Sea Breeze Motel, Bar Harbor

I'm shocked to read these reviews. I stayed here in 2006 on a hiking trip to Acadia, and was amazed by the beautiful grounds and view. At that time the room itself was fine, nothing special, but cheap and clean. The pool heating was not on at the time, but the desk clerk turned it on just for us, and I remember swimming in the steam rising from the water into the cool air. A great experience after a vigorous hike. The quiet location and gorgeous view across Frenchman's Bay is spectacular, and for that reason alone, I would at least give it a try again.

If you are planning a trip to bar harbor, please do not look at this place. There are plenty of other, nicer, cleaner, places to choose from. The motel looks like it was once a nice place but maybe it changed owners over the years. Whatever the case, the current owners seem to not care at all about how bad it looks. the rooms were out dated with nasty white comforters and ripped up blankets. Really thin sheets, old bath towels, and a dirty bath tub, were all there on further inspection. The "private balcony" is not private at all. They are just separated from other rooms by a 2 foot tall sagging canvas sheet. The hot tub is very small and cheap and the pool was unopened. We had friends that stayed here back in '02 and they loved it. Obviously things have gone way down hill since then. Save yourself some stress and book somewhere else.

Completely disgusting. The first room that we had (we had to change rooms) had a bird's nest and numerous cobwebs on the outdoor light next to the door which was no big deal, though it was just a taste of what was to come when we opened the room door. As soon as you walk in the room you smelled dampness, mildew and ciagarette smoke (they advertise ALL rooms as non-smoking). There were cobwebs in the corners of the room itself also. The beige shag carpet was so dirty that there was a clear dirt path all through the room. My shoes were sticking to the bathroom floor. When we pulled the covers back there were pine needles in the sheets. Bad sign. At first we were not going to complain at all but just never ever stay there again. We went into Bar Harbor for dinner and discussed it a little more and decided to stop at the office on our way back. I really didn't feel like I could sleep in a bed that appeared to have not been changed since before the last hotel guest. We complained and told them that we were willing to pay extra for a different room as it was late and we didn't feel like trying to find another hotel. They upgraded us to a "deluxe" room at no extra charge. We moved our stuff over to the other room that had a balcony and an ocean view. As soon as I walked in the room I turned on the light but it wouldn't work. I had to turn on the bathroom light to find a light further in the room as it was 9pm and dark out. The light never did work. Again, the room was disgusting, sticky bathroom floor, dirty carpet, cobwebs. The window sill in the bathroom had obviously not been cleaned in years. I really think that on whatever website that I read reviews from that they had to be made up by someone who had a financial interest in the place. I really expected this quaint, spotless place and it was completely disgusting. It looks like it may have been quite the motel at one time but I'm not sure if they are having money troubles or what. It is run down and dirty and I would not be surprised to see it closed down the next time I go to Bar Harbor.

We picked this place from the others on the internet because of the view. Unfortunately, the view is the only thing is has going for it. The room we were in had the motel musty smell. My husband went to take a shower and the shower door fell off the track. The bottom of the tub was dirty. The paint was peeling. I opened the windows to get the sea breeze and the window sills had not been cleaned in ages. There was large flakes on paint on the sills. There was no phone in the room as advertised. There is no hair dryer. The bathroom was very small with no counter to put cosmetics, etc.on. But, those things are not the main reason we would not return to this dirty place. We left our room at 7:30 a.m. and when we returned at 6:00 p.m. our room had not been made. When I complained to the front desk the girl apologized and offered to clean up the room. I told another guest who was just checking in to skip the place and the front desk person offered to refund our second night. This meant we had to pack up and leave. When she went to give me a refund she said she would have to withhold some money because it was after check-in time and the room could have been reserved by someone else. I said, "Really, so you would rent a room without cleaning it?" She gave us the entire refund. There are many other lovely places to stay in Bar Harbor just down the street from the Sea Breeze.Do yourself a favor and try another hotel.

