Maine · United States
Cycling in Bar Harbor
Best season: Late May–October
Bar Harbor exists for one great ride: the Acadia Carriage Roads, 45 miles of crushed-stone lanes that John D. Rockefeller Jr. built between 1913 and 1940 and gave to the park. They are closed to cars, so you climb past Eagle Lake, Bubble Pond, and Jordan Pond, cross 17 handsome stone bridges, and never share the surface with traffic. The gentle carriage-friendly grades suit families and casual riders, while the longer loops (Around-Mountain, Paradise Hill) give stronger legs real climbing.
The surface is packed fine gravel, so a hybrid, gravel, or fat-tire bike is far happier than a skinny-tired road bike. Only Class 1 e-bikes are allowed where regular bikes are, and a couple of carriage-road sections on private land near Long Pond are closed to bikes — worth checking the park map before you go.
Downtown Bar Harbor is a rental town. Bar Harbor Bicycle Shop on Cottage Street rents Trek hybrids from $45/day and e-bikes at $105, less than a mile from the first carriage-road entrance, and Acadia Bike runs the largest fleet in the area with free helmets, locks, and maps included. For a lift to the trail, the seasonal Island Explorer Bicycle Express shuttle carries bikes to Eagle Lake. If you’d rather have a guide, Island Time runs a roughly four-hour, 22-mile guided e-bike tour of the carriage roads out of the Hulls Cove Visitor Center.
Hotel loaner bikes are rarer here than the rental shops — the Acadia Hotel downtown is the one property commonly described as lending guests bikes (confirm before you count on it), while most inns offer secure bike storage instead. Come between late May and October; carriage roads can close briefly during spring mud season, and the shoulder weeks give you the quietest riding.
Weather in Bar Harbor
Live · NWSLoading current conditions…
Typical by month
avg high/low · 1991–2020 normals · ACADIA NATIONAL PARK- Jan 32° 15° 4.5"
- Feb 35° 18° 3.8"
- Mar 42° 25° 4.9"
- Apr 53° 35° 5.2"
- May 64° 45° 4.5"
- Jun 74° 54° 4.3"
- Jul 79° 60° 3.3"
- Aug 78° 60° 3.5"
- Sep 71° 53° 4.2"
- Oct 58° 43° 5.9"
- Nov 48° 33° 5.9"
- Dec 38° 22° 5.7"
Bike-friendly hotels
We earn a commission if you book through the links below, at no extra cost to you. It's how this guide stays free.
The Acadia Hotel - Downtown
Boutique hotel on the Village Green in downtown Bar Harbor, commonly described as lending guests complimentary bicycles for the ~1-mile roll to Acadia's carriage-road entrances; its own site confirms complimentary bike storage.
From $150+/night
Before you book: The hotel's own site lists 'complimentary bike storage' while the chamber/aggregators say 'complimentary bicycles' — confirm the loaner program is real, free, its fleet/season, and helmet/lock/waiver terms by phone (207-288-5721).
Bike program reported via source (2026-07-12)
Where to rent or borrow a bike
Acadia Bike (Acadia Outfitters)
From $41/day · waiver required
One of the area's largest fleets on Cottage Street; conventional bikes from $41/day (reservation), e-bikes $105/day, free helmets, maps, and locks; ~1.7 mi to the carriage roads with a seasonal bike-carrying shuttle to Eagle Lake.
Call ahead: Confirm 2026 Bicycle Express shuttle dates and waiver/age policy by phone (207-288-9605).
Verified via source (2026-07-12)
Acadia Ebike Adventure
From $95/half-day · waiver required
E-bike specialist at 1 Dewey St, described as the closest e-bike shop to the carriage roads (~0.5 mi to a park entrance); reported rates full-day $125, half-day $95.
Call ahead: Confirm current rates, hours, and waiver/age policy directly (rates from search snippet).
Reported via source (2026-07-12)
Bar Harbor Bicycle Shop
From $45/day · waiver required
Full-service Cottage Street shop less than a mile from the first Acadia carriage-road entrance; Trek Verve hybrids $45/day, e-bikes $105/day, kids' bikes $35/day, plus gravel/road/fat and trailers.
Call ahead: Confirm waiver/age policy and current in-season vs. off-season hours by phone (207-288-3886).
Verified via source (2026-07-12)
Guided bike tours
Guided E-Bike Tour of Acadia National Park Carriage Roads
Island Time · 4h · from $197
A roughly 22-mile guided Class 1 e-bike ride on Acadia's car-free carriage roads with stops at Eagle Lake and Jordan Pond House, limited to about eight riders and starting from the Hulls Cove Visitor Center; minimum age 16.
Where these are on the map Bar Harbor
Hotels Rentals & loaners · 4 of this destination's listings located · © OpenStreetMap contributors