Portland Paddle
Portland Paddle
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About
Portland Paddle offers sea kayak and stand-up paddleboard (SUP) rentals, tours and lessons. We provide paddling adventures for all skill levels, including complete beginners. We send out two-hour sunset kayak tours every evening and half-day kayak tours three mornings each week. Experienced paddlers can rent kayaks or SUPs and explore the Maine Island Trail. We're located at the East End Beach a short drive or walk from downtown Portland. Our site on the waterfront of Casco Bay is perfectly situated for paddling. Dozens of interesting islands are nearby and the waters near the beach are relatively calm and protected. We are a seasonal business open from mid-May to mid-October. Our hours may vary in the spring and fall.
Portland, Maine
Awards
Travelers' Choice
2024
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
5.0
719 reviews
Excellent
677
Very good
32
Average
5
Poor
2
Terrible
3
Tricia E
2 contributions
Aug 2021 • Friends
We brought friends who are visiting Maine on the four hour kayak tour of Casco bay—it is a fantastic way to experience the Maine Coastline from the water while doing something active and affordable. Our friends absolutely loved the experience! We loved finding sea glass on Catnip island and learning fun facts about the places we passed. Our guide did a fabulous job coordinating a group of participants at differing skill and
fitness levels. The guide did a great job with safety and kayaking 101 instruction at the beginning, which made my guests feel safe and reassured that this trip was the right choice. I will be taking all my summer visitors on this tour in the future! The double sea kayaks felt very stable and had the learning curve to steer with rudders was not too steep.
fitness levels. The guide did a great job with safety and kayaking 101 instruction at the beginning, which made my guests feel safe and reassured that this trip was the right choice. I will be taking all my summer visitors on this tour in the future! The double sea kayaks felt very stable and had the learning curve to steer with rudders was not too steep.
Written August 30, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
KathyL@NJtravel
Basking Ridge, NJ7 contributions
Jul 2021 • Solo
I had the pleasure of doing a sunset tour with Portland Paddle. Booking and check-in process were very easy. This was my 3rd trip with Portland Paddle. The guides are very informative, engaging and highly skilled. When the wind picked up on Casco Bay, our guide made sure all her group felt comfortable and adjusted the course to keep the group out of the wind and larger swells. She kept an eye on everyone, but was not overbearing. Both the inexperienced paddlers and those with more experience had fun. The sunset was great as was the company. If you have a free evening in Portland, I highly recommend It!!
Written July 7, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
M O’Connor
2 contributions
Jul 2020 • Couples
What a delightful trip! Our guide, Henry, was knowledgeable, skilled, and gave a bunch of high impact paddling tips before we launched. Once in the water, he provided excellent context of the natural surroundings without overwhelming the experience. Fort Gorges was a neat destination, which we reached quickly. I would recommend bringing along a book, magazine, and perhaps a snack for your time at the fort. There was more time than necessary to explore, and it would’ve been lovely to perch on one of the outlooks with a book.
Written July 24, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ed Farkas
1 contribution
Aug 2021
The Portland Paddle kayak rental was easy and very reasonably priced! I did like the attention to water safety relating to kayaking and water immersion!
Due to my time constraints, I could not fit into the Portland Paddle tours. However, they did sell out quickly. I proceeded to solo paddle in the local area. Kayak and other equipment were of good quality and in good condition!
I recommend Portland Paddle for anyone interested in kayaking in the Portland area.
Minor point: Experience could be better with a change room for men, women and families.
Due to my time constraints, I could not fit into the Portland Paddle tours. However, they did sell out quickly. I proceeded to solo paddle in the local area. Kayak and other equipment were of good quality and in good condition!
I recommend Portland Paddle for anyone interested in kayaking in the Portland area.
Minor point: Experience could be better with a change room for men, women and families.
Written August 15, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ed let us know that he accidentally gave us a 1-star rating, and was unable to figure out how to change it after several efforts. He wrote us to apologize and tell us that he had a generally great experience.
Written October 27, 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Dean A
7 contributions
Sep 2022
My wife and I had delightful kayak trip to Fort Gorges in Portland harbor this past weekend. The trip was led by Alphonso who was terrific..... we started with safety and kayaking technique instruction followed by a nice paddle out to Fort Gorges and back. Alphonso's narrative about the history of the fort and nearby geography was excellent.
We would highly recommend Portland Paddles for the Fort Gorges tour or anything else they offered.....very professional and enjoyable.
We would highly recommend Portland Paddles for the Fort Gorges tour or anything else they offered.....very professional and enjoyable.
Written September 14, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello Dean, We are so happy that you enjoyed your time with us! We hope to see you on the water again in the future!
Happy paddling!
~Mariah, staff manager
Written September 21, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
paula b
West Chester, PA50 contributions
May 2021
We booked guided kayak trip to Fort Gorges. Paid a little extra for a private tour. Our guide Dane was great! Exploring Fort Gorges was really interesting. I think we had a better Fort experience with Dane as our guide verse exploring on our own because Dane knew interesting places to explore and shared some interesting knowledge along the way. I liked doing a private tour because we went at our pace. I would absolutely recommend Portland Paddle for a guided tour out to Fort Gorges!
