

Sea captains' homes stand sentinel along tree-lined streets where history feels comfortably lived-in rather than preserved behind velvet ropes. At Gooch's Beach, locals perform the daily ritual of debating which nearby shack serves the definitive lobster roll. The Brick Store Museum offers a surprisingly sophisticated collection for a town this size, while the Rachel Carson Wildlife Refuge provides trails where herons pose like statues in tidal pools. Summer brings crowds to Mother's Beach, but savvy visitors explore the Kennebunk Plains in August when wild blueberries carpet the landscape. For the full coastal Maine experience, arrive hungry and bring a sweater - even in July the evening air carries that perfect hint of autumn.

