If you’re headed to Portland in the next few months, I have put together a best of Portland, Maine list based on my experience there recently.
#1 The Best City Tour in Portland, Maine
The Real Portland Tour is the only sightseeing tour in Portland, Maine that includes a full city tour and a trip to three of the lighthouses. We got to see the full city tour of Portland, from the bustling downtown area and eclectic shops to the art district and the world-class restaurants and bars. We headed out to Casco Bay to see its islands and forts on the way to the Portland Headlight.
Our tour guide, Derrick, was amazing! He knows so much about the city for two reasons:
He’s a local, born and raised
He’s a librarian! He was so knowledgeable and interesting and had the greatest stories about the town where he grew up.
Definitely put the Real Portland Tour on your list!
#2 The Best Lighthouses in Portland, Maine
Also while you’re visiting Portland, you have to check out the beautiful lighthouses along Casco Bay. You can take a tour like I did, you can drive yourself, and sometimes, in the summer, you can even bike! The rugged Maine coastline is known for its beautiful lighthouses and just outside of the city of Portland along Casco Bay is the infamous Portland Head Light. Did you know it’s the most photographed lighthouse in the entire US?
Another great lighthouse to visit is the Spring Point Ledge. On the weekends, you can actually walk out there you have to jump on the different rocks to make it all the way out. It’s very picturesque and definitely worth checking them all out.
#3 The Best Restaurants in Portland, Maine
Portland is a foodie town for foodies! Did you know that in 2018, Bon Appetit listed it as the restaurant city of the year? Some of the most well-known restaurants include
There was so much delicious seafood, lobster, oysters, and fresh fish while I was there that I actually had two lunches and two dinners on two different days!
#4 Best View in Portland, Maine
Fourth on my list is a little well kept secret: Come to the top of the parking lot at the Customs House for the best view of downtown! The parking garage is just across the street from the beautiful Customs House. If you go to the top level it’s open air and you can see the spectacular views of all the city routes throughout downtown Portland.
#5 Best Food Tour in Portland, Maine
5th on the list is to go on a food tour! I went with Maine Foodie Tours on the Bon Appetit. Most of the food in
Portland is all about the seafood but this is a very unique tour that gives you croissants clams a little bit of Tex-Mex and some other exciting things. You even get to go to a kombucharia.
#6 Best Oysters in Portland, Maine
Next on our list are the infamous East Coast oysters. I recommend two different places to get these incredible little morsels.
The Shop which is about a 10 minute Uber ride from downtown Portland and all of their oysters are $1.50, all day long.
The other place to try the oysters is at Scales which is right there on the harbor. While in town, I heard that they had the best oysters in the whole city. My opinion? They may be the best oysters I’ve ever had in my entire life! The oysters are only $1 during happy hour.
#7 Best Boat Tour in Portland, Maine
The next thing that you have to do when you’re in Portland is to go on the Lucky Catch Cruises. It’s so fun to goout in Casco Bay and learn how the lobster man catches your dinner. The Lucky Catch Cruise has been around for more than a decade and honestly, it’s one of the best things that I did during my visit to Portland. It’s also a great value! If you’d like to know more about Lucky Catch Cruises, check out last week’s video and blog here.
#8 Best Dessert in Portland, Maine
Then there’s more food! If you’re in the mood for something sweet, head over to the Holy Donut. They are famous for putting shredded potatoes into their Donuts. If you’re gluten-free like me, they have several options for us, too!
#9 Best Bar in Portland, Maine
Now let’s talk bars in Portland. Actually, let’s talk about speakeasies! Portland, Maine was one of the first cities in the entire country to have prohibition so they are known even to this day for the speakeasies. My top choice is Lincoln’s.
#10 Best Taco in Portland, Maine
Our last thing to do is another food item, but this time it has a Texas twist. Head over to the High Roller Lobster Company which started as a food trailer. Now it is it’s brick-and-mortar and I was told they serve the most delicious lobster taco. Instead of a taco shell, they use grilled cheese to hold the lobster meat and toppings. And if you love tacos like I do, check out my video and blog on the Top 5 Tacos in my hometown of Austin, Texas.
I hope you enjoyed my list of the best things to do, see, and of course TASTE in Portland. Share in the comments if you’ve been to any of these places!
In this weeks travel video, I’m sharing my tips and experiences with The Cinque Bellas in Cinque Terre, Italy.
Four wonderful women traveled with me last year to central Italy, and we spent 4 incredible days in Cinque Terre. These 5 towns of Riomaggiore, Manarolo, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monte Rosso became popular in the 1970’s after a travel writer raved about these quiet villages in his travel books. Today, Cinque Terre is a World UNESCO Heritage site and is visited by 2.4 million people each year. Yikes, that’s a lot!
When it comes to what to wear on these hikes, you can get away with Chaco’s or Keens instead of hiking boots. (Here are my favorite shoes for this type of trip.) I also recommend wearing a wicking sports bra for us ladies and to bring a compact cooling towel, like this one here, as it gets quite warm once the sun comes out.
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Are you visiting Cinque Terre, Italy for the first time? Why not see it by boat! This is my travel diary of Cinque Terre. Subscribe for more laid back luxury travel and inspiring travel vlogs!
