Hermit Island

Maine’s Best-Kept Coastal Campground

Hermit Island is a 255-acre peninsula at the tip of Small Point in Phippsburg, surrounded by Casco Bay on three sides. The campground has 271 sites spread across rocky headlands, wooded bluffs, and grassy clearings near eight named beaches. No RVs. No teardrops. No campers that do not fold down. Tents, pop-up trailers, and truck campers only. That restriction alone sets Hermit Island apart from every other campground in Maine.

The place feels more like a private island than a campground. You drive over a narrow causeway to reach it, and once you are in, the outside world fades. There is no WiFi. Cell service is nonexistent. Loud music is banned. The whole setup is designed to make you put your phone down and stare at the ocean instead.

The Four Site Tiers

Hermit Island divides its 271 sites into four pricing tiers based on location and views. Picking the right tier matters more here than at most campgrounds because the difference between an ocean bluff and an interior clearing is dramatic. These are the published in-season rates for 2026 (June 26 through September 18); Maine’s 9% lodging tax gets added on top.

Ocean View ($77 Sun-Thu / $81 Fri-Sat) sits right on the water with direct ocean views. These are the sites people wait all winter to reserve. You fall asleep listening to waves hitting the rocks below. They book first and fastest.

Prime ($69 Sun-Thu / $73 Fri-Sat) sites are a short walk from the water with partial views or easy beach access. Still excellent, and a bit easier to get than Ocean View.

Choice ($56 Sun-Thu / $60 Fri-Sat) is set back in the wooded interior. You lose the ocean views but gain shade and more privacy between sites. Good for families who want the beach during the day but a cooler, shaded site at night.

Value ($52 Sun-Thu / $56 Fri-Sat) sites are the most basic. Farther from the water, less scenic, but still on a 255-acre ocean peninsula. Even the cheapest site at Hermit Island beats a mid-tier site at most Maine campgrounds.

Every site is limited to two adults (21 or older), or two adults plus their minor children, with one vehicle per campsite. Tow-behind trailers get parked at the boat trailer lot during your stay. Rates can change season to season, so confirm the current numbers on the official reservations page before you commit.

Reservations: The Hardest Part

This is where Hermit Island is different from anywhere else you have camped. There is no online booking and no email reservations. None. You reserve by mail or by phone, and the timing matters more than anything else on this page.

Stays of a week or more, plus holiday weekends: mail-in only. You send a letter to the winter office — 42 Front St., Bath, ME 04530 — with your preferred dates and sites, along with a $125 deposit per site requested, check only. Letters need to arrive by the second week of December. Starting the first working day of January, the campground works through the pile by random selection, not first-come-first-served, so overnighting a letter in late December buys you nothing. Mail it in early December and you are in the drawing.

Stays under a week: reservations open March 2 by phone at (207) 443-2101 or by mail. No deposit is required for these shorter stays.

The fine print is strict: no deposit, no reservation, no exceptions. Cancel seven or more days before arrival and you get a refund minus a fee equal to your last night’s rate. There are no refunds on Memorial Day or Labor Day weekend reservations, and none for bad weather. Reservations made in January and February cannot be shortened, and canceling one forfeits the $125. More than three changes to a reservation adds a $25 fee. The deposit itself is check-only, so confirm current payment options for your balance when you book — and bring a checkbook and cash either way, because this is not a tap-to-pay kind of place.

Beaches and Water Access

Eight named beaches wrap around the peninsula — Sand Dollar Beach, Head Beach, the Dune and West Dune beaches, Sunset Lagoon, Spring Beach, Sailboat Beach, and Bounty Cove — each with a different character.

Sand Dollar Beach is the marquee stretch: sandy and gradual, with calm water that is good for families with young kids, and the busiest spot on the island on a July afternoon.

The outer beaches are rockier and more exposed. Stronger surf, tidal pools in the ledges, and fewer people. These are the ones worth exploring on foot.

The campground has a marina dock, boat launches, and canoe/rowboat/kayak rentals. You can paddle around the island, fish for mackerel off the rocks, or take a boat out into the bay. Striped bass fishing is solid in the channels between the island and the mainland.

The Kelp Shed and Camp Store

The Kelp Shed is the central hub of Hermit Island — check-in, the notice board, games, and bathrooms all live here. The camp store runs 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. in season with basic groceries, ice, firewood, and camping supplies, and the snack bar (which opens for the season June 26 in 2026) serves 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., including Gifford’s ice cream, Maine’s best. A small seasonal gift shop keeps shorter hours, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The real draw is the fresh seafood. The store sells lobster, clams, and corn for campfire cookouts. Lobster bakes on the beach are a Hermit Island tradition. Buy your lobster at the store in the morning, pick up some corn and butter, and cook it all over a fire pit that evening.

For full grocery runs, the town of Bath is about 20 minutes north on Route 209. Bath has supermarkets, hardware stores, and restaurants. Stock up before you arrive because the camp store is convenient but limited.

Nearby Attractions

Hermit Island is at the very end of the Phippsburg peninsula, so everything requires driving back up Route 209. That said, several spots are worth the trip.

Popham Beach State Park is about 10 minutes north. One of the best sand beaches in Maine with a long, wide stretch of sand, tidal flats that go out hundreds of yards at low tide, and views of Fox Island. Parking fills early on summer weekends.

Fort Popham sits at the mouth of the Kennebec River right near Popham Beach. A semicircular granite fort built during the Civil War that you can walk through for free. The views of the river meeting the ocean are excellent.

Bath is a 20-minute drive and has the Maine Maritime Museum, good restaurants, and the kind of small downtown that feels like Maine is supposed to feel. If you need a rainy-day activity, the maritime museum is genuinely interesting.

When to Go

July and August are peak season. The water is warmest, all facilities are running, and the beaches are at their best. The tradeoff is crowds and higher prices.

The quietest weeks are the two off-season windows: opening day (May 22 in 2026) through late June, skipping Memorial Day weekend, and mid-September through the October 12 close. You get the same peninsula at flat off-season rates with a fraction of the people — just know the snack bar does not open until June 26, and the ocean does not warm up until August.

Packing List

Getting There

Hermit Island is at the very tip of the Phippsburg peninsula, about 75 minutes from Portland and 2.5 hours from Bangor. From US Route 1 in Bath, do NOT cross the Bath bridge over the Kennebec. Instead, take Route 209 south through Phippsburg. Route 209 runs most of the length of the peninsula. Partway down, Route 216 splits off to the southwest. Stay straight on Route 216 (do not continue on 209 toward Popham) all the way to Small Point. The campground entrance is on the right near the end of the peninsula.

The total distance from Bath is about 14 miles, most of it on two-lane roads that narrow further the further south you go. A narrow causeway connects the mainland to the campground itself. The drive is doable in any vehicle, but RVs and hard-topped campers are not permitted, so tow vehicles only need to handle tent trailers under 25 feet.

The campground is open May 22 through October 12 for the 2026 season. There is no online booking. Mail-in requests for week-long stays need to reach the Bath office by the second week of December and are drawn by random selection starting in early January, with a $125 deposit per site by check. Reservations for stays under a week open March 2 by phone or mail, no deposit required. Cell service on the peninsula is non-existent. Stock up in Bath, which has full grocery stores and gas, before heading south.

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