BAR HARBOR – The stock market plunge is being blamed for depressing Maine’s tourism season, as businesses that had anticipated a record year now are hoping to break even.

Tourism officials and business people around the state agreed this week that the number of summer visitors appears to be up from last year, but they also agree that people are spending less money.

Some businesses are even reporting last-minute reservation cancellations from callers who say their vacation money disappeared with their stock holdings.

Officials also report that tourists seem to be using credit cards more this year than in the past, another possible indicator of a weakening economy.

At the same time, some businesses and areas, including greater Bangor, are enjoying brisk business, according to Dann Lewis, executive director of the Maine Office of Tourism.

“There are some contradictory things, and until we get sales tax figures, there’s no real way to know what’s happening,” Lewis said during a recent interview. “The frustrating thing about this job is it’s only anecdotal.”

Crucial numbers for July still aren’t available, but June was tough on Maine’s No. 1 industry, which generates $8.8 billion a year.

The number of visitors to Acadia National Park, for example, fell slightly in June compared to last year. The Portland International Jetport saw a 7.5 percent decline in travelers for the month, and border crossings were significantly fewer than last year, officials said.

Meanwhile, traffic on the Maine Turnpike spiked in June and July, with a half-million more vehicles entering the state than during the same period last year. Those numbers were expected, however, as more people vacation closer to home rather than flying following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.

In Bar Harbor, the state’s top-ranked tourist destination because of the national park, business is up at some places and down at others.

“I don’t think we’re looking at a record season,” Clare Wood, executive director of the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce, said Tuesday. “I think we’re looking at the same as last year.”

Lodging, a major component of the industry, especially in hotel-heavy Bar Harbor, is doing well again this year, Wood said, but not as well as owners had anticipated.

“They’re not saying ‘record year’ anymore, but they’re having a good year,” she said.

Wood said retail and restaurant business is another matter.

“The trends are true,” she said. “People are here, but they’re not spending as much. It’s awfully hard to get your arms around this season. It sure is a roller coaster.”

Wood said she’s not yet ready to give up on the season, because there are still 80 days to go when leaf-peeping season is considered.

“It’s not a done deal yet,” she said.

According to Lewis, Greater Bangor is a hot spot this summer – at least anecdotally for now. Greenville and Rangeley are other destinations that appear to be having strong early-season business.

Donna Fichtner, executive director of the Bangor Convention and Visitors Bureau, said she doesn’t have firm numbers yet, either, but agreed the city is having a strong tourism season.

She said walk-in traffic in downtown Bangor appears stronger than ever and she credits the Maine Discovery Museum for boosting interest in the downtown. But that’s not all: One hotel manager theorized that Bangor is beginning to lure tourists into the city who used to stay in Bar Harbor.

Business at the Best Inn in downtown Bangor is up 20 percent this year over 2001, according to Tom Palmer, who manages a sister inn in Orono.

“I think Bangor is becoming a market that is much more reasonable” in cost, Palmer said Tuesday. “People are driving back from the coast” and staying overnight in Bangor “because the coast is so expensive. They’re looking for more value for their money.”

Bangor also is a gateway to both the Acadia and Moosehead regions, Palmer said, “so Bangor is really living up to what it’s always advertised itself to be.”

Unlike the Portland airport, Bangor International Airport recorded a 22.6 percent increase in passengers in June and a 14.9 percent jump in July.

Airport director Rebecca Hupp credits increased flights and better destinations for much of the increase.

Overall, Lewis, the state tourism chief, said he fears that total visits will decline from last year. He said that while more people who live on the eastern seaboard are finding their way to Maine, he doubts those extra numbers will make up for the loss of tourists from farther away.

Lewis said the state has doubled its summer tourism advertising spending this year, from $300,000 to $600,000.

Most of the funds were spent on advertising in places within easy driving distance to Maine, including New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

“And while I think it’s paid off,” he said, “there’s no way to get people back on planes from L.A., Dallas and London.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.