Boat Tours
The best way to see the Maine coast around Boothbay is on a boat tour. Nearly two dozen tour boats berth at the harbor or nearby. Balmy Days Cruises (tel. 800/298-2284 or 207/633-2284; www.balmydayscruises.com), for instance, runs a half-dozen short trips daily ($12 for adults, $6 for children) around the harbor in summertime. If you'd rather be sailing, ask about the 90-minute cruises aboard the sloop Friendship ($20 per person; 5 daily in summer). Schedules are reduced in spring and fall; call ahead for reservations.
The most personal way to see the harbor is via sea kayak. Tidal Transit Kayak Co. (tel. 207/633-7140) offers morning, afternoon, and sunset tours of the harbor for $35 (sunset's the best bet). Single kayaks can also be rented for $15 an hour or $50 per day; tandem kayaks costs more. The shop is open daily in summer (except when it rains heavily), and is actually located on a dock at 18 Granary Way.
