I have been slowly stepping out of my comfort zone after quitting my job. First it was moving across the country from Washington to Georgia. Then it was seeing if I liked living in a tiny house. Then it was moving to the major city of Atlanta to see it in a way that even being born and raised in Georgia didn’t allow me to.
And now it’s living in a city that I’ve never even visited, in a state that I’ve barely driven through. Enter Portland, Maine. My partner suggested that we add this city to our nomad travel list and I’m so happy he did.
Portland is an absolutely fascinating city that I never considered previously. Unbeknownst to me, it has all of the things I love about my favorite cities. So let’s get into specifics:
Walkability
As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t own a car by choice so one of our considerations when moving to locations is how walkable they are. Portland is a shockingly walkable city. It’s mostly flat and has sidewalks absolutely everywhere.
I was surprised to discover that I can walk from one end of Portland to the other (it’s a peninsula) in about an hour. However, despite that relatively small area, I still wasn’t able to walk every street and visit every place I wanted to in the month we were there. I’ll never scoff at a ‘small’ city again π .
Inclusivity
I must admit that I had some preconceived notions about Maine before we moved here, but based on what I saw in Portland, I’m going to need to eat crow. Our first morning walking around the city, I was shocked to see that in almost every yard and window there were BLM signs and updated LGBTQ+ flags…this did not match the stereotype in my mind π .
I was also bracing myself for how I would be treated in Maine, knowing that it is a very predominantly white state (94.4% white to be exact). Well, despite my initial thought that a lack of diversity would lead to me being treated poorly, I will admit that I was wrong.
I felt at home in Portland, Maine. Everyone was kind, I didn’t get any weird looks and I was treated the same as other customers when I entered shops for example (which is not the case everywhere let me tell you…). I was very pleasantly surprised with how comfortable I felt in Portland.
Nature
One of the reasons we wanted to stay in Portland proper was because of the natural beauty around it. Portland is a peninsula surrounded by water, which I knew before we landed. What I did not know was how green the city was. There were gorgeous trees, flowers, parks and cemeteries everywhere I turned.
Yeah I'm gonna be that asshole: Happy Monday! pic.twitter.com/P47R84sXWg
— A Purple Life (@APurpleLifeBlog) May 10, 2021
Between that fact and the abundance of water and natural spaces where anyone can hang out for free, I was extremely impressed with how much nature this city possesses. I never felt like I was in a ‘city’ – it felt more like a natural paradise.
Food
I mentioned in my May Monthly Recap that I was negligent with doing my research before arriving in Portland because I had no idea that it was a foodie paradise. It’s been ranked by food magazines as some of the best food in the country and it definitely lived up to those expectations.
It seemed like basically everything we ate was the best of that category that I’ve ever eaten. I couldn’t believe how delicious everything was. I’ve never had such consistently yummy food in my life. While I was writing this post I went on a very long tangent about how yummy the food is and as a result I’ve decided to just write an entire post about my Portland food recommendations – so look out for that post coming out soon π .
Beer
Another fact I had somehow missed before landing in Portland is that it’s a beer haven. I kept noticing that every restaurant seemed to only have beers from Portland proper on the menu – and they were all from different local breweries.
Well it turns out that Portland has the most breweries per capita of anywhere in the US, and their selection of brews is extremely varied and delicious. I feel like I need to go back just to make sure I try all the different breweries…actually that’s a good idea π .
Architecture
One of the first things I noticed about Portland was how varied its architecture is. Like many cities in the northeastern US, Portland has a lot of colonial history. Walking from one street to another I would be reminded of classic architecture from cities such as DC, Philly and NYC. At times, Portland’s architecture even reminded me of Seattle. It’s a lovely little melting pot.
If you’re an architecture nerd, Portland is a lovely place to be. Most of the buildings on the west end of the city are from the 1800s and there are numerous lists and self-guided tours you can take to see it all. Overall, I was surprised and delighted by the variety and beauty of the buildings in this city.
Cost
I like to base estimates on solid facts and that’s why I began my retirement calculations by assuming I would continue living my awesome HCOL life in Seattle, which cost $18,000 a year. I then added 11% on top of that amount just in case, to come to a round $20,000 for my annual retirement budget.
This padded assumption also adds another cushion to my plan because most places in the USA and especially the world, are cheaper to live in than Seattle, Washington. Here’s how Portland, Maine stacks up:
LodgingΒ
Cost: $1,605.945Β each
As I mentioned above, we got a bigger and more expensive place than usual and were happy that we did so we could open our nomad home to others and enjoy company after so many months of isolation.
Overall, there are a lot of Airbnb options in Portland proper, though I would recommend booking far in advance if you’re looking for a month long summer stay like we were because it is a peak time that will go quickly and be more expensive than the winter months.
