Poland Spring Resort, Maine

Most Baby Boomers close to retirement (or already retired) have to watch their pennies, so before booking an overnight stay, weekend getaway or week-long (or longer) trip, we need to take everything into consideration -- mode of travel, lodging, meals and entrance fees into museums, national parks and other attractions. We like to be "on the go" but not see our "money go out the window" on needless travel expenses.

A month or so before the Fourth of July, our friends Dick and Andrea suggested a holiday weekend away. We live in the Boston area, so we all donned our thinking caps. Someone suggested Tanglewood in Lenox. Someone else suggested Bar Harbor in Maine or North Conway in New Hampshire. All excellent ideas. Then I thought about Poland Spring Resort in Poland, Maine. People in our circle had been there recently and raved about their experience. And I had visited and written about the Inn in the early 2000s when I headed up my own travel writing business (WordPower). At the time, Cyndi and Mel Robbins owned and operated the resort. Since then, Mel has passed away, but Cyndi continues to work hard to keep her guests happy.

"How about a weekend at an Inn that's as American as apple pie?" I suggested. I knew that a two-night stay at Poland Spring Resort would be within everyone's budget and that the stay included meals. Everyone was in agreement, so I called the Resort to find out if they had rooms available over the Fourth and other particulars. 

The friendly receptionist said that two queen-sized rooms were available in the Presidential Inn, which is set apart from the Maine Inn where the dining room and lobby are located. Yes, meals were included in the price. Yes, there was entertainment on Saturday night -- plus fireworks, she said. Oh, and by the way, there's a new casino a few miles down the road if you get bored at the Resort. Little chance of that happening, though -- the Resort sits on 300 acres of pretty, well-manicured grounds with a view of the White Mountains in the distance. There's a bocce court, shuffleboard, Ping-Pong table, small library, 18-hole Donald Ross golf course and Wimbledon style tennis courts and wide veranda at the Maine Inn complete with white wooden rockers. Little chance for boredom to set in here. If you're looking for a place to hold a wedding that won't bankrupt you, look into Poland Spring Resort. Their price, including food, is about $8,000.

Our cost for two nights plus four meals: $215.88 for BOTH of us. This is NOT a typo. The Resort added on an extra $10 for the keys, just in case one (or both) went missing. The $10 was refunded when we turned in our keys at check-out. 

When I heard this, I hung up and dialed our friends. Their response: Let's go!

Check-in time at Poland Spring Resort is 4 p.m., so on the morning of the Fourth of July we drove to Freeport, Maine, which is only a half hour from Poland, to do some shopping and have some lunch. Freeport is right on the ocean and home to L.L. Bean, my all-time favorite shopping haunt. There are also outlets in Freeport, so we stopped at a few along the way before having lunch at Tuscan Brick Oven Bistro on Main Street. The sandwiches we ordered were excellent (I can vouch for the eggplant parm) and big enough for two meals. I took half of mine with me. (One of our room's amenities was a small refrigerator.)

We arrived at the Resort about an hour before dinner. Check-in was quick, friendly and efficient. There's a gift shop right there where you can buy T-shirts, floppy hats, Maine culinary delights, souvenirs and other items.

The Presidential Inn has three floors (no elevator), and our two rooms were on the first floor. (Note to pet owners: The Resort has set aside several pet-friendly rooms at an additional cost. Call ahead for rates.) Each room is named either for a President or First Lady. We occupied the Edith Roosevelt Room and George W. Bush Room. Both rooms were neat and clean and came with ceiling fans in addition to air conditioning units. There was also a small TV set. Bring your cell phone if you need to make calls, as there are none in the rooms. The mattress was firm, the pillows comfortable. The bathroom was outfitted with soap, towels, wash cloths and bath mat but did not feature a blow dryer or shampoo. Those you bring from home.

After settling in, we drove to the Maine Inn for a drink in a bar off the lobby. While my husband, Andrea and Dick enjoyed their glasses of wine, I played piano in the lobby. It's there for anyone to play and since I brought my own sheet music from home, I figured "why not?" People in the lobby enjoyed the music, and I got to practice.

The dining room opened promptly at 6 p.m. and we were assigned a table for four. Dining is cafeteria style, but I noticed young college-age people on hand to help. They flitted around, wiping up spills, serving food and making sure nothing in any of the serving dishes had run out. Plates are stacked at one end of the display of food, and as you move along you can pick and choose what you'd like to eat. Friday night's entrée was baked haddock with lobster sauce, which proved to be yummy and fresh. Accompanying the haddock: Rice, carrots, peas, string beans and fresh bread and butter. For those who don't like fish, there was a roast beef dish with gravy. For dessert, there were five choices: Cake, pie, cookies and brownies, bread pudding and lime and strawberry Jell-O. You can pour your own lemonade, soda, water or bring your wine to the table from the bar.

Following dinner, we visited the casino and I must say we had some fun playing the slots and watching the Craps games in progress. Our friends won $150, which nearly covered the cost of their trip. The casino is large enough without being overwhelming and non-smokers will love that there is absolutely no smoking allowed inside.

Breakfast the following morning consisted of broccoli and cheese quiche, sausage links, toast or English muffins, fresh fruit, mini muffins and raspberry sticks. And of course, juice and coffee. No need for tipping, by the way, because we served ourselves.

Saturday during the day we took a ride to Rumford where Native Son Edmund Muskie grew up. The Androscoggin River runs through the town and there are several sets of waterfalls to gaze at. There's also an ice cream stand nearby where you can get a double scoop of hard ice cream for under $3. Back in Massachusetts that cone would set you back double the amount.

Back at the Resort for dinner, we were overjoyed to find turkey and all the fixin's on the menu. Or, if that didn't suit the palate, garlic pasta was the alternate. Turkey came with real mashed potatoes, butternut squash, cranberry sauce, stuffing, gravy and corn bread. We gave the dinner a solid 5 stars.  

We knew that a band called The Bushwhackers (R&B, jazz and rock and roll musicians) were scheduled to play in the bandstand on the green, so we set up our chairs near enough to hear their great music and far enough away to view the fireworks from a safe distance. They went off as soon as it got dark. The display was not rinky-dink. I didn't count, but my guess was that 100 beautiful and colorful fireworks filled the sky that night.

The following morning we enjoyed another hearty breakfast, this time French toast and REAL maple syrup, sausage links, the little mini-muffins and other pastries and coffee and juice.

Would we book again at Poland Spring Resort? Absolutely. We recommend that you do, too. Though the Inns are closed during the winter, The Lodge and 10 cottages remain open for people who enjoy skiing, snowshoeing, ice fishing and sledding. We think it would make a perfect weekend getaway — maybe over Valentine's Day.

Address: 543 Maine Street, Poland, Maine.

For more information call 207-998-4351. Or visit www.polandspringinns.com.