‘May you have fair winds and following seas,’ reads the billboard that sits above the entrance to Portland’s Old Port. It’s a message that captures much of what makes coastal Maine such an inviting slice of New England. The inhabitants of this beautiful, wild north-eastern state are a liberal, hospitable bunch and seafaring traditions still run deep in their souls. Fundamentally, you’ll always be welcome in these parts, and if you’re not on a boat already, you’ll never be too far from one.
Welcoming visitors is a longstanding tradition in The Pine State. Indeed, this year marks the 100th anniversary of the Maine Tourism Association, a not-for-profit organisation that has been promoting travel to the region since 1922. In fairness, they have plenty to work with, and it’s not hard to understand how the state earned the nicknamed ‘Vacationland’, even if those outside the USA perhaps aren’t as familiar with it.
The history of Maine is rich, dense and tied to the sea. Norsemen sailed this coastline in the 11th century, while the Wabanaki, a collective name for the many Indigenous nations of Maine, were navigating these coastal waters by canoe long before then. The modern state traces its roots to the Europeans who settled here at the dawn of the 16th century, though some
