Really a mixed bag - the good: excellent location with phenomenal views, including extraordinary sunsets (it helped that weather was extraordinarily beautiful), mostly exuberant staff. The not so good: we happened to be there for "dog weekend" - with yappy hour, etc. Constant dog barking, inside & out, & dog owners screaming (at their dogs), that combined with thin walls & floor/ceilings made for an extraordinarily noisy weekend. Hotel staff seemed more focused on the dogs than patrons. It's also a conference center so lots of traffic, people & cars. No spa services. No gym. Beautiful grounds. Poor wifi service, even in lobby. Another plus: it's a non-smoking facility.

We were in Kennebunkport in October 2012 to attend our good friends' wedding. As it was after Columbus Day weekend, many attractions in Kennebunk were closed so plan your trip accordingly!

What We Loved:
Beauty of Hotel
Helpfullness of the Front Desk
Sunset Views

What We Disliked:
Thin Walls
Check In at 4pm
Lack of Service Staff Attending to Cleaning Rooms

As for the hotel though, it's a gorgeous New England style historical hotel right on Ocean Ave with perfect views of the rock jetties and ocean sunsets. We loved this aspect. I was shocked when I called to see if we could get an early check in that the actual check in time isn't until 4pm. This seems rather late compared to most hotels considering their check-out time is early at 10am.
We immediately got checked in though and headed to our room to which we found that our bathroom door didn't close. This is not something we were ok with. We called to have someone take a look. Ten minutes later, we were immediately alerted to the thin walls as we heard a young child stomp up and down the stairs for about 15 minutes. I immediately went downstairs to ask for a new room as there was no way we were going to be able to sleep in the room at all that weekend.
The staff was very pleasant and were willing to change our room with no questions asked. They showed me a new room in the North Wing and it was better, the bathroom door closed, and we had a partial view of the ocean. We accepted it.
Unfortunately though, we heard noise all night- even snoring from the next room! Anytime someone was walking in the hall we heard that as well. I realize that this is the price you pay for staying in old hotels but we wouldn't recommend it.
Lastly, Saturday morning we lazily laid around the room, leaving at 1pm. We put out the service notice on the door, and coming back at 5:30pm our room was still not clean. We called asking or new towels and they brought them promptly but no action was taken to clean our room while we were out from 7pm-12pm.

Our stay also included a breakfast buffet with a la carte add ons- I liked that they were offering lobster Benedict.

All in all, if you're looking to get lots of rest I wouldn't recommend this hotel- especially not in the peak of summer when there are lots of families.

Stop by the hotel for a late afternoon cocktail, grab a cocktail, and watch the sunset.

My wife and I recently got married at the Colony. We can't say enough good about the hotel and wedding process. Yes, it's a little old school, but it's a historic hotel so that's to be expected. Portland probably has a Marriott if that's more your thing. We had a small wedding with only about 40 close family members. We have been to the hotel numerous times and knew that's where we wanted to get hitched. We always travel with our 2 dogs, and the hotel is VERY dog friendly. The dogs were even in the wedding. Try to get a 90 lb retriever in a doggie tux! There are people cleaning all the time, so even with the pups the hotel is clean. Rooms are great, staff, everything is fantastic. If anyone happens to be looking for a destination wedding in that area, check it out. We had a main wedding coordinator we dealt with for the whole planning rocess, and a second one that was with us the day of the wedding to make sure it all went as planned. We can't say enough good about both of them. Knowledgeable, attentive, very easy to work with and great to just hang out with and relax. Every one of our guests told my wife and I that it was the best wedding they had ever been to, and it's because the staff made sure it all went as planned. Not one thing could have been better. How many people have a zero stress wedding planning story?? You don't have to get married there, just go stay. You'll have fun.

The Colony has the charm and essence of traditional Maine. From the fresh baked blueberry pies to the flowered wallpaper in the rooms. We stayed a few days and were charmed with the ambiance. The staff is international in source...and that made the conversations in the bar and at breakfast facinating. Overall a great home base for the lobster and great views that are ever-present.