Acadia National Park is an American National Park located near Bar Harbor on the Atlantic coast in Maine.
Acadia National Park is one of the most visited National Parks in America. It is busy and it can be confusing to navigate.
A Few Things to Know Before You Head Out at Acadia:
- Acadia comprises a patchwork of public land surrounded by towns and villages. It is small for a National Park, totalling only about 50,000 acres, but it is spread out over a much larger land area.
- The entire region is a seasonal resort destination with numerous hotels, motels, Bed & Breakfasts and private campgrounds throughout. The roads can become quite congested. Bar Harbor is the central hub of the area.
- Acadia has 3 campgrounds that can accommodate RVs: Seawall Campground, Blackwoods Campground, and Schoodic Woods Campground. The campgrounds are not located near one another. For example, Schoodic Woods and Blackwoods campgrounds are almost 50 miles apart.
- The Schoodic Woods campground is about 40 miles from Bar Harbor and takes about an hour to drive.
- Reservations are highly recommended especially during peak times.
- There is a free shuttle bus service operated by Island Explorer that features 10 bus routes linking hotels, inns, campgrounds etc. with destinations within Acadia National Park and neighbouring village centres.
This makes getting around a whole lot easier. It is worth it to familiarize yourself with the routes as sometimes multiple buses stop at the same location.
Site Review:
Schoodic Woods Campground
We stayed at the Schoodic Woods Campground when we visited Acadia. This is a new campground. It’s first full season was in 2016.
It has 79 sites
Schoodic Woods features:
- level pull-thru sites (in B loop)
- gravel pads
- water and electric hook-up (in B loop)
- electric sites (in A loop)
- dump station
- amphitheatre
- ranger/visitor station
- Island Explorer bus stop (*Note that the bus here is for the Schoodic Peninsula only and does not connect with other Island Explorer routes)
- Campfires are permitted and a campfire ring is provided on each site. They do not sell wood at the campground so you will have to purchase your wood outside of the park. There are many wood stands available. Make sure you have singles ($1 bills), as payment is via the honour system and a good-sized bundle costs less than $5.
- Comfort stations with flush toilets
It should be noted that there are no showers at the Schoodic Woods campground.
In order to shower there are 3 options, none of which are very convenient or are they within Acadia National Park:
- Schoodic Woods Marine Center: (1.6 miles away) This location is in Winter Harbor where the ferry docks. There is 4 coin operated showers costing $4 for 6 minutes.
(A laundromat is also located here). - Another option is at the Winter Harbor Inn: You need to call ahead and the cost is $20 for 45 minutes. (that is not a typo- yes $20 for a shower!)
- The third option is at Mainayr Campground: located 13.6 miles away in the village of Steuben. Showers here cost $5 per person, $7 per couple or $10 per family.
When we visited Schoodic Woods at Acadia National Park we stayed on site B11.
It is a nicely maintained campground with good spacing between sites in a natural setting.
Winter Harbor is the closest village and has a grocery store for any items you may need.
Seawall Campground
While we were exploring Acadia we went to Seawall Campground. The campground is approximately 18 miles from Bar Harbor. All the sites at Seawall Campground are wooded and within a 10-minute walk to the ocean. The majority of this campground’s sites are for small and large tents; other sites can accommodate RVs up to 35 ft. in length.
An odd feature of many of the sites is the white line drawn down the middle to indicate the site boundary. If you happen to have one of these sites there will be zero privacy between you and your neighbour.
Pay-per-use shower facilities and camping supply stores are located 1 mile from the campground.
There are no electric, water, or sewer hook-ups. No generators are permitted in Loops A, B or D. Generators may be used sparingly in Loop C between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m.
Activities:
Schoodic Peninsula Activities:
Biking/Hiking:
There are crushed gravel trails from the campground
that will take you to Frazer Point,
Schoodic Point,
Blueberry Hill,
the Schoodic Education and Research Center,
as well hiking only trails.
It is approximately 16 km from the campground to bike the loop around Schoodic Point. The majority of the route is a paved road and goes in a one-way direction. 
The crushed gravel portion is well maintained but does have some steep sections. If you avoid the bike path and stay on the road you will do a larger biking loop going through some of the picturesque villages along the shore. This route would double the length of your ride.
Ride the Bus Around Acadia:
The Island Explorer can be accessed at the campground and will take you to stops around the peninsula like:
Prospect Harbor:
Birch Harbor:
Winter Harbor:
At the various stops, you can access tours or rent equipment such as kayaks and bikes. There are restaurants where you can sample the local culinary fare.
Schoodic Marine Center in Winter Harbor:
It is from here that you will catch the ferry to Bar Harbor. There are 2 ferry companies to choose from:
- Bar Harbor Ferry
- Schoodic Ferry
- Both ferry companies charge about the same with the Bar Harbor Ferry costing slightly more for one-way fares.
- Bicycles are free
- Leashed pets are permitted
- Times are different (Schoodic Ferry leaves Winter Harbor earlier in the morning. The Bar Harbor Ferry leaves Winter Harbor later in the early evening. Consult their websites for exact times.)
- The ferry takes about 45-50 minutes to make the trip and affords some great views of the Bay.
-
The main difference between the 2 ferry companies (and I think this is a significant difference) is where the ferry docks once it reaches Bar Harbor:
Bar Harbor Ferry:
Docks at the Bar Harbor Inn Pier with direct and easy access to the downtown area of Bar Harbor. 
Schoodic Ferry:
Docks at the College of the Atlantic Pier. 
