The Boothbay Region Garden Club’s Home and Garden Tour is a not-to-be-missed staple of the summer season. This year’s sold-out tour, aptly named “The Sea Around Us,” welcomed over 500 guests to unique homes and gardens, all with an ocean view.

Six outstanding homes were featured this year and they stretched from the rocky shores of Spruce Point to a gentlewoman’s farm in Boothbay, to Sawyer’s and Barters Islands.

Although this event is sponsored by the Garden Club, the big draw for many is the beautiful homes. Unfortunately, no photos are allowed in the houses so anyone who missed the tour will not get a sneak peak here. But suffice it to say, each home was beautifully appointed, some overflowing with unique art and antiques, and most with jaw-dropping views. In the gardens, the human touches, from breathtaking stone work to statuary and bird houses, added extra points of interest.

Over a hundred volunteers make this busy, multi-destination event work seamlessly. In each home, a garden club volunteer greeted guests at the door, while inside more volunteers were ready to share details about the house, its furnishings and art, and its history.

At every tour location, people explored interiors and exteriors and shared their delight in their findings with friends and new acquaintances. It takes several hours to visit all the homes and many tour-goers stop somewhere along the way for lunch and to re-energize. There were also wonderful spots at each house to sit outside, relax and enjoy the beautiful surroundings.

Garden Club volunteer Leslie Cook said she spent the day going from house to house and had the opportunity to speak with many of the guests.

“To me the most important feature is that as I talked to people coming and going that every one of our houses had people that loved them,” Cook said.

Gorgeous houses in gorgeous settings — what’s not to love?