The Bangor Daily News is launching a travel and tourism “mini” Web site to mirror its annual Experience Maine advertising supplement, hoping to provide residents and tourists alike with an online tool for navigating the state.

Tim Archambault, online services manager for the NEWS, said the site is functional now, but he will be making small modifications in the next week or so. The site can be accessed through a link on the Bangor Daily News home page, www.bangornews.com.

Archambault said about 400 advertisers who purchased space in the Experience Maine supplement are indexed on the site, and he expects more in the coming months. Ads cost $5 per inch and will run on the site for one year, he said.

Most are from the Bangor and Bar Harbor areas, but Archambault said the site will stretch from Old Orchard Beach to as far north as Fort Kent.

Businesses ranging from restaurants to hotels to golf courses and everything in between can be found on the site, which is categorized by region, date and type of service provided. Archambault said online users can search broadly or can be more specific, whatever suits their needs.

The new travel and tourism site also will link users directly to specific businesses Web sites.

“There is a strong Internet component of the travel and tourism industry and we’ve had nothing like this before,” Archambault said.