Food
Grocery Cost: $132.28
We barely bought groceries in Portland. When we arrived, we got an Instacart order and then we went to Trader Joe’s, but those were the only times we actually did grocery runs. My partner popped into a Save-A-Lot once and we bought some staples from a local shop, but that’s it. Most of our food was from eating out and the subsequent leftovers. Not frugal, but delicious π .
Eating Out Cost: $435.37
This is unsurprisingly high given all the information above. Portland is a foodie haven and I don’t regret a dollar of it. Despite exploring all the food we could, there are still places on my list to try. Start the countdown to our return!
Alcohol Cost: $135.67
Also not surprising given how unique and abundant types of alcoholic beverages were in Portland. This is also the first time we felt comfortable going to a few restaurants, which increased the cost a bit. I’m happy to pay it though π .
Transit
Cost: $10 each
This is just half the cost of a taxi from the very nearby Portland airport. As I mentioned, Portland is an extremely walkable city. You can walk to any part of it in under an hour. There was also an abundance of buses that we noticed, but didn’t use because we didn’t need to and prefer walking if it’s an option. However, if we wanted to venture a little outside of Portland proper we would use the buses more.
Weird Caveats
Every place has their own weird quirks. Let’s get into Portland’s:
Car Transit
This basically says it all:
Things I learned our first night in Portland, ME:
1. There aren't any airport Ubers at 11pm
2. Taxis here don't take credit cards
3. Our driver seemed to genuinely "forget to turn on the meter", but luckily my partner caught it (#scam?)
…What even is Maineππ¦π€·πΎββοΈ?— A Purple Life (@APurpleLifeBlog) April 28, 2021
Despite my research and planning confirming that Uber operates in Portland, there were no Ubers to be found when we landed at the airport. It was the first time I saw the alert “No Cars Available” on the app.
Luckily there was a nearby taxi stand where the line wasn’t very long and the airport is just across the river from the city proper, so it wasn’t expensive. I asked a few locals about this phenomenon and they said that there doesn’t seem to be enough demand for Uber, even when they increase the prices to incentivize drivers.
So we adjusted our tactics and adapted back to a taxi-focused world!Β One of the friends that visited even called a cab company and scheduled a pick up in advance – it’s basically the ‘good ole days’ π .
Recreational Marijuana
Recreational marijuana is fully legal in Maine (and all the states in dark green below).
However, like all places – it has its quirks. Maine does not allow medical and recreational marijuana to be sold at the same location. As a result, I kept rolling up to weed shops in Portland only to discover that they were medical only (and understandably for that reason they wouldn’t let me inside). Well, after taking to Twitter, you wonderful folks helped me out:
Maybe this will help? Itβs from last year but at least two stores in S Portland that were licensed for rec as of 10/9/20 https://t.co/AIUc9Hr3FW
— Millennial Outrage (@totesoutraged) April 29, 2021
We found the only recreational weed shop in Portland proper: SeaWeed Co! Other shops seemed to be close to the airport and less accessible. There were also weird rules about recreational weed not being able to be delivered – there are threads on Reddit about how the company delivering to you is taking the liability, but that’s not something we wanted to risk. So! Instead we found this lovely shop and got all our needs met:
We acquired some legal devil’s lettuce! However, if you’re budget conscious, this might be a state you don’t want to restock your stash in. We were intrigued to find that weed in Maine is about double the price of what it is in Washington.
I’m not sure if that’s a reflection of east coast vs west coast prices in general or if it’s just Maine, but it’s something to keep in mind. I was happy to pay the extra in taxes to help roads and schools and things, but that is something I wanted to point out while we’re still pretending this is a finance blog π .
Conclusion
And that’s what I learned after living in Portland, Maine for a month! We loved it so much that we’re thinking about adding it to our annual rotation and continuing the food-filled extravaganza that we enjoyed in May. Until next time, this was my Slow Travel Review π .
What’s an awesome city that surprised you?
Whelp, Portland is now on my To Visit list! Reading your adventures helps me stay focused and hopeful about my own journey to FIRE. Now that the world is opening up, any plans to head overseas??
Haha happy to hear it! It’s a great city. And woohoo on staying focused and hopeful – you’ve got this! We do have flights and lodging booked for a month in Thailand for February 2022, but that’s it and I’m still crossing my fingers that will happen.
Iβve lived here in and off for most of my life. Left a few times for parts unknown but Iβve always come back. Maine is a huge place, too. Portland is fantastic but you should check out Downeast Maine on your next visit! Lots of walkable places. Bar Harbor would be perfect!
It’s definitely on the list – we’re coming back for sure π .
I haven’t spent much time in Portland but we have good family friends just south in Kennebunk and I adore it there. We are going for a week in mid-August for the third year in a row. Maine is definitely on my list of places where I might want to live in the future – probably not permanently as it’s far from family but for a few years while I’m still young! The main (haha) thing that draws me is nature – being so close to both the beach AND the woods/mountains is incredible to me.