Have you ever dreamed of having wine on a boat in Italy? You can! I’m so excited to share with you my experience with ‘Hello Cinque Terre’. If you want to see the Cinque Terre villages, this is the way to do it! We started in La Spezia and went on a tour to beat all other Cinque Terre tours. The cities we saw included Riomaggiore, Manarola, Portovenere, Vernazza, and Monterosso. We drank wine in the mediterranean, went swimming, and relaxed as our amazing guides took us around. This is our trip with Hello Cinque Terre. I hope you enjoy!
Today, I’m taking you on a tour of the BEST place to stay in Belize: Ramon’s Divers Village! If you’re looking for a Belize vacation package, look no further. Subscribe for more laid back luxury travel and inspiring travel vlogs.
Belize resorts (all inclusive or not) are a dime a dozen, but they are NOT all created equally! Ambergris Caye is my go-to island. Why? Well, it is close to the famous Blue Hole dive spot where you can see nurse sharks and other exotic fish. It’s great to go for a Belize honeymoon or for a family Belize vacation package. Ramon’s Dive Resort is also one of the most popular hotels in San Pedro, Belize, but it never feels overcrowded. If you’re traveling to Belize, keep watching!
If you enjoyed this video about Ramon’s Divers Village, be sure to subscribe to the channel for more travel videos, like this video and visit my website below. If you’d like to share your own travel experiences or have a question, leave them down in the comments section, and I will do my best to answer you. Thanks for watching today’s video!
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Hello fellow travelers! I’m Kim the Abundant Traveler, and I create videos about my experiential travel journeys through 50+ countries and 6 continents. I hope to inspire all of you to get out there and see what it’s like to travel the world.If you’re a luxurious traveler like I am, are looking for the top spots to travel to, or are new and looking for traveling tips, join the channel and let’s get to know each other!
Today, I am crossing off an adventure bucket list item. It’s whale shark season in Isla Mujeres Mexico and that means it’s prime time to see the 18 meter long whale sharks! I took two trips out with Serious Diving and here are my best tips if you decide to go on a whale watching trip. Stay tuned to the end of the video for some amazing close-up shots of the whale sharks from my GoPro. There is even one of the sharks bottling. Here are the Top 9 Tips to know before you go swimming with whale sharks!
About the Trip
In Isla Mujeres, there are several companies that will take you out on a speed boat to take you to the whale sharks! I went with Serious Diving and had a fantastic experience. The way it works is you boat out to the destination, jump out two at a time with a guide while one guide stays on the boat. Each groups spends about 3-5 minutes in the water scoping out the sharks, then 2 people climb out of the water, 2 jump in. You usually get to jump in about 3 times with the whale sharks. On the way back, you go snorkel at one of the reefs for about an hour, then typically you go to a cove and have a ceviche lunch. That’s it! Now it’s back to the dock.
Airports to Fly Into
You’ll want to fly into Cancun Airport. From there, you can take a taxi to Puerto Juarez. It took about an hour in traffic to get to the port. The crossing takes 15 minutes. (Go with Ultramar). It costs 300 Mexican Pesos each way and runs 5 am to midnight.
Where to Stay
I stayed at the Privilege Aluxe for $300 a night. It’s not cheap, but it IS an all inclusive hotel with really good food. (They even have a romantic restaurant on the beach!) It’s on the North end of the island. Bottom line: the services were spectacular, they have a beautiful pool, and even a private beach!
When to Go
Whale Shark season is mid-May through September. According to Serious Divers, the best time to go is July and August, and it is ideal to go during the full moon. If you go then, you are more likely to see the most amount of whales.
I went in late August. The first time I went, the sitings weren’t that great. I had the opportunity to jump in 3 times and 2 of the times I only saw manta rays. We went out again the next day and it was spectacular, I jumped in 5 times and the I saw a gigantic shark bottling (vertical eating from the surface of the water). Moral of the story: you never know what you’re going to get!
TIPS
Get on an early boat.
Be the first to jump in the water. The sitings are better!
Take dramamine or a type of medicine that prevents sickness.
Take a direct boat. Make sure your boat isn’t going to Cancun to pick up more people.
Go in July and August, and this is specific to Isla Mujeres.
Book 2 trips to see animals. Do it twice, these are wild animals and you never know if they will be there or not.
Make sure you’re wearing a wetsuit instead of a life vest. You need to be a good swimmer (disclaimer) – but you’ll be much faster in the water.
No Sunscreen until after you’ve seen the whale sharks.
Have an amazing time!
Places to Eat
They feed you breakfast, they have coffee and donuts before you get on the boat. u leave the whale shark area they offer sandwiches and beer.
Thanks so much for reading! Leave me a comment. Is this something you would do on a Mexican vacation? I’ll see you on the next adventure!
Our tour guide, Derrick, was amazing! He knows so much about the city for two reasons:
a tour like I did, you can drive yourself, and sometimes, in the summer, you can even bike! The rugged Maine coastline is known for its beautiful lighthouses and just outside of the city of Portland along Casco Bay is the infamous Portland Head Light. Did you know it’s the most photographed lighthouse in the entire US?
Portland is a foodie town for foodies! Did you know that in 2018, Bon Appetit listed it as the restaurant city of the year? Some of the most well-known restaurants include
Our last thing to do is another food item, but this time it has a Texas twist. Head over to the High Roller Lobster Company which started as a food trailer. Now it is it’s brick-and-mortar and I was told they serve the most delicious lobster taco. Instead of a taco shell, they use grilled cheese to hold the lobster meat and toppings. And if you love tacos like I do, check out my video and blog on the Top 5 Tacos in my hometown of Austin, Texas.
