Bar Harbor businesses optimistic approaching summer tourism despite setbacks [Video]

BAR HARBOR, Maine (WABI) – Per locals, there is a distinct difference in the town of Bar Harbor before and after Memorial Day weekend.

“In the off season, Bar Harbor gets very quiet and very sleepy,” describes Ryan Reynolds, assistant store manager at Maine memorabilia shop Cool as a Moose. “When the summer hits and the people show up, this town really comes to life.”

For towns like Bar Harbor, Memorial Day Weekend is the unofficial start to summer. But in the face of passenger limitations for cruise ships and trade wars threatening our Canadian tourists, it begs the question: will this summer look differently for Bar Harbor’s tourism?

Despite the rainy conditions Memorial Day weekend, Reynolds remarks that Cool as a Moose got the expected wave of activity following the parade Monday.

Karen Jordan, the sales and marketing director for a company that owns multiple hotels across Mount Desert …