Two Maine Towns Rank Among America’s Most Expensive Travel Destinations

Ah, Maine.

Beautiful, calm, remote, serene — and expensive.

Let’s not beat around the bush here: we all love Maine, but significant parts of this state aren't exactly cheap. I guess that’s the price you pay for a high quality of life.

So, if it’s quite expensive for locals, just imagine what the costs are like for tourists.

Well, now we don’t have to, thanks to a new report released by the financial site GoBankingRates.

The popular site put together a list of the most expensive tourist destinations in America. GoBankingRates used several metrics to determine the list, including airfare, hotel rates, and food and alcohol prices. The results featured many places you'd expect, including two right here in the Pine Tree State.

What Maine Towns are the Most Expensive for Tourists?

Congrats to Portland and Bar Harbor, two of the six most expensive travel destinations in America! That is... well... not ideal.

Let’s start with Portland, which ranked as the 6th most expensive tourist destination to visit.

• Average Airfare for a Couple: $838 — A ridiculous number, but flying isn’t exactly economical these days.

• Average Hotel: $538 — I’ll assume this is for a weekend. Honestly, I thought it would be higher.

• Total Cost for All Meals: $720 — Again, probably even higher now.

• Average Price for Domestic Beer: $6.25 — Nobody drinks domestic beer here, so this number is irrelevant.

• Total Cost for Vacation: $2,150 — A hefty number, but I’d actually expect it to be even higher now. That’s a tough pill to swallow.

That’s Portland. Now let’s take a look at Bar Harbor, which came in as the 4th most expensive travel destination in the U.S.

• Average Airfare for a Couple: $883 — Flights to Bar Harbor are tricky. Most people fly into Bangor or Portland and rent a car, so that’s even more cash.

• Average Hotel: $566 — Not too crazy, depending on the time of year. It could be much higher during peak season.

• Total Cost for All Meals: $720 — Again, seems generous to the town.

• Average Price for Domestic Beer: $6.25 — Wine and craft beer are much more expensive.

• Total Cost for Vacation: $2,224 — Only slightly higher than Portland, with the main differences in airfare and hotel. And like I said for Portland, this number is probably low.

We can definitely debate how accurate these numbers are, but they give us a rough idea of how pricey these towns really are. And the bottom line? They're really damn expensive.

I’ve spent an entire week in Europe for less than this — and that was within the last decade.

What’s the solution to Rising Costs in Maine?

There isn’t one. Life is only getting more expensive, and that’s not likely to change.

The only question is: will it eventually deter people from visiting? So far, the answer is no — especially considering Acadia continues to break visitation records.

READ MORE: Maine’s Acadia Climbs to 7th Most Popular U.S. National Park

I guess only time will tell.