Visit Maine!
Maine is a wonderful place to visit in all seasons of the year. There are so many stunning landscapes, islands, beaches, mountains, rivers, forests, and wild places to explore. It truly is magnificent. And since tourism is one of Maine’s specialties, there is a lot of resources and organizations to help you plan a trip. This website, VisitMaine, offers ideas, activities, places, and information for a trip to Maine.
Below we have listed some of the museums, performing arts venues, national parks, gardens, and arboretums. The underlined names are all links to their websites—enjoy learning more about our beloved state. Oh, and restaurants: A list of Maine Restaurants.
Art Museums
o Maine Art Museum Trail – A listing of various public art collections found across the state.
o Bates College Museum of Art – Lewiston. The museum is noted for its collection of works by Lewiston native Marsden Hartley.
o Bowdoin College Museum of Art – Brunswick. An important collection of 18th–20th-century American art, 15th–19th-century European art, and Greek and Roman antiquities, in a landmark building. A dynamic schedule of changing exhibitions throughout the year.
o Center for Maine Contemporary Art – Rockport. Work by emerging Maine artists.
o Colby College Museum of Art – Waterville. An outstanding permanent collection of 18th-, 19th- and 20th-century American art, as well as an active temporary exhibition program.
o Farnsworth Art Museum – Rockland. Features Maine artists, including Wyeth paintings.
o L.C. Bates Museum – Art, natural history, archaeology, and Americana in a unique 1903 granite building on the campus of the Good Will Home for Children.
o Maine Jewish Museum – Portland. Celebrates Maine’s Jewish Art, history and culture in a restored 1921 Synagogue
o Ogonquit Museum of American Art – Ogunquit. Houses an internationally-known permanent collection of 20th century American art.
o Portland Museum of Art – Holds an extensive collection of fine and decorative arts dating from the 18th century to the present. The Museum also offers lectures by visiting scholars and artists, periodic film series, and art history courses.
o Stanley Museum – Kingfield. The museum contains 1905, 1910, and 1916 steam cars, violins, paintings, airbrush portraits, photography and family archives. The museum is housed in a 1903 school building.
o University of Maine Museum of Art – Located on the UMA campus in Orono hosts contemporary artists and ideas, as well as exhibitions organized from the permanent collection.
Children's Museums
o Children's Discovery Museum – Augusta
o Children's Museum & Theatre of Maine – Portland. Offers a wide variety of interactive exhibits and programs for children of all ages.
o Maine Discovery Museum – Bangor
Performing Arts
These venues offer a range of performances including music, theatre, and comedy across the state.
o Maine Savings Amphitheater – Bangor: Large outdoor waterfront venue.
o Cross Insurance Arena – Portland: Major indoor venue for large concerts.
o Merrill Auditorium – Portland: Historic venue for concerts and theater.
o State Theatre – Portland: Historic downtown venue for national acts.
o Thompson's Point – Portland: Outdoor summer concert series venue.
o Cross Insurance Center – Bangor: Indoor arena for concerts and sports.
o Darling's Waterfront Pavilion – Bangor: Open-air venue.
o Snow Pond Center for the Arts – Sidney: Known for amphitheater performances.
Local & Historic Venues
o Stone Mountain Arts Center – Brownfield: Timber frame music hall.
o One Longfellow Square – Portland: Intimate venue for acoustic and folk.
o Opera House at Boothbay Harbor – Boothbay Harbor: Historic, year-round venue.
o The Strand Theatre – Rockland: Historic venue for live shows.
o Camden Opera House – Camden: 19th-century venue for performances.
o Portland House of Music & Events – Portland: Mid-sized club in downtown.
o Mayo Street Arts – Portland: Community-focused performing arts center.
o Johnson Hall Performing Arts Center – Gardiner: Historic theater.
Smaller Venues in Portland
o Aura – Downtown venue for concerts and events.
o Blue – Known for jazz and local music.
o Geno's Rock Club – Local music and rock venue.
o Space Gallery – Unique, independent arts space.
o The Apohadion Theater – Intimate venue for local and touring acts.
o Brick South – Large indoor event space on Thonpson’s Point
National Parks & Landmarks
Acadia National Park – Famous for Cadillac Mountain and coastal views.
Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument – Offers hiking and river trips.
Saint Croix Island International Historic Site – Commemorates the 1604 French settlement.
Appalachian National Scenic Trail – Extends through Maine to Mount Katahdin.
Popular State Parks
o Baxter State Park – Known for Mount Katahdin and intense wilderness.
o Camden Hills State Park – Offers panoramic views of Penobscot Bay.
o Grafton Notch State Park – Features waterfalls, gorges, and Appalachian Trail access.
o Popham Beach State Park – Known for sandy beaches and tidal pools.
o Reid State Park – A popular, sandy ocean beach.
o Two Lights State Park – Rocky coast with ocean views.
o Wolfe's Neck Woods State Park – Coastal wooded trails.
o Bradbury Mountain State Park – Popular for hiking and biking.
o Sebago Lake State Park – Features camping and sandy beaches.
o Mount Blue State Park – Offers swimming, boating, and hiking.
o Allagash Wilderness Waterway – A 92-mile waterway for canoeing.
o Cobscook Bay State Park – Known for its high tides.
o Rangeley Lake State Park – Lakeside camping and fishing.
o Ferry Beach State Park – Features white sand beaches.
o Mackworth Island State Park – Scenic walking path.
Gardens and Arboretums
o Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens – Boothbay: New England’s largest botanical garden, featuring 295 acres of native plants, thematic gardens, and iconic troll sculptures.
o Asticou Azalea Garden – Northeast Harbor: A serene Japanese-inspired garden known for its rhododendrons, azaleas, and gravel paths.
o Thuya Garden – Northeast Harbor: Located on a hillside, this garden is renowned for its formal, English-style herbaceous borders.
o McLaughlin Garden & Horticultural Center – South Paris: A historic 1930s farmstead garden famous for its extensive collection of over 200 lilacs.
o Viles Arboretum – Augusta: A 224-acre botanical resource featuring six miles of trails, diverse tree collections, and wetlands.
o Merryspring Nature Center – Camden: A 6-acre park with walking trails, themed gardens, and an arboretum.
o Wild Gardens of Acadia – Bar Harbor: Located at Sieur de Monts in Acadia National Park, showcasing native plants in their natural habitats.
o Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden – Seal Harbor: A renowned, private walled garden with Asian influence, open to the public on a reservation-only basis.
o Beatrix Farrand Garden at Garland Farm – Bar Harbor: The final home and garden of famed landscape architect Beatrix Farrand.
o Charlotte Rhoades Park & Butterfly Garden – Southwest Harbor:A pocket garden on Mount Desert Island designed to attract butterflies.