Acadia National Park / Bar Harbor, Maine

April 2012, Easter weekend day visit

We decided to add a visit to the national park to our itinerary at the last minute, even though the park does not fully open until May. Since the park was not completely open, there was no park entrance fee; however, some of the roads were also not open either. The road to Cadillac Mountain was closed, and part of the one-way road at the end of Park Loop Road was closed. Jordan Pond was open; however, we missed that. Below is a brief recap of our April trip with some photos.

It was cool the day of our visit, and fortunately, the sun was shining brightly for most of the day! The park was not very crowded, although we did pass a few hikers and vehicles. A couple of the restrooms were open, as well as Park Headquarters on 233/Eagle Lake Road. We were not sure this would be open since we visited on Saturday. The location on 233 is listed as the winter facility with open hours on Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM. The park information online also says that the facility is closed on holidays, and since we were there on the Saturday of Easter weekend, we were surprised to find it open. The bathrooms were open at the Headquarters, and maps were available. The young man we spoke with was knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly. All of the trash containers throughout the park were closed and covered, so plan to take your trash with you at this time of year.

view from overlook

Schooner Overlook

We made several stops along Park Loop Road. Our first stop was Schooner Head Overlook, where we were able to climb down the rocks fairly close to the water.

The second set of photos are views from the rocks below the overlook. There is a foot path from the overlook to this area.

Our second stop at Sand Beach was breathtaking! We were surprised to find such calm water on the ocean, and soft sand amidst all the rocks in this area. Even though my husband has swam in Lake Superior before (which is VERY cold), he doubted he would ever swim in the water here--even in the heat of summer. The young ranger we spoke with at Park Headquarters agreed with us, and said that not many people swim here.

Our next stop was Thunder Hole. The rocks and view are beautiful here--just like all areas in the park! We observed a few puddles and wet rocks, although we did not see any thunderous splashes while we were there. There are restrooms located in the parking area across the road from Thunder Hole (not listed on the maps I had); however, they were not open in April.

Otter Cove

Park Loop Road was closed around Otter Point and Otter Cove, although Otter Cliff Road was open back to the cove. The water was calm and clear in Otter Cove, and we observed several hikers during our brief stop. We did not see any otters though!

Otter Cove

We also drove around the southwest portion of Mount Desert Island, which the ranger had told us has more camping and boating on the inland waters; however, I do not have any pictures from that area.

Overall

This park is beautiful, and definitely worth a visit--even when it's cold out. We would like to visit again when the weather is warmer, and we are able to spend more time at the park. There are many maps, reviews, and information about the park online, although I thought the materials provided at Park Headquarters was even better. Here is a link to the park website: Acadia NP

Bangor, Maine / Marriott Courtyard

view from room

April 2012, Weekend, 2-nights, King guest room #408

Status perks

I asked about an upgrade at check-in, and after the agent looked on the computer, she said that all of the suites were filled. We had a great view from our room, so even though the agent did not say anything about receiving any perks, it is likely we had been assigned a room on that side of the building because we had Gold status. Rooms on the front side of the building overlook the expressway.

view from room 

According to the room diagram on the guestroom door, most of the guestrooms are much larger than the one we received. I assume that they are rooms with two queen beds, because I could not find larger king rooms listed on the hotel website. There are rooms at this hotel described as: Extended, Larger Guest room, 2 Queen beds.

Guestroom

The guestroom was similar to other Courtyard hotels I have stayed in with the new style/decor. It contained a small fridge in the coffee/beverage area, king bed, wardrobe closet, nice desk and chair, couch and coffee table. I really like the two-tier desks at the Marriott hotels with the bottom piece that slides in or out for more table room. I thought the couch was comfortable, and I liked the built in end table on one end. The bed was comfortable, although the bed sheets were not deep enough because they kept coming off the corners of the mattress.

Since this room had been recently remodeled, I was surprised by some of things I saw that needed to be cleaned, like toothpaste spatters on the bathroom wall. 

The view from the room was nice, and the large window opened. The gap around the guestroom door from the hall was easily visible, and we heard quite a bit of noise from the hall. Other guests were not noisy; we merely heard doors opening and closing, and guests speaking in a normal tone of voice.

guest bathroom

Food & Beverage

We had a Turkey Rueben in the Bistro in the evening that was acceptable. I have definitely had better sandwiches, although I did not have any serious complaints about this one.

We had purchased a 2-night package for this stay, which included breakfast. The first morning, there were three or four tables with guests in the dining area when we arrived, and there were about four or five employees working in the dining area and tending to the lobby coffee. I ordered a BLT egg sandwich with turkey bacon and milk (our breakfast coupon was not good for any of the specialty coffee beverages). My husband ordered the Daybreak eggs with canadian bacon and regular coffee. He was disappointed with the coffee, and said it did not taste like Starbucks. The food was very good; however, we waited over 15 minutes for or food, which we thought was a long time. 

The second morning, we had to leave at 4:30 AM for an early flight. At check-in, I had asked the agent if there was anything she could offer in the restaurant in place of the breakfast coupons, since we would not be there for breakfast. She said no. The second afternoon, I noticed that there were breakfast items in the gift shop (granola bars and protein pacs with a hard boiled egg). Since there was a refrigerator in the guestroom, I decided to ask if any of those items were something we could use our coupons for. The same employee again said no. Getting breakfast wasn't a huge deal--I was still happy with the promotional rate we had booked--however, I was annoyed by the employee's inflexible robotic attitude. Both times, the way she immediately and flat-out said no without even thinking, made me feel like she was not even listening to my request. And, it wasn't like I was asking for some leniency or special privileges for a perk she had given me; I was asking for a substitution for something we had paid for with our room! 

