Scenic Spots & Lighthouses

Explore Maine's most iconic lighthouses and scenic coastal landmarks, from Portland Head Light to the red-striped tower at West Quoddy Head.

All Lighthouses & Scenic Spots

37 locations across Maine

Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse

Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse

Bass Harbor, acadia

An 1858 lighthouse perched on a cliff at the southern tip of Mount Desert Island in Acadia National Park, with dramatic views and a steep staircase down to the rocks.

easy 0.2 mi acadia

Coastal Cliff Photography

Portland Head Light

Portland Head Light

Cape Elizabeth, greater-portland

Maine's oldest lighthouse (1791) stands 80 feet tall in Fort Williams Park, Cape Elizabeth. The most photographed lighthouse in America with a museum in the keeper's house.

easy 1 mi greater-portland

Coastal Museum Fort

West Quoddy Head Lighthouse

West Quoddy Head Lighthouse

Lubec, downeast

The red-and-white striped lighthouse at the easternmost point in the United States. Built in 1858, with a visitor center and coastal hiking trails in Quoddy Head State Park.

easy 2 mi downeast

Coastal Easternmost State Park

Acadia Carriage Roads acadia

Acadia Carriage Roads

Bar Harbor, acadia

45 miles of car-free broken-stone roads through Acadia National Park with 17 handcrafted stone bridges, ideal for biking, walking, and cross-country skiing.

easy 45 mi acadia

Biking Stone Bridges Rockefeller

Artist's Covered Bridge western-mountains

Artist's Covered Bridge

Bethel, western-mountains

Maine's most painted covered bridge, built in 1872 over the Sunday River in Newry, named for impressionist painter John Enneking who worked here often.

easy 0.1 mi western-mountains

Historic Photography Sunday River

Bubble Rock

Bubble Rock

Bar Harbor, acadia

A 100-ton glacial erratic balanced on the cliff edge of South Bubble, deposited by retreating glaciers 16,000 years ago with views over Jordan Pond.

moderate 1.8 mi acadia

Glacial Erratic Geology Jordan Pond

Bug Light greater-portland

Bug Light

South Portland, greater-portland

A small Greek Revival lighthouse in South Portland's Bug Light Park with Portland skyline views, WWII shipyard history, and spectacular sunsets.

easy 0.5 mi greater-portland

Portland Skyline Sunset Cumberland County

Burnt Island Lighthouse

Burnt Island Lighthouse

Boothbay Harbor, midcoast

Built in 1821 on a five-acre island near Boothbay Harbor, this living history lighthouse is accessible by boat with nature trails and the original stone tower.

easy 0.5 mi midcoast

Living History Boothbay Harbor Boat Tour

Cadillac Mountain Summit

Cadillac Mountain Summit

Bar Harbor, acadia

The highest point on the North Atlantic coast at 1,532 feet. Famous for first-in-the-nation sunrises, with 360-degree views over Acadia, Frenchman Bay, and the Maine islands.

easy 0.3 mi acadia

Sunrise Panoramic Views National Park

Colby College Museum of Art greater-portland

Colby College Museum of Art

Waterville, greater-portland

A major art museum on the Colby College campus with free admission, over 800 Alex Katz works, and nearly 8,000 pieces of American art.

greater-portland

art Museum Free Admission Alex Katz

Deer Isle downeast

Deer Isle

Blue Hill, downeast

A scenic island reached by suspension bridge, home to working fishing villages, the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, granite quarries, and Stonington harbor.

