Portland, Maine

[molsonschooner]

is Portland a tender port or is there a pier there

[Charles4515]

21 minutes ago, molsonschooner said:

is Portland a tender port or is there a pier there

There is a dock. 

[molsonschooner]

Just now, Charles4515 said:

There is a dock. 

thanks

[Ashland]

And the dock is right across from town and is an easy walk. 

Check out "Holy Donuts" a favorite of not only ours but many on these boards.

Looking forward to our port stop there again this October.

[shipgeeks]

Nice port, and lots to do and see within walking distance of the ship.

[GTJ]

15 hours ago, Ashland said:

[T]he dock is right across from town and is an easy walk.

To be clear, though, the commercial center of Portland is along Congress Street, several blocks uphill from the waterfront. An easy walk for most, but it will take about 20 minutes or so in each direction. Along the waterfront is some commerce, much of which is tourist-oriented.

[Ashland]

2 hours ago, GTJ said:

To be clear, though, the commercial center of Portland is along Congress Street, several blocks uphill from the waterfront. An easy walk for most, but it will take about 20 minutes or so in each direction. Along the waterfront is some commerce, much of which is tourist-oriented.

Sorry I wasn't "clear" enough  

[chengkp75]

14 hours ago, GTJ said:

To be clear, though, the commercial center of Portland is along Congress Street, several blocks uphill from the waterfront. An easy walk for most, but it will take about 20 minutes or so in each direction. Along the waterfront is some commerce, much of which is tourist-oriented.

To be totally clear, from someone who lives in Portland, the "commercial center" of Portland extends from Commercial Street (the waterfront) all the way to Congress Street.  Your 20 minute walk would not be just a distance from one thing to another, it would contain "commerce" (whether tourist centric or not), and sights, all along the way.  The Old Port area (between Commercial and Congress) is far more vibrant than the Congress Street area.

[GTJ]

Portland, like several other old cities, such as Brooklyn, Montréal, and others, had its historic commercial center along the waterfront, as it was the water the provided the avenues through which commerce was conducted. But as overland transportation improved, the commercial centers migrated, generally to higher ground. The old commercial centers (at least where not destructed) have retained their historic intrigue, and in many cases have provided a marvelous environment in which certain types of businesses have prospered. In many places, these waterfronts house nice restaurants, though many businesses simply sell tourist trinkets. Most students of architecture would find that, typically, the waterfront is more interesting than the newer buildings to where the centers of commerce now exist. In some cases, such as in lower Manhattan, there remains significant industry and commerce in the old centers--Wall Street, the NYSE, and City Hall are all there!---but nonetheless the centers of commerce have all moved inland, to midtown Manhattan and elsewhere in other cities. Portland's center moved to Congress Street. The waterfront is interesting (more "vibrant"?), and indeed there are various sites that might be of interest throughout all of central Portland. But if one were to pinpoint the modern commercial center of the city, it would likely be at or near Monument Square (about 20 minutes walking from the port). The pulse point for Portland's transit system, Metro, is at the Elm Street parking facility, one half block north of Congress Street and Monument Square. Visitors who desire to go to the city's commercial center--which may not be everyone on a cruise that stops in Portland--should plan accordingly.

[chengkp75]

9 minutes ago, GTJ said:

The pulse point for Portland's transit system, Metro, is at the Elm Street parking facility, one half block north of Congress Street and Monument Square. Visitors who desire to go to the city's commercial center--which may not be everyone on a cruise that stops in Portland--should plan accordingly.

Not sure why the Pulse center is important to anyone wanting to ride the public transport, since you can board buses at several stops between the Casco Bay Lines terminal (adjacent to the cruise dock) and Congress Street.  Still not sure how you are defining the "commercial center" as being along Congress Street.

[GTJ]

43 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

Not sure why the Pulse center is important to anyone wanting to ride the public transport, since you can board buses at several stops between the Casco Bay Lines terminal (adjacent to the cruise dock) and Congress Street.

