This or That: Maine’s Blueberry Mojito or Florida’s Coconut Daiquiri
We compare two creative cocktails – one served at Opal resorts in the Northeast, and one served at the resorts in Florida – plus their recipes to take home.
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Top Holiday Cocktails To Ring in 2026
These holiday cocktails – part of Opal’s specialty holiday cocktail program – aren’t just complex symphonies of flavor, they’re liquid works of art. And we’ve got the recipes for you to recreate during your own holiday festivities.
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5 Game-Changing Benefits of Taking Your Holidays on Vacation
If the stress of your holiday hustle has been weighing you down (especially if you’re the one hosting the festivities), this may be an article you want to read. Because a holiday week getaway may just be the best gift you can give yourself.
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Why Mount Desert Island Was Voted America’s Favorite Island
It wasn’t a tropical escape that scored number one in the “Top 15 Islands in the Continental U.S.” list in Travel + Leisure’s 2025 World’s Best Awards. It was a lobster-claw-shaped piece of land off the craggy coast of Downeast Maine.
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A Coveted Coastal New England Road Trip
The beauty of a multi-day, 220-mile road trip up the craggy coast from Portsmouth, New Hampshire to Bar Harbor, Maine isn’t just the plethora of enticing pit stops along the route – from high culture to scenic coves. It’s also the way that Opal properties serve as your easy and convenient overnight waypoints for piecing together one epic coastal cruise.
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Best Family Beach Resorts in Florida
Planning a family beach vacation to Florida? From morning splash time to sunset s’mores, Opal Collection offers a variety of beach resorts up and down the coast that take the hassle out of family vacations.
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Must-See Clearwater Florida Attractions You Never Knew About
Think you’ve experienced all of Clearwater Beach? This list of hidden gems might make you think again.
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6 Best Crystal-Clear Water Beaches in Florida that Rival the Caribbean
You don’t need a passport to frolic in the blue waves identical to what you’d find in everyone’s favorite tropical sea. You just need these favorite Florida beaches.
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10 Experiences to Level Up Your Next Opal Escape
Opal Collection resorts and hotels are more than just luxurious places to lay your head. From private chef-led culinary events to hands-on outdoor adventures you’ll be raving about for years to come, here’s how our collection can craft and connect you to indelible experiences that discerning travelers covet.
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Whether you're planning where to go next or what to do on an already‑booked vacation, discover the travel destinations with Opal
Get the Look: Maine’s Modern Nautical
Noticing a room in your home in need of a bit of a refresh? Taking a page from the design of Samoset Resort’s newly renovated guest rooms.
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The 2020 Opals: The Best of Arts & Culture in Opal Destinations
Awards season may be over, but we’ve still got our own crop of statues to hand out to a few of the outstanding arts and culture institutions in and around Opal destinations.
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ICYMI: What’s New at Samoset Resort
Why this is the year to reacquaint yourself with Samoset Resort. Haven’t been to Mid-Coast Maine in a while? Here’s what you been missing, from the top-to-bottom renovations at Samoset Resort to new farm-to-table fare and shopping historic Rockport Village. New at Samoset Resort Gorgeous New…
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New Year’s Resolutions You Can Accomplish…by Vacationing
Exercise more, learn a new skill, travel more. If these sound like your kind of New Year’s resolution ideas, then we’ve got the perfect ways you can actually accomplish them – while taking a vacation, to boot.
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Condé Nast–Confirmed: 11 Opal Properties Recognized in 2019’s Readers’ Choice Awards
The people have spoken. Eleven Opal Collection properties were awarded Condé Nast Traveler’s 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards. So what’s all the fuss about? Thirty two years ago, Condé Nast Traveler – the legendary luxury lifestyle travel magazine – put out its first travel survey. Back then, it was just a…
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A Photographer’s Guide to Seeing the Best of Bar Harbor
Maine-native and photography-guru, Greg Hartford offers up some of his favorite places to wile away a day in Bar Harbor and beyond.
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A Primer on The Porcupines Islands of Bar Harbor’s Frenchman Bay
At the top of the list of things to do in Bar Harbor, Maine, for kayakers looking to experience some rugged Downeast mother nature, The Porcupine Islands clustered around Bar Harbor are a curious collection of evergreen-spiked domes with a unique history, to boot.
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Design in Detail: Samoset Resort’s New Look
Shiplap walls, stunning Midcoast Maine photography from a local artist, decorative wooden paddles – these are just a few of the nautically rich details to look forward to in the recent 178-room refresh at Samoset Resort.
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Street Smart: Rockland’s Main Street
When it comes to things to do in Rockland, Maine, there’s no better place to explore than the town’s Main Street, a one-mile stretch through downtown that feels perfectly warm and familiar to New Englanders and outsiders alike.
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