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We are located at the very end of Cutter Street, where the road meets the ocean. Our office is seasonal and does not have a street number, but entering “1 Cutter Street” or “Portland Paddle” in most mapping programs will direct you to us. We’re a short walk or drive from downtown Portland, beside the East End Boat Launch.

DRIVING: If you are driving from anywhere in the city, head north on Congress Street until the road ends at a stone monument and you can see Casco Bay. Take a right onto the Eastern Promenade and drive about 1/4 mile with the hillside park on your left before taking a sharp left onto Cutter Street.

WALKING OR BIKING: You can either follow the driving directions above or walk/bike along the scenic Eastern Promenade Trail until you cross Cutter Street and see our sandwich board sign by the road. It’s roughly 1 mile from the Old Port waterfront to our site. We strongly suggest taking the stroll along Portland Harbor on the trail to our site if you are staying in the Old Port.

For more information on walking, biking, and public transit around the Portland area, check out our Getting Around page!

All parking around our site is free and most (but not all!) spots have no time restrictions during the daytime.

We recommend using the fairly large parking lot off Cutter Street, just uphill from our site. This lot will be on your left as you drive down the hill, and there are usually food trucks parked along one side. The walk to our site is less than 400 feet. There is also some parking at the very bottom of the hill, right beside our site, but those spots are limited to two hours or less, and in most cases should only be used for loading/unloading.

Alternatives if the Cutter Street Parking Lot is Full

• Parking is allowed along the ocean side of Cutter Street
• Parking is allowed along the Eastern Promenade, the road that runs between the park and the houses (our site is 700 feet from this road)
• Parking is allowed along all residential streets in the neighborhood (pay attention to signs for any restrictions and don’t block driveways)
• The northern end of North Street often has spots available when other areas are full, though the walk is a bit further.
• None of our customers have ever reported needing to use a parking garage, but there are several that are within a one-mile walk of our site. The walk from those garages to our site is along a gorgeous oceanside path (the Eastern Promenade Trail)  that leads directly to us.

*Some spots near the East End Beach are reserved for vehicles with boat trailers. You will be ticketed if you use these without a permit.

We generally require reservations for tours, lessons and rentals, although we can sometimes make exceptions for walk-ups if we have availability. Make a reservation on our website by clicking on the “book now” buttons on our pages for tours, lessons and rentals. Many of our offerings book up quickly, but when there is availability you can often make reservations for time slots as soon as 15 minutes away.

The small city beach at the very eastern tip of the Portland peninsula offers an ideal launching spot for a paddle into the beautiful islands of Casco Bay or along the waterfront of Portland harbor. You can stay within the relatively sheltered waters along the shoreline or venture onto the Maine Island Trail for a day trip or multi-day expedition.

The East End Beach is also a popular spot for dog-walking, swimming, picnicking and sunbathing. There are public bathrooms, picnic tables and lots of free public parking. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, dogs are allowed off leash before 9 AM and after 5 PM. The beach is part of the historic Eastern Promenade park that features walking trails with wonderful views of Casco Bay, tennis courts, a playground, a community garden and several historic monuments. Visit the Friends of the Eastern Promenade website to learn more about the park.

The Portland peninsula. The East End Beach is to the far right.

The City of Portland owns all of the dinghy & kayak racks at the East End Beach and rents out space to members of the public so they can store their boats. Portland Paddle is not involved with this and we do not have any rack space we are able to share. If you would like to apply to rent a spot on the city’s racks you should complete this form and return it to the city. The Portland Parks and Recreation website has additional information.

Check out Portland Trails for more information on the Harborwalk, Backcove, and Eastern Promenade walking and biking trails  which connect to East End Beach!