Moorings Oceanfront RV Campground

An RV Park That Means It: No Tents

Moorings Oceanfront RV Campground sits right on Penobscot Bay along Route 1 in Belfast, and it is exactly what the name says: an RV park, on the ocean, with every site facing the water. There are 44 sites, all full hookups, all with a bay view, plus a private beach, an on-site store and restaurant, and a summer calendar of lobster dinners and Friday happy hours. If you travel in a motorhome or trailer and want a polished, sociable, genuinely oceanfront base within walking-distance energy of a real Maine town, this is a strong pick.

The constraint is the first thing to understand, because it disqualifies a lot of campers: this is RV-only, and tents are not permitted. If you are in a tent, a pop-up, or a rooftop setup, Moorings is simply not for you, and the honest move is to book the family-run Searsport Shores Ocean Camping a few miles north instead, which does take tents. The other things to know before you reserve: sites accommodate rigs up to about 45 feet, it is a compact full-service park rather than a sprawling wooded one, and it sits directly on busy US-1, so you trade a little quiet for the view and the convenience.

Every Site Faces the Bay

The pitch here is uniformity in a good way: there is no bad site, because all 44 look out over Penobscot Bay. Each comes with full hookups, water, sewer, and 30/50-amp electric, plus cable and Wi-Fi, and many pads take rigs up to 45 feet. A private beach runs along the campground’s bay frontage, and an on-site store and restaurant mean you are not dependent on a drive into town for coffee or a meal. It is the kind of setup built for RVers who want to park with a water view, plug in fully, and stay a while.

Moorings, Moorings II, and Searsport Shores

Three oceanfront names sit close together on this stretch of Route 1, and it is worth sorting out which is which before you book. The same operator runs two Moorings parks: this one in Belfast and a separate sister park, Moorings II, up the road in Searsport. This page covers the Belfast original only. Searsport Shores Ocean Camping, meanwhile, is a different business entirely, family-run, larger, and it takes tents.

The short version: if you are in an RV and want Belfast, book Moorings. If you want a tent on the ocean, or the arts-and-garden character of a family campground, Searsport Shores is your place. They are not competitors so much as answers to two different questions.

The Social Side

What keeps regulars coming back to Moorings is less the hookups than the calendar. The park runs a steady stream of group gatherings through the season, potlucks, lobster shore dinners, a barbecue feast, and Friday happy hours, alongside morning coffee at the store. For snowbirds and long-haul RVers, that social rhythm is the draw: you park on the bay, and by the second evening you know your neighbors. If you prefer to keep to yourself, it is easy enough to do, but the community energy is deliberate and it is a big part of the place’s reputation.

Off the Property

Belfast is the reason to pick this stretch of Route 1. Downtown Belfast is minutes south with a working harbor, breweries, and a strong restaurant scene, while Searsport sits just north with its antique shops and the Penobscot Marine Museum. For a walk on the water, Sears Island is a causeway-connected preserve with easy shoreline trails, and Moose Point State Park offers shoreline picnicking a couple of miles up the road.

When to Go

Getting There

Moorings is at 191 Searsport Avenue, on US-1 in Belfast between the downtown and Searsport. From Portland, take I-95 to Augusta, then Route 3 east to Belfast and Route 1 north a couple of miles, roughly two hours and ten minutes. From Bangor, take Route 1A to Belfast and pick up Route 1 north, about 45 minutes. Downtown Belfast, minutes away, has a full grocery, a working harbor, and a strong restaurant scene when you want a night off the park’s own kitchen.

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