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Cape Cod & the Islands are a wonderland of fun and unusual things to do

Massachusetts > Cape Cod & The Islands > Things to Do and See > 90 Great Things to Do in Massachusetts
Cape Cod and the nearby islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket are more than ready to offer a glorious vacation for everyone in the family. Fun things to do cover a wide range: beautiful beaches, woods and dune walks, biking, shopping, jovial seasonal festivals of all kinds, nature museums, kids events and much more, all surrounded by the waters of the Atlantic or Cape Cod Bay. There is plenty of family lodging near the water along with luxurious beach and ocean resorts where you can get some pampering at a day spa. Natural beauty runs year-round.
Children Waving - Island Queen - Falmouth, MA
Island Queen

75 Falmouth Heights Road Falmouth, MA, 02540 Phone: 508-548-4800

Lots to do at both ends when you take this ferry to fabulous Martha’s Vineyard

The first great thing to do when you’re planning a getaway to Martha’s Vineyard? Buy a ticket on the Island Queen, the passenger-only ferry from Falmouth to Oak Bluffs. With its outside decks, enclosed lounge and full-service snacks and drinks bar, your 35 minutes across Nantucket Sound will fly by. Bring your bike, kayak, surfboard or paddle board because the island beaches are incomparable. Take a sightseeing tour of the island or head out on your own. Stroll through Oak Bluffs’ Victorian gingerbread colony; shop and dine in bustling Edgartown; marvel at the red clay Gay Head Cliffs in Aquinnah; go swimming, sailing, golfing or fishing. In Falmouth, check out the Cape Cod Baseball League, historic Main Street, the aquarium and unique shops.
sandwich boardwalk
Bridge to Another World in Sandwich

Begin your day in Sandwich by strolling the boardwalk , which crosses Mill Creek and beautiful marshes, leading to a public beach on Cape Cod Bay. This is not a commercial, Atlantic City-type boardwalk -- quite the opposite. The walk vaults very gently across a wide, wide expanse of tidal salt meadow, where channels of seawater fill and empty with the tide. After crossing this magnificent panorama, you reach a beach on the bay. Both pieces of the walk offer vaulting views of sky, salt marsh, dunes, beach, and sea. it is pure inspiration for the eyes and soul.
kite boarding in cape cod
Kite + Surfing??

Kite boarding is a tasty mix of wakeboarding, windsurfing, and paragliding. The surfer rides a board similar to a wakeboard or small surfboard, and is propelled across the surface of the water by parachute-like, wind-catching device. This extreme-ish sport has found its way to the windy and sandy beaches of Cape Cod. Inland Sea on Main Street in West Dennis is ready tp help you get started with lessons and gear. The Cape’s steady breezes make it a natural place for kite boarding. Feeling adventurous? 888-465-2632
provincelands bike trails
Bike to Cape Cod’s Beaches

Get out and be active at this Province Lands Bike Trail located in Provincetown. This 5.25 mile ride begins at the Province Lands Visitor Center where informational movies, exhibits, a book store, and the observation tower are located. Ranger guided tours are provided to explore sand dunes and hallows. The bike trail explores every aspect of the landscape from the cranberry bogs, marshes, and saltwater kettle ponds. The trail has extensions that provide access to Race Point and Herring Cove beaches. Look for signs for the Province Lands Visitor Center at the end of Race Point Road for the entrance to the bike trails.
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trails of cape cod national seashore
In the Footsteps of Pilgrims

Pilgrim Spring Trail and Small's Swamp Trail , part of the Cape Cod National Seashore, are easy loop trails about one mile long, accessible off Route 6 at the Pilgrim Heights area sign in North Truro. The trails wind around a kettle swamp and marsh and offer wonderful views of Pilgrim Lake, sand dunes, the salt meadow, and the Atlantic Ocean. A stone marker identifies the site of the first fresh water the Pilgrims found. Trails are marked with information about local history and nature. This is a fine, easy walk for people of all ages, with views of typical Cape Cod landforms and living creatures.
truro vineyards
Tuck in to Truro for Wine and Spirits Tastings

