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If you’re searching for a seaside trip you’ll always remember, the cities of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, are among the most good coastal villages you’ll discover within the United States. And Cape regulars know this. Once you’ve visited, this place tends to name you again time and again.
But which Cape Cod cities are good locations to say? That’s the laborious half, as a result of it’s totally different for each traveler!
First off, the Cape is far larger than most individuals suppose. It takes 90 minutes to drive alongside Massachusetts’s hook, from Falmouth to Provincetown — and that’s earlier than you consider summer season visitors.
For this motive, most vacationers have a tendency to stay to their part of the Cape, taking an occasional day journey in the event that they need to go to someplace additional afield, so it’s all of the extra essential to discover a city you vibe with.
Let’s check out the map to get your bearings:
The space closest to the mainland is the Upper Cape (Bourne, Sandwich, Falmouth, Mashpee) adopted by the Mid-Cape (Hyannis, Barnstable, Yarmouth, Dennis), the Lower Cape (Brewster, Harwich, Chatham) and the Outer Cape (Orleans, Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro, Provincetown).
But past the geography, the Cape is a various place. You’ve bought busy cities, quiet cities, seaside cities, and generally two very totally different cities are subsequent door to one another. The Cape’s most rollicking celebration metropolis, Provincetown, is subsequent to one of many quietest cities, Truro.
Start by asking your self, “What kind of trip do I want to have?” Do you need your Cape Cod journey to be quiet and filled with solitude? Do you need a large seaside and plenty of actions to your children? Do you get antsy after an hour on the seaside and need numerous attention-grabbing issues to do? Are good eating places and nightlife a precedence for you?
And then check out the part that seems like a superb match.
I’ve divided the record of Cape Cod cities into 4 sections:
- Fun Cape Cod Towns with Lots to Do (Chatham, Provincetown, Hyannis, Chatham)
- Charming, Pretty Cape Cod Towns (Sandwich, Wellfleet, Brewster, Harwich, Yarmouth, Barnstable)
- Cape Cod Towns which can be All About the Beach (Dennis, Mashpee, Bourne)
- Quiet Cape Cod Towns for Getting Away From It All (Truro, Eastham, Orleans)
Best Towns in Cape Cod FAQ
Virtually the entire Cape is family-friendly, however I’d particularly suggest Dennis (West Dennis/Dennisport), Falmouth, Hyannis, or the villages of Bourne for nice seashores and plenty of kid-approved actions.
If you don’t have a automotive, I’d suggest Provincetown as your best option, adopted by Hyannis or Falmouth.
Every city on Cape Cod has a special character, and it’s essential to search out out which one is finest for you. Let’s check out the most effective cities of Cape Cod!
Fun Cape Cod Towns with Lots to Do
I singled out these cities as a result of they’ve numerous actions, eating choices, purchasing, and nightlife. If these are priorities to your journey — or when you have restricted entry to a automotive and need walkability — any of those 4 cities of Cape Cod would make an important selection for you.
Chatham
Chatham is quintessential Cape Cod, and when you have solely a brief period of time to discover the Cape, you received’t remorse spending your time right here. Founded greater than 300 years in the past, this beautiful seaside city brimming with historical past is upscale allure at its finest!
Located on the southeast elbow of the Lower Cape, you’ll get superb water views of each Nantucket Sound and the Atlantic Ocean. As among the best and most central Cape Cod cities, Chatham might make an important house base for exploring all the outer Cape, as there are a number of nice lodges and resorts on this space.
Biking is a improbable exercise and an effective way to see Chatham. Leisurely trip the Old Colony Rail Trail, or pedal down the Scenic Bike Route to Oyster Pond Beach. Seal recognizing is one other favourite pastime at Chatham Pier. When the fisherman return with their each day catch, it’s enjoyable to look at the seals beg for his or her lunch!
Chatham Lighthouse is an iconic fixture alongside the water’s edge and is open to the general public each Wednesday afternoon in July and August, and on choose days all year long. In a city that’s under no circumstances cheap, their free excursions are nice for youths and adults alike.
Because of its location, Chatham has many seashores to select from, however for a calmer seaside, the southern shore is the place to go.
Main Street Chatham is a vacation spot unto itself. You don’t want a automotive on this city; merely spend the day strolling round to discover the retailers, eating places, and parks. By strolling Chatham’s loop it’s also possible to discover Lighthouse Beach and Atwood House Museum, ending up at Oyster Pond.
