Asticou Restaurant

I booked this place based on the location to Acadia National Park and also something that wasn’t over the top expensive since were road tripping with our two kids to multiple destinations. I honestly have no idea why some people gave it such bad reviews! I was contemplating between giving it 4 to 5 stars since I really only had one complaint. First off, the hotel is over 140 years old. With that said, it’s going to be old! There are going to be things that aren’t perfect, but I loved the old feel and it felt how I imagined being in Maine would be. We had a one bedroom suite and it was perfect size for our kids. There as no air conditioner it they did provide box fans. I’m assuming this is normal for Maine. The water pressure was great and the shower was hot! The view from the Inn is absolutely beautiful and overlooking the Harbor. Breakfast is included which was a huge plus for us and we did enjoy an evening dinner at the restaurant. No complaints and the food was great. The food was extremely expensive but traveling the east coast I was realizing these prices are normal for the area, and tourist location. I loved having dinner outside overlooking the harbor. My only real complaint is the pool area. The pool is great and was so refreshing after a day of hiking, it the upkeep on the pool is lacking. Around the pool needs power washed and weeds pulled. There were weeds all over the pool area. I saw the works cleaning and mopping the indoor Inn multiple times a day, but they need to focus on the pool area. Other than that the service was great. Everyone was friendly, kind and attentive. I also loved the it was on the Northeast side of the Harbor, close to Acadia NP and Bar Harbor, but still a few miles away from the Bar Harbor and set in a more quiet area of the area. We absolutely loved our first time in Maine!

I truly don't understand the negative reviews for staying in the Inn. It's like 150 years old - if you're expecting all the modern amenities and for every nook and cranny to be perfect, I'm sure there's a nice Holiday Inn somewhere close by! That said, I loved staying here. It was beautiful, and I loved spending time in such a historic building. The room was clean and the staff was kind and helpful. Parking was easy, the views were great, and it was nice to be a little ways away from the activity in downtown Bar Harbor. I'd stay here again in a heartbeat!

Nice heated pool in the back of the Inn and the continental breakfast was quite good. Plus there is easy access to the trail up to the Thula Lodge and Garden. The garden there is amazing during late spring through fall.

The date was August 7, 2023. My wife and I had ridden our bikes for over 40 miles and it was starting to get dark and rainy. We thought we were on our way back to our campground, but took a wrong turn and were on the other side of Bar Harbor which would've taken us at least another hour to get back. As we continued our ride we came across the Asticou Inn and stopped in for directions. As soon as we entered, we were greeted with a smile by Steven Zepeta at the front desk. He showed us where we were on the map and how far we were from our camp. We then discussed our options and he took the time to ask his assistant manager if he could use the company car to take us back. For him to even think of this was an awesome display of humanity. Imagine our surprise when he came back and said he was given the greenlight to drive us back WITH OUR BIKES! We cannot thank Steven and his supervisor (I wish we had her name) for their kindness. He could’ve easily told us where we were and left it at that, but this young man took the time to take care of us. Oh, and the Inn is absolutely beautiful with an amazing restaurant. We will be back, but as guests next time! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

This was a tough one to rate (split the difference 3.5). While we enjoyed our experience at the asticou inn there were some drawbacks. We stayed in a cottage and felt like we had a private place to ourselves. The place has some charm for sure but is greatly in need of some legitimate repair not bandaids. Pros: the complimentary breakfast was great, the views of the northeast harbor are fantastic, deer roamed through the yard each morning and evening, the pool was very warm, there was a tv and direct tv in the room contrary to some other reviews. Cons: the windows didn’t really open or close if you didn’t take the screens out first to manually do so, the pipes in the bathroom leaked a bit and we had to keep towels on the floor, some of the front desk attendants seemed like they’d rather be anywhere else and rarely had towels to use for the pool, the pool floor was dirty. Dining: the restaurant was pretty good with a great view. The food was pricey $$$ but very good and presented well. The service was also very good.