Boston & Cape Cod

[Wilberforce2]

Mainly Cape Cod!

We are wanting to go next year (August), spend 3 nights in Boston and then a week in Cape Cod with a day trip to Martha's Vineyard or Nantucket.

Would 3 nights be enough to see Boston?

Does anyone have any recommendations of good areas to stay on Cape Cod? I'm getting cross eyed reading about the different areas of the Cape and I'm still not any further forward in choosing accommodation!

There will be 4 of us including two kids who will be 6.5 and nearly 12.

Thanks!

I used to live in Boston and I would say 3 nights is enough. It isn't a massive city.

I'm not overly familiar with Cape Cod, but have been to Falmouth which was nice. I am looking myself for next year, and have seen the Dennisport area recommended for families.

Firstly- I'm jealous! It's a wonderful destination. 3 nights enough for Boston imo if you're prepared to really walk and do lots. It's a great city!
I've stayed in falmouth in C C which was lovely, quiet, family friendly. Car needed. However i preferred Provincetown for the buzz, great shops and cafes etc. Kids loved the whale watching. The Cape is a small place so nothing is far away but the traffic can be crazy. I was less keen on hyannis but actually couldn't say why.

Just read pp, i have also heard good things about Dennis but haven't stayed there.

We did this a few years ago. 3 nights is definitely enough in Boston. We stayed in Provincetown and Falmouth. Loved Provincetown, it was very lively. We cycled round the sand dunes there. Falmouth was ok but we wouldn't stay there again. It was handy for the ferry to Martha's Vineyard which is well worth a visit. We cycled round it and went past a few "Jaws" locations. Our friends stayed near Yarmouth and that was a lovely place, great beach.
We did a whale watching tour which was the highlight for me. Watch out for the sharks, there seems to have been loads this year ( I still have the sharktivity app from when we went).

Enjoy!

Thank you! That's great you both have good things to say about Dennis as we have seen a lovely little cottage for rent there and also one in Eastham but that's much further up! I've read about the traffic so it would be great if we could be in walking distance to quite a bit.will have a look at Yarmouth as well.

Will definitely do 3 nights in Boston then as I think the kids will have had enough by then and will be desperate to get away from a city break!

I am ridiculously excited and can't believe I have to wait a year! Just waiting for flights to come out (BA are our but not Virgin yet) and then we can get it booked.

@jitterbugintomybrain it sounds amazing and whale watching is top of my list. We haven't really thought about Provincetown as my husband was say it was "too far up" but I'm not sure if we are expecting it to be bigger than it is! Will definitely have a look at it now you have said how nice it is.

We were reading about the sharks this evening, it sounds a bit scary and I'm not sure my 10 year old was impressed!!

Maybe base yourself in the middle and do a day trip to Provincetown. That's what I would do if we went again. Yes the sharks, there are signs all over the beaches. Maybe just dip your toes!!

Just checking I can post as just done this.

We stayed in Brewster for a week which was lovely. Gorgeous general store, lovely library with summer book sale and ice cream parlour bang in the middle. Wouldn’t stay anywhere else bar middle if you want to do a lot of what the cape has to offer Brewster near Nickerson park which has lovely ponds to swim in. Brewster beaches are also pretty shark free. Download the shark app to see activity, it’s more than you think.

We did whale watching in Province town which was amazing, Martha’s Vineyard which was exhausting and hideously busy( think a q that could fill 3 buses for 1 bus). Glad I went but would never do it again in the summer, Shining Sea cycle path gorgeous,Plimoth Plantation fab....

3 nights more than enough for Boston.

Chatham is often recommended as central but you pay a massive premium and still need to drive and park near shops. Sharky beaches and very busy. Brewster is v near think a matter of mins, quieter and with lots of shark free swimming near by.

Be aware beach parking is very expensive $20 but each area does a pass. Think Brewster beaches were $60 for a week. National Seashore were very rough and more sharky. We visited a couple for walks in the evenings when free.

Cape Cod houses aren’t smart. Do masses of research to get a town and house that suits you.Google earth location and get guide books, look on websites.

There is so much you’ll only scratch the surface. We’re going back.

We rented a condo in the Ocean Edge resort in Brewster. It had a communal pool, restaurants on site and well located to get around Cape Cod. Definitely visit P town it’s lovely

Cape Cod is beautiful. We had a week there a few years back and it was so lovely. We did a day trip to Martha's Vineyard but if I went again I'd like an overnight stay there. The lobster I had there was amazing!

There is a fantastic living museum type place just outside of Cape Cod which we visited - near Plimouth, Plimouth Plantation I think.

We did this holiday a couple of years ago with NYC at the end of it. 3 days in Boston is great - duck tours, Harvard, Watching the Red Sox play, great walking historical tours with 3 DCs similar age to yours.

On Cape Cod we stayed near Ridgevale Beach, just west of Chatham which was ideal as we could walk to the beach and cycle to lots of places. The sea was cold (and sharky on the East coast this year I heard) but the lakes/ponds are beautiful clear and warmer to swim in. We would just pack a towel and our swimming stuff and cycle off to these idyllic swimming lakes inland. A day trip whale watching in Provencetown was probably the kids best day. We also went out on a boat fishing from Harwich or Dennis port which was fun and spent time at the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History - briliant mud flat walking discovering all sorts of things - also learning about bee-keeping and butterflies. In the evenings we would go and watch the Cape Cod summer basball league - really relaxed and local with matches all over the cape each night.
We did a day trip to Nantucket which we loved and the kids found boring!
I am very envious!

You can do whale watching trips out of Boston. They have very stable catamarans and lots of whales!

We stayed in Falmouth on Cape Cod and then a few nights in Chatham. I loved Falmouth. DC were quite young at the time, around 9 and 7. It was a great holiday but we kept it simple. Hotel pool, beach and doing a bit of local sightseeing. The restaurants filled up from around 5.30 to get the best sea views.

We did a week in NE in July. Stayed in Falmouth for a night, then did a day trip to Martha's vineyard, stayed in Hyannis that evening and drove around Cape Cod the next day, ending up slightly up the coast in Plymouth. Then went up to Portlandm, then back to Portsmouth, Salem and then Boston.

On Cape Cod, we liked Hyannis and Chatham but tbh preferred some of the sea side towns further up towards Portsmouth (our favourite) and Portland. Kennebunkport is nice!

Three days is easily enough to see a lot of Boston.