 Balance Rock
- General
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Contact: Glenn M. Faria
(Bar Harbor, Maine - Summer 2000) In Bar
Harbor, the choice is clear. If you can afford to, stay at Balance
Rock Inn. The highly acclaimed, AAA four-diamond Inn
offers Acadia’s visitors an incomparable lodging experience.
The magnificent shingle style building, built as an opulent “summer
cottage” for Scottish railroad tycoon Alexander Maitland,
is set like a jewel upon a secluded, waterfront cul de sac -
yet is a mere two blocks to downtown Bar Harbor. For Maitland,
who helped develop the railroad to Florida’s Key West, Bar
Harbor was his retreat - his splendid home on Albert Meadow his
Halcyon. It remains ever an icon of comfort, grace and good taste.
Guest Accommodations Each of the distinctive 23 ultra luxe rooms and suites is accoutered with outstanding creature comforts and amenities. All accommodations feature telephones, color cable televisions and video cassette players (movies from the Inn’s extensive tape library are offered on a complimentary basis); several feature steam showers and refrigerators. Most rooms have ocean views, whirlpool tubs, ocean or garden view deck or porch and many offer guests an in-room sauna. Ten rooms and suites have fireplaces. There are three fully equipped, apartment-style suites, replete with ocean views, living and dining space, two bedrooms, eat-in kitchen, private deck or porch and creature comforts galore. The structure, although modified from its original footprint, has retained its hallmark elegance and grace. Amenities The Inn is wonderfully secluded,
yet in close proximity to the town center. In-room amenities
include a cable color television, private bath (most feature
marble walls) and direct-dial telephone. Many rooms also feature
a private deck or porch, in-room fireplace, whirlpool tub and
some feature a private sauna. In as much as a splendid ocean
view can be considered an amenity, 17 of the 23 rooms and suites
feature partial or full ocean views. Each room is individually
decorated and furnished with splendid reproduction furniture,
coordinated wall coverings, draperies and bed coverings. In addition,
for an extra luxurious night’s sleep, the Inn uses
only 320-thread count Charisma bed linens. Meals A lavish full breakfast is served, buffet
style, each morning in the Living Room and includes freshly-squeezed
orange juice, made-from-scratch blueberry and chocolate muffins
and breads, fresh fruit and granola for starters. The entree
du jour, prepared by innkeeper Michael Miles, is served table-side
and could include such favorites as filet mignon and eggs scrambled
with ricotta, peppers, onions and mushrooms sided by spicy roasted
potatoes, mouth-watering Belgian waffles or crepes suzette. Special
diets can be accommodated, with advance notice. Afternoon coffee
and tea is served in the Living Room and includes an assortment
of teas and tea fancies - petit fours, frosted pecan cake, jam
cakes, scrumptious Inn-baked cookies and scones - created
by the Inn’s gourmet chefs and are served amidst
gleaming sterling tea service. Evenings, cocktails and fine cigars
are offered, as Innkeeper Michael Miles phrases it, “From
four o’clock until guests no longer want cocktails.” Active Holidays Await |
revealing a distinctive
ocean perfume. While many destinations wilt under a relentless
summer sun and stifling humidity, Bar Harbor, on Mount Desert
Island, surrounded by Atlantic boreal waters, remains refreshing
and unsullied by the residues of urban life. And with Balance
Rock Inn’s incomparable location on a small promontory
jutting out into Frenchman’s Bay, guests find the
urge to test the waters practically irresistible on Maine’s
starry summer nights and warm sunny days. It remains for the
stoic and the brave to venture totally into the Bay’s chilling
waters. Many guests prefer to have their libations chilled while
cooling their heels by the pool, under the pines or on a picnic
blanket.
canoeing, many
scenic drives and museums, aquariums and lobster hatcheries all
vie for guests’ attention. Take a stroll along the town’s
inviting Main Street for great shopping or stop in at one of
its truly outstanding eateries for a snack or a freshly-caught
boiled lobster lunch. And what trip to Bar Harbor could not include
a hike (or, for lazy bones, a drive) up to the summit of Cadillac
Mountain for its show-stopping vistas? Tired yet? Bird watching,
moose trekking, deep sea fishing or taking The Cat state-of-the-art
catamaran from Bar Harbor to Nova Scotia for day trips are all
splendid ways to avail oneself of Bar Harbor’s idyllic location
and many natural gifts. All of the mentioned activities are ideal
ways to work off the calories from your fanciful aftenoon tea’s
legendary popovers and strawberry jam at the Jordan Pond House
in Acadia National Park.