Cool! I’ve been to Kennebunk before for a wedding. That’ll be so fun! And yeah Maine was never on my radar before, but now it definitely is! So true on the nature…and in my case the food π .
how did you get from maine to new hampshire? i want to get back to maine and might do so in the fall when the rates go down after labor day. they used to have a lot of cool ice cream shops up there when i was a kid.
Funny question π . So originally we were going to take an uber since it was like an hour, but once we realized Uber basically doesn’t exist over here we were going to schedule a taxi service, but then all that ended up not being necessary and my partner’s sister was with us and just drove us there. Sweet on Maine! Yeah Portland seems to have a lot of ice cream everywhere. Do you remember what your favorite place was (even outside Portland)? I’ll add it to my list for when we return!
If/when you get to Europe, two amazing and very affordable cities are Porto in Portugal and Bilbao in Basque country, Spain. Both have friendly people, beautiful architecture and great food π
Seconding these recommendations! San SebastiΓ‘n, near Bilbao, is also incredible, has amazing food, is on the water and very walkable.
Amazing! Adding it to my list π .
Thank you! Porto was on my list, but I hadn’t heard of Bilbao π .
Northeast weed prices are awful since itβs pretty much brand new (recreationally) and people are still used to paying medical prices. When I went to Seattle and Cali, my eyes almost fell out of my head with the variety and low prices out there. I have a medical card and itβs almost always $45-75 no matter what, whether I buy it medically or recreationally, and this is both in my state and the surrounding states.
Interesting! I’ve never had a medical card and am not aware of their prices. I also didn’t know there was such a time difference between the west and east getting on board, but that makes sense. I guess I’ll keep to the west coast to engage this particular vice π .
For the people who have put portland on their “list”, please remeber that maine is a way of life and right now we are being over run with tourists and transplants that dont care. It’s not a good scene on our end. Look up the housing crisis that has been caused by gentrification. And our newest issue is land sharing. for generations most of the trail systems throughout the state have been privately shared land to the public, but is disappearing due to new homeowners who are not from maine, and not willing to continue to share the land. Lately, it’s been more common for tourists to come over and leave their trash behind and that also stops land sharing. This is land that has been shared for….well for as long as we can remember. Out of staters have come in and shut down parts of the working waterfront. They close off beaches. We have a housing crisis but they are just building more hotels. It’s very much a mess here for mainahs. I’m probably going to have to leave maine because I can no longer afford it due to housing costs. And that was on a ff/medic salary. And honestly, our way of life just isnt the same. I’m glad you like maine and want to make this a regular stop. All we are asking is for all people to understand our way of life, our traditions and our culture. Portland and maine in general is blowing up and we are caught in a crossfire. We need tourism. Yes we get it. It’s how maine survives. But, it doesn’t survive by rich out of staters buying up our state and taking over. By buying summer homes or renting in the summer you are taking housing from those of us who want to live here year round. Rent hotel rooms instead of Airbnb. Force landlords to house its residents again. You are hurting us.
Anyway, med weed is cheaper here, most med marijuana store owners want to stay medical because they dont feel the need to go rec. A friend owns a med store and sells so much that it doesn’t make sense for her to move to rec. And if you come here please stay away from wellness connection and curaleaf. They out of staters taking from smaller maine based business.
Sorry to be so blunt but this has become our new norm and frankly, many of us are sick of it.
Thank you for sharing your experience. You’ve given me a lot to think about.
LS does not speak for all of us. Happy to accept the progress brought by many out of staters and the money they bring. Happy to rent Airbnb to them and have them as summer neighbors. Most places owned by out of staters are not affordable to the group that LS relates. It is very common to encounter the double standard mentioned here and it embarrasses many of us who call Maine home – born and raised. “Come to my state and spend your money but do not impact my way of life….”
It would not hurt Maine to evolve a bit.
Good to know – thank you for sharing!
I’d love to visit the other Portland for a month. It sounds really cool.
From what you wrote, it sounds like a smaller, nicer Portland.
The OR Portland is going down the drain, unfortunately. It’s a big city with big city problems.
Yeah it’s a great place. I’m sorry to hear that about Portland, OR.
We will be in Portland, Maine for the first time on 6/24. Do you recall how much a taxi was from the airport to the down town? What restaurants are not to be missed? Thank you so very much for your assistance.
That’s awesome! Our taxi was $15 before tip. It’s a short trip from the airport. My post next Tuesday (the 29th) is all about Portland restaurant recommendations, but I reviewed all of them on my Instagram if you want to check it out before that post drops. Have fun!
We re here in Portland for a wedding. We have traveled all over the US . The first sight that greeted us as we pulled up to our $250 a night hotel was a small park next door which was full of homeless people & the lovely aroma of urine. We decided to keep an open mind. We went to take a walk & my husband whoβs from the Bronx was nervous about walking around! Every other store seemed to be selling pot. We found this city so depressing on so many levels.
That’s very interesting and surprising. I just visited again last month and didn’t have that experience.
Canβt wait for our trip there this May!
Have an awesome time!