Where to Stay in Chatham: The Captain’s House Inn is a superb upscale selection with fireplaces and chic beds. See extra locations to remain in Chatham right here.
Provincetown
Provincetown is arguably among the best cities in Cape Cod, positioned within the far northeastern a part of the Cape. With its numerous inhabitants, vibrant LBGTQ+ scene, and an countless array of issues to do for all ages, it’s no surprise P-town will get a lot love.
If whale watching is in your must-do record, you “must-come” to Provincetown. The official whale-watching season begins April 1st and customarily runs by means of October. Going on a Dolphin Fleet whale watch is a convention for a lot of. You’ll get the chance to see fins, humpbacks, and seals, with gorgeous views of Lands’ End as a backdrop.
Commercial Street is in some ways the respiratory coronary heart and soul of Provincetown. It’s three miles lengthy, so you could need to tempo your self. Start within the east finish, which is house to the Provincetown Museum of Art, with a collection of artwork galleries following shut behind.
It simply will get higher from there as you head west, with tons of retailers, eating places, and candy treats alongside the way in which. Be certain to strive the Portuguese dishes that fill the native eating places. Even higher, you may go away your automotive behind, as Commercial Street is by and enormous a pedestrian avenue. After darkish, this space comes alive with dwell music and an lively bar scene.
The wharf is all the time abuzz with exercise with ferries to Boston and fishing charters; it’s the most effective place for sundown cruises. As you wander the wharf, browse outside retailers for distinctive items, with distributors promoting their locally-made arts and crafts.
With 45 miles of seashores in P-town, Racepoint is certainly one of Cape Cod’s finest seashores. Managed by the National Park Service (NPS), the seaside doesn’t sit immediately on the Atlantic Ocean so doesn’t expertise the total power of the ocean waves. Herring Cove Beach, one of many bigger seashores within the space, is nice for catching that killer sundown.
Where to Stay in Provincetown: If you need to be near the motion, you’ll love Pilgrim House, trendy, cozy, and central. See extra locations to remain in Provincetown right here.
Read More: 22 Fabulous Things to Do in Provincetown, MA
Hyannis
Hyannis is positioned within the mid-Cape close to Lewis Bay alongside the southern aspect. While Hyannis is technically a village within the city of Barnstable, I’m together with it on the record as a result of it appears like a standalone metropolis. It is the Cape’s transportation hub with a tiny airport, together with a bus, prepare, and ferry terminal. If you need to take a day journey to Nantucket, it’s simple to do from Hyannis – simply hop on the ferry.
In Hyannis, you’ll discover a hospital, clinics, purchasing malls, a number of lodge chains, superb eating places, and boutique retailers galore. Main Street is brimming with eating places overlooking the Harbor. During the summer season months this part of city comes alive with music, farmers’ markets, avenue performers, seasonal festivals, and extra.
If you want Mexican meals, Añejo Mexico Bistro is a must-stop, with outside seating beneath a beautiful gigantic tree.
One of the most important attracts of Hyannis is its seashores! Be certain to take a look at Kalmus Beach with its huge stretches of sand dunes and calm waters, good for small children to splash round in. You’ll additionally discover numerous windsurfers and kite flying lovers right here, because of the prevailing breezes.
Veterans Beach is among the prettier seashores in Hyannis with a small park, shade-filled timber, and plush garden areas. It can also be full of seashells, so carry your sand buckets and go shell searching! Lifeguards, restrooms with showers, and a snack bar make this a improbable seaside throughout.
Hyannis offers many nods to the Kennedy household and Veterans Beach has a JFK monument, together with a Korean War monument. In truth, Hyannis has numerous Kennedy-related sights, together with the John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum the place you may study all about his life in Hyannisport. The Cape Cod Maritime Museum can also be right here.
Where to Stay in Hyannis: The SeaCoast Inn is a superb mid-range choice, near each the city and the seaside. See extra locations to remain in Hyannis right here.
Falmouth
Located alongside Route 28 on the nook of Cape Cod’s southwestern shores, the city of Falmouth has eight villages, all with their very own distinctive character. It’s bought a really walkable Main Street, and for many who would like to go to within the low season, an important number of retailers, eating places, and lodging keep open year-round.
If you’re visiting Martha’s Vineyard, Woods Hole in Falmouth is your jumping-off level, because the ferry to the island is right here.
