Adventure of the Seas Canada & New England Cruise – Day 3
Adventure of the Seas Canada & New England Cruise – Day 3
Adventure of the Seas Canada & New England Cruise – Day 3
By WAVEJourney
WJ Tested: Royal Caribbean Adventure of the Seas in Bar Harbor, Maine, USA. Including a Walking Food Tour with Maine Foodie Tours, and Sightseeing with Oli’s Trolley.
DAILY CRUISE LOG
DAY 3: Bar Harbor, Maine, USA
Sunday September 9, 2018 – Sunny and 60F
Ship’s arrival in port: 7 AM
Expected ship’s clearance: 7:30 AM
All aboard: 5:30 PM
Dinner dress suggestion: Casual/70s
Bar Harbor, Maine
Bar Harbor, Maine, located on the Mount Desert Island (pronounced like “dessert” by the majority of locals), is definitely a wonderfully quaint town to visit along the coast of the state. The town’s original name was Eden which was founded in 1796. With a population of approximately 6,000 this seasonal tourist town is a gateway for exploring Acadia National Park – opened in 1916 and encompassing more than 49,000 acres.
Adventure of the Seas at Bar Harbor, Maine
Bar Harbor has always been popular with the super wealthy – Rockefeller, Ford, Vanderbilt are well-known names in these parts. In 1947 a catastrophic fire burned down many historic buildings and homes.
Cadillac Mountain is the highest point on the island at 1,530 feet, and affords fantastic views of the surrounding coastal area on a clear day. Whale watching tours, kayaking and hiking are popular activities in the area and from the town.
Tender to Bar Harbor
This was our only port where tenders were used. The process was actually quite simple and efficient, but still took about 30 minutes. Passengers on Royal Caribbean shore excursions had instructions for tendering on their tour tickets, guests not on Royal’s excursions needed to collect tickets for assigned tender times. The tenders used were whale sightseeing boats from Bar Harbor which made the transition to and from shore comfortable, plus they held a lot more passengers than the ship’s tender boats do.
Bar Harbor on Mount Desert Island in Maine
Upon arrival at the Bar Harbor waterfront, we had time to walk over and book tickets with Oli’s Trolley for an afternoon tour of the island before joining our previously arranged morning tour.
Stewman’s Lobster in Bar Harbor
MAINE FOODIE TOURS – WALKING FOOD TOUR OF BAR HARBOR
We had a 3-hour walking foodie tour arranged with Maine Foodie Tours, which we met at 10 AM. Our tour guide, Brian, was enthusiastic about the history of the area and answered questions from our group as they came up.
St. Saviour’s Church Bar Harbor, Maine
We always enjoy eating and drinking our way around a new destination while learning about the local history, and this food tour definitely gave a terrific overview of the area.
Tasting stops on the Maine Foodie Tour in Bar Harbor included:
Independent Café in Bar Harbor
The Independent Cafe for half a lobster roll, homemade blueberry coffee cake and a small Jean Acadia coffee frappe drink – all very good.
Lobster Roll and Blueberry Crumb Cake at Independent Café in Bar Harbor
Galyn’s for a crab cake in the restaurant, and to view the craftsman woodwork of the upstairs bar.
Galyn’s in Bar Harbor, Maine
Crab Cake at Galyn’s in Bar Harbor, Maine
Blaze for duck fat fries and a sample of a local craft beer of our choosing.
Blaze in Bar Harbor, Maine – Craft Beer and Wood Fired Flavors
Blaze in Bar Harbor, Maine – Duck fat fries and craft beer
Bar Harbor Popcorn where we had a brief explanation of the cooking process and samples of the Maine maple and Maine wild blueberry.
Bar Harbor Popcorn
Olive oil and balsamic vinegar tasting at Fiore Artisan Olive Oils and Vinegars was the ending to the tastings and end of the tour.
Fiore Artisan Olive Oils and Vinegars in Bar Harbor, Maine
OLI’S TROLLEY ACADIA NATIONAL PARK TOUR
Following the foodie tour, we immediately went to join the 2.5-hour Oli’s Trolley Acadia National Park Tour that took us to three stops where we had 15-minute stops to get out and see the sights.
Oli’s Trolley Acadia National Park tour
For $40 per person the trolley tour was excellent value, and we learned lots of history from the driver/guide, Gary – who has done this job each season for the past few years.
View from top of Cadillac Mountain on Mount Desert Island
Going to the top of Cadillac Mountain (the highest point on the east coast) we could see far and wide as visibility was fantastic.
Oli’s Trolley Acadia National Park tour – Jordan Pond Area
Oli’s Trolley Bar Harbor – Thunder Hole on Ocean Drive
Too soon, it was time to return to Adventure of the Seas. We spent the evening relaxing and watching the sunset from the Windjammer Market as the ship departed Bar Harbor in the direction of Portland, Maine.
Sunset over Bar Harbor, Maine
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NOTE: WJ were guests aboard Royal Caribbean Adventure of the Seas in September 2018. All information was correct at time of writing, but be sure to check for current details. All opinions and recommendations are completely our own. Read our full disclosure statement to see our review policy.
