I've been putting my 40' Trojan at Sunset for two seasons now. The fact that I have already signed up with a deposit for a third season 2021 should help to inform you how I feel about Dan & Elaine Lilly, the proprietors. I checked into most of the Casco Bay Area Marinas and found that Sunset had the best options for my needs. There are others with a larger compliment of services, but since I have REO as my boat yard and Marine repair service, Sunset has exactly what I need. -They have well maintained Dock & Gangways -The shore power & water lines are first rate -Bathrooms & laundry are spic & span 100% -Allow outside maintenance to come work on your boat -Extra dingy dock available -Transportation carts for your stuff always available -Marine equipment and beverages always stocked -Fuel is the cheapest in Casco Bay!!! -Long term clientele who are welcoming to new members, very helpful and very friendly -Dan & Elaine are great business people. They care about the boat owners and it shows -They also provide routine and special weather updates, and will contact you immediately out of concern for your vessel, especially when a big storm is brewing -It's the small touches: Dan & Elaine provided a spectacular 4th of July fireworks show out of pocket because of the Wuhan Virus limitations this year. Best show ever! Just ask everyone at Sunset D Dock! If you're fortunate enough to have a boat, try to get into Sunset. It's my first Marina experience and it has set the bar really high. Thanks Elaine & Dan!i read more

See all

We've had a slip at Sunset Marina in South Portland Maine for a few years now. Not to put any of the other great marinas we did transient slips with around Portland , but simply put there is no better place we can imagine that is better then Sunset Marina. From the amazing sunsets over the old port to the friendly, helpful and professional service Dan and Elaine provide. As we were new to the ocean life, their experience and helpfulness was welcomed. We love how they maintain a pleasant and welcoming environment for all and won't tolerate anything else. If you're lucky enough to get a slip at sunset marina welcome, you won't regret it!! Dick and CJ Rogers Scarborough read more

I have had my boat at Sunset for the last 7 years. I've always paid my bills, minded my own business and without question followed the rules set by the owners. In October I got an email saying that invitations for next summer will be sent on 11/15. Invitations, what does that mean? Prior to the 15th I asked one of the owners if I would get an invitation, no response. Then.. I get this response after I asked again: The marina is evolving its business and we are unable to renew your slip for 2023. There are other docking options in Casco Bay. We wish you all the best with your boating endeavors. Again, what does that all mean, evolving its business? I called every marina in Portland and they all have long waiting lists. If I knew of the evolving business sooner I could have called marinas sooner. Boating Endeavors?, I am retired, have 5 lobster traps and love the ocean and that is the endeavor I enjoy. I then get a call from the owner who said I am not the only one they canceled, that made me feel special. I told him there were no other docking options, which he seemed to not know about. I imagine this has a connection to money, my small boat doesn't pay as much as a big boat. My issue is the lack of customer service, the lack of loyalty, notice, consideration. The part of Maine that I have enjoy is the people connection, the small town where there is a respect for each other, we don't agree but we do look out for each other. I don't feel better after writing this, but I do hope others will read my thoughts and keep it in the back of your mind. If the others that were canceled feel free to chime in. Bill read more

With a great location and seemingly thorough list of amenities, this marina presents as the total package. However, a pall of misery is perpetually cast over this otherwise idyllic setting by the ownership duo of Dan and Elaine Lilley. Whether you're left awkwardly waiting for service while a marital screaming match plays out in the dock house, or being continually heckled when your family arrives bearing beverages that weren't purchased on site, Dan and Elaine never miss an opportunity to remind that dollars in their pockets take precedent over your enjoyment of a relaxing weekend. If you're prone to sympathy for a family business, striving to make ends meet, you'll be quickly relieved of that notion when the same people who just berated you over a $2 can of soda tear off the property in an ever-revolving fleet of luxury cars. My experience with this business has been one of continually dwindling features paired with elevated prices, newly contrived fees, and hospitality delivered through gritted teeth. read more

This is our second stop at Sunset as transient boaters. They have nice floating docks, clean restrooms and some of the nicest people. Bothe the dock masters and other boaters we met were all friendly and helpful! We will return again. read more

