Cantankerous retiree Norman Thayer and his conciliatory wife, Ethel, spend summers at their New England vacation home on the shores of idyllic Golden Pond. This year their adult daughter, Chelsea, visits with her new fiancee, Bill, and his teenage son, Billy, on their way to Europe. After leaving Billy behind to bond with Norman, Chelsea returns attempting to repair the long-strained relationship with her aging father before it's too late.