Island Fishing Village Stonington

Desert of Maine

Desert of Maine

Freeport, greater-portland

A 40-acre glacial sand deposit in the middle of Freeport's forests, with guided tours, gem panning, and one of Maine's strangest geological landscapes.

easy 0.5 mi greater-portland

Geological Oddity Glacial Deposit Freeport

Fort Gorges greater-portland

Fort Gorges

Portland, greater-portland

An abandoned Civil War-era granite fort on an island in Portland Harbor, accessible only by kayak, with ruins to explore and Casco Bay views.

easy 0.3 mi greater-portland

Historic Island Kayak

Fort Williams Park

Fort Williams Park

Cape Elizabeth, greater-portland

A 90-acre oceanfront park in Cape Elizabeth surrounding Portland Head Light with walking trails, fort ruins, cliff views, and a children's garden.

easy 1 mi greater-portland

Coastal Fort Ruins Family Friendly

Haystack Mountain School of Crafts

Haystack Mountain School of Crafts

Deer Isle, downeast

A modernist campus on granite ledge above the Atlantic on Deer Isle. Award-winning architecture, craft workshops, and public tours from May through October.

easy 0.3 mi downeast

Architecture Modernist Atlantic Views

Islesford (Little Cranberry Island) acadia

Islesford (Little Cranberry Island)

Northeast Harbor, acadia

A tiny year-round island community reached by mail boat from Northeast Harbor, with a historical museum, lobster dock, and unhurried island atmosphere.

easy 1 mi acadia

Museum Mail Boat Lobster

Katahdin Iron Works moosehead

Katahdin Iron Works

Brownville Junction, moosehead

Ruins of an 1843 charcoal iron smelter in the North Woods, featuring a towering stone blast furnace, kiln remains, and the gateway road to Gulf Hagas.

easy 0.3 mi moosehead

Historic Site Industrial Ruins North Woods

Marginal Way

Marginal Way

Ogunquit, southern-maine

A 1.25-mile paved cliff walk above the Atlantic in Ogunquit, from Shore Road to Perkins Cove. One of Maine's most famous walks, with ocean views the entire way.

easy 1.25 mi southern-maine

Ogunquit Cliff Walk Coastal

Marshall Point Lighthouse

Marshall Point Lighthouse

Port Clyde, midcoast

An 1857 lighthouse in Port Clyde made famous by Forrest Gump. Walk the distinctive catwalk to the tower, visit the free museum, and take in views of Muscongus Bay.

easy 0.3 mi midcoast

Coastal Museum Forrest Gump

Monhegan Island midcoast

Monhegan Island

Port Clyde, midcoast

A remote artist colony 12 miles offshore with 150-foot sea cliffs, 17 miles of trails, a working lobster fleet, and over a century of artistic heritage.

moderate 17 mi midcoast

Artist Colony Cliffs Museum

Mount Desert Island Scenic Drive acadia

Mount Desert Island Scenic Drive

Bar Harbor, acadia

A 27-mile scenic drive through Acadia National Park passing Sand Beach, Thunder Hole, Otter Cliff, Jordan Pond, and the Cadillac Mountain summit road.

Park Loop Road Coastal

Nubble Light (Cape Neddick)

Nubble Light (Cape Neddick)

York Beach, southern-maine

One of New England's most iconic lighthouses, built in 1879 on a tiny rocky island just offshore in York. Best viewed from Sohier Park on the mainland.

easy 0.1 mi southern-maine

Coastal Island Photography

Owls Head Lighthouse

Owls Head Lighthouse

Owls Head, midcoast

A small 1852 lighthouse perched on a dramatic cliff 100 feet above Penobscot Bay. Short woodland trail, panoramic bay views, and one of Maine's most scenic lighthouse settings.

easy 0.5 mi midcoast

Coastal Cliff Penobscot bay

Owls Head Transportation Museum midcoast

Owls Head Transportation Museum

Rockland, midcoast

A world-class collection of pre-1940 aircraft, automobiles, and engines in working condition, with summer air shows and driving demonstrations on the Midcoast.

