Rockland can be considered a classic coastal town in the state of Maine, as well as one of the world’s biggest shipping centers for lobster, making the town the “lobster capital of the world.” Restaurants and cafes serve fresh local seafood, in addition to the town hosting the Maine Lobster Festival every year.
Farnsworth Art Museum
Consisting of over twenty thousand square feet of art gallery space, the Farnsworth Art Museum is home to a collection of over fifteen thousand works of art and always offers something new for visitors to see. The art museum includes one of the largest collections of Louise Nevelson sculpture works in the country. Open throughout the entire year, the Farnsworth Art Museum is also the only center that’s solely dedicated to Maine-inspired and American artwork. The museum complex in Rockland is also made up of the Wyeth Center, a library, the Olson House, and the Farnsworth Homestead.
16 Museum St, Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-596-6457
Rockland Breakwater Light
The Rockland Breakwater Light is situated near the end of the granite breakwater stretching more than 4,340 feet into the Rockland Harbor. Construction of the Rockland Breakwater seawall was finished back in 1900, with the lighthouse completed two years later in 1902. Since the Rockland Breakwater Light is all the way at the end of the breakwater, visitors should be prepared for a walk that’s around two miles round trip. The lighthouse is open to the public on weekends during the summer months and those wanting to visit should be sure to wear comfortable shoes with good traction.
Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-594-4174
Center for Maine Contemporary Art (CMCA)
The Center for Maine Contemporary Art (CMCA) in the seaside town of Rockland is an institution for the contemporary arts, showcasing a series of changing exhibitions throughout the year that feature works by both established and emerging artists with connections to the state of Maine. The Center for Maine Contemporary Art is located within the downtown arts district.
21 Winter St, Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-701-5005
Project Puffin Visitor Center
The Project Puffin Visitor Center first opened in the Rockland, Maine community in 2006 with help of private donors, local businesses, and Audubon and has since become a popular destination with both local residents and visitors. This unique center celebrates the successful Project Puffin, which works on bringing back puffins and other rare seabirds of Maine back to their historic nesting islands. At the Project Puffin Visitor Center, guests can watch puffins and a number of other seabirds through an impressive video system in real time. There is also a theater showing a twenty-minute film, a gallery, and many exhibits.
311 Main St, Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-596-5566
Coastal Children’s Museum
The Coastal Children’s Museum offers children and their parents the opportunity to learn about a myriad of interesting facts about the fascinating world we live in, all while having fun. Children get the chance to explore, interact and discover the arts, science and the natural world, far from the restrictions of the classroom. The museum is also dedicated to showcasing the diversity of the mid-coast of Maine, as visitors make their way through a succession of fun and interesting child-sized exhibits. There are play and crafting areas as well as marine fish tanks and a touching pool. The museum is open all year round.
Coastal Children’s Museum, 75 Mechanic St, Rockland, ME 04841, 207 596 0300
Harbor Square Gallery
The Harbor Square Gallery is housed within one of the most beautiful historic buildings in Rockland, Maine. The graceful structure dates back to the year 1912 and today is home to the Muir Garden for Contemporary Sculpture and the Contemporary Art Gallery, featuring some of the state’s most beautiful works of art. A gorgeous spiral staircase leads up to the rooftop sculpture garden overlooking Main Street and the blue harbor. Inside the gallery’s collection specializes in gold jewelry.
374 Main St, Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-594-8700
Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center
The Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge encompasses over sixty offshore islands, along with four coastal parcels, giving it a total of over 8,200 acres across over 250 miles of the coastline of Maine. THe wildlife refuge aims to restore and manage the nesting seabird colonies. The national wildlife refuge has a visitors center, however, in the downtown area of Rockland, at which guests can find a variety of information, such as how they can see the Atlantic puffins in Maine, as well as a number of conservation-oriented exhibits and free weekend or night programs on occasion.
Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center, 9 Water St, Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-594-0600
Home Kitchen Cafe
First opening its doors in February of 2009, the Home Kitchen Cafe has a mission of serving good, satisfying, hearty, and fresh food that’s all made on-site at the restaurant. The cuisine offered at the Home Kitchen Cafe is comfort food with a hint of the American Southwest, prepared using the highest quality seasonal and local produce available. Popular dishes on the menu include the famous lobster tacos, the “Home Schooled,” and the “Home on the Range.”
650 Main St, Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-596-2449
Primo
Primo which opened in 2000 inside a more than 130-year-old farmhouse, offers several different dining options on top of a hill that overlooks the town of Rockland. Located on the ground floor are two intimate and historic dining rooms that offer a white-tablecloth setting for dinner, as well as the Primo Room featuring a more modern, country design. On the second floor of Primo, guests will find the Cocktail Lounge and the Counter Room providing dinner service at casual, cozy tables or at the bar. The restaurant also has its own on-site farm spanning across more than four acres.
2 Main St, Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-596-0770
Maine Lobster Festival
The Maine Lobster Festival in the coastal town of Rockland is five full days of lobster feasting and fun. The lobster-filled event takes place every year around the first weekend in the month of August, starting on Wednesday and ending on Sunday. Attracting visitors worldwide and hosting a wide variety of special events and activities, the Maine Lobster Festival includes twenty thousand pounds of lobster, the “world’s greatest lobster cooker,” a marine tent, cooking contests, numerous vendors and crafts people, fine art, the international crate race, “top notch entertainment,” a large parade, the sea goddess coronation, and much more.
Harbor Ln, Rockland, ME 04841, Phone: 207-596-0376
Maine Lighthouse Museum
The Maine Lighthouse Museum welcomes visitors to come and learn about the essential role played by lighthouses and lighthouse personnel, all around the coast of the US. The museum is home to a wonderful collection of lighthouse, lifesaving and coastguard artifacts, including vintage lighthouse lights and lenses, huge brass bells and a wealth of documents and photographs which tell the story of the history of American lighthouses. Many of the oldest lighthouses in the country are located in Maine. There is also an interesting gift shop where you can buy photos, prints and souvenirs, most of which have been made by local Maine crafters.
Maine Lighthouse Museum, 1 Park Drive, Rockland, ME 04841, 207 954 3301
Sail, Power and Steam Museum
Seasonally open from May to October each year, the Sail, Power and Steam Museum protects and showcases the rich maritime history of Maine. The museum is located on the site of the historic Snow Shipyard and is fun to visit for all ages, offering visitors the chance to learn about sailing and seamanship by means of classes and day-sailing trips (these need to be booked in advance). You will also find several working model boats, steam engines and a made-to-scale model lime kiln, as well as a wealth of photos depicting early sail and steam craft and models of historic ships.
Sail, Power and Steam Museum, 75 Mechanic St, Rockland, ME 04841, 207 596 0200