A well-liked spot is the historic Falmouth Village with its retailers, museums, and nice eating places that can preserve you busy all day. Relax from exploring with a leisurely lunch, then have a night cocktail at a stylish pub or bistro.
The finest method to discover the pure fantastic thing about Falmouth is on two wheels! Along the Shining Sea Bikeway, trip alongside the ten.7-mile paved path that traverses 4 of the villages, from North Falmouth to Woods Hole. You’ll move by salt marshes, farms, and cranberry bogs with loads of spots to take a break and have a picnic lunch.
Be certain to go to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), then catch seal-feeding time on the nation’s oldest aquarium. With a number of seashores to select from, Silver Beach has spectacular sunsets, whereas Chapoquoit Beach is quieter and extra secluded.
The Nobska Point Lighthouse is right here, too, and has stood overlooking Vineyard Sound for greater than 100 years. Here you may take a tour, speak with volunteer lighthouse keepers about its colourful historical past, and snap some photographs.
Where to Stay in Falmouth: There’s a improbable glamping choice at Autocamp Cape Cod, the place you may keep in an Airstream trailer or different kinds of Instagrammable digs! See extra locations to remain in Falmouth right here.
Charming Small Towns in Cape Cod
Are you coming to the Cape to get pleasure from picture-perfect cottages, hydrangea gardens, tiny ice cream retailers and pleasant museums? Take a have a look at these charming small cities. Any of those makes an particularly good choice in the event you’re coming from outdoors New England and excited to expertise this area culturally for the primary time.
Sandwich
Along Old Kings Highway, in any other case often called Route 6A on the northern shoreline of the Cape west of Barnstable is Sandwich. It’d be robust to beat the allure of this village, the place you’ll see nary a lick of commercialism. Here small B&B’s substitute sterile chain lodges, exuberating genuine Cape Code quaintness.
In truth, Sandwich is the Cape’s oldest city, so that you could be certain it’s brimming with historical past. Stately Victorian properties have been lovingly preserved by means of the centuries. The city lies on the jap a part of the Cape Cod Canal alongside Cape Cod Bay and is a simple drive from Boston.
While the village is tiny, there’s a lot to do. Lose your self in a day visiting Heritage Museum & Gardens. A set of three totally different museums, it has over 100 acres of gorgeous gardens, a treetop journey park, and an indoor carousel for the youngsters.
The Sandwich Glass Museum homes beautiful glassware and showcases Sandwich’s illustrious place in historical past as a frontrunner on the planet’s glass manufacturing. Yes, you may even watch a glass blowing demonstration.
The Boardwalk in Sandwich is a tremendous ending to the day or very first thing within the morning because the solar rises over the Cape. Here you may get a superb style of Cape Cod Bay as you cross marshlands with considerable wildlife, ending with a big expanse of seaside. For much more nature, the Shawne-Crowell State Forest boasts greater than 15 miles of mountaineering and horseback driving trails.
Where to Stay in Sandwich: The Dan’l Webster Inn and Spa is as elegant and delightful because the city itself and positively the place to remain for a particular getaway. See extra locations to remain in Sandwich right here.
Wellfleet
Driving up the jap arm of the Outer Cape, nature lovers will recognize the ambiance of Wellfleet, a real gem alongside the New England shoreline. Here, bike paths and nation roads finish with inviting kettle ponds and dramatic seaside surroundings. Here, discovering solitude is straightforward.
Large cliffs dominate the seashores right here alongside the Atlantic and the waters are surprisingly calm. The sunsets are spectacular and whale sightings usually are not uncommon. Marconi Beach is booming, whereas Whitecrest Beach provides a quieter respite.
For those that love purchasing, eating, and gallery-hopping, Wellfleet is your city. Just keep in mind to go to the harbor for among the best locations for just-caught seafood within the space. Oysters, anybody?
A haven for artists, foodies, and nature lovers alike, issues right here run at a slower tempo, and it’s considerably distant. Walk round most any a part of city and also you’ll doubtless hear bells ringing at odd hours of the day. That’s as a result of the Town Clock, located above the First Congregational Church, is the one one on the planet that also chimes on “ship’s time.”
Here on the Outer Cape, the Beachcomber is THE spot for an important meal, a cocktail, and an evening of leisure, with a killer view to match. Not up for nightlife? How about an old school drive-in movie show? One of the few left within the U.S., the Wellfleet Drive-In is nostalgia at its easiest, exhibiting first-run double options on a 100-foot display screen.