Antique Aircraft Automobiles air Shows

Pemaquid Point Lighthouse

Pemaquid Point Lighthouse

Bristol, midcoast

Iconic 1827 lighthouse perched on dramatic layered rock formations in Bristol, with a museum, keeper's house, and some of Maine's best tidal pool exploring.

easy 0.3 mi midcoast

Coastal Museum Rock Formations

Penobscot Narrows Bridge Observatory

Penobscot Narrows Bridge Observatory

Bucksport, midcoast

The tallest public bridge observatory in the world at 420 feet, built into a cable-stayed bridge pylon with 360-degree views of Penobscot Bay and Fort Knox.

easy 0.2 mi midcoast

Fort Knox Penobscot bay Engineering

Quoddy Head State Park

Quoddy Head State Park

Lubec, downeast

The easternmost point in the continental US, with 541 acres of coastal trails, subarctic bogs, dramatic cliffs, and the red-and-white striped West Quoddy Head Lighthouse.

moderate 5 mi downeast

Lubec Easternmost Point Coastal Trails

Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse

Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse

Rockland, midcoast

A 0.9-mile walk along a granite breakwater to a lighthouse at the tip, with sweeping views of Rockland Harbor, the Camden Hills, and Penobscot Bay.

moderate 1.8 mi midcoast

Coastal Penobscot bay

Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village greater-portland

Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village

New Gloucester, greater-portland

The last active Shaker community in the world, a National Historic Landmark in New Gloucester with museum tours, historic buildings, gardens, and a working farm.

easy 0.5 mi greater-portland

Historic Museum Living History

Schoodic Point

Schoodic Point

Winter Harbor, acadia

Wave-swept granite peninsula on the only mainland section of Acadia, with powerful surf, dark volcanic dikes in pink granite, and views across Frenchman Bay.

easy 1 mi acadia

Coastal Granite Surf

Seguin Island Lighthouse midcoast

Seguin Island Lighthouse

Phippsburg, midcoast

The highest lighthouse in Maine at 180 feet above sea level, housing the state's only first-order Fresnel lens, accessible by seasonal ferry from Popham Beach.

moderate 0.5 mi midcoast

Boat Access Fresnel Lens

Songo Lock

Songo Lock

Naples, greater-portland

A hand-operated lock from 1830 on the Songo River, the last surviving piece of the Cumberland and Oxford Canal connecting Sebago Lake to Long Lake.

easy 0.1 mi greater-portland

Historic Canal Engineering

Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse

Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse

South Portland, greater-portland

The only walk-to caisson lighthouse in the U.S., connected by a granite breakwater with panoramic views of Portland Harbor, Fort Gorges, and Casco Bay.

easy 0.5 mi greater-portland

Coastal Portland Harbor Breakwater

Thunder Hole

Thunder Hole

Bar Harbor, acadia

An iconic rock inlet in Acadia where waves compress and boom like thunder, sending spray 40 feet high. Along Park Loop Road, two miles south of Bar Harbor.

easy 0.3 mi acadia

bar Harbor Coastal Waves

Victoria Mansion greater-portland

Victoria Mansion

Portland, greater-portland

The finest pre-Civil War Italian villa in the US, with 90% original furnishings, frescoed ceilings, hand-carved woodwork, and tours May through October.

greater-portland

Historic House Architecture Portland

Wedding Cake House southern-maine

Wedding Cake House

Kennebunk, southern-maine

The most photographed house in Maine, an 1825 Federal-style home in Kennebunk covered in ornate Gothic Revival woodwork that looks like cake frosting.

easy southern-maine

Architecture Gothic Revival Historic

Wyeth Center at Farnsworth Art Museum midcoast

Wyeth Center at Farnsworth Art Museum

Rockland, midcoast

Three generations of Wyeth art at the Farnsworth Museum in Rockland, including Andrew Wyeth's Maine paintings and access to the Olson House from Christina's World.

American art Rockland Knox County

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Wildlife + Lighthouse Viewing Kit

Optics and essentials for Maine's lighthouses, wildlife viewing, and scenic overlooks.

Nikon Prostaff P3 8x42 $170

Wildlife & bird watching

Celestron Nature DX 8x42 $160

Budget-friendly birding

Vortex Diamondback HD 10x42 $250

Long-distance wildlife viewing

Anker PowerCore 10000 $30

Best all-around 10K power bank

JOTO Waterproof Phone Pouch $8

Lake & beach phone protection

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