Bar Harbor, ME Summary

photo by StefQ

Bar Harbor is on Mt Desert Island off the Atlantic coast and has a population of 4,589. In 1947, a huge fire burned down many of the gracious mansions across the island. Luckily, some of the impressive houses remained; many of them have been transformed into elegant guesthouses, inns, and restaurants since the fire. Quite a number of hotels, motels, and shops have also sprung up in Bar Harbor in the past 50 years. Luckily, this doesn’t detract from the beauty of the site, which is located on Frenchman’s Bay.

The racing fleet is based in Northeast Harbor. Arcady Music Festival presents concerts on different sites on and near the island throughout the year. The Bar Harbor Festival runs from mid-July to mid-August.

Dr Robert Abbe founded Abbe Museum in 1928 to preserve and celebrate Maine’s Native American heritage. Visitors can come here to learn about several Indian groups, such as the Maliseet, Micmac, Passamaquoddy, and Penobscot.

There are hands-on programs, workshops, and rotating exhibits covering 10,000 years of history.

It is an award-winning museum, open May to October.

There is an airport in Bar Harbor, and Bangor International Airport is situated just 40 miles to the northwest. Buses also service the area, and there is a car ferry that travels to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.