Overview

Portland is Maine's biggest city and is the state's cultural and economic hub, attracting over three and a half million visitors each year. Originally a fishing and trading settlement, the town was destroyed three times over a hundred year period, and finally regained stability as a shipping port.

Unfortunately, over-zealous Independence Day celebrants managed to set fire to most of the city's commercial buildings, hundreds of houses and roughly half the city's churches in 1886, causing it to be rebuilt once again, this time in a Victorian style. Spectacular examples of this architecture can be found in the mansions set along the famous Western Promenade.

Despite its tough beginning, Portland remains a beautiful city, ideally situated on a peninsula that juts out into Casco Bay, flanked by several small islands. Historic architecture blends with modern amenities and the city is a bustle of activity, making it one of the country's top cities to live in. Resplendent in natural beauty, Portland is highly popular in summer and visitors can enjoy boat rides; walks, shopping and dining at the Old Port historic waterfront; a visit to the Downtown Arts District or to the prominent Portland Head Light Lighthouse. The home of poet Henry Wadsworth-Longfellow is also well worth a visit, as is the Maine History Gallery, and for the kids, there is the Children's Museum of Maine.

Portland is a wonderful city to visit in its own right, with plenty of attractions, activities and sights for the visitor, and it is also a useful base from which to explore the rest of this beautiful state.