Maine has so much to see that I wonder if it's worth the effort to try to get to Canada on this trip. Keep in mind that the Maine coastline is 3,478 miles long if you trace all the inlets - slightly longer than the California coastline.

3) What is a reasonable itinerary for 4 nights in Canada? Now that I've started researching, I'd like to spend approximately 15 nights there. :) Would it be possible to spend 2 nights in Saint John, then ferry to Nova Scotia for 2 nights ? Or should we focus on one province?

Hello. New Brunswicker here. No offense to my neighbours from Saint John, but it is of very little touristic interest. It is an industrial port and oil refinery city. If you really want to go to Nova Scotia, I would go straight from Maine to Nova Scotia in one day, via either the Portland-Yarmouth or Saint John-Digby route; then spend your full three or four days in Nova Scotia.

However, I would actually suggest you use your four days in Canada staying just in New Brunswick. Saint Andrews (right on the border) is a fantastic resort town. Saint Martins and/or Alma are where you can see the world record Fundy tides. And the Moncton/Shediac/Cap Pele area is both the home of Acadian (French) culture and the warmest beaches north of Virginia.

Bon voyage!

You'll find plenty to do in Maine for that amount of time. I would save Canada for another trip, especially if you are flying in and out of the same place. Traffic in July will slow down your driving, so take that into account. It can get very backed-up along I-95 as people migrate up from the big cities on Fridays and Saturdays, and then the other way as everyone goes home on Sunday afternoon.

Portland is a nice town to spend a day or two. If you like shopping, Kittery and Freeport are good stops (and Bob's Clam Shack in Kittery is awesome). My favorite sandy beach is Ogunquit. The water will be COLD anywhere in Maine in July! Also see if you can take a whale-watching cruise somewhere in your travels.

Have a great trip!

Once you travel east from Schoodic, a beautiful, less crowded part of Acadia NP, there’s not as much to see in Downeast Maine. I suggest driving through and staying on Campobello Island for more choices of lodging and food. We stayed in Machias a couple of years ago and were surprised to find both restaurants in town closed at 7:30 pm, making eating choices very limited. The clam shack stopped serving hot food at 6:30. If we go again, we will stay on Campobello. In addition to the Roosevelt cottage, there are some beautiful provincial parks. Don’t forget that CI is on Atlantic time so you lose an hour when you cross the border.

If you are interested in a water adventure, you can take a small car ferry from Campobello to Deer Island, drive across the island and take another ferry to St George NB, close to St Andrew’s, a beautiful little coastal town.

Another option for flying is to fly into Bangor. It’s 50 miles from Bar Harbor. You could still travel to the mid-coast and return travel from New Brunswick would be much simpler. Delta, American and United all fly into Bangor.