Maine Lobster Festival 2024

Pick-up Locations

TBD AM - Dubois
TBD AM - Clearfield
TBD AM - Philipsburg
TBD AM - State College
TBD AM-Lamar
TBD AM-Bloomsburg

Please arrive at your pick-up location 15 minutes prior to scheduled departure.

Day 1

Make your way north to New England today. Check in to the Holiday Inn Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The full-service hotel features an indoor heated pool, restaurant & lounge. The hotel is approximately 1 mile from the historic waterfront district of downtown Portsmouth and the Maine border.

On your way to dinner you will stop for a photo of Maine's southernmost beacon, the Nubble Lighthouse in Cape Neddick near York Beach.

A classic Downeast lobsterbake dinner with sing-a-long entertainment is included for you tonight! You'll feast on your choice of Maine boiled lobster (or barbecued chicken or vegetarian meal), plus chowder, steamed mussels depending on season and availability, corn on the cob, Maine potatoes and blueberry cake.

Day 2

Buffet breakfast included at the hotel this morning.

Travel north through the New Hampshire seacoast region and across the bridge to Maine. Welcome to Vacationland!

Your first stop is the Franciscan Monastery along the river in Kennebunkport. Restroom stop here and enjoy the gracious Lithuanian architecture and gardens. Meet the Maine Lobsterette who will have walking maps for the villages you'll be visiting and a souvenir lobster hat for each passenger.

Then you'll board a special lobster boat for a Maine lobstering cruise. Learn how the Maine lobstermen make their living as traps are hauled from the ocean along the rocky coast of Kennebunkport on this one-hour cruise. See the sights as you cruise on the ocean past Walkers Point, the Dark Shadows House and Bumpkin Island, home to a year-round colony of sea birds and seals.

Free time for shopping and lunch on own in Dock Square.

Make your way north to check in to the Fairfield Inn in Bangor for a two night stay. The hotel features an indoor pool and guest rooms with 2QQ or 1 K bed, mini fridges in rooms. You will enjoy a Welcome reception on arrival.

Next you will enjoy a fabulous dinner included in downtown Bangor - and a group photo with the giant Paul Bunyan statue.

Day 3

After your included hot breakfast, you will travel to Bar Harbor. Cross the causeway to Mt. Desert Island, named for the bare "desert-like" mountaintops next to the ocean. The town of Bar Harbor sits here at the gateway to Acadia National Park and is a friendly collection of streets, shops and restaurants atop a hill that overlooks the harbor where tour boats and fishing vessels are moored.

Meet your local guide for a three-hour morning tour of Acadia National Park. Bar Harbor has been celebrated for its breathtaking beauty ever since the island was discovered in 1604 by Samuel de Champlain, who named it "Isle de Monts Desert" (Mt. Desert Island) for its bare, desert-like mountaintops. You'll see tremendous coastline views that have attracted the elite to this area for years and hear stories of the Victorian "rusticators", more recent visitors and famous residents. Highlights of this tour include the stunning Loop Road, the summit of Cadillac Mountain, the crashing waves at Thunder Hole and quiet beauty of the inland park scenery and Jordan Pond

Enjoy a free afternoon for shopping and lunch on own, with many shops and eateries along the Bar Harbor waterfront. There is also a paved, shoreline walking path with benches overlooking the harbor. Plus the Abbe Museum (Maine's Native American heritage museum) and a village green to sit and enjoy the salty breezes.

Regroup for an early lobster dinner. Roll up your sleeves for a traditional downeast feast including choice of lobster or alternate menu - plus Maine potatoes, corn on the cob, and a blueberry dessert.

On your way back to Bangor, you'll be treated to unique Maine entertainment at the Great Maine Lumberjack Show. See "the Olympics of the Forest" re-enacted as the lumberjacks and loggers used to compete 100 years ago. You will hear the big crosscut saws singing in the forest, just as you would have heard in a logging camp competition in the Maine woods...and you will watch the thrilling lumberjack sports of wood chopping and sawing, tree climbing, ax throwing, and everyone's favorite... log rolling... all exhibited with a modern twist, mixed with history, comedy, and lots non-stop, razor-sharp action!

Day 4

After your included hot breakfast, you will make your way to mid-coast Maine's Camden area, where the mountains meet the sea. Have your camera ready for a photo stop atop Mt. Battie within the beautiful Camden Hills State Park. You'll see sweeping views of Penobscot Bay and the surrounding islands.

Continue south to nearby Rockland, the Lobster Capital!
Attend the 77th Annual Maine Lobster Festival along the Rockland harborfront in mid-coast Maine, where lobster is king! Feasting and festivities are in store for you with music, fine arts, crafts, entertainment - and of course-feasting hot Maine lobster dining and other Maine delicacies such as blueberry pie, fried clams, shrimp cocktail, steamed mussels!

Enjoy lunch on your own at the festival with seafood and non-seafood options. At last year's festival nearly 20,000 pounds of lobster were prepared in the world's largest lobster cooker. Rockland is the entry point to Penobscot Bay, perhaps the most scenic body of water on the eastern seaboard. There is a wonderful boardwalk surrounding the park so you can sit back and enjoy the festivities and ocean breezes! Or explore Rockland's Main Street with art galleries and shops just steps from the gate.

Cool off and learn all about the beautiful beacons of Maine in the air-conditioned Maine Lighthouse Museum, located at the entrance to the festival.

On your return trip to Portsmouth, you will make a stop to explore Freeport Village, home of sporting goods king, L.L. Bean and numerous outlet shops. Have your photo taken in front of the giant Bean Boot.

Dinner is included this evening at a Local Favorite in Freeport.

Make your way south back to the Holiday Inn Portsmouth for the night.

Day 5

Make your way home after your included breakfast - with your magical Maine coast memories!

Apprxo Returns

TBD-Bloomsburg
TBD-Lamar
TBD-State College
TBD-Philipsburg
TBD-Clearfield
TBD-Dubois

PLEASE NOTE:

Every effort will be made to provide the itinerary as outlined however Fullington reserves the right to substitute a comparable attraction, accommodation, meal etc. based on availability with or without notice. Passengers will be notified as soon as possible of any itinerary updates.

FB=Full Breakfast, D=Dinner