Sebasco · Phippsburg
Oceanfront vacation cottages on Long Cove in Phippsburg, about an hour north of Portland.
The cottages sit in the Sebasco area of Phippsburg on Long Cove, known locally as Smugglers’ Cove. The drive is about an hour north of Portland. Bath is twenty minutes; Brunswick thirty; Freeport forty-five; Boothbay Harbor fifty-five.
At the southern tip of the Phippsburg peninsula, you can immerse yourself in American history by walking through American-Revolution-era batteries at Fort Baldwin, Civil War-era Fort Popham, and the site of the 1607 Popham Colony — a failed British colony that preceded the Mayflower’s landing at Plymouth. Tennis and golf are a stroll away at Sebasco Harbor Resort. Morse Mountain’s two-mile hike ends at Seawall Beach.
Long Cove, Sebasco, Phippsburg, Maine. Driving directions go out with your confirmation — we don’t publish a street address.
Livability.com · March 2022
“This is coastal Maine at its prettiest, with picturesque wooden boat houses standing atop thick timber stilts plummeting into the Atlantic. This is the kind of place [where] you . . . chow down on the best lobster you’ll ever put in your mouth. It’s . . . a great place to ‘go dark’ for a bit.”
Phippsburg was named one of the ten best cities in America to go “off the grid,” ranking alongside Carmel, California; Aspen, Colorado; and Sedona, Arizona.
Read the Livability listBeaches, trails, a lighthouse ferry, and a few studios we like — the same list we keep for guests on the cottage bulletin board.
Ramp and float for kayaks, paddle boards, and a sandy low-tide beach. Signed trails through 21 acres of pine, including a lookout 200 feet above Casco Bay and Sunset Point at the water’s edge. The private system connects to public trails at the resort.
A short stroll for golf, tennis, the outdoor pool, bowling, and kayaks. The Pilot House is a favorite for breakfast. A charter ferry to Seguin Island Light leaves from the resort dock.
MoreMaine’s largest public beach, about 15 minutes. Wide sand, dunes, and the mouth of the Kennebec.
MorePhippsburg’s town beach — two miles. Open to residents and renters. Take the permit from your cottage’s bulletin board.
A favorite two-mile hike, moderately hard, to a vast and largely empty beach — Popham without the people. Carry in, carry out. Take bug spray.
Public hiking around the peninsula, beyond the Cove’s End woods.
MoreCommissioned by George Washington in 1793; the present Victorian tower (1857) still has a first-order Fresnel lens and is open for tours. A 22-foot ferry leaves from the Sebasco Harbor Resort dock, a short walk from the cottages.
Seaspray Kayak delivers and picks up at Cove’s End, (207) 404-1100. Motorboats at New Meadows Marina — ocean experience required. Charter fishing with Cap’t Joe Jerome in West Point if you want striped bass.
MoreA half-day seafood adventure nearby: oyster and wine pairing, a lobster roll, and a sunset cruise among the oyster farms.
MoreBalmy Days Cruises leaves from Boothbay Harbor, about an hour away. Allow extra time for parking. Whales are seen, sometimes, on the crossing.
MoreTwenty minutes. Galleries, shops, and the historic shipbuilding waterfront.
MoreJillian Herrigel’s East Village Studio in West Point — her work is in the cottages; call first. Andrea Brand in Sebasco offers a 50% discount (up to $500) to first-time buyers of her fine art; (207) 319-6236 for an appointment.
Brunswick 30 minutes. Freeport (L.L.Bean and the outlets) 40–45 minutes — good for a rainy day, though cell service there is oddly poor. Boothbay Harbor 55 minutes. Portland about an hour.