Truto Vineyards and South Hollow Spirits at 11 Shore Road in North Truro is a lovely, relaxing place where tours and tastings of wine and spirits are held daily from May through Thanksgiving. The main house is located behind a wide expanse of law dotted with shade trees and picnic tables. Behind the house, tastings are conducted on a flower-decked patio. Inside, a gift shop offers all manner of fun gifts and books related to Cape Cod wines and the drinking and collecting of wine. Hours: Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, noon-5 p.m. Tastings are offeredon the hour and half-hour, and free tours are conducted of the wintery and distillery. 508-487-6200
walking trails of highfield hall
Peaceful Hike in Serene Woods

Highfield Hall & Gardens at 56 Highfield Drive in Falmouth is a historic home surrounded by beautiful gardens and wood. Adjacent Beebe Woods has a large network of walking trails over miles of wooded ridges and steep hollows and around a pond called the Punch Bowl. The Hall is also home to several arts groups, and special events are held here periodically. People are welcome to visit April 1 through October, daily except Saturdays. Guided tours of Highfield Hall take place year-round for groups. The Hall holds a guided nature walk on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Phone: 508- 495-1878
wellfleet preservation hall
Not Your Average Community Center

Wellfleet Preservation Hall at 335 Main Street in Wellfleet is a wonderful resource driven by heartfelt people promoting arts, entertainment, and classes for the body and mind. It is very much a locally run operation, and equally welcoming to seasonal visitors. The Hall is a creative re-use of a former church. Special events that happen every year include the Garden Party & Birdhouse Auction, the Oysterfete, and Taste of the Town smorgasbord. Throughout the year, live music and dance parties bring every style of music. In summer, you are invited to many fitness programs, like yoga on Tuesdays and Fridays; Zumba on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays; Shake Your Soul Dance on Mondays; Mah Jongg on Tuesdays; Capoeira on Saturdays. Keep in touch with The Hall – it’s a place of warmth and activity. 508-349-1800
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Marthas Vineyard Ferry Island Queen
seal tours
Poke Into the Lives of the Seals

Monomay National Wildlife Refuge is on a lanky drip of an island off the southeastern tip of Cape Cod. The Monomoy Island Ferry Rip Rider , docked at 30 Wikis Way in Chatham, on the mainland, takes visitors on a 90-minute tour along the west side of the Monomoy Islands, with views of the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge, ample views of lots of seals, and the Monomoy Lighthouse. A new, naturalist-guided walking on the island tour offer guests a chance to walk out to the Monomoy Lighthouse, looking for deer, owls, seals hauled out on the beach, and innumerable shore and song birds. This would be one of your most brilliant Cape Cod vacation memories. Phone: 508-237-0420
Dune and Beach Walks Near Provincetown ma
Dune and Beach Walks Near Provincetown

Never dismiss the Outer Cape as a romantic destination. Provincetown, Truro, and Wellfleet all have a core group of restaurants and bars dishing up warmth and sustenance and intimacy. You will be looking for both after a vigorous walk onto the Province Lands, north of Provincetown. On a bright day, the views are glorious. Start at the Province Lands Visitor Center on Race Point Road, off Route 6. Walking routes can be adjusted for shorter and longer distances, with wonderful views of the Province Lands, Race Point Lighthouse, the Coast Guard Station, and more.
Mitchell’s Book Corner and Nantucket Bookworks Nantucket bookstores
Book Lovers, Dig In on Nantucket

For some of us, vacation and the beach are the time and place to dig into a great (or silly, or sentimental) book. The little island of Nantucket can solve your book-buying needs year-round at at least two well-used bookstore. Mitchell’s Book Corner on Main Street is open-year round, and visitors praise its travel section, with lots and lots of titles – fiction, non-fiction, and coffee-table books -- about Nantucket history (508-228-1080). Nantucket Bookworks at 25 Broad Street gets big huzzahs from visitors who love books. It is near the ferry terminal and visitors say you will find a big selection of new books. It is welcoming to kids, and you can also shop here for board games, cards, calendars and silly gifts (508-228-4000).
Loines Observatory of the Maria Mitchell Association in Nantucket
Star Gazing From Nantucket

Loines Observatory of the Maria Mitchell Association at 59 Milk Street Extension Nantucket is open for public viewing year round, and for frequent special astronomical events. Climb a ladder to the eyepiece of a fine, old telescope and sample the sights of the distant heavens. Public hours are longer in the summer and more abbreviated in the winter, so check the calendar on the observatory’s website. Star-gazing nights are held regularly, and posted on the calendar. Remember, observing is weather dependent, so check the skies