Lobsters & Lighthouses in Southern Maine
Area Summary
The southern Maine coastline is a great summer destination. Filled with tons of beaches, small town boutiques and places to get lobster at almost every corner. While we couldn’t see it all, here our some places we suggest you should check out!
Campground(s) we stayed
Moody Beach RV Resort and Campground. This is a Thousand Trails campground located in Wells, Maine. It’s a short 5-minute drive to the Atlantic shoreline, with an active calendar of events, along with a pool and hot tub! But remember to book early as the summer months fill up quick, especially for big rigs. If you’d like more information on the campground comment and we’ll get back to you asap!
Things to do
Beaches – Foot Bridge Beach, Ogunquit Beach, Wells Beach and so many more
There are tons of beaches to choose from along the southern Maine coastline. During our stay we went to the following beaches:
Footbridge Beach – Like the name states there is a small footbridge to cross to get to this beach. The views before entering are beautiful not only of the coastline but of the beachfront houses. This is also a great spot for kayaking, canoeing or paddle boarding. They have a boat drop right off the parking lot and the current is just enough to give you a good workout (going up stream that is). Just remember to bring some cash for parking it costs $20 for a car and $10 for a motorcycle before 5pm.
Ogunquit Beach – This beach is really neat as it is in the shape of a peninsula. You have the option to sit on the outer (Atlantic) side where the waves are bigger and you can see amazing views of the Maine coastline or to sit on the inner side viewing the Maine coastal real estate. With our recent paddle-board purchase we had a great time learning how to use it at this beach, the water was nice and shallow during low tide.
Wells Beach – Before getting to this beach there is small beach town with shops and places to eat. We took the bike and went later in the afternoon so parking wasn’t a problem for us, but for cars there is a lot with a pay station. The lot was small and other parking for Wells beach requires a parking sticker from the Town Hall.
The link above has a great guide on all the South Maine beaches you can visit.
Town of Ogunquit – shopping, food market, candy shop and more
We frequently visited the town of Ogunquit during our stay in Wells. It was a short 5-minute drive from the campground with several shops; including, a boutique food market that sells great wines and cheeses, and a bunch of stores to buy Maine themed souvenirs like t-shirts, trinkets, magnets, etc. We also had fun walking through their children’s toy store and massive candy shop. With so many delicious candies and chocolates to choose, we definitely got more than one.
Maine is filled with beautiful picturesque lighthouses. We couldn’t help but take pictures of the few we did have time to see. If you do want to take some pictures of your own we defiantly suggest going to:
Goat Island Lighthouse
- Cape Neddick Lighthouse, which is located off York Beach
- Goat Island Lighthouse can be seen from Cape Porpoise Pier or by boat tour
- Owl’s Head Lighthouse located on Pemaquide Point in Owls Head State Park
Or choose one of your own… the link above is great as it lists all the lighthouses in Maine.
Portland – Old Port and Casco Ferry
We took a day trip up to Old Port in Portland and wish we could have spent more time there. With so many things to do and see we decided to take the Casco Bay Ferry to Peaks Island. Where we enjoyed an early dinner at the Inn at Peaks Island and watched the sun set over the bay. While we only went to one island the Casco Bay line has ferry’s to the following islands; Peaks Island, Long Island, Chebeague Island, Cliff Island, Little Diamond Island, and Great Diamond Island; each with their own unique atmosphere and list of fun things to do. Be sure to do your research and check out the ferry schedules to find the best island trip for you.
Holding a live lobster at the Wells Farmers Market
Want fresh local Maine foods you can cook on your own? The Well’s Farmers Market is filled with local farmers and producers selling vegetables, produce, meats, jarred goods, chocolates, cheese and so much more. Oh, and you can’t forget fresh local Maine Lobster! It’s located on Sanford Road, Route 109 in the Wells Town Hall parking lot. It takes place every Wednesday from 1:30-5pm, no matter what the weather. The Market typically opens for the season at the end of May and closes mid October. While most vendors take credit cards, some only take cash; so don’t forget to have some on hand.
Portsmouth, NH (not in Maine but it a short drive over the Maine boarder)
Portsmouth, NH could easily be a post of it’s own but with it being so close to where we were staying in Maine we took a day trip to check it out. Here are the few places we went if you want to check them out too! We started our day with a brief history lesson and took a self-guided tour of the USS Albacore, full post here. Than we went into down town Portsmouth for a little fun… we went into a bookstore that was also a bar called Portsmouth Book & Bar, a coffee shop called Breaking New Grounds and had a flight of beers at the The Portsmouth Brewery. All within walking distance of each other located on Pleasant Street and Market Square. What a fun town, we will have to come back here again to do some more exploring.
