Maine’s southern coast is best known for its long beaches of fine soft sand and for the picturesque towns that lie behind them. The smart resorts of Kennebunkport and Ogunquit, and the family holiday favorite of Old Orchard Beach are there to enjoy. There’s so much more to see and do on Maine’s southern coast that travelers should think beyond the beaches and the summer season for a Southern Maine road trip.

Artists have long been lured to the beauty of the craggy rock-bound shoreline between the beaches. You’ll not only find their works in several museums but can find your own inspiration in the same scenes they painted.

Travelers who seek treasures of the past will find museums concentrating on Maine’s history. There are also historic homes and plenty of antique shops to browse. Avid walkers will find woodland trails, shoreline paths, and bird-filled wildlife reserves to explore.

The gardens at the Ogunquit Museum of American Art. Photo © Stillman Rogers

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First Stop on the Southern Maine Road Trip: York

Only a few miles from Portsmouth, New Hampshire—at Exit 7 of Interstate 95—you’ll find York. York is home to New England’s most iconic lighthouse. Cape Neddick Light sits on a point between the town’s two beaches, Long Sands and Short Sands.

Route 1-A leads from York Village, where the Museums of Old York includes a cluster of colonial homes and buildings. This is the site of one of America’s earliest English settlements. A few steps from the beach is The Goldenrod. Everyone stops here to buy Goldenrod Kisses and watch this saltwater taffy made.

Southern Maine Road Trip Stop in Ogunquit

Past the beach, leave Rte 1 on Shore Rd, which passes the Ogunquit Playhouse, where well-known Broadway stars perform in musicals and light theater throughout the summer and fall. Ogunquit’s beach is a long unspoiled stretch of golden sand protected by a rocky headland that’s an attraction of its own. Marginal Way is a walking path that skirts the shore, with views over the breaking surf and little cove beaches between the cliffs.

Marginal Way in Ogunquit. Photo © Stillman Rogers

At its end is Perkins Cove, almost too cute to be real, but an active fishing village as well as a tourist attraction. Artists came to paint the scenery along Marginal Way as early as the 1880s, establishing a well-respected art colony that endures today.

Perkins Cove in Ogunquit Maine. Photo © Stillman Rogers

You can see the works of many who painted here, at the excellent Ogunquit Museum of American Art, overlooking Narrow Cove. Along with an impressive permanent collection that includes works by Edward Hopper, Thomas Hart Benton, and Alfred Bellows, the museum mounts special exhibitions and is surrounded by a sculpture garden. Highlights there are the whimsical oversized wooden animals by Maine artist Bernard Langlais.

Wooden sculpture by Bernard Langalis. Photo © Stillman Rogers

Kennebunkport is a Must-See on the Southern Maine Road Trip

Follow Rte 1 north through Wells, where there are more good beaches, to Rt 9 towards Kennebunkport. Watch for the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge. This is a good place to get a view of the saltmarshes and see some of the rich birdlife they harbor. Further along is the lane to unspoiled Parson’s Beach, a long stretch of white sand backed by dunes.

There are more beaches in Kennebunkport, and a trolley that shuttles between them and the village, but there’s a lot more to do in this chic little enclave. Art galleries and studios share the harborside with clam shacks, smart boutiques, ice cream parlors, and shops.

Restaurants abound, too, the newest of which is Chez Rosa, a French bistro setting with a menu of creative and traditional French dishes that use local produce and seafood brilliantly. Or dine overlooking the water from the terrace at Hurricane. Here you can choose from an exceptional list of small plates (the carpaccio is divine) or a full menu of entrees; go on Sunday evening for “Buck-a-Shuck” oyster specials.

Maine Coast Stop in Kennebunk

There’s so much to do in this small area that it’s worth a stopover. A short way up Port Road (Rte 9-A/35) in Kennebunk is Waldo Emerson House. Along with its serene setting, ultra-comfortable rooms, and a collection of fine art decorating the guest rooms, the inn has a distinguished history. It was a station on the Underground Railroad and Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote in the parlor during summer stays here.

You’ll get a clue of the fortunes that were made by Kennebunk shipbuilders when you see the mansion next door to the Waldo Emerson House. It’s known as the Wedding Cake House and innkeeper Hana Pevny told us it was built as a wedding present. Continue on the same street into Kennebunk, past an astonishing row of grand mansions. Learn more at Kennebunk’s Brick Store Museum before backtracking on Port Rd for another look at the mansions.

