Plan Your Visit
Photo: Marcia Little
Visit
PERKINS COVE
Perkins Cove is a picturesque and historic area of Ogunquit - "Beautiful Place by the Sea" which has been a romantic lure to visitors including tourists, artists, and fisherman since it opened in 1900. Pretty as a postcard, “The Cove” is one of the most photographed, walked, and talked about destinations in Maine.
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What is Perkins Cove 03907?
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Perkins Cove 03907 is a collaborative of the 30-something restaurants and eateries, shops and galleries, attractions and accommodations, and the music and events happenings that draw thousands of visitors to explore here. Designed as a visitors' resource our website showcases all there is to see and do…and experience here in Perkins Cove.
From the collection of the Wells and Ogunquit Historical Society
Seasons of The Cove
Summer is the high season and “The Cove” is bustling with the flourishing energy of its businesses, its visitors, its vacation vibe. Spring and Fall are quieter and are great seasons for those who like a slower place, a time to enjoy the nature that surrounds us; seasons when some restaurants and shops are open, but not all. Winter is silent and rife with stark beauty in and around Perkins Cove, but the local businesses are hibernating. Its perfect for taking photos, strolling The Marginal Way in solitude, for reflecting on the still contrasting beauty of winter in southern coastal Maine.
Welcome to Perkins Cove in Ogunquit, Maine.
You will love it here!
PARKING & DIRECTIONS
PARKING
There are three parking areas in Perkins Cove.
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While Ogunnquit and Perkins Cove parking can be challenging on busy days, there are convenient locations for car parking and scooter parking* in and around Perkins Cove.
Coming into the Perkins Cove area the parking lots are, in order:
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Perkins Parking Lot - Located at the fork just before the entrance to the cove area, this lot opens daily at 9am and offers all day paid parking for cars, SUVs, and scooters.
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Barnicle Billy's Parking Lot - Located on the left side of the road at directly across from Barnicle Billy's Etc, at 50 Perkins Cove Road, this paid lot chareges a flat fee for all day parking and opens at 10am. Complimentary guest parking for their diner's is available by valet in an adjacent lot.
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Cove Parking Lot - Managed by the Town of Ogunquit, this lot is located in the heart of 'The Cove.' There are many spaces for parking in this area of Perkins Cove. Most of these are pay-to-park spaces for visitors, some are designated for Cove commercial fisherman, and some located in the back of the Cove offer ffree parking with a 2-hour limit.
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Handicap Accessible Parking - HA parking is available in all Town of Ogunquit parking lots. For information about accessible parking in and around Perkins Cove and Ogunquit, you can visit the town website's parking table here.
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For more Ogunquit parking sites, visit Google Maps here.
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*Scooter parking in Perkins Cove is a breeze! There are spaces for scooters in a few additional locations throughout Perkins Cove.
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DIRECTIONS
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Ogunquit's Perkins Cove, located in the 03907 zip code is just a short 1.25 hour drive from Boston and Logan International Airport to the south. It's less than 1 hour from and Portland Maine, and 5 hours by car from Montreal, Canada to the north.
Getting to Perkins Cove from Ogunquit and surrounding towns and cities is easy. Find the cove area with these coordinates: 43.25° N, 70.35' W.
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Or, for directions on your favorite app, search Perkins Cove Road, Ogunquit, Maine.
A Cliffside Walk
THE MARGINAL WAY
The Marginal Way, a 1.25-mile cliff walk along the craggy Ogunquit coastline, is one of New England’s most scenic and beloved coastal walking trails. A gentle meandering paved footpath it winds past historic homes and hotels on one side and along the dramatic rocky shoreline on the other. Originally built in the 1920s, The Marginal Way extends from Perkins Cove to the Sparhawk Oceanfront Resort on Shore Road, just a block from the heart of downtown Ogunquit. Visitors can settle in for a bit on any of 39 benches perched overlooking Ogunquit Beach, out to sea and into Perkins Cove along their way. Tidal pocket beaches and broad high rocks offer idyllic spots for exploring tidal pools, sunning, and wading. This popular cliff walk is a swoon-worthy spot for watching waves crash on the rocks, surfers paddling out to ride the waves, artists sketching and plein air painting trying to capture the breathtaking scenery, or to ponder the morning sunrise.
Photo: Rick Barber Photography
Historic Perkins Cove Photos
These historic photos of Perkins Cove in Ogunquit Maine have
been kindly shared by our good friends at the
Historical Society of Wells and Ogunquit, located in Wells, Maine.
Photo: Patrick Maloney Photography
Historic Footbridge
PERKINS COVE DRAWBRIDGE
In 1890 a simple footbridge was built by Capt. Moses Staple, proprietor of Riverside Farm, allowing his guests and visitors to cross into Perkins Cove. Over time the footbridge was fortified and by the 1930s there were concrete columns and a fixed span wood truss center section in place. By 1944, the pedestrian footbridge was fitted with an opening span to allow the center section to be drawn up to open the bridge allowing masted vessels entry in the protected cove. After a storm the bridge was washed out to sea. The replacement was taller and by the mid-1970s the bridge was supported by pilings and over time an electric mechanism operated by push button made it easy for the harbormaster, cove fisherman and sailors to raise the bridge. A horn sound alerts visitors when the drawbridge will be raised for passing watercraft.
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The pretty white wood span stands today as a beacon calling locals and visitors to walk across from Perkins Cove over to the other side of Perkins Cove and back again. A romantic landmark, the footbridge has born witness to first kisses and even marriage proposals.
The only double leaf draw footbridge in the U.S.
Offers view of Charles H. Woodbury Studio
One of the most photogrphed bridges in Maine
Tours and Local Transportation
The Ogunquit Shuttle Cart
Let the popular the Ogunquit Shuttle Cart transport you to Ogunquit dining, shops and nightlife destinations.
July 18, 1963
Hi Folks, Staying here for a few days. In the rear, across a cove is a quaint fisherman’s village and art colony. We can walk to it by crossing over on a foot drawbridge. - Haddie
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- Postcard excerpt published in Wish You Were Here by Kenny - An Album of Messages & Memories of Old Ogunquit – Authors: Kenny Bassett & Nipper Johnson, 2022
Photo: Marcia Little