I can't stress enough what an awful experience my husband and I have had over the last several years as (now former) customers of Sunset Marina. Two years ago, after several very enjoyable summers as customers of Sunset, Dan and Elaine reneged on a written offer tendered to my husband for the use of our existing slip for the coming year, after he had accepted same in writing. They did this after repeatedly indicating to us that the slip we were in at that time would be ours for the next season; then, in Octobr of that year, they simply told us that we could no longer have that slip (again, after we'd already accepted in writing their written offer.) The day we were told they would not honor their written agreement, I attempted to call Elaine (with whom up until this event I'd had a very good relationship, or so I thought), but instead, Dan got on the phone and proceeded to angrily lecture me in scarily loud tones about how I was not going to tell him how to run his marina, that his marina wasn't a trailer park, it was simply a parking garage for his customers' boats, and that I was to simply come to the marina, take my boat out, come back, and leave. Period. It's worth noting that this incident occurred in the midst of Dan and Elaine unceremoniously "disinviting" a number of long-time customers of theirs (many of whom had become our close friends) from future patronage of their business. In a number of cases, such customers were caught completely by surprise, at the end of that season, with very limited prospects of finding slips for the coming year. The only explanation these customers were typically provided by the Lilleys was that they were taking their marina "in a different direction" and that direction didn't include these customers. My husband and I spent 2022 adjusting to our new slip, far less desirable than the one we had had the year before and which we'd been promised the prior fall, while walking on eggshells all sumer around Dan and Elaine, lest we be find ourselves on their chopping block at the end of the 2022 season. We were told, directly to our faces or indirectly, on at least two occasions during this past season that we had nothing to worry about for 2023 and we'd be all set in terms of their having room for us for this new year. We were told, however, that the Lilleys would not be sending our their "invitations" to their customers for the 2023 season until sometime after October, 2022. This past November, when we learned that a number of our fellow boaters had received their "invitations", and noting that we had not, we reached out to Dan and Elaine to inquire about our status. It was only then that we received an email saying that they would not be renewing our slip for 2023. No explanation, no apology, nothing. We are now scrambling to find a spot to put our boat this spring. One way or the other our boat is going in the water and we will enjoy another season on Casco Bay and beyond. But I would urge anyone reading this to stear well clear of the Lilleys; our experience is that they simply are not to be trusted. read more

Worst place to dock boat ever i have never wrote a review in my life but i feel i should warn others. The owner/workers have damaged my boat and those of others I know. They are rude and aggressive, i felt threatened . Please be warned they may destroy your property as they did to ours by putting a hammer through our paddle board, destroying one of our outboard engines etc....we will be going to trial over this. If you value your free time and property stay away from sunset marina read more

We're liveaboards and docked our 35 foot sailboat there last summer. It's a bit exposed to harbor boat traffic/wakes, but you can't beat the view of downtown Portland at sunset. Easy access to harbor and ocean. Nice dock and facilities. The owners/managers are friendly and were always quick to lend a hand with docklines. I still swing by for fuel. Dan thankfully stopped me from accidentally filling our diesel with gas the other day. Whew! read more

Always 5 star. I started going to Sunset Marina over 5 years ago and Dan and Elaine are both great hosts and excellent folks to do business with. Secure, safe and clean with a fun crowd that is always helpful. I wouldn't want to go anywhere else. read more

Great Marina. Family owned. Have had a slip for 9 years. No complaints whatsoever. Best price and view in the harbor.

Sunset Marina helped make this the best summer we have ever had! In part, this is due to its perfect location- a fabulous view of Portland day and night, ships coming in and out of the harbor are fascinating, it is convenient to get to by land and by sea, and of course, spectacular sunsets for which it is named. Amenities are fine- clean bathrooms and showers, ice, fuel, and parking. But the main thing is the great people! We made wonderful new friends right there on the docks! People, who, like us, love their boats, love the water, and love to have a good time! All this being run by one young couple, Dan and Elaine, who work incredibly hard to keep it all going smoothly. I have never seen anyone working at a marina work so hard as this "ma and pop" operation- It is their own place, so they really care, and it shows! Always there to help with whatever you need, including just catching a line as you enter a slip against wind or current. Sharing a drink and a story with friends on nearby boats, dock party at the end of the season! In all, we never imagined having so much fun just by keeping our boat at a marina! So what was that strange horrible review from a few years ago about? Hammers? Paddleboards? What? Weird. This is not a repair shop- It is a marina, and a wonderful one at that! Just the most fun you can have on the water- We can't wait to get back to Sunset Marina next season! read more