If you have been questioning the place the character is available in, the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary is it. Over 900 acres characteristic nature trails the place you may spot uncommon birds and different wildlife. Sea excursions are supplied all through the season.
Where to Stay in Wellfleet: Check out the Even’tide Resort Motel & Cottages, the place you might have comfortable well-decorated rooms and the property has an indoor pool for wet days. See extra locations to remain in Wellfleet right here.
Brewster
Another nice city with that outdated Cape Cod ambiance, Brewster lies alongside Old King’s Highway 6A close to the “crook of the elbow” of the Lower Cape. Bordering the saltwater shoreline of Cape Cod Bay, it’s also often called “Sea Captains Town.” You’ll discover shaded nation lanes, fairly residential neighborhoods, and quiet seashores. Think historic allure with a contemporary aptitude.
This could also be a quiet city, however that’s not for an absence of issues to do! Active individuals will get pleasure from biking, golf, mini-golf, fishing, tennis, horseback driving, kayaking, and shellfishing. Those with extra subdued wishes will discover historic websites, dwell theater, museums, vintage purchasing, galleries, and the Brewster Store, in all probability the most effective normal retailer you’ll ever end up in.
The Cape Cod Museum of Natural History is an enormous draw, with numerous hands-on displays celebrating nature. Whether or not you might have children, the “Mudflat Mania” seaside exploration program is to not be missed.
Nickerson State Park is a beautiful spectacle of two,000 acres filled with woodlands, kettle ponds, mountaineering and biking trails, serene tenting spots — all alongside the water. Shoppers will get pleasure from Main Street with its bookstore, vintage store, and HandCraft House. The Lemon Tree Village Shops have galleries and artisan items.
Brewster additionally has among the most extremely rated B&Bs on the Cape, making for a really romantic house base to discover all the space. But whether or not you’re with a buddy or by yourself, remember to seize a motorbike and discover the 25-mile Cape Cod Rail Trail, which runs by means of Brewster and a number of other different cities.
Where to Stay in Brewster: One of the most effective properties on the town is the Old Manse Inn, a very elegant mattress and breakfast the place they spoil you splendidly. See extra locations to remain in Brewster right here.
Harwich
Located on the southeastern shoreline of Cape Cod, Harwich is an enthralling city; upscale but unpretentious, and made up of seven distinctive villages. It can also be summer season competition central right here on the Cape. A few notables are the Brooks Park Arts & Crafts Festival in August and Cranberry Arts & Music Festival in September.
Here the seashores are divine, similar to Red River Beach and Pleasant Road Beach. With three harbors and freshwater ponds, you may guess that boating and freshwater fishing are fairly large right here.
With many cranberry bogs, taking a tour is a should! The mighty cranberry has an illustrious historical past with roots firmly planted proper right here in Harwich. Truckloads of cranberries are harvested each autumn, and the Cape Farm & Cranberry Company provides guided excursions from spring by means of fall.
June and July is lavender season, and the Cape Cod Lavender Farm is a very nice place to wander the footpaths of a lavender subject and browse great lavender-centric merchandise. The Cape Cod Rail Trail additionally runs by means of Harwich from Dennis to Wellfleet for some exploration on two wheels.
Wine lovers will probably be happy to know that First Crush Winery has tastings to supply or to simply hand around in their tasting room and have a full glass (or three). Displays of winemaking instruments all through the many years present an attention-grabbing backdrop to your expertise.
Harwich’s location means it’s additionally an important house base for day journeys to different components of the Cape. Whatever your lodging fashion, there are upscale resorts in addition to extra down-to-earth cozy B&Bs and trip leases.
Where to Stay in Harwich: I like the Winstead Inn, the place the rooms are adorned in a contemporary Victorian fashion (wallpaper aplenty!), the grounds have lovely gardens, and there’s a free shuttle to the seaside. See extra locations to remain in Harwich right here.
Yarmouth
There are positively two sides to the central Cape Cod city of Yarmouth — each equally interesting for the Cape Cod vacationer. Along Cape Cod Bay lies the village of Yarmouth Port, with its cute-as-a-button allure and peaceable setting. Go a bit south and issues get extra lively.
