Casco Bay Lines runs frequent year-round ferry service between Portland and Peaks Island, making it one of the most reliable commuter routes in the islands. Crossings take about 15-20 minutes, and the schedule typically offers a dozen or more trips daily, with reduced frequency in the off-season. The ferries carry both passengers and vehicles (on select runs), serving a mix of year-round residents, seasonal homeowners, and visitors heading out for a day trip.

More details at cascobaylines.com

The Inn on Peaks Island is located at 33 Island Ave, right where the ferry drops you off, making it one of the most visible and convenient lodging options on the island. The property offers eight spacious rooms with private balconies and views of Casco Bay and the Portland skyline. Beyond lodging, the Inn has a restaurant open to the public serving classic Maine dishes and is a popular venue for island weddings and events, with a banquet room and an outdoor party tent overlooking the bay.

The Trefethen-Evergreen Improvement Association, known as TEIA, is a longtime social anchor on Peaks Island. It has been part of the Peaks Island community for more than 100 years, centered around a 1914-15 wood frame clubhouse originally built as the Dayburn Casino, one of the last historic civic and recreation buildings remaining on the island. Today TEIA offers tennis, pickleball, youth camps, sailing, boating, events, socials, and educational and cultural programs, with seasonal memberships running May through October. The clubhouse and grounds, which include tennis courts, a dock system, and a pickleball court, also can be rented for weddings during certain off-season weekends.

Island Lobster Company is a true trap-to-table waterfront restaurant at 20 Island Ave, right by the ferry landing on Peaks Island. It's owned and run by a commercial lobstering family. Captain Thom Werner hauls in the daily catch and unloads it at the dock directly in front of the restaurant, while his wife Katie runs the front of house. The spot is known for its fantastic waterfront location, with outdoor seating offering expansive bay views and easy people-watching as ferries come and go, plus a broad menu with seafood rolls, burgers for non-lobster fans, and well-regarded onion rings. They also offer a traditional New England-style lobster bake, keeping things casual and fun rather than white-tablecloth.

The Peaks Island Land Preserve (PILP) is a nonprofit land trust dedicated to conserving open space on the island, and today it protects more than 20% of Peaks Island's open land. It was founded in 1994 to preserve Battery Steele, a historic WWII-era military fortification on the island, and grew from there through purchases and donations, eventually managing over 140 acres across the island's various conservation parcels. PILP's network of trails offers opportunities for recreation, education, and an appreciation of the island's natural biodiversity, and the organization relies heavily on volunteers for monitoring its lands and revitalizing habitats by removing invasive species and planting natives.

The Institute maintains a community profile of Peaks Island, noting it's a 762-acre neighborhood of Portland with a year-round community of over 900 people that swells to a few thousand in summer. Its work on the island includes placing fellows to help with projects like land-management strategies for the Peaks Island Land Preserve, along with Community Impact Fund grants supporting local efforts like the Peaks Environmental Action Team.