Later that evening, I realized I had not been thinking clearly about the situation either. Since many of the breakfast items were sandwiches, I thought they might be pre-made. I showed our coupons to the employees at the Bistro, and said that we needed to leave before they would be open in the morning. I asked if there were any items available that we could take back to our room that evening. The two employees working in the Bistro, provided the best customer service I received at this hotel! The first employee said she would check, and she asked what I wanted. I told her our first two preferences, and then said that we would take anything that was available. After checking, she said she could give me two Sunrise Starter sandwiches, which I gladly accepted. The other employee asked which two beverages I wanted, and encouraged me by offering different juices and water when I was not sure I would take two. They also provided me with a fresh fruit cup (since the sandwiches are served with a fresh fruit cup at breakfast), even though I said they did not need to worry about getting that for me. They packaged everything, and put it in a paper to-go bag for me with a smile and thank you--wonderful! In the morning, we were able to warm our sandwiches in the microwave located in the lobby.

Public areas

There is a large public area in the lobby on the back side of the building, across from the Bistro. This area contained coffee in the morning, and had the following for use at all times: microwave, the business center, a large flat screen TV, couch, tables with chairs, and a library of books. We used the couch and a table to play cards during our stay and found the area very comfortable.

Misc.

There is not anything within walking distance of this hotel, although there is a large shopping area right on the other side of the interstate with many restaurants.

Thomaston/Rockland, Maine / Hampton Inn

April 2012, Weekday, 1-night, King studio suite #401

Status perks

I did not receive any perks as a Gold member. I had booked a studio suite, so the only room type that was more expensive than what I had booked was a whirlpool room. The front desk agent did not say if there were any whirlpool rooms available, and she did not ask if I wanted one. I probably would not have wanted one anyway, unless the guestroom was more spacious and also had a couch.

Guestroom

Guestroom 401 was located on the top floor at the end of the hall. My favorite location--yay! The counter area at the entrance included a sink, small fridge, microwave, and coffee setup. There was a connecting room door between the entrance and sitting area. The sitting area was located at the foot of the bed. There was enough room for the two of us, although I did not think the suite was very spacious. Furnishings included: a couch, soft chair at the desk, end tables, coffee table, desk and chair (located against the wall between the couch and bed), king bed, night stands, and one flatscreen TV, which could be swiveled to view from the couch or bed. 

There were two large windows with screens, and the windows could be opened. The bathroom vanity and a closet were located outside the bathing and toilet area, which contained a tub/shower combination. I thought the guestroom furniture was kind of old, and the room did not smell fresh. This Hampton Inn was definitely not as clean or furnished as nicely as the one we had just left in Bath, Maine. 

Food & Beverage

Again, the food items at breakfast were similar to what had been served at the Hampton Inn in Bath. The hot egg item on the morning of our stay were the egg and vegetable fold-over omelets.  

Fitness center

The fitness center at this hotel was exactly as pictured on the hotel website, and everything was in working order.

Overall

Most of the lodging choices in this area are Bed and Breakfast type inns. Since I always like to accrue points when I travel, this Hampton Inn was the only choice, without having to drive back and forth from Augusta. I thought this stay was acceptable, although nothing to rave about.

I have found that many of the guestrooms at Hampton Inn recently are only furnished with one chair, which is often a straight back uncomfortable chair. I had found a decent AAA rate for this studio suite, which is why I booked this room type--I wanted to have someplace to sit besides the bed or desk chair.

Bath, Maine / Hampton Inn

April 2012, Weekday, 1-night, King study riverview guestroom #400

Status perks

view from room #400

I received an upgrade to a riverview room, which I did not realize until I started to write this review. The agent did not mention this at check-in, and I was not sure if all of the king study rooms had a river view until I checked later. A riverview room costs $10 more, and I had reserved the least expensive king study guestroom.

Guestroom

Guestroom 400 is located at the end of the hall on the top floor. It has a connecting door and overlooks the river. I do not think there was anyone in the guestroom next to this one, so the connecting room door did not present any noise problems. The connecting door was located across from the bathroom and closet, rather than across from the bed, so it's likely it would not have been an issue even if there had been guests next door.

The spacious guestroom contained a couch, as well as a desk and chair. I had found a good rate for this room type online, so I reserved it rather than a standard room because the standard room looked like it only contained one soft chair. The large windows could be opened, and there were screens in place.

The room had a microwave and refrigerator, which I think is in all guestrooms at this hotel. There was a suitcase bench, two night stands, and a cushioned coffee table/footstool. 

The spacious bathroom had a walk-in shower, and most of the standard Hampton Inn amenities. There is usually a moist facial cleanser pad in Hampton Inn hotels, and that is the only item I usually see that was not present. Shampoo, bath gel, bar soap, and coffee amenities were provided.

 

The Internet service was good, and the bed was comfortable and clean. The entire guestroom was clean, and it smelled fresh. There was one annoying thing about this guestroom--the bathroom fan/vent ran continually. There was no control for this in the bathroom; it is apparently something that is on all the time. The noise was quite loud, so we had to shut the bathroom door at night, so it did not keep us awake.

Food & Beverage

Standard Hampton Inn food items were available the morning of our stay: juices, milk, tea, and coffee; cold and hot cereal; cut and whole fruits; and a couple hot items: scrambled eggs and pre-made biscuit type sandwich halves with egg and peppers on top.

Overall
I was happy with the hotel cleanliness and sleep quality during our stay. There was an IGA grocery store next door to the hotel--which also sold beer and wine, and there were several dining choices within walking distance.