Vintage Fire Truck Sightseeing Tour of Portland Maine





Description
This 50-minute sightseeing tour is a fun and unique way to discover Portland, Maine. Board a Vintage Fire Engine and travel back in time as your knowledgeable guide helps relive Portland’s colorful history from a local’s perspective. See lighthouses, Civil War forts, city parks and buildings, interesting stories and a multimedia experience packed with historic images of Maine. This is one family-friendly tour you should not miss out on!
Tour Options
Itinerary
The Old Port in Portland, Maine is a quaint historic district with cobblestone streets and shops selling clothing, gourmet food and souvenirs. It’s also a hot spot for nightlife where pubs, breweries and bars draw the younger crowds. There is also a fesh and lively dining scene.
Casco Bay Lines (also known as the Casco Bay Island Transit District, CBITD) is a publicly run transportation company that services the residents of the islands of Casco Bay. These islands include Peaks Island, Little Diamond Island, Great Diamond Island, Diamond Cove, Long Island, Chebeague Island and Cliff Island.
Shipyard Brewing Company, founded in 1994 is a brewery and soft drink manufacturer in Portland, Maine. Shipyard is the largest brewer in Maine and is the fourth largest microbrewery in New England.
The Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Co. & Museum is located and operates out of the former Portland Company Marine Complex, the organization was founded in 1993. The collection consists of passenger and freight equipment, as well as artifacts from the 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge railways that ran in the state of Maine in the late 19th century and early 20th century. The organization operates a 1 1⁄2-mile (2.4 km) long railroad that runs along the waterfront of Casco Bay and parallels Portland's Eastern Promenade. Historic steam and diesel locomotives and a variety of restored coaches are used to run passenger services on the railroad.
The Portland Observatory is a historic maritime signal tower at 138 Congress Street in the Munjoy Hill section of Portland, Maine. Built in 1807, it is the only known surviving tower of its type in the United States. Using both a telescope and signal flags, two-way communication between ship and shore was possible several hours before an incoming vessel reached the docks. The tower was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2006; it is now managed by a local nonprofit as a museum, and is open to the public. The Portland Observatory is the only remaining maritime signal station in the United States. Tower operations were paid with annual fees collected from shipping merchants, who purchased the right to have their flags stored in the building and hoisted up its flagstaffs when their ships were sighted. A telephone was eventually installed, extending the tower's function until 1923, when the reliability of engine powered vessels and communication by radio made it obsolete.
The Wadsworth-Longfellow House is a historic house and museum in Portland, Maine, United States. It is located at 489 Congress Street and is operated by the Maine Historical Society. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1962, and administratively added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.
The Portland Museum of Art, or PMA, is the largest and oldest public art institution in the U.S. state of Maine. Founded as the Portland Society of Art in 1882 It is located in the downtown area known area The Arts District in Portland, Maine.
Victoria Mansion, also known as the Morse-Libby House or Morse-Libby Mansion, is a landmark example of American residential architecture located in downtown Portland. The brownstone exterior, elaborate interior design, opulent furnishings and early technological conveniences provide a detailed portrait of lavish living in nineteenth-century America. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1971 for its architectural significance as a particularly well-preserved Italianate mansion.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- PLEASE LEAVE PLENTY OF TIME FOR INCREASED TRAFFIC AND PARKING IN PORTLAND! Do Not trust your phones GPS for estimated time arrival.
- ***We leave promptly at the designated time! Refunds are not provided for missed tours due to late/non arrival**
- We just need the name that you booked with and the staff will check you in on the truck
- Our address is 180 Commercial St. Portland ME 04101
- Please provide a cell phone number that you will have with you when you are in Portland. We may need to contact you regarding your tour
Reviews(901)
Great tour and lots of interesting information about Portland. 50 minutes was the perfect length. Definitely recommend .
Great, personable guide. Nice route to see city
Due to rain we were unable to take our fire truck ride . The company up graded us to a trolley ride around the city and it was still a little wet . The trolley car driver was SUPER knowledgeable about the area and share all kinds of interesting stories and tid bits that you wouldn’t normally hear .
Perfect length of time and great information about the city. Suggest doing it on day one and then you can head back to your areas of interest.
The driver and tour guide were very friendly. The driving was smooth. The tour guide was kind when answering a child's questions. She had a pleasant voice, spoke at a comfortable pace and we could hear her well.
Excellent loop tour of Portland. Our firetruck was a vintage Farrar-International Harvester which formerly served as a front line engine in Center Harbor NH (5M3). The hose bed was retrofitted with bench seats and seat belts. The ride is bumpy in Portland but to be expected with the roads. Our tour guide was wonderful and very knowledgeable of the city history. Great views of the harbor and historical sites. For fire buffs the tour passed some active fire stations in different parts of the city. Highly recommended the tour. The meeting site is easy to locate on Commercial Street. If you need to use the restroom there isn’t one at the boarding site but the cruise terminal just down the street is the closest.
Great tour. Fun and knowledgeable driver and guide. Great overview of the city and its history! Perfect length.
Fantastic tour ! Loved it , great tour guide amazing experience! Thank you from the family from Montréal 😎
They do not explain what happened to the Native people who were already here before all the immigrants came over and started building all their churches and massive buildings.
Great tour of Portland, Maine



