We are currently in Acadia National Park! It is beautiful here. We really like to stay on the Park property and we chose a national park campground called Seawall. There are no hookups, and certainly no Wi-Fi here at ‘Seawall’ campground. We could run our generator, but our satellite dish could not connect thru all these trees! Our cell phones would not maintain a connection either – so we were OFF line! But, this is where we wanted to stay.
What do we do? I want to stay here for 3 nights, but my RV.net article is due today?! Well there are Wi-Fi hotpspots at various cafes and, most always at Public Libraries. We found a public library in Southwest Harbor, near the campground, where Wi-Fi was offered. What a cool place!
Internet Access at Public Libraries
And, I am certainly not the only one taking advantage of the Internet connection. One man who said he was traveling thru the area had a deadline to submit a grant proposal. Who cares that he’s on vacation in a beautiful national park? He can take a few hours, visit this local library, get his work done and get back to play! Others were just checking their email, and the woman next to me said she lived nearby but appreciated the free high-speed Internet.
I took a few minutes to speak with the director of this library. She said that the state of Maine has a wonderful public library system that helped them get set up as a Wi-Fi hotspot. She enjoys offering this service because she sees the benefits. There are traveling business people who take advantage of it as well as college students taking exams and many travelers every day accessing their email. She said that travelers particularly liked the fact that the Wi-Fi hotpsot was wide open and always on. They could access it from the parking lot 24 hours/day.
So, the purpose of this post is to encourage you to check out local public libraries as sources for Internet connections. They’re free, they’re usually high-speed, and you might meet some interesting people! We also took advantage of Wi-Fi at our lunch spot in Bar Harbor. Lobster Bisque and Internet. Does it get any better?
This is Chris Guld signing off from Acadia National Park in the Southwest Harbor Public Library!
Chris Guld
Stephanie
Thanks for the article – I found an online directory that lists RV Parks where you can get WiFi at http://www.wifirv.com/hotspots/. Although I love going to a library I have also found them not to be too traveler friendly, especially if you need to park a large rig. Every town is a new opportunity to experience Americana and the ammenities change as does the wind and the road.
Thanks for sharing!! Hope this directory of hotspots at RV parks helps!
Fred Brandeberry, SR
We ofer tips on receiveing a good Wi-Fi signal on our website = rv101byfred.com, and its FREE.
Fred Brandeberry
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Tom
Great article. We use the library’s WIFI when we travel also. Only thing you have to watch is not do any on line banking. I have heard of some horror story’s on others stealing information while using WI FI in Library’s.
harriet
I recently spent two weeks in Damasiscotta, Maine – I used the library in town to connect to the Internet, everyone was very friendly. There is also a cafe in town, free WiFi – and mocha smoothies!
Nikki D
thanks for the information! I wanted to go to Acadia, and your suggestion of campsite and librairy for WI-FI is great. I have used some public librairies before for keeping in touch on the net. Also been using some restaurants/pubs with wi-fi. You just help me in planning my trip to Acadia Park.
Rhea
I rely on libraries for Internet connection when I’m traveling. Sometimes there is a long, involved signup process, though. I love Acadia too!
Mac McClellan
Hi Chris,
Great post — and a good example of using the services you recommend!
Although some libraries aren’t “traveler friendly” most are, and these are a great resource.
Thanks!
Mac