📷 Photo by Trevor Hayes on UnsplashAcadia National Park
Granite mountains, cobble beaches and 45 miles of historic carriage roads on Mount Desert Island.
- Established
- 1916
- State
- Maine
- Park Loop Road
- 27 mi
- Best season
- Jun–Oct
Before you go
- You need a vehicle reservation to drive up Cadillac Summit Road in season.
- The free Island Explorer bus connects Bar Harbor with most trailheads.
- Fall color usually peaks in mid-October.
Getting around
Park once in Bar Harbor and use the bus. The Park Loop Road passes Sand Beach, Thunder Hole and Jordan Pond, where the popovers are a tradition.
FAQs
Can I see sunrise from Cadillac Mountain?
Yes, but in season you need a sunrise vehicle reservation, released in batches on recreation.gov.
Places to see
© Asaf R asafyrov · CC0Cadillac Mountain
The tallest peak on the North Atlantic coast, and often among the first places in the US to see sunrise.…
© giggel · CC BY 3.0Thunder Hole
A rock inlet on Acadia’s Park Loop Road where incoming waves trap air and boom, best about two hours before…
© giggel · CC BY 3.0Jordan Pond
A clear glacial lake below the rounded peaks of the Bubbles, with a flat 3.3-mile loop trail along the…
© giggel · CC BY 3.0Shore Path, Bar Harbor
A level seaside footpath along Frenchman Bay, starting in the middle of Bar Harbor and passing grand old…
© Doug McGrady from Warwick, RI, USA · CC BY 2.0Schoodic Point
The mainland part of Acadia National Park, where a mostly one-way loop road leads to pink granite ledges,…
Mount Battie, Camden Hills State Park
A low summit above Camden with a stone tower and a sweeping view of the harbor, islands and Penobscot Bay.…
© Dennis G. Jarvis · CC BY-SA 2.0Owls Head Light
A short 1852 lighthouse on a high bluff over Rockland Harbor and Penobscot Bay, reached by a short path and…
Campsites nearby
- Blackwoods CampgroundCampsite2 mi fromTentsCaravansDrinking waterWaste disposalDogs allowed
- Smuggler's Den CampgroundCampsite6 mi fromTentsCaravansElectricityDrinking waterWaste disposalDogs allowedWi-Fi
- Schoodic Woods CampgroundCampsite8 mi fromTentsCaravansElectricityDrinking waterWaste disposalDogs allowed
- Hadley's Point CampgroundCampsite9 mi fromTentsCaravansElectricityDrinking waterShowersWaste disposalWi-Fi
- Bass Harbor CampgroundCampsite9 mi fromTentsCaravansElectricityWaste disposalDogs allowedWi-Fi
- Bar Harbor / Oceanside KOA HolidayMotorhome stopover10 mi fromTentsCaravansMotorhomesWaste disposalDogs allowedWi-Fi
All campsites in Maine · Campsite data: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL 1.0 · Updated October 3, 2026
