COURTESY BY PENNY THOMPSON, CARIBOU CITY MANAGER
Shop in Caribou this holiday season! Looking for gifts, seasonal décor or locally crafted items? You’ll find them in Caribou. New in 2024 — a holiday retail experience in the downtown mall resembling a traditional European Christmas market! It will be open starting November 30, Small Business Saturday, then each Saturday until Christmas. SBS will also mark the highly anticipated opening of Fifty8 and Maine, a unique shopping concept to delight all ages.
Caribou is known for its snowmobile and ATV recreational trails as the epicenter of the northern Maine outdoor recreation economy. You can ride the trails from two recently remodeled hotels, short term rentals, or a bed-and-breakfast run by “the muffin queen!” When it’s time to eat, Caribou offers the area’s best restaurant choices. Prefer a non-motorized adventure? Scenic walking paths and groomed cross-country ski trails await. Caribou has a 9-hole golf course as well as agritourism attractions like a festive corn maze and seasonal u-pick strawberries, blueberries, apples, and pumpkins. Indoor adventures include two types of bowling, a movie theater, and a restaurant with a golf simulator. Seeking cultural enrichment? Watch events at Caribou High School’s Caribou Performing Arts Center or attend a stained-glass workshop at “Glass with Class.”
The Nylander Museum of Natural History is now open Wednesday through Friday from 12 to 3 p.m. Here you can explore the personal artifacts of Olof Nylander, including local and rare specimens of his collection from the fields of geology, archaeology, paleontology, and taxidermy.
Open Saturdays 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., the Caribou Historical Center & Whittier Museum welcomes visitors to step back to the time of the onsite one-room schoolhouse and other bespoke exhibits which highlight early life in Caribou from the Mi’kmaq exhibition to a Military display. This heritage site is supported by the Whittier Trust Company, a legacy of Mericos “Max” Whittier who was born in Caribou and later followed his dreams to the California oil fields.
A place for all-season fun, May features the City-Wide Yard Sale and the Aroostook River Spring Runoff kayak and canoe race. Summer fun is happening at Thursdays on Sweden Street (TOSS) with live music, food vendors, and a beverage garden every other week June through August. In late July, TOSS expands into the 3-day “Caribou Cares about Kids” with family-friendly shows, activities, food trucks, parade, and fireworks. In Autumn, come leaf peeping, watch the annual potato harvest, attend the County’s Oktoberfest sponsored by the Central Aroostook Chamber of Commerce or enjoy shopping at the Caribou Arts & Crafts Fair — the longest running craft fair in northern Maine that’s held the third weekend of October.
Christmas in Caribou is a magical time and kicks off on Small Business Saturday with a visit from Santa, a local author pop-up shop at the Caribou Public Library, and our eclectic array of local businesses offering merchandise to make your holidays extra special.
For more information on planning your trip to Caribou, please visit cariboumaine.org/visit.
