Impact of cottagers (sales, homes, buying)

[bangorme]

Originally Posted by maineguy8888

Yes, I think it's a fair thread. No sense trying "preemptive censorship".

Here in northern Maine, we are spared the mass influx of folks from away. That means that while we do enjoy SOME of the economic benefits, we are not overrun, and camps are not so highly priced that it is not out of the question for a local to buy one.

A twist is to be found in the St. John Valley; you see many, many Connecticut license plates there from May to October. That's because many folks have moved from the SJV to Connecticut over the years (starting in the 1940s), but the family ties remain very strong. So while many of the camp owners are technically from Connecticut, "not really".

When I lived in Caribou... about 6 years ago, I saw lots of tourists in the area. They came to atv and snowmobile. Often they'd buy a camp and spend 2-4 weeks a year in it.

[western mass and love it]

Not trying to be antagonistic, just feel like this question is ridiculous. I bought my house in York because I love the area, I love the beach, I love the slower pace in Maine. Maybe it is different for me coming from a place where there is always so many people I wouldn't notice if the population increased suddenly by 10k people. But I certainly don't think I would complain about those said 10k people if they were the ones keeping my friends and families business afloat.

I mean why not try to find the good in the situation instead of trying to find the negative. I do realize that some people are rude, loud, inconsiderate and nasty. But I am sure there are plenty of nice down to earth ,polite people also. The tourist or vacationers obviously come to Maine because they love it there just like all of you who live there.

[tatans]

Originally Posted by western mass and love it

Not trying to be antagonistic, just feel like this question is ridiculous. I bought my house in York because I love the area, I love the beach, I love the slower pace in Maine. Maybe it is different for me coming from a place where there is always so many people I wouldn't notice if the population increased suddenly by 10k people. But I certainly don't think I would complain about those said 10k people if they were the ones keeping my friends and families business afloat.

I mean why not try to find the good in the situation instead of trying to find the negative. I do realize that some people are rude, loud, inconsiderate and nasty. But I am sure there are plenty of nice down to earth ,polite people also. The tourist or vacationers obviously come to Maine because they love it there just like all of you who live there.

You bought your house because of the area and the slower pace of life, well, so did we, things change, now we can hardly move with the mass influx of cottagers, 4 months of unstocked grocery shelves, and try get a seat in a restaurant, on and on and on, even the merchants are glad to see the town get back to "normal"
Merchants here don't seem to be as greedy as in York, as the area here without cottage people seems to give them a good source of revenue.

[PAhippo]

just because they want to see the town back to 'normal' (Isn't chaos in summer normal?), doesn't mean they don't like the cottagers. How many mothers are glad when school starts? Do you think that means they don't love their kids? doubtful.


Yes, things change. It's never going back to the way it was when you bought your place. It won't go back to the way it was before you bought your place either.

[bangorme]

It's a love/hate thing for the tourist towns. My grandparents used to live near Old Orchard and used to go through that. I don't think it's an unreasonable emotional response.

[western mass and love it]

Idk maybe it is because I'm on the other side of the coin. But I can honestly say that I don't hear this type of thing in other places that are vacation destinations. My DW and I also own a home in OBX and this type of conversation is never had. the permanent residents love the influx of people and all the revenue they bring with them. I understand that the OBX is just an area of a huge state but the people really do seem to embrace the summer time vacationers.

I do see what you mean though about your sleepy town being inundated during the summer but that can't be a new thing is it?

[mainebrokerman]

Originally Posted by RMoore007

This thread got me wondering just how many people visit Maine each year and I was shocked at the findings.
I really had no idea that there were so many people that visited Maine each year. I thought it would be somewhere around a few million but after reading the Maine Office of Tourism Visitor Tracking Research for 2011, here is what I found out. https://www.visitmaine.com/resource/...report4-13.pdf

On page 17, it shows the Estimated Visitation to Maine, Net 2011 Visitors...both overnight and day visitors....17.8 million? Can this be correct? That's around 14 visitors per resident.

Half of them come in the summer at about 9 million and the rest in the other 3 seasons. There are many other statistics in that report too that are eye opening.

17.8 million visitors???

well, theirs the answer right there- that 6-8 times more than i thought, so i guess the visitors dont impact my life that much

I wouldnt believe that number , however, ive been heading north thursdays and fridays from mass. and n.h.
and the southern make turnpike is always busy-
this year it may be down,,,,alot of rainy weather in june,,some of july




to answer the op's question- this is maine,,,we've ALWAYS been impacted by tourists, not all areas,,in fact NOT most areas, i suspect portland south, and up the coast to bar harbor, has the majority od tourist

I use to visit businesses, all over maine,,for 20 years, about fifteen years ago, their was a bit of a shift,
more and more tourists chose to come inland, away from the coast, many wanted the serenity and wilderness maine offers, but also a chance to see a moose and go camping,,and its cheaper,,also many many ,,,bought a second home/camp, in the woods, cheap land/camps,, a great escape in the summer
along the coast, not all, but some businesses have learned some lessons,,,if you are a year round business, and jack your prices up in the summer,,you lose the locals, you need in the leaner months
and -dont try to skim too deep, the tourists also want a bargain


tourists are only annoying in touristy areas -by annoying, the traffic, bumper to bumper traffic on route one


but for the most part- nope, there are not annoying, again, unless you live in a high touristy area-

[western mass and love it]

I can see how some of the inland locations can get inundated. Unlike the coast where it is expected, some of these inland spots never had the crush of people and now they are. The towns are not set up for it and don't have resources to deal with it. So I do see the annoyance of that situation and can sympathize. But along the coast it has been this way for decades and if someone buys there thinking they will get peace and quite during the summer then it is their fault for not doing any kind of research.

[RMoore007]

There are about 2500 permanent residents in the Dover-Foxcroft area and at least double that in the summer. A lot of it is Sebec Lake and the many camps, cottages and year round homes dotting the small lake which is only 5 miles from town. There are two lights in town (the only two in all of Piscataquis county) and in the summer, you might have to wait for 5-6 cars rather than 2-3. Maybe wait longer in lines at stores and restaurants. Other than that, they blend in pretty good. Of course this is not like the touristy areas. It's all relative. I know there are more jobs for high schoolers and local residents during the summer. More people come to the local festivals, homecoming, county fair and people congregate more in the local establishments. Most of Maine probably experiences this type of an influx of "cottagers" and not the overwhelming kind.

[maineguy8888]

I would concur with that, RMoore. It seems that most parts of the state don't get swamped.