The Joys of Parking in Downtown Bar Harbor
BAR HARBOR—While vacations are supposed to be a time of fun and relaxation they can be accompanied by unplanned stressors, often due to not knowing the area that is being visited. One of the most common sources of unexpected stress in Bar Harbor is the ability to park a vehicle downtown on a busy summer day.
Acadia Adventures wants you to have the most carefree Acadia region adventure possible, so here is some information about parking in Bar Harbor.
Bar Harbor has parking regulations that are enforced from May 15 through October 30 and if you are not staying at a downtown residence, hotel, or other lodging that has off-street parking, or patronizing a business that has parking, there is no free parking in downtown Bar Harbor.
The times of parking enforcement, May 15 through October 30, are 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and Noon to 9 p.m. on Sunday.
Below is a map of the different parking zones in the downtown area. There are different fees for different areas and some areas that have time limited parking.
You can find all of the downtown parking information for Bar Harbor here. There is also a mobile app, ParkMobile, which allows you to pay from your phone and avoid any kiosk lines, add time to your parking clock, without returning to your vehicle, if you need to extend your visit, and find available parking areas. If you set up ParkMobile ahead of time, be sure that the vehicle information that you enter matches the vehicle that you will be driving in Bar Harbor.
ALTERNATIVES TO DRIVING INTO TOWN
If you are staying in Bar Harbor, or many locations on Mount Desert Island, the free Island Explorer bus system is a popular way to get to many of the island towns and attractions from mid-June through late October. Many times you can leave your vehicle where you are lodging and some routes have buses with bike racks if you would like to bring your bike to further expand your easy travel radius.
You can find all of the Island Explorer bus route information here.
Of course, walking or biking are always options if you are staying close enough to town. Walking provides the greatest opportunity to see things that are often overlooked when driving.
If biking, remember that traffic can get very heavy in town and riding is not allowed on the sidewalks, with two exceptions listed below. Also, please follow the rules of the road, traffic laws, and wear a helmet when biking.
The multi-use path on the east side of Eden Street from West Street to 131 Eden Street.
The sidewalk heading out of town to the south from Park Street to Schooner Head Road.
If you are not staying on Mount Desert Island, but want to visit and not hassle with parking, you can park your vehicle at the Acadia Gateway Center on Route 3’s west side in Trenton, which is on the way to Mount Desert Island from all points south if traveling Route 3. From there, you can ride an Island Explorer bus to Acadia National Park and surrounding towns. You can also purchase park entrance passes and get park information at the Gateway Center.
OTHER MOUNT DESERT ISLAND TOWN’S PARKING RESTRICTIONS
Southwest Harbor parking ordinance.
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Where can locals park to get errands done? Where are the handicapped parking places?