This location is about a 30-minute walk to the downtown area of Bar Harbor. You can access the Island Explorer bus on Eden St. (The Acadia Inn stop)- which will still take you a good 10 minutes to walk to. You should keep in mind that the bus only runs every 30 minutes and if the bus is full you will have to wait for the next one.
Bar Harbor Activities:
Village Green is a centrally located park in Bar Harbor that acts as the main hub to access most of the Island Explorer buses. 
Bar Harbor is a picturesque village offering access to a lot of activities.
Hull Cove Visitor Center:
The Hull Cove Visitor Centre is about a 10-minute bus ride from the Village Green Park in Bar Harbor. 
The actual Visitor Center is located up 52 steps from the parking lot. There is a small gift shop, restrooms and information/maps etc. with park rangers available to assist with questions.
The parking lot is large and does afford some RV parking.
You can access many of the Island Explorer buses from here. Two things to note about the Island Explorer buses:
- The popular #4 Loop Road bus can be accessed at the Visitor Center and NOT at the Village Green hub.
- None of the Island Explorer buses go to the summit of Cadillac Mountain. The #4 Loop Road bus and the #5 Jordon Pond bus will stop at the trail (the North Ridge stop) that you can then hike to reach the summit.
The Carriage Roads:
Park donor John D. Rockefeller Jr. had a distaste for the “garish advances of civilization” and that included motor vehicles. So in 1913, he began planning a network of what he called “Carriage Roads”. Walkers, horses with riders, bicyclists and of course carriages were welcome; automobiles were (and remain) banned.
More than 45 miles of Carriage Roads are accessible within the park and offer a great way to explore it. The crushed stone paths are wide and are marked with signposts at all intersections.
Rockefeller also financed, designed, and supervised the construction of 16 majestic stone bridges that were built at several stream and gorge crossings throughout the carriage road system.
Each bridge is a unique work of art and it is fun to try to visit them all. Duck Brook Bridge is the tallest and arguably the most grandiose and ornate stone bridge in Acadia, with three large arches and four turret-style viewing platforms at the top.
The Carriage Roads are interconnected and you will find some Volunteer Park Rangers interspersed along the routes to answer any questions. You may even find the occasional bicycle pit stop for maintenance if necessary.
Some sights we encountered on our ride included:
Witch Hole Pond:
Eagle Lake:
Bubble Pond:
It should be noted that biking on this section of the Carriage Road trail is moderately difficult. There are many long inclines and some fairly steep sections. I find the loose gravel base to be sometimes difficult to maintain traction on. The area around Jordon Pond can become very congested with other cyclists and horses.
Jordon Pond:
Jordon Pond is one of Acadia’s most popular spots. The twin rounded hills in the distance are called ‘The Bubbles’. 
There is a restaurant here where you can relax and enjoy one of their famous popovers while enjoying the view over the pond.
Sand Beach:
The best place for ocean swimming at Acadia is at Sand Beach.
- It is a natural sand beach
- The water is cold ( about 55° F)
- Lifeguards are on duty in the summer
- Parking is limited and on busy days the parking lot fills to capacity and you will see parked cars stretch for more than a mile along the Park Loop Road.
- There are change rooms
- There is no concession stand
Other Sights and Stops Along the Shoreline at Acadia:
Thunderhole:
This is where a small cave roars like thunder when the tide is just right and a large wave hits the shore.
Otter Cliffs:
Village of Northeast Harbor:
Where you can access various boat tours and sightseeing cruises.
Bass Harbor Lighthouse:
Southwest Harbor:
Lobster Pounds:
Lobster pounds are an excellent way to enjoy the local specialty.
They are typically small roadside restaurant establishments. Lobsters are cooked outside in pots on open fires and are usually served in paper-lined baskets or on paper plates at picnic tables.
This will probably be some of the best lobster you have eaten anywhere.
Things to Know:
- Of the 3 campground areas within Acadia National Park, Schoodic Woods is the only one to offer hookups.
- Pets are welcome at Acadia.
- Acadia is busy in the summer. Even with the shuttle buses the traffic congestion in Bar Harbor and the Loop Road areas is significant. There are areas you won’t find parking and there will be buses filled to capacity that you won’t be able to get on. It is beneficial to look at the various shuttle routes before heading out because multiple buses do access some of the same areas.
- There is a limited number of spaces suitable for RV parking at the Hull Cove Visitor Center and that is the only place with any spots at all that I saw. Travelling the main section of Bar Harbor and the Loop Road area is not advisable during peak times in an RV.
- You can not use your RV generator at all. This is very strict. This only leaves Schoodic Woods Campground at Acadia as an option if you require service.
- You can not have string lights or Tiki torches on your site. I don’t know why this is but I did see a Park Ranger enforce it.
- You can launch a boat at Jordon Pond and at Eagle Lake but you cannot swim at these places due to the fact that these are drinking water sources.
- One of the nights during our stay, a Park Ranger came around the campground telling everyone to store their food etc. appropriately as there was a bear in the area. I did not see a bear and except for a couple of deer and a few rabbits, I did not see any wildlife (apparently Acadia is home to moose as well).
IMO:
Acadia is a fantastic park. It is confusing as to where the boundaries are and the Island Explorer schedules can be intimidating at first but once you get the lay of the land, so to speak, you can truly appreciate why Acadia draws so many visitors.
The spectacular views along the rocky coast, the quaint villages coupled with a wide assortment of things to do and a top-notch camping experience make Acadia National Park a definite RV Place to Go.