Tours & Museums
Abbe Museum
A most fascinating journey begins at the Abbe Museum. Enjoy the journey through the past and present, and discover the history and heritage of Native Americans of the region. Through exhibitions and programs, the Abbe Museum celebrates the history, archaeology, art and living culture of the Penobscot, Passamaquoddy, Micmac, and Maliseet tribes in Maine.
The Abbe Museum has two locations: 26 Mount Desert Street in downtown Bar Harbor, across from the Village Green, and Sieur de Monts Spring in Acadia National Park off Route 3.
The Abbe Downtown offers a series of exciting exhibitions ranging from works by contemporary Native American artists, to artifacts collected from Maine archaeological sites, to touring exhibitions from other museums focused on Indian art and culture. The Abbe at Sieur de Monts Spring is an historic trail-side museum which opened in 1928, and became the first institution in Maine to sponsor archaeological research. Both locations offer a Museum Shop where you can find one-of-a-kind works by well-known Native artists, or books on topics related to Native American art, culture, and history.
Begin YOUR journey to the Abbe today.
Open 7 Days per Week in both locations from May 24 through October. Downtown hours 10-6pm and Acadia Park hours 9-4 PM. 288-3519
www.abbemuseum.org
Baker Island Park Tour
Chosen by the park superintendent Sheridan Steele as his “favorite ranger guided boat tour.” Join an Acadia National Park Ranger on an exploration of this beautiful and forested 130 acre uninhabited island. Enjoy a fascinating tour that is rich in beautiful scenery, history and wildlife. While onshore, visit the oldest lighthouse in the area, the Gilley family farmstead dating back over two hundred years and the amazing dance floor rock formation. On the return we follow the shoreline of spectacular Ocean drive and take in many of Acadia’s most famous and scenic highlights. Throughout the tour we search for porpoises, seals, birds, eagles and wildlife. Photographer’s dream tour! Call Bar Harbor Whale watch at 288-2386.
www.barharborwhales.com
Bar Harbor Whale Museum
Whales are perhaps one of the most fascinating animals on earth. At the Bar Harbor Whale Museum you can see why…from the inside out! Explore, discover, and learn about the many different species of whales, their skills for finding food, how deep they dive, what they may have looked like millions of years ago, and what they look like today. From their scale models of porpoise and dolphins to their twenty-five foot minke whale skeleton, see why whales have fueled the imaginations of people for thousands of years, and what draws scientists to unlock their secrets today.
Adjacent to the Whale Museum is the Museum Gift Shop. Enjoy browsing through fun and educational items relating to marine mammals and the natural history of the area. All profits from the gift shop support Allied Whale, a marine mammal research group based at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor. For over thirty years Allied Whale has been dedicated to studying whales in the Gulf of Maine. Visit the Whale Museum, learn about whales, and support whale conservation! Located at 52 West Street (less than a block from the Pier!) 288-2339
www.barharborwhalemuseum.org
Bar Harbor Whale Watch
Whale watching is one of the most exciting activities you can experience! Whales are the largest animals on earth and it is awesome to encounter them in the wild and on the open sea. Most of the whales we see are named, known, and return each year to the productive waters of Maine to feed on small fish and plankton. Each whale watching trip carries an Allied Whale researcher who photographs and collects scientific information about the whale we encounter. Throughout the trip, our onboard naturalist will find and describe whales and wildlife including: seals, porpoises, dolphins, sharks and a large variety of seabirds.
Enjoy getting to the whales aboard our large, stable, jet-powered catamarans that are equipped with the latest in navigation and communications equipment! For your comfort and enjoyment our well-stocked galleys offer a variety of hot and cold foods and a full line of snacks. Film and clothing are sold onboard and you may rent binoculars from the galley. Sorry mate - no alcoholic beverages are allowed onboard but a full service bar is available.
Bar Harbor Whale Watch is located at Harborplace, One West Street – next to the downtown pier. And don’t forget our terrific Lighthouse Tours, Lobster Fishing and Seal Watching Tours, or Nature Sight-Seeing cruises. Please call 1-800-942-5374 or 288-2386 for more information or to purchase tickets.
www.barharborwhales.com
Oli’s Trolley
Want to see more of Bar Harbor and the surrounding countryside than Samuel de Champlain did when he arrived here in 1604? Board the uniquely colorful Oli’s Trolley, located at One West Street (Harborplace Building), for guided 1-hour (or a more complete 2-1/2 hour) tours, scenic loops that take in historical and commercial Bar Harbor, plus the breath-taking beauty of Acadia National Park.
Along the way, your driver will point out the best restaurants and shops in town, and describe local history on the way to the finest view along America’s Atlantic coast, all of Mount Desert Island as seen from its highest point, the 1,532-foot summit of Cadillac Mountain. The longer tour includes more of the national park, including Acadia’s Wild Gardens and the rocky coast of Maine along the Ocean Drive. Three rest room stops are included.
Both tours give you the chance to get out for the spectacular experience of a mountain stroll at the summit of Cadillac Mountain. 288-9899
www.acadiaislandtours.com