Cape Cod curls about seventy miles out into the Atlantic like a flexed arm, and almost every bend of it has a different personality.
AT A GLANCE
Best time
June and September for warm days, open businesses and lighter traffic; July and August for peak beach season.
How long
Four to seven days to explore from the canal to Provincetown at a relaxed pace.
Getting there
Drive from Boston or Providence over the Sagamore or Bourne Bridge, or take a seasonal ferry to Provincetown.
Why visit Cape Cod
The Cape is shaped by sand and sea. Glaciers left the peninsula behind at the end of the last ice age, and wind and waves have been reshaping it ever since, building dunes, cutting cliffs and carrying sandbars up and down the coast.
History runs deep here too. The Wampanoag people have lived on these shores for thousands of years, and the Mayflower Pilgrims first came ashore at what is now Provincetown in 1620 before continuing to Plymouth.
Today you can spend a single day cycling through pine woods, watching seals off a barrier beach, climbing a lighthouse bluff, and ending with fried clams at a picnic table as the sun sets over Cape Cod Bay.
The National Seashore and the Outer Cape
Salt Pond Visitor Center and Coast Guard Beach
Start your Seashore visit at the Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham, where exhibits and a short film explain how the Cape was formed, and rangers can tell you about tides, trail conditions and programs. Short walking trails lead from the center along Salt Pond and Nauset Marsh.
Nauset Light and the Three Sisters
Just north of Coast Guard Beach, the red-topped Nauset Light stands among the pines above Nauset Light Beach. Nearby, a short path leads to the Three Sisters, a trio of small wooden lighthouses that once stood together on the bluff and have been restored in a quiet clearing.
Marconi Station site and Wellfleet
In South Wellfleet, an overlook marks the spot where Guglielmo Marconi's station sent the first two-way wireless messages between the United States and Britain in 1903.
Great Island
On the bay side of Wellfleet, Great Island is a long, wild peninsula of dunes, pitch pine and salt marsh. A sandy trail leads out past the site of an old tavern toward Jeremy Point, with views across Wellfleet Harbor and Cape Cod Bay.
Highland Light
In North Truro, Highland Light, also called Cape Cod Light, is the oldest lighthouse on the Cape. In 1996 the tower was moved several hundred feet back from the eroding clay cliff, a feat of engineering explained on site.
Provincetown at the tip
Pilgrim Monument and Provincetown Museum
The granite Pilgrim Monument, completed in 1910, rises some 250 feet above Provincetown and commemorates the Pilgrims' first landing and the signing of the Mayflower Compact in the harbor. Climbing its ramps and stairs rewards you with a view over the whole tip of the Cape, Cape Cod Bay and, on clear days, the Boston skyline.
Commercial Street and the galleries
Provincetown's narrow Commercial Street runs for about three miles along the harbor, lined with galleries, shops, cafés and weathered captains' houses. The town has been an artists' colony for more than a century and remains one of the best-known LGBTQ+ destinations in the country, with a lively, welcoming atmosphere especially in summer.
Province Lands and Race Point Beach
Behind the town, the Province Lands are a landscape of enormous shifting dunes, beech forest and ponds threaded by a hilly paved bike trail.
Chatham, the Rail Trail and the Upper Cape
Chatham
Chatham sits at the elbow of the Cape, with a walkable Main Street of shops and ice cream counters and a working fishing fleet. Chatham Light overlooks the harbor inlet and the barrier beaches beyond, and from the fish pier you can watch boats unload and gray seals bobbing nearby.
Cape Cod Rail Trail
Built on a former railroad bed, the Cape Cod Rail Trail runs for roughly twenty-five miles from South Dennis through Harwich, Brewster, Orleans and Eastham to Wellfleet. It passes kettle ponds, cranberry bogs, Nickerson State Park and the Salt Pond Visitor Center, and is mostly flat.