Bass Hole Boardwalk is a superb place to get pleasure from a little bit of scenic nature because it stretches out over the salt marshes of Cape Cod Bay for an incredible sundown. As you’re happening Route 6A by means of city, flip at Center Street to Gray’s Beach and also you’re there.
Try your hand at crabbing at Crab Creek, often called among the best spots for blue crabbing on The Cape. Equipment leases can be found close by so you may catch a bucket filled with dinner. At Bass River Kayaks you may hire a paddleboard or kayak if you wish to get out on the water on the Bass River.
If you like mini golf, Pirates Cove has a spectacular 18-hole mini course filled with enjoyable additions similar to waterfalls, a full-size pirate schooner, and extra to make it entertaining and difficult. There’s additionally Skull Island Adventure Golf and Sports World, in addition to the Whydah Pirate Museum.
Beachgoers ought to positively hit up Seagull Beach, Smuggler’s Beach, and Gray’s Beach. For these already partaking the Cape Cod Rail Trail, it passes proper by means of Yarmouth connecting it to close by cities.
Where to Stay in Yarmouth: I like the Village Inn in Yarmouth Port, set in an outdated captain’s home with numerous area for having fun with the grounds. See extra locations to remain in Yarmouth right here.
Barnstable
The metropolis of Barnstable is to not be confused with the county of Barnstable, which encompasses the entire of Cape Cod. As the Cape’s largest city, Hyannis, West Barnstable, Centerville, Osterville, Cotuit, and Marstons Mills villages are all inside its metropolis limits.
Since we’ve already mentioned the superior issues to do in Hyannis, we’ll speak in regards to the large attracts within the different villages in Barnstable. Most notable is Craigville Beach, its delicate white sand and crystal blue waters. Then whenever you want a candy deal with, head to Four Seas Ice Cream and a go to to 1856 Country Store.
The quiet village of Cotuit is bordered on three sides by water, so it ought to come as no shock that kayaking, fishing, and boating are large right here. Art lovers might recognize the Cahoon Museum of American Art. Nearby, the village of Marstons Mills is the one landlocked village in Barnstable. Here you may go to the Cape Cod Airfield.
In Osterville, stroll the primary a part of the village with its nice focus of boutique retailers, eating places, artwork galleries, and beautiful seashores. In West Barnstable, remember to go to Sandy Neck Beach with its giant swath of dunes and wetlands.
In Barnstable Village, simply off Main Street, you’ll discover a seaside, a fish market, a restaurant, and most notably the Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises.
But in the event you actually need to savor one of many many Cape flavors, have a Goat Experience at Triple H Farm. It is the quintessential Cape Cod farm expertise, with chickens, and most of all…goats! Guests can feed, milk, brush, and hang around with the goats as your host talks in regards to the farm and each day life right here.
You’ll stroll beneath mature cedar, oak, and maple timber, peppered with vibrant rhododendrons and hydrangeas. There can also be an indication of how goat milk cleaning soap is made and also you’ll get to take a pattern house.
Where to Stay in Barnstable: If you need to carry your pet down the Cape, you may’t do higher than Lion and Lamb, a basic Cape Cod inn that welcomes animals and but appears like a small luxurious lodge. See extra locations to remain in Barnstable right here.
Cape Cod Towns That are All About the Beach
If you’re trying to spend your days on the seaside, these cities have among the finest seashores on the Cape. Each of those cities is enormously family-friendly, making them an important choice in the event you’re visiting Cape Cod together with your children.
Dennis
A quaint city that’s filled with historical past, Dennis lies alongside Old Kings Highway 6A alongside the Cape’s mid-northern shores. The city had the essential distinction of being an “All-American Town” a couple of years again.
Much like Yarmouth, Dennis has two distinct faces – West Dennis and Dennisport appears like a busy resort, whereas Dennis Village and East Dennis are extra relaxed and rural. Both provide fabulous lodging and quite a lot of actions.
If seashores are your factor, Dennis is the place to go, with shoreline on each Nantucket Sound and Cape Cod Bay. On the Cape Cod Bay aspect of issues, Mayflower Beach provides calm waters and expansive shore, tailored for stress-free within the sand all day. Similarly, Corporation Beach has great tidepools and placid waters.
Alternatively, West Dennis Beach lies on Nantucket Sound and is surrounded by a number of different seashores. With loads of trip leases on this space, West Dennis makes for an important house base for exploring a lot of all the Cape.
