Great place to be for the art lovers as well as art novices like me. Good collection of paintings,…read moresculptures and photos which makes it really diverse and makes you travel across so many different eras. The descriptions to the items are well written and well conveys the story and the message behind the display. It spans four floors (it has elevator) but the third and fourth ones won't take that much time. There is a nice cafe underground which has snacks as well. Note that you aren't allowed to take food/beverages upstairs. There were a few displays around the cafe too. Staff was nice and friendly. Definitely recommended.

Impressive hidden gem of Portland, some classic artists, wonderful pieces. Interesting history of…read morethe building as well and lay out. We had a great time on a hot day.

It's a History to Me…read more Founded in 1822, the Maine Historical Society's sole purpose is to preserve the history of Maine thru rotating exhibits that include historical photos and artifacts. The Good: *Free admission to the Longfellow Garden (May - Oct) during normal hours of operation *Wadsworth-Longfellow House is a separate part of the museum, with a separate fee ($18/GA). We didn't do this, so I can't comment if it's worth it. *Admission is reasonable at $12/adults *Reciprocity program with other museums, if you're a member ($25-75/year). *Located in beautiful Downtown Portland The Meh: *Not the world's biggest museum, as you can probably see the whole thing in 1-2hrs, depending on how much you read the placards for each item/display. The Ugly: *Location is in Downtown Portland, which is great, but you'll most likely have to deal with paying for parking at one of the garages. Pro Tip: If the garage DOESN'T advertise their pricing on the outside, then skip it on and move onto the next one that does. Evidently these predatory parking garages are a big thing here in DT Portland. Conclusion: Nice place to visit if you're in Portland and looking for a little culture.

The Maine Historical Society says on their website: "Connecting and documenting the Maine…read moreexperience" and "dedicates itself to making history relevant and accessible" and I could not agree more! We live locally and have been checking out the rotating exhibits over the past 10 or so years-all unique, informative rich, fascinating topics, amazing artifacts. You can look online to see what's going on/get tickets for specified time and can also buy in person there. Easily found on Congress Street in Portland, accessible all one level (no stairs), gift shop excellently curated for the history buffs and admission is affordable. At the time of our visit the 3 smaller exhibits included: "Mainers and their pets", "Maines untold history of Vegetarianism" and "Maine sheet music"- all was well worth the price of admission! This is also the place to tour the historic Wadsworth-Longfellow house. Only downside is parking- they do not have a dedicated parking lot so it's on-street parking. Congress has some, but it's a busy area so we tend to park on surrounding streets in the region from Congress St down to Commercial street side of Congress St and there is also a parking garage nearby. Walkable area location-shops and restaurants also fun to stop in to support local too. Highly recommended- here's to preserving history, learning where we've been to better understand where we are now and where we're headed in the future!

Lovely visit to the Portland Observatory…read more We had intended on a self-tour but were told that self tours would start at 4:30pm...and that before that time, you would have to take a toured guide up the tower. As there was a scheduled guide about to start soon...we opted to take the guided tour. At that time (mid-week in late August around 12pm) there were only four of us on that tour. Our tour guide, an older woman, was wonderful. As we ascended the tower during the 45-minute tour, we stopped off at each floor and she explained a bit about the tower and its history. Lots of interesting facts! We made it to the top to take in some amazing views of the area. Tours are $10 for adults, $5 for ages 6-16 and free for those 5 and under. The stairs (there are about 100) throughout the tower are spiral-ish...so be careful of your foot placement on the narrowed parts of each step while ascending and descending. Street parking signs can be a bit tricky in the area reading "...no parking on the 1st/2nd/3rd/4th ___day of the month..." Be sure to properly read those signs and park accordingly.

My plans only have me in town for two days, so I asked my local coworker one sight I had to see…read morewith a short time frame, and was sent here. Just a fun little local tip. The history itself is cool enough: this was a lookout for ships coming into the harbor before radio, and is the oldest currently standing in the USA. But I really appreciated the elevation for getting a good look of the downtown and harbor area, walking around the tower in the breeze and seeing the ocean peaking through the islands in the harbor. Worth the $10 to the top. (Note: the stairs are steep and there's no room inside for an elevator. We're talking large curving internal staircases. Maybe not for those with mobility issues.)

