The New York Times on how to spend 36 hours in Portland

Travelers in Portland, Maine, a city bursting with culture, restaurants, and outdoor adventures, just received a helping hand from The New York Times.

The publication recently focused on Portland for its popular “36 Hours” series, and recommended things to do and places to eat in the coastal city over a 36-hour time period.

“From the fishing piers and wharves lined up like piano keys along Commercial Street to the ocean views and historic Queen Anne-style homes atop Munjoy Hill, Portland offers a lot for visitors to take in,” wrote the Times. “And then there is the food. Maine’s largest city has long been nationally known as a top food destination, and just this year two Portland bakers won James Beard Awards.”

When hunger strikes, travelers should check out places like Hot Suppa! or Ugly Duckling for breakfast, wrote the Times. Other spots worth dining at are Terlingua for Texas-style barbecue; Izakaya Minato for sake and shared plates; Công Tử Bột for Vietnamese food; and Luke’s Lobster for fresh lobster on Portland Pier. For drinks, head over to Oxbow, one of many local breweries, or Anoche, a Basque-inspired cider house and bistro.

For culture, visitors can wander the Portland Museum of Art and check out “Jeremy Frey: Woven” through Sept. 15, wrote the publication. Meanwhile, music lovers will love the sounds at Blue Portland Maine, One Longfellow Square, or Thompson’s Point, an outdoor stage and “Portland’s go-to venue for summer concerts by nationally touring artists.”

Outdoor activities abound in Portland, and visitors can rent bikes at places like Brad & Wyatt’s Island Bike Rental, go on kayak tours with Portland Paddle, and more. It’s also worth grabbing a ferry to Peaks Island with Casco Bay Lines, noted the Times.

“Leave time for the 15-minute drive out to Fort Williams Park, a 90-acre park owned by the nearby town of Cape Elizabeth that has a cliff walk, a children’s garden and a panoramic view of Casco Bay,” wrote The New York Times. “It’s also home to Portland Head Light, a historic and much-photographed lighthouse.”

Read the full New York Times article for more recommendations.

Portland just made CNN’s inaugural list of best places to visit in America.