Sandwich
Founded in 1637, Sandwich is the oldest town on Cape Cod, with a village center of white clapboard houses, a gristmill on Shawme Pond and the Sandwich Glass Museum, which tells the story of the town's nineteenth-century glassmaking industry.
Falmouth and Woods Hole
Falmouth has a classic village green and a string of warm-water beaches on Vineyard Sound. The Shining Sea Bikeway follows the shore about eleven miles from North Falmouth to Woods Hole, passing salt ponds and beaches along the way.
Hyannis
Hyannis is the Cape's transportation hub, with ferries to Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard, the regional airport and bus station. Its Main Street and harbor area make a pleasant stroll, and the John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum explores the president's long connection to the Cape.
Planning a trip to Cape Cod?Compare hotels, flights and vacation rentals for Cape Cod on Expedia.Book nowFood and local flavors
Seafood is the main event on Cape Cod. Order a lobster roll, served either cold with mayonnaise or warm with butter, and a cup of creamy New England clam chowder.
Wellfleet oysters are prized for their briny, clean flavor, and you will find them on raw bars across the Cape; the town celebrates its shellfish with an oyster festival each autumn.
Popular dishes to try in Cape Cod
Where to stay
Provincetown suits couples, friends and anyone who wants nightlife, galleries and dining within walking distance.
Wellfleet, Truro and Eastham offer a quieter, more natural setting with cottages, motels and rentals close to the ocean beaches.
Hyannis, Yarmouth and Dennis are practical, central and generally more affordable, with many family-friendly motels and easy ferry and bus access.
Falmouth and Sandwich on the Upper Cape are closest to the bridges, ideal for short stays, ferry trips to Martha's Vineyard and avoiding the longest drives.
Where to stay in Cape Cod
Best time to visit
July and August are peak season. The ocean is at its warmest, though still cool on the Atlantic side, every business and ferry is running, and towns host fireworks, parades and Cape Cod Baseball League games.
June and September are many visitors' favorite months. Days are warm, the crowds and traffic ease, and most restaurants and attractions remain open.
From late October through April, the Cape becomes quiet.
Getting there and getting around
By car: Most visitors drive.
By air: Boston Logan is the main gateway.
By bus and train: Coach lines connect Boston's South Station and Logan Airport with Hyannis and other Cape towns.
By ferry: Seasonal fast ferries link Boston and Plymouth with Provincetown, a scenic way to arrive without a car.
Getting around: Route 6 runs the length of the Cape, Route 6A follows the bay shore through historic villages, and Route 28 serves the south shore.
A suggested itinerary
First day
Cross the canal early and spend the day in Sandwich: the village center, the glass museum and Heritage Museums and Gardens, then sunset from the Sandwich Boardwalk.
Second day
Ride the Shining Sea Bikeway to Woods Hole, stopping at Nobska Light, or spend the day on a ferry trip to Martha's Vineyard.
Third day
Head to Chatham.
Fourth day
Rent bikes and ride the Cape Cod Rail Trail from Orleans to the Salt Pond Visitor Center, then relax at Coast Guard Beach and walk to Nauset Light.
Fifth day
Drive north through Wellfleet, with stops at the Marconi site and the cedar swamp trail, oysters for lunch, and Highland Light in Truro.
Sixth day
Climb the Pilgrim Monument in the morning, join an afternoon whale watch, and finish with sunset at Race Point Beach.
Practical tips
- Book summer lodging, whale watches and car ferry spaces months ahead, especially for July and August weekends.
- Great white sharks hunt seals off the outer beaches. Swim close to shore, stay away from seals, avoid murky water and obey lifeguards and posted flags.
- Check tide charts before walking the flats, Great Island or other tidal areas.
- Plan bridge crossings outside peak hours and use a live traffic app on summer weekends.
- Carry a light jacket; evenings and boat trips are cool even in midsummer.
- Protect yourself from ticks and poison ivy on trails by staying on paths and checking yourself afterward.
Find local businesses in Hyannis on WiserMap
Hyannis is the hub of Cape Cod for ferries, buses and everyday services.
