Bangor

Bangor brings together cultural history, trails through forests and wetlands, and a paved path along the Penobscot River. This makes the city in Maine an appealing destination for travelers who want to combine nature with cultural discoveries. The side of Bangor that appeals to you most may also shape your choice of where to stay.

Art, history and distinctive local stories

The Zillman Art Museum moved to downtown Bangor in December 2002. Each year, it presents an exhibition program featuring contemporary artists and contemporary themes. For planning your trip, this means that art lovers will find a clear cultural focus in Bangor alongside its nature trails. If you like to plan your days around a museum visit, you can take this into account when choosing where to stay.

Mount Hope Cemetery offers a different historical perspective. It opened in 1836 and is described as the second-largest garden cemetery in the country. Paul Bunyan is also part of Bangor’s storytelling tradition: the legendary lumberjack is said to have been born in the city. A massive fiberglass statue of Paul Bunyan greets visitors. These different points of interest give culture lovers more than one way to engage with Bangor’s history and local stories.

A historical walking tour of the city is another option: the Bangor Historical Society runs the Best of Bangor Walking Tour. If you are interested in taking part, you can use this name as a starting point for further trip planning. Theater lovers may also want to note the Penobscot Theatre Company in Bangor; it produces five youth productions each year.

Riverfront, forest and trails

The Bangor Waterfront Trail is about one mile long, paved, and runs along the Penobscot River through Bangor’s Waterfront Park. Along the way, there are river views, sculptures, a public dock for small boats, and food trucks. The trail connects with the East Coast Greenway, the Kenduskeag Stream Trail and the River City Trail. This waterfront stretch offers its own mix of trails, river views and public art. If you would like to include a paved riverside path in your trip, the Waterfront Trail is a specific option to consider.

The Rolland F. Perry City Forest offers managed forest and wildlife habitat for outings. The area covers more than 680 acres and has more than nine miles of trails. These trails can be used for running, hiking, cycling, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. The range of activities makes the forest a different nature option from the riverside path: here, the focus is on a larger forest area and several ways to get active. You can plan accordingly based on whether you would prefer a walk by the water or trails through the forest.

Essex Woods also has trails that pass through wetlands and reforested areas. They are suitable for hiking, mountain biking and cross-country skiing. In its description, the landscape differs from the managed forest of the Rolland F. Perry City Forest: wetlands and reforested areas are an explicit part of the trail experience at Essex Woods. If these types of landscape matter to you, you can take them into account when planning your outings.

Choosing Bangor as a place to stay

The Community Connector provides scheduled transport services within Bangor. If you would like to factor public transport within the city into your choice of where to stay, this is useful information for your further planning. However, the available facts do not specify individual routes or stops, so look for the connection that is relevant to your plans.

When choosing a vacation rental, you can start by considering what you would like to focus on: art and local history, the path along the Penobscot River, or trails through forests and wetlands. These interests offer different ways to explore Bangor.

Discover more places

More destination pages: Lee, Millinocket, Brewer, Lincoln, Corinna, Dexter, Orono, Glenburn.

For the main travel overview: Penobscot.