The Wedding Cake House. Photo © Stillman Rogers

Maine Coast Stop in Cape Porpoise

Back in Kennebunkport, turn right just past the bridge, and follow Ocean Avenue along the shore, past the summer White House of both Bush presidents at Walkers Point. The road joins Rte 9 briefly, then you can follow signs to Cape Porpoise. Make a right turn at the little settlement.

There is a fishing harbor at the end of the cape. This gives you a good view of all the surrounding islands. We recommend Cape Pier Chowder House here, where you can eat well-prepared seafood (the scallops are divine) and watch the fishing boats from a table on the deck.

Cape Pier Chowder House. Photo © Stillman Rogers

Back on Rte 9, head north, perhaps with short side trips on Rocks Rd to beautiful Goose Rocks Beach, and on Fortune Rocks Rd to Fortune Rocks. Rte 9 goes through the former mill town of Biddeford, where you cross the bridge into Saco. Route 9 is Saco’s main street, lined by distinguished old homes, and here you meet Rte 1 and continue north, briefly, watching for a right onto Rte 5.

Stop in Old Orchard Beach

The classic old beach town of Old Orchard Beach with its pier and somewhat honky-tonk vibe will bring a wave of nostalgia—even for those who don’t remember when most beach towns were like this. Old Orchard Beach may have smartened up a bit since the 1950s, but that old feeling still pervades the boardwalk and Palace Playland. New England’s only remaining beachside amusement park features a Ferris wheel, roller coaster, bumper cars, and vintage carousel.

Old Orchard Beach. Photo © Stillman Rogers

The beach itself is spectacular. It is clean, wide, and seven miles long. The atmosphere all over town is casual and very family-friendly: shorts and T-shirts are fine for dining in any of the several beachside restaurants.

Prouts Neck on the Maine Coast

To continue the Southern Maine road trip, follow Rte 9 along the shore and back to Rte 1.  In Scarborough turn right onto Rte 207 to Prouts Neck. Here you can walk a path along the rocky shore that inspired some of Winslow Homer’s best-known works. His studio overlooking the sea has been restored and his easel and paints sit by the window where he painted every summer until his death in 1910. To go inside the studio, you’ll have to reserve a tour well in advance with the Portland Museum of Art, which has an outstanding collection of his works.

Winslow Homer Studio at Prouts Neck. Photo © Stillman Rogers

If you are looking to extend your time in the Prouts Neck area, be sure to check out the beautiful Black Point Inn, constructed in 1878. Situated right on the coast, it is a great stopping place during your stay if you want some time to enjoy the Museum of Art and the Winslow Homer Studio.

The rugged Maine coast at Prout’s Neck. Photo © Stillman Rogers

Exploring Freeport Maine

When you leave Prouts Neck, backtrack to Rte 1 and then take the connector to I-295 North, which bypasses downtown Portland. Stay on the highway until Freeport, bypassing a lot of commercial stretches of Rte 1. Take the third Freeport exit onto Mallett Drive.

Freeport is best known for the giant L.L.Bean store, hard to miss in the center of the village. But there are other shops as well, plus restaurants, all of which make it another good base for exploring this part of the coast. Brewster House Inn on Main Street is a gracious B&B with gregarious owners, who serve knock-out breakfasts. The inn has local beers on tap, and you can savor them from a chair on the porch overlooking the lawns.

The Brewster House Inn. Photo © Stillman Rogers

Final Stop On the Southern Maine Road Trip: Brunswick

From the inn, it’s only a short drive to Brunswick, home of Bowdoin College and its two excellent museums, the Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum and the Bowdoin College Museum of Art.

Tip: as you enter Brunswick on Rte 1, watch on the right for the red Brunswick Diner, a classic Worcester diner that serves the region’s best clam chowder.

Bowdoin College Museum of Art. Photo © Stillman Rogers

Two roads—Rte 123 and Rte 24—drop south from Brunswick on either side of the Kennebec River. This is a good place to explore long peninsulas marked by coves and little lobstering ports. On the latter you’ll cross the unique Bailey Island Bridge, connecting Bailey Island and Orr’s Island and built of granite blocks in a cribstone pattern so the changing tide can pass through.

There is much to explore during a Southern Maine road trip. You are close to the city of Portland, but as you meander the roadways, you will find yourself transported to another time where the pace is a bit slower. Be sure to check out our suggestions on Wander for other great road trips and more things to see and do in Maine and throughout New England.