13 Best Lighthouses Along The Maine Coast to Visit
There’s over 60 amazing lighthouses along the Maine Coast to explore and in this post I want to cover 13 of the most popular ones out of those. Each one has it’s own ways to reaching it, some by boat, others by foot and others can only be seen from a distance, but you’ll be able to prepare accordingly after reading this list (and see which lodging options are available nearby).
The List:
Nubble Lighthouse.
Lobster Point Lighthouse.
Goat Island Lighthouse.
Portland Head Lighthouse.
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse.
Doubling Point Lighthouse.
Marshall Point Lighthouse.
Burnt Coat Harbor Lighthouse.
Owls Head Lighthouse.
Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse.
Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse.
Egg Rock Lighthouse.
West Quoddy Head Lighthouse.
Map:
Nubble Lighthouse:
Location: York Beach Maine, 2 hours north of Boston
Fee to enter? This lighthouse is on a private island but there is a free park (Sohier Park) right by it
This is one of the top 5 most visited lighthouses on the Maine Coast and it’s also one of the most photogenic. The best way to get as close as possible to it is via Sohier Park which also offers it’s own attractions including a visitor center for the lighthouse. There is also the York town worth checking out as well.
Lobster Point Lighthouse:
Location: Ogunquit Maine
Fee to enter? Free, but you can’t go inside this lighthouse.
This is a small lighthouse on the Maine Coast but it is also by one of the most beautiful shorelines in the state and there is a very scenic walk you can do along a shoreline trail called Marginal Way which is great to check out around sunset. The town of Ogunquit is also awesome as it has nice restaurants and tours you can do in the Atlantic nearby.
Goat Island Lighthouse:
Location: Cape Porpoise
Fee to enter? Yes. Goat Island Lighthouse is on an island which you can only reach by taking a boat to. There’s paid tours like this one that do it.
Goat Island Lighthouse can be seen from the coastlines of Cape Porpoise and is very photogenic, but this is also a much more interactive type of lighthouse to visit because you can kayak to it or take boat tours to the island itself. Aside from that, the town of Cape Porpoise is also very fun to explore.
Portland Head Lighthouse:
Location: Officially it’s in Cape Elizabeth but there’s several towns near it such as South Portland.
This is the second if not the first most popular lighthouse (it’s definitely the oldest though). The entire area is amazing to check out, whether it’s the lighthouse, the park around it and the amazing towns there. For the park, there’s a lot of historical easter eggs around the coast and there’s even another small lighthouse called Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse that’s about a 5 minute drive away.
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse:
Location: It’s in the town of Bristol Maine (2 hours from Portland Maine).
Fee to enter? Yes. $4 to get into the lighthouse itself ($1 for kids).
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse is also a very photogenic spot to visit and check out in general because of it’s location which is right on one of the most southern parts of Maine. The beach area there is also very scenic and a place you can hike through as an extra activity. It goes without saying that seeing sunsets at Pemaquit Point is also stunning.
Doubling Point Lighthouse:
Location: Arrowsic Maine
Fee to enter? No, it’s free but the parking is very small (I would visit this lighthouse as early as possible or perhaps around sunset).
This lighthouse option is a bit different from the other choices on the list because it isn’t really located on the classic Maine Coast (by the Atlantic). It’s actually inside a river/bay area which you can explore different ways, the most popular is just walking on a boardwalk to the lighthouse itself (you can’t go inside this lighthouse though). In terms of other things to see around this place, the closest city is Brunswick where there’s even an airport and more parks and trails to see.
Aside from being the famous lighthouse in the Forest Gump movie, Marshall Point is in my opinion a much better alternative to Doubling Point from earlier because there’s more parking space, you can get to the lighthouse easier and there’s more things to do. I still like Doubling Point because it’s beautiful and less crowded, but you don’t have problems with that and have to choose between them, go with Marshall Point Lighthouse. You will also find a museum in the area on top of everything.
Burnt Coat Harbor Lighthouse:
Location: Swans Island Maine
Fee to enter? Yes ($34 for adults and $24 for kids). You also need to take a boat tour to get there (details)
You can actually see Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse from Owl’s Head, but because you can actually “hike” to it and the fact that it’s so close to Owl’s Head makes it worth adding as it’s own place to see. There’s a long man made trail to it called Breakwater Access trail and it makes for a great walk around the sunset time. Although the area around Rockland Breakwater lighthouse isn’t as scenic as Owl’s Head, I would recommend coming here just for the experience of walking to this lighthouse and how beautiful that experience is.
Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse Station:
Location: Bass Harbor (Near Acadia National Park).
Fee to enter? Yes but you can’t go inside Bass Harbor. There is a path to take you close to it.
It’s also a very famous spot for photography, especially when there’s sunsets here (as the photo above shows).
But aside from the views, this place is very historic and you will have monuments and museum items to check out here, alongside the beautiful lighthouse itself. If you’re worried about the crowds, but are considering coming here, either do it during late fall or early spring and if you’re going to visit Acadia NP, it’s an easy decision to come here anyway.
Egg Rock Lighthouse:
Location: Near Bar Harbor Maine (requires boat to reach).
Fee to enter? None but you can’t actually go on the island where Egg Rock Lighthouse is. You can take boat tours there.
Egg Rock Lighthouse is probably the second most popular lighthouse near Acadia National Park and while it is only reachable via boat tours (which only take you around the island), one big reason to check this place out is that you can often see a lot of sealions there. It’s also a great extra itinerary to add if you’re already exploring the Acadia area. There are also ferries from the same marina that takes you there which also take you east towards New Brunswick and Nova Scotia where you can see places like Bay of Fundy. And in that area I highly recommend checking out the Hopewell Rocks.
West Quoddy Head Lighthouse:
Location: Lubec Maine (right by the Canadian border to New Brunswick).
This last lighthouse on the Maine coast is also on the eastern most tip of the state. While there you will see the Canadian Border and parts of New Brunswick. Aside from that, the lighthouse area is inside a small but beautiful park where you will find some nice shoreline trails and photogenic spots as well.
