Where a car takes you from Portland
These are the day trips from Portland on our own pages where a car earns its keep. Trains reach some of them; a car reaches all of them, on your own clock.
- Freeport (Maine Beer Co) Freeport, 25 minutes north of Portland, is home to Maine Beer Co (Lunch IPA, Dinner DIPA) at 525 US Route 1 and Harraseeket Lunch and Lobster on the h
- Rockland (Primo, oysters, Camden) Rockland on the Mid-Coast, 75 minutes northeast, is home to Primo Restaurant from James Beard Award winner Melissa Kelly (Best Chef Northeast 1999 and
- Brunswick (Frontier, Big Top Deli) Brunswick is 30 minutes north of Portland, home to Bowdoin College, Frontier Cafe at the Cabot Mill and Big Top Deli on the Maine Street downtown corr
- Kennebunkport (The Clam Shack, Mabel's Lobster Claw) Kennebunkport on the South Coast, 30 minutes south of Portland, is home to The Clam Shack lobster roll and Mabel's Lobster Claw on Ocean Avenue
- Bath (Byways Cafe, Mae's Cafe) Bath, 40 minutes northeast of Portland, is the historic shipbuilding city on the Kennebec, with Byways Cafe diner classics and Mae's Cafe weekend brun
- Cape Elizabeth (Bite Into Maine, Portland Head Light) Cape Elizabeth, 15 minutes south of Portland, is home to the original Bite Into Maine lobster roll truck at Fort Williams Park and Portland Head Light
Booking a car in Portland
We compare through one partner rather than listing every broker. Desks sit at the airport and in town, and the headline rate below is theirs, not ours.
- From
- USD 77.66 a day
- Desks on site
- Alamo, Avis, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz, National, Sixt, Thrifty
Rates are the partner's headline price at our last check (2026-10-25) and move with dates, car class and insurance. We earn a commission if you book, at no cost to you.