Get your nostalgia repair and step again in time a couple of years circa the Nineteen Thirties and catch a basic cinema present at Cape Cinema. The beautiful decor of the theater options plush seating and fancy velvet drapes protecting the display screen till showtime. The Cape Playhouse, the place Humphrey Bogart as soon as carried out, has been operating since 1927.
Great views are available at Scargo Tower, the very best level within the Cape. Don’t overlook your digital camera! You’ll need to seize the 360-degree views.
Where to Stay in Dennis: Sesuit Harbor House in East Dennis is a stunning inn set again from the insanity, only a 15-minute stroll from the seaside. See extra locations to remain in Dennis right here.
Mashpee
With wealthy Indigenous heritage, the Upper Cape city of Mashpee is a really totally different city than when the Wampanoag tribe first inhabited Cape Cod. Fortunately, many Wampanoag people nonetheless dwell shut by Mashpee, which makes the expertise of visiting this city all of the richer.
Consisting of a number of villages, Mashpee is a superb place to probe for a day. The total Mashpee Common is a purchasing mecca and is well walkable, the place upscale chain shops are met with distinctive locally-owned boutique retailers.
Great eating places and locations to get a candy deal with are simply ready to be sampled. For among the best lobster rolls on the Cape, head to the Raw Bar at Popponesset. Naukabout Brewery is my choose for grabbing an important craft beer and a few epic pub meals. Naukabout interprets to “doing what you love to do when you’re finished doing what you have to do.”
Be certain to cease by the Wampanoag Tribal Museum for a style of what life was like earlier than the English settlers got here. This tribe has lived within the Cape for hundreds of years, from the Stone Age to the current day, and this museum has been thoughtfully curated with an exquisite vary of displays.
In Mashpee, many scenic seashores await, a few of that are open solely to residents. Be certain to take a look at South Cape Town Beach and the South Cape Beach State Park.
Where to Stay in Mashpee: One good spot is The Club at Seabury, the place they’ve one- and two-bedroom condos out there in a beachfront advanced. See extra locations to remain in Mashpee right here.
Bourne
Bourne is the primary city you’ll hit after touring throughout the Sagamore Bridge, spanning either side of the Cape Cod Canal. What’s attention-grabbing about Bourne is that it has two faces: the northern half is busier and consists of the villages of Bournedale and Buzzards Bay. This space is among the Cape’s finest stored secrets and techniques as you don’t must cope with the visitors on the bridge.
The southern half is rural and quiet — the proper place for a peaceful day journey — and encompasses the villages of Monument Beach, Gray Gables, Pocasset, and Cataumet. Bourne sees shoreline not solely alongside Cape Cod Bay however alongside the canal which separates the Cape from the mainland. This canal could be considered the centerpiece of city and is a hub of exercise.
Biking, strolling, and in-line skating are common pastimes on the canal. For an distinctive path, don’t miss the Bourne Sisters Woodland, Red Brook Pond Conservation Area, and Little Bay & Monks Park.
Along this 7-mile stretch, entry spots to the water and epic viewing areas could be had, so carry your digital camera. Along all the width of the canal spans the Railroad Bridge — the second longest vertical elevate bridge on the planet!
Be certain to hit the National Marine Life Center, which consists of an schooling middle in addition to an animal hospital. And the Aptucxet Trading Post is a enjoyable cease and is the positioning of the first-known buying and selling spot between the indigenous Wampanoags and newly arrived Dutch settlers again within the 1600s.
Where to Stay in Bourne: It could also be a series lodge, however the Hampton Inn at Cape Cod Canal in Buzzards Bay comes extremely beneficial by households. See extra locations to remain in Bourne right here.
Quiet Cape Cod Towns for Getting Away from It All
Sometimes you simply have to get away from all of it. Sitting on a chair, studying a e-book, basking within the quietude and unplugging out of your busy life! If that’s what you’re searching for in a Cape Cod trip, these are the most effective cities for you.
Truro
For a quiet respite near the bustle of Provincetown, head simply south to Truro. Nature lovers will swoon over the sand dunes blanketing the coastlines on each the Cape Cod Bay and Atlantic sides. It is an space that’s certain to impress with among the many most gorgeous surroundings in all the Cape communities.
Pay a go to to Highland Light, the Cape’s oldest and tallest lighthouse (circa 1797), standing 66 toes excessive. From April by means of October, guests can climb this lighthouse to the highest for superb views. Golfers will recognize the Cape’s oldest (and most scenic) golf programs proper subsequent door, referred to as Highland Links.