Great scenic train ride. Good narrator…read more Relaxing and comfortable seating Enjoy this great tour ride

It was a 90 minute tour of the waterfront in Portland Maine. Very educational and fun train ride…read moreafter walking around all day it was a good way to unwind down.

This institute is an art school and gallery for artistic people. It has various classes promoting…read morevisual arts. It has 5 exhibitions every year. Limited street and lit parking.

MECA is an amazing school! With a great location, amazing professors and the most talented…read morestudents. This Holiday Sale is more like a museum sale! The building has a semi-open floor plan with colorful walls and spacious rooms. Even when there is hundreds of people roaming the halls you can still find a spot to breathe and enjoy the art on display! I hope one of my children decides to make this their choice! The art and crafts for sale here are reasonably priced and well made...with Love!

**November 2025: Friday Morning Visit**…read more I saw that the Victoria Mansion was just a 10 minute walk from our airbnb and that Black Friday was the start of their Christmas overlay! It sounded fun and for $19.25 (Adult Admission) I was excited to see how they would implement the Nutcracker theme to the home. Guests enter through the gift shop and while we arrived at 10:10am or so I was really surprised at how many visitors they had checking out the home. As a National Historic Landmark, this summer home was created by Ruggles Morses, sometime between 1858-1860, and as a hotel entrepreneur Morses implemented many of the lavish hotel designs to it. The home itself is original and over 90% of the interiors and furnishings remain original to 1860, including furniture, carpets, draperies, textiles, which was really impressive. I think I spent about 45 minutes admiring all the home details and reading the placards, and there were friendly informative docents at pretty much each section of the home These photos don't even really do it justice, but the decorations were extremely elaborate and each room focused on a different act in the ballet - ie. Spanish Chocolates, Mother Ginger, Arabian Coffee, Chinese Tea, etc. There was significant care given to each room. Overall, I had fun time!

Street parking was relatively easy for us. No paid meters, but read the signs. $38.50 for 2 adults…read moreis what we paid. That price came with a guided tour of the house and narration. Our guide was actually doing a very good job narrating, that is until she seemed annoyed that we wanted to pose for one or two pictures, hurrying us along and stating we were waisting time. Even the grand staircase, not allowing us to stand in the middle of the steps for a photograph. Telling us that wasn't allowed, it all sounded ridiculous. I mean it was just two people the guide was touring, us! The guide even walked us past the tip box we weren't tossing in anything. Great post card photo opportunities in house, which are allowed. *Videos prohibited. *Final thoughts: Nice and interesting experience go check it out and tell them the Guru sent you. Check out the documentary OLD WORLD ORDER 1&2 at rumble dot com before visiting. The Review Guru* Long Island NY

First of all, the lady at the front was so nice, because we're trying to use a card to get it…read morecheaper, but I had forgotten mine. She was very friendly and gave it to us anyways. Second of all, the second floor with all the maine things was hands down my son's favorite. The fire truck with the pole, the train that we just rode on to get there, the fisherman boat with the lobster, they definitely need more food for the diner. We love the water thing upstairs.It was very different than the one in boston

It's a great place for your child to come, play and learn! The reason I'm giving it 4 stars is the…read moreday we went there were a ton of campers and it was a bit over crowded for my 2 year old. I would have preferred for the campers to go on one of the days it's closed. Also, I feel the cost is quite expensive. $20 per person can be a lot for a family of 3 plus. My child should at least be free.

Before heading to the airport we were looking for things to do (not in the rain) so we found this…read moremuseum. This is a free museum that survives off donations. As we walked in we were greeted by a curator (I'm sorry I don't remember his name) who was amazing. He offered a tour of the museum and stated after his tour we could walk around as we pleased. This man was a wealth of knowledge and even had so good humor to add to the information. I was so intrigued by what he was saying and showing that I didn't even take pictures. Next time we are in town I think we will go back again when we have even more time to spend!

Incredible collection of wartime memorabilia. A museum with a heart, Mr Lee and our guide Chris are…read morevery welcoming. The museum staff makes you feel like family. We spent three hours looking and listening to great stories you cannot read in books. I felt emotional hearing the stories well delivered by Chris. Highly recommend this museum in PORTLAND, MAINE. Leo of California