Heading to Old Orchard Beach in Maine for the first time? This survival guide will tell you what you need to know before you arrive.
Lodging
The main road leading into town, Saco Rd., is home to many motels. It is not a far distance from these motels to the 7 mile stretch of beach, but the walk could take a half hour and might not be doable with children. There is trolley transport, but that involves a schedule not of your own choosing. You could drive and park or better yet, choose a motel closer to the beach. There are plenty of motels to choose from on E. and W. Grand and the small streets running off them toward the beach as well as Milliken Street.
Many of these beach motels have rooms with kitchenettes, a feature especially useful for families with kids.
Safety
There are a few safety tips every visitor should be aware of when visiting OOB:
* Old Orchard Beach lifeguards work from Memorial Day to Labor Day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
* The riptides at this beach can be powerful.
* The Downeaster Amtrak train passes through OOB 10 times per day. The train track runs across Old Orchard St. with tracks at street grade. Children not used to train crossings need to be instructed to steer clear of the track when the bell rings and the gates begin to come down.
Parking
Parking fees vary tremendously at Old Orchard Beach depending on the weather. On an overcast day, we found all-day parking for $5. The next day when it was sunny, the rates jumped; the cheapest lot we found was $7 and the pricier ones $15-20. It’s a good idea to drive through town and check competing parking lot prices; it only takes a couple minutes.
Meter parking is an undesirable choice unless you are making a quick beach trip- two hours or less. Meter parking is almost always available, but it costs $2 per hour, requires an abundance of quarters, and is limited to two hours.
Palace Playland, the amusement park at Old Orchard Beach, has fun features but it’s not likely to impress thrill ride enthusiasts. For families with young kids, this park has a lot to offer, but don’t expect teens to be satisfied.
While the rides are not high adventure, the prices rank up there with the big amusement park chains. Before buying a $29.95 day pass, consider walking through the park and determining which rides appeal and how many $1.20 tickets each costs. A book of 20 tickets costs $22. In general, the kiddie rides are 1 and 2 tickets, the family, coaster and thrill rides 3 and 4 tickets.
If Palace Playland is likely to be on your itinerary, sign up online for the free fun club. Two days after signing up, I received coupons for $4 off up to four day passes or $3 off two-day passes.
The menagerie- merry-go-round- at Palace Playland is fascinating. The animals accompanying the horses include a cat eating a fish, an ostrich, a dragon, and a pig, among others. Like many features of the park, it’s enjoyable for its artistry.
Laundry
A Laundromat is an essential find in a beach town that’s sure to generate an abundance of sandy, wet towels and swimsuits. Union Street one block from the beach is the location of Ocean Suds Coin Operated Laundry where it costs $3.50 to wash a load in a double-washer, $4.50 for a triple. Soap is available for $.75 and the dryer costs 25 cents per 5 minutes. The facility is clean. There are several games machines including PacMan to play while waiting. Or you can go outside and use the high powered vacuum to de-sand your car. That costs $1.
Boardwalk, Restrooms and Shopping
Although called a boardwalk beach by some publications, Old Orchard actually sports a privately-owned pier with shops and restaurants. Continuing up Old Orchard Street from the pier, there are several blocks of commercial enterprise serving beachgoers. There is no boardwalk extending the length of the beach, as with typical boardwalk beaches.
If you need to use the restroom on the pier, expect to pay. The cost- 50 cents per person per visit- can add up quickly if you’re traveling with kids. While the restrooms are supposedly clean due to the fee, don’t expect much. They were as gritty as most beach restrooms when we visited in August 2011 and the water in the only sink did not turn off properly. You can buy a full day pass to the pier restroom for $2.50.
The stores at Old Orchard Beach typically do not allow non-customers to use their restrooms. If you make a purchase at a store that has a restroom, it makes sense to take advantage of the opportunity to use it. One pizza restaurant that did allow noncustomers to use its restroom charged $1 for the privilege.
There are other public restrooms with showers (located on Milliken Street, W. Grand and in Memorial Park) with a few blocks of the beach. Some years they cost 25 to 50 cents per visit, some years not.Their distance from the beach is unfortunate for families with young children or anyone with mobility challenges.
When buying beachwear at OOB, comparison shopping pays. The east side of the street merchants tended to offer more favorable prices in summer 2011 than those of the merchants on the west side. The west side also housed some stores selling edgier merchandise such as clothing with suggestive slogans.
We found zip-up sweatshirts advertised at $19.99 in two stores on the west side; the display item with itsOld Orchard Beach logo was not available in either store at that price however. The price reflected a plain sweatshirt, something we learned only by asking. The displayed item cost close to $35 in both stores. Across the street, we were able to choose a logo to have printed on a sweatshirt of similar quality for about $23.
One last note before you head for the beach: apparently a lot of people buy pizza as there are special racks for disposing of pizza boxes at beach edge. Bill’s Pizza makes a quality pie. Pier Pizza served us a soggy pizza with canned toppings.