For a little bit of historic context, the primary English settlers initially got here to what’s Provincetown as we speak, then moved south to Truro. Consequently, there’s a ton of historical past to be discovered alongside each shores and is among the many options that make this space quintessential Cape Cod.
In truth, over half of Truro’s land space is a part of the Cape Cod National Seashore, with mile after mile of unspoiled sandy seashores.
Wine lovers will recognize Truro Vineyards for a day of wine tasting, positioned simply subsequent to the National Seashore. Enjoy wine tasting on their spacious pavilion and take a free guided tour of the winery and state-of-the-art barrel room. Learn in regards to the maritime artwork of grape rising, producing the wine’s intense flavors.
The lovely seashores of Truro provide a number of slices of salty-air heaven. Sandy paths line the dunes of Ryder and Corn Hill Beach on the bay aspect, with calm waters and expansive views. On the ocean aspect, countless miles of pure seashores are protected by the National Seashore. Ballston Beach, Head of the Meadow Beach, and Look Nook Beach are all favorites.
Where to Stay in Truro: One hidden gem is Sandbars Inn in North Truro, with lovely studios with kitchen services and an important location proper on the seaside. See extra locations to remain in Truro right here.
Eastham
If quiet is what you search, Eastham is the place for you, with light waters as well. Located on Cape Cod’s outer arm, right here you will discover Three Sisters of Nauset Lighthouse, a historic construction simply across the nook from Nauset Light. It can also be house to one of many final standing windmills on Cape Cod, simply off of Route 6.
The historic significance right here is nice, as it’s the place the Mayflower Pilgrims first met Native Americans. Eastham has a number of particular nooks and crannies to discover, similar to Hemmingway Landing and Fort Hill, with spectacular views.
The Cape Cod Rail Trail runs by means of Eastham and about one third of the city is a part of the Cape Cod National Seashore.
Hit up the Red Barn for nice pizza and some of the reasonably priced mini golf spots on the Cape. Much of Eastham has not modified a lot in any respect because the 60s, the place many of us will nonetheless smile and say good day as you move them on the road.
A seaside city to the core, Eastham has shorelines on each the bay and ocean aspect. One of the most well-liked seashores within the U.S. is right here, the Atlantic’s Coast Guard Beach. First Encounter Beach is another choice — a bay aspect seaside that provides a quiet respite from the previous, with calm water and expansive views.
Where to Stay in Eastham: Rugosa Guest House is a gem in Eastham, with beautiful rooms and an important location handy for exploring the realm. See extra locations to remain in Eastham right here.
Orleans
Orleans is among the most lovely cities of Cape Cod, set within the criminal of the arm of Cape Cod. Beach lovers ought to to go to Orleans’ Nauset Beach – constantly acknowledged as one of many Cape’s finest. During the summer season months, that is the place to flee the bustle of vacationers, and the low season is much more peaceable!
Orleans has a pleasant mixture of pleasant, small-town tradition and nature actions. Bike trails, lovely seashores, and parks are balanced properly with t-shirt retailers, ice cream stands, museums, mini golf, and playgrounds for the youngsters. S
Culture abounds right here and Orleans has been designated a Cultural District within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Stroll the primary avenue and also you’ll discover a veritable buffet of artwork galleries such because the Artisan Cottages, Tree’s Place, and Addison Art Gallery, to call however a couple of. The Orleans Historical Society provides displays, strolling excursions, and lectures.
Fishing is an enormous exercise right here, and in the event you fancy a fishing constitution, there’s loads of alternatives to moist a line and catch your dinner at Rock Harbor. In truth, each Rock Harbor and Skaket Beach are the proper spots to catch the sundown.
The meals scene is fairly eclectic as properly, with funky spots just like the Jailhouse Tavern. True to its title, this was the positioning of a former jail! The Hog Island Beer Co and The Barley Neck are two different joints to take a look at.
With tons of of trip leases, fairly a couple of B&Bs, inns, lodges, and motels, Orleans makes for an important base for exploring the Cape.
Where to Stay in Orleans: If you need to be strolling distance to locations to eat, the Cove Motel is well-situated with well-designed rooms. See extra locations to remain in Orleans right here.
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Have you been to Cape Cod? What are your favourite cities? Share away!