Since Zeko came to the USA, we have talked about states we would like to visit, and Maine has continued to be on the top of our list. After visiting the week of July 4, we highly recommend a trip to Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park for your next Maine family vacation (personally, I’d skip Portland and go straight)!

Our close friends moved to Vermont in 2020, and we have been hoping to visit them for a vacay or meet up somewhere. When we realized that a Maine family vacation was perfect for us to meet up, spend quality time together and explore, we went for it!

From Virginia, it’s quite a LONG drive to Acadia, so we ended up booking flights to Portland. We had campsites at Blackwoods (side note – you have to be ready online the day they open for your week to get one!), but it was going to be challenging to bring camping gear on the plane. Plus, if you know me, you know that I do love a good night’s sleep in a real bed! 🙂 :). I found quite a few RV and camper van rentals online; however, Blackwoods doesn’t have hookups for anything on the sites. So, I started exploring some “off-grid options” that would be easier to use for exploring on our Maine family vacation.

We ended up renting a solar powered camper van that looked a lot like the Amazon delivery van (I would know as Amazon is outside our house frequently)… It was equipped with a mini fridge, double beds (bunked) and a small sink. We even had a small portable toilet, and a solar shower (ie a plastic bag you warm in the sun and then a stream trickles out, lol). It was definitely not a luxurious hotel, but we made such fun memories with the kids camping and making fires each evening.

We hiked Beehive Loop one day, rented bikes and explored carriage roads in Bar Harbor. A Maine family vacation isn’t complete without visiting a ton of new restaurants. Zeko LOVES lobster, and he enjoyed every bite!