If you book this experience, I recommend bringing a small backpack with water and a snack. I also suggest wearing old sneakers, or footwear you do not mind getting wet. I wore very old running sneakers and threw them away after the trip. I put flip flops in my backpack for the ride home. Very glad I was wearing sneakers for exiting the kayak and exploring the fort.
If you book this experience, I recommend bringing a small backpack with water and a snack. I also suggest wearing old sneakers, or footwear you do not mind getting wet. I wore very old running sneakers and threw them away after the trip. I put flip flops in my backpack for the ride home. Very glad I was wearing sneakers for exiting the kayak and exploring the fort.
Written June 9, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SandiL
Katonah, NY74 contributions
Jul 2022
Staff was friendly, helpful, accommodating, knowledgeable and made renting a kayak for a few hours easy peasy! We were with friends who had two kayaks but since the four of us wanted to go out together, we just rented two two-person kayaks. Rental comes with the kayak, personal floatation device, paddle and a dry bag (many other places charge extra for a dry bag but Portland Paddle includes it). They carried the kayak to and from the beach for us, and even helped us get in and out of the water. Staff gave us great tips on how to kayak and where to go to be safe and get back on time for a two-hour rental. You are paddling in a harbor area, which is fairly protected, so it was fine for first-timers. Saw lots of shore and water birds and even stopped at a small island for a photo op. Highly recommend this convenient and friendly place!
Written July 4, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Cricket B
Baltimore, MD3 contributions
Jul 2020
Two friends and I hired Portland Paddle for a private Crescent Beach kayaking adventure. Ours was a stellar experience. Kyle was our knowledgable and friendly guide. We received a mini-orientation to sea kayaking, then launched for a three hour paddle along the coast of Maine. Magically, we were greeted by a whale while paddling. We were able to linger in its vicinity for fifteen minutes, basking in the unique sighting.
I highly recommend this outfit to anyone looking for a kayaking adventure in the Portland, Maine area. They were kind, accommodating, service oriented, and just plain fun! Thank you Zack, Kyle, and Team.
I highly recommend this outfit to anyone looking for a kayaking adventure in the Portland, Maine area. They were kind, accommodating, service oriented, and just plain fun! Thank you Zack, Kyle, and Team.
Written July 23, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stressed2
Fairfield, CT461 contributions
Sep 2020 • Couples
We had a great kayak tour with Finn on the 3 hr fort Gorges tour. There were beginners in our group, Finn was very thorough in explaining everything. The kayaks were in great shape with supportive seats and rudders. The had dry bags and spray skirts which really kept you dry! Five star all the way. We were bored at the fort and went out to kayak more while the rest of the group was still in the island. We should have taken a longer tour that did more kayaking or rented on our own but I really highly recommend them as an outfitter.
Written September 13, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Annie
1 contribution
Jul 2021
We had a great experience with Portland Paddle!! They were so nice and helpful!! We rented a tandem kayak for half a day. They were careful to go over safety rules and asked us to have our phones nearby so they could get in touch with us if needed due to weather changes. They were by far the most responsible and safety minded kayak rental place I have been to. I would highly recommend them to anyone who wants to kayak around Portland!!
Written July 24, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
What is the appropriate attire for the sunset tour?
Written June 22, 2019
You should wear some clothes that you don't mind getting a bit wet, because there is always some dripping and splashing that occurs with any paddlesport. On some evenings people stay almost completely dry, but on others they get somewhat wet. It's best to avoid cotton clothing. Cotton does not retain warmth when wet, so jeans or cotton t-shirts are not ideal. Also bring along an extra layer like a windbreaker, rain jacket or sweater if possible, since it could be cooler on the water than on land.
On your feet it's best to wear sturdy sandals or watershoes. Sneakers are okay, but they may get wet and they may be slightly less comfortable in the boat.
Written June 22, 2019
Hello. I was wondering if on the sunset or midnight paddle if you have had any close encounters with sharks, such as a shark bumping the bottom of your kayak?
The tour sounds wonderful, but I am very apprehensive about being in the deep open ocean.
Written July 21, 2018
No, we have never had any encounters with sharks on our tours, and I've never heard of any other kayak company in Maine encountering sharks on their tours. We paddle in Casco Bay and sharks mainly stay just outside the bay in the open ocean. However, even when paddling on the open ocean in Maine it's extremely rare to witness a shark.
Written July 21, 2018
How difficult is the kayak tour? Calm? Wavy? Currents?
Could someone do it if only have been once?
Written July 6, 2018
It all depends on the weather and your attitude! Once it was so calm I could use the surface as a mirror. Other times, not so much. The instruction is excellent and the guides will teach you what you need to know; if it's really rough, they will cancel or re-route you.
Written July 7, 2018
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