It is obvious for anyone who rides public transportation in Portland that the pulse point on Elm Street has much greater relevance, generally, than the bus stops for route 8 in the port area. All Metro routes, and the South Portland bus routes, serve the pulse point. But the reason for having cited to the Metro pulse was to support the proposition that the commercial center of Portland is along Congress Street. Public transportation systems generally focus on the commercial centers of the cities that that systems serve. Metro sparsely serves the port area with a single bus route, which is appropriate for the relative importance of the commerce conducted in the port area.

53 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

Still not sure how you are defining the "commercial center" as being along Congress Street.

I think you can look at just about any urban planning textbook for a definition of commercial center, or central business district, and conclude that Congress Street meets the definition.

[danv3]

What a bizarre discussion for a cruise message board.  😅

[Ashland]

1 hour ago, danv3 said:

What a bizarre discussion for a cruise message board.  😅

It didn't start out that way. However "clearly" not surprised at the turn just a simple question can take with some poster's.

[seeriteR]

On 1/16/2023 at 9:41 PM, Ashland said:

It didn't start out that way. However "clearly" not surprised at the turn just a simple question can take with some poster's.

The Canadian OP was happy to hear it wasn't a tender port. Holy Donuts sounds like a stop I will make while enjoying my aimless wandering in a new port of call! We'll be there October 16.

[Ashland]

On 1/21/2023 at 8:11 PM, seeriteR said:

The Canadian OP was happy to hear it wasn't a tender port. Holy Donuts sounds like a stop I will make while enjoying my aimless wandering in a new port of call! We'll be there October 16.

Our port stop will be October 8th. Enjoy your donut and wandering around the port area. We certainly will be doing just that.

[ilovesparky13]

On 1/1/2023 at 11:24 PM, Ashland said:

And the dock is right across from town and is an easy walk. 

Check out "Holy Donuts" a favorite of not only ours but many on these boards.

Looking forward to our port stop there again this October.

Thank you for the recommendation. 🙂

[cleophus12]

We are thinking of taking the train into Freeport.  How far is the train from the port and is it walkable?  

 

[chengkp75]

8 hours ago, cleophus12 said:

We are thinking of taking the train into Freeport.  How far is the train from the port and is it walkable?  

 

The only morning northbound train from Portland is at 11:25, getting into Freeport at 11:55.  Then the southbound trains leave Freeport at 1:08pm or 5:58pm, getting into Portland at 1:43pm or 6:33pm.  The train station is about 3.2 miles from the cruise terminal, or about a 10 minute cab ride.  About an hour walk each way.  I don't know your port schedule, but it looks like you would be spending an hour on the train (30 minutes each way), for an hour's stay in Freeport.  Unless you absolutely gotta get to Bean's for some quick shopping, I wouldn't do it.

[lissie]

On 1/22/2023 at 5:11 PM, seeriteR said:

The Canadian OP was happy to hear it wasn't a tender port. Holy Donuts sounds like a stop I will make while enjoying my aimless wandering in a new port of call! We'll be there October 16.

LOL its my first time in this port too - and that's exactly what I took from this thread too! 

[Vicki'sMom]

The last time my husband and I had a port stop in Portland (love the city!) was in 2018 and we did a Foodies Walking Tour that was so much fun!  He just recently passed away very suddenly. 

 

This September I am taking our (adult) daughter on the same itinerary/same NCL ship we were on. 

 

First port of call is Portland and NCL shows zero excursions for that port!  😧 I am looking for either a private foodie-type tour (9/7/2023) or advice on how we can do it ourselves!  (I don't remember any of the places our 2018 tour took us, but it was great!)

[chengkp75]

There are several "foodie tours" in Portland, if you google it.  Here is one, I can't recommend it, since I have not done it, and it varies each tour:

 

https://www.mainedayventures.com/?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=GoogleMyBusiness