I should have known better than to give my husband free reign over booking our Maine vacation, since he refuses to read internet hotel reviews before he books. He reasons that he chose the Sea Breeze Motel based on the relatively high price for the area ($165 per night) and the ocean view, thinking that it would be a clean spot to stay the night. I knew we were in trouble when we pulled into the dark, poorly lit driveway that led up to the dirty motel. We had our 3 kids in the car and it was rainy and late, so I figured that the place couldn't possibly be all THAT bad, and my husband went to the office and paid. When we got to the room, I noticed that it was shabby, but we were tired and like I said, it was late, so we decided to suck it up and stay the night. We unpacked and I filled up the bath tub to bathe our baby. The water was BROWN! As if that weren't bad enough, both the tub AND the sink weren't draining. The final straw was when my older son went to use the toilet and it wouldn't flush. I looked at my husband and said, "This place is disgusting". We called the front desk to complain, and 2 workers came to our room and plunged the toilet. I pointed out the brown water, and my husband asked for a refund. At first the worker told us that yes, he would refund our money. We packed our car back up with our belongings and our 3 children. We went to the office to check out, and suddenly the story changed. We were told that we would be moved to another room instead. I knew that every other room in that place was going to be the same as the one that we just left, and I asked to speak with a manager. The manager was off-site, so the desk clerk called her on his cell phone. She was indifferent, and kept telling me, after I stated my case SEVERAL times, that she didn't understand what the problem was...I finally said, "THE F$#*ING WATER IS BROWN AND WON'T DRAIN!!! WHAT IS NOT TO UNDERSTAND???" (Yes, I'm sorry to say that at this point, I was freely using expletives) The manager calmly said that the water is city water and EVERYONE had brown water, and that I would not be getting a refund (I later found this statement of hers to be completely false. The next night we stayed at the Edenbrook Motel, which was not only extremely clean and closer to town, but also $60 cheaper...and the water there was crystal clear). She seemed to have no business sense whatsoever, as she didn't seem the least bit concerned or apologetic that we were having these problems and were so unhappy. I called the police to ask what our options were, because at this point I felt as if I had just been robbed. The dispatcher told me that they had heard complaints about the Sea Breeze Motel before, but that it was a civil matter and I should call my credit card company immediately and cancel the payment. I got off the phone and relayed this info to my husband, whereupon I learned that he had paid CASH for the room. I wanted to cry. Defeated, we moved to a different room, and the desk clerk said he would check the water for us. He filled the sink with hot water - which this time, rather than being brown, was a sort of dark-yellow urine color. Upon seeing this, he nonetheless proceeded to tell me that the water was fine. I said, "So this water doesn't look extremely discolored to you?" He replied, "No". My husband and I felt at this point as though we were living in the Twilight Zone and pretty much gave up. We unwillingly unpacked AGAIN. I went to use the bathroom, and when I shut the door the towel hook flew off and landed on the floor. Then when I lifted up my pillow to fluff it before bed, a black insect was there to wish me a good-night. I could go on and on...but I guess I kind of already have, lol. The next day we beat it out of there faster than you can say "bedbugs". The lesson? ALWAYS read hotel reviews BEFORE you book, NEVER pay with cash, and when you see the Sea Breeze Motel, RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! THIS PLACE IS A DIRTY DISGRACE!

Loved the view and location away from the traffic and noise of Bar Harbor town center. Great place to relax after a day in Acadia. Kids loved the pool, we loved the hot tub. Rooms were basic, could benefit from some added amenities, like microwave and some updating. For the money, a good vacation place.

Parking and location and view all good. That's about it. Room 316 bathroom unsafe, rug dirty,cob webs on the floor and in corners of the room. Mattress lacks support and needs to be replaced very uncomfortable. Desk staff, indifferent when told of customer injury, due to unsafe condition in the bathroom. There are other places to stay, that have to be cleaner, and safer than the Sea Breeze. I am sure this was a lovely place in it's day. There is no reason that it shouldn't be returned to that status.

I really enjoyed the Sea Breeze motel ! I didn"t find any problems . I really enjoyed the closeness to the ocean, and the view I had ! I was in room #4, and I do plan on returning, and hopefully staying in the same room, or close by! I also enjoyed the friendly owners ! I visited on September 22nd. .My friend had previously booked the room for me !

The view from this motel is beautiful, and my daughter loved the pool. But - the room was dirty - cobwebs and even food under the bed. There were bugs all over. The beds were not comfortable and the pillows were as thin as paper. And the place wasn't cheap - I paid $179/night (the room was $139, and they charged $20 for each of my teenagers.) The motel definitely has the appearance of not being maintained - everything needed painting, and the grounds were overgrown (except for the lawn near the pool and the decks.)