[JoeyBananaz18]

Hey guys. My girlfriend and I will be driving up to Arcadia National Park in October to do a little bit of biking and taking in some New England scenery. Can anyone recommend any good hotels, resaurants, ect.?

We're making a list ourselves, but if anyone has any inside tips on where to stay, eat or just some cool things to check out, please let me know. Thanks

Joe.

[hmmcolor]

Hah, coincidentally some friends recently had this same request, and my girlfriend is something of an Acadia-area expert, so she wrote them up a list (I apologize if this is a bit "girly"):

-My favorite thing, by far, is having tea/lemonade and popovers + icecream at the Jordon Pond House (also open for lunch and dinner). Whatever they do, they must have popovers and homemade strawberry jam. Also, the icecream is homemade and delicious. My recommendation is to do the popover/tea combination and order lemonade, and then get icecream after (with or without hot fudge). They won't regret it.
-Go for a hike in the national park (there are many around Jordon Pond, and for a more adventurous hike, try precipice or the beehive, another staple is the great slide trail). Also cool to drive or hike up to the top of cadillac mountain (highest in the area).
-Go to Bar Harbor and wander around/eat some lunch or dinner. This area is very touristy, but still fun.
-If they like sailboats, northwest harbor is quite beautiful.
-They should also drive Soames Sound (sp?) - it's a fjord and very pretty - and see the Bass Harbor Head lighthouse.
- Also fun to take some time and walk the part of the park on the coast - there are beautiful granite blocks with the waves crashing into them (e.g. Schoodic)
- For gardens the Asticou and Japanese gardens are not to be missed.
- If they like galleries, head down to Blue Hill and Deer Isle for a day (lots of cool little places and areas to eat)
- For pretty hiking off the park, head to Great and/or Little Cranberry Islands
- Hotels: my favorite is The Crocker House on Hancock Point. It's a country inn/B&B roughly 30 minutes from the park, but has very good food, with the added benefit of having access to the beaches and dock, library, etc. of the community (seaglass hunting is a must on the beaches). If not staying there, eating dinner there is lovely. Le Domaine is another fantastic place for both accomodation and lodging in the same area. On Mount Desert Island (which is where the park is) there are a number of hotels, none of which I've stayed in. The Bluenose Inn in Bar Harbor is the classic, but there is also the Asticou Inn at Northwest Harbor. I believe both of these are very nice.
- Food: Fisherman's inn for the classic Maine seafood/lobster. Try the fried clams, but don't expect anything fancy. Otherwise, roadside stands are generally good, and Le Domaine, the Crocker House, and the Jordan Pond House are the ones we typically go to.