City: Cape Newagen, ME

Category: Accommodations

Telephone: (207) 633-5242 or (800) 654-52

Address: Route 27

Description: Truly a breath of fresh air in the Boothbay area, the Newagen is like the grand hotels of yore—they call it “understated elegance,” and it is all that: unpretentious, unfancy, but timeless and classic. This is the sort of place that the wealthy rusticators of Maine’s golden age might have come to in the summer for a month or two. Set on a 20-acre, spruce-covered property at the tip of Southport Island, the inn has magnificent views of sea all around. Park yourself in one of the whitewashed Adirondack chairs overlooking the briny sea, and you may never want to leave. There are 30 guest rooms in all, with varying degrees of luxuriousness, as well as the option of staying in a cottage, which can be rented by the week. The amenities are so many that you could indeed stay for weeks and not even have to leave the property. They include a heated outdoor pool, an oceanside hot tub, tennis, boating, biking, nature trails, candlepin bowling, billiards and Ping-Pong, croquet and horseshoes, volleyball and badminton, a library of books, and those Adirondack chairs set before a sparkling Atlantic panorama. The dining room is very pleasant, with banks of windows lining the wall, and serves a broad range of well-prepared surf and turf. This is the stuff of a truly memorable vacation.