Parsons Beach, Kennebunk, ME
Parsons Beach in Kennebunk is a hidden gem! It is so beautiful and relaxing!! I honestly don’t know if we will be back there to visit because parking is SO limited, but I definitely hope to someday!
Getting there and parking
If you enter Parsons Beach into Maps it will take you right where you need to be. The issue here is parking… When I saw ‘Parsons Beach’ labeled on Maps when I was just searching up the coastline for something to do, I had never heard of it. SO… I knew I had to check it out!
I did not research anything before I took the drive to Kennebunk, so I am very happy I got one of the 6 parking spots available! (We got there at 10am on a Wednesday morning in May. By 11am when we left there were people just waiting for someone to leave and people who parked FAR down the street and walked). The parking is SO limited and there are a ton of ‘No Parking’ signs along the street leading to the beach. If the 6 spots are all taken, the next available parking is nearly 0.75 miles down the road and across a pretty busy street. It is all paved roads, that 0.75 miles, but I don’t think that walk would be worth it to me with kids, ESPECIALLY on the way back after a day at the beach.
The very limited parking they have is free, which is nice.
Since coming home and looking up the parking situation, it appears they ticket frequently if you park where you should not. So if you plan on making a visit, make sure you go early or have a back up plan if you can’t get a spot!
The Beach
The beach itself is so beautiful, sandy and quiet. Apparently it is privately owned, so the public is only allowed in one section to the left. You can see in the pictures I have included below what I am talking about. The picture of that sign is posted at the entrance to the path to the beach.
We went here as the tide was about half way from low tide to high tide. Obviously there was a ton of room as it was not high tide, but even if it were high tide there was still plenty of soft sandy beach available. This is definitely a rare find around southern Maine as when it is high tide in some locations the available beach space disappears all together.
The path from the parking area to the beach is not very long and our Veer wagon was perfect for it, it is a sandy path.
Bathrooms
There is one porta potty by the parking area and path to the beach.
Our visit here
I woke up on a Wednesday morning with nothing to do and when I saw Parsons Beach on Maps I was so excited to check it out. I packed the kids lunch early and got ready. The kids ate breakfast and were also excited to go… That excitement did not last long and it was a rough visit! I had about 10 minutes of PEACE and I loved it!! Like laying on the blanket, relaxing, there was no one else around at all! And then my 3 year old wanted a sand toy from my 5 year old and did not want to wait for it… because you know 3 year olds. I could do nothing to calm him down, the crying and then the fighting was unreal. We had to leave and the walk back to the car was just as awful. There were hardly any people there, but the few people who were there heard and saw it all. We couldn’t get in the car fast enough! And as soon as we did, he ate his entire lunch and fell right asleep. It’s tough being 3!
No dogs allowed
It’s important to note, as there are signs posted everywhere, that dogs are not allowed here.