Places we ate
This place has amazing omelets! As you can probably tell from the name they pump out omelets fast. We came here twice during our month stay, they have 43 omelets on the menu to choose from and you can ask to add or remove any of the items but no substitutions. Our first visit we had, The Western (green peppers, onion, ham) and The Veggie (shredded zucchini, mushrooms, onions, black olives). Our second trip we had, The Four by Four (ham, mushrooms, onions and American cheese) and Asparagus (asparagus, onions, tomatoes and American cheese +ham). All omelets are serviced with half an English muffin, a slice of sweet bread and their homemade strawberry jam (that can be purchase by the jar at the register). They don’t just have omelets; there are several other breakfast foods you can order too! The place is small but the food is served quick and hot! You have the option to sit at the bar and watch the chef prepare your meal, which is also pretty cool. They are open 6 days a week, closed on Mondays. Open 8am to 12pm on weekdays and 7am to 1pm on weekends.
This place is great for a good old fashion lobster dinner. Right before you walk into the restaurant there is an area with chefs and huge lobster-pots where the lobsters are cooked. The front lawn is fill with tall pine trees and different colored Adirondack chairs and inside is a small gift shop where you can buy some Maine and ‘Lobster Pound’ memorabilia. We both enjoyed the surf and turf dinner; steak tips and two lobster tails, it was delicious.
Right across the road from the Lobster Pound on Main Street is the Egg & I. Serving breakfast and lunch; they’re open from 6am to 2pm on weekdays and 6am to 2:30pm on the weekends. They have tons of breakfast options, you can choose from waffles to French toast to pancakes or eggs any way you can think of. We had the eggs Benedict and the spinach bacon mushroom omelet with a side of pancakes with real maple syrup. It was very good and definitely hit the spot for a late morning breakfast.
Located in the heart of Oqunquit this artisanal pizza and craft bar restaurant has just that, great homemade pizza’s cooked in their stone oven along with large array of hand crafted and imported beer. Sit on their outdoor patio to check out down town Oqunquit while enjoying one of their gourmet pizzas. We had The Farmhouse (acorn squash puree [brown sugar and spices], goat cheese, prosciutto and toasted pecans) and Sweet Chicken Fig Pizza (rosemary roasted pulled chicken, fig chutney, mascarpone cheese, fire roasted red sauce & fig balsamic glaze) paired with Smuttynose Finestkind IPA. Very tasty! We suggest sticking to the beer and pizza, as it’s what they do best!
If you are in the mood for a classic Maine style lobster roll filled with big pieces of lobster meat stop at Jake’s Seafood. Located on 139 Post Road in Moody Beach on the corner of Bourne Ave. It’s a short ride from the Moody Beach campground and you can make a quick stop for lunch take out on your way to the beach.
Located in down town Ogunquit, So Zap is an Urban Thai Kitchen serving unique Thai dishes. We sat on their outdoor front porch dining area and had a late night dinner of Green Chicken Curry and the Lobster Pad Thai special. The Lobster Pad Thai was served in a unique edible egg/crape bowl, making my meal delicious and really cool looking. The wait staff was extremely friendly and the food was very good.
Lobster Pad Thai from So Zap
A little off the beaten path this coffee shop and joint breakfast restaurant was worth the trip. Located on Shore Road in Oqunquit, near the entrance to Perkins Cove, it is open 6 days a week (closed on Wednesday) from 7am to 1pm. You can have your choice of omelets, eggs Benedict, French toast, Belgian waffles or some light fair breakfast options. Everything looked so good but we finally decided on the Primavera Omelet (zucchini, asparagus, spinach, tomatoes, basil, cheddar) and the Lobster Benedict (sautéed premium lobster on an English Muffin with hollandaise) with their Bananas Foster French toast (pecan-coated, cream-cheese-stuffed French toast with a side of sautéed bananas in rum syrup) to share. Let’s just say that was our only meal for the day and it was totally worth it!
Overall Opinion
We had a great time in Maine, we even extending our stay an extra week. It is a seasonal travel destinations and our stay during the month of September had great weather and fun. With tons of small coastal towns, beaches and local restaurants you will be sure to find something for everyone.
Would we Recommend?
We would definitely recommend taking a trip to Southern Maine to enjoy lobster, lighthouses and east coast summer time fun!
Wow! Excellent post you two. Feel like I have been there. Oh wait.. I have. 🙂 I love how thorough you are encapsulating so much of what that area has to offer. You two are awesome. Looking forward to when we can meet up again in person.
thanks Marc, what a nice thing to say, especially from folks who also know the effort that goes into these posts! See you soon!
Great post, the food items got my mouth watering. Hope we can make it there someday.
Thanks Chuck, if you plan on visiting let us know if you have any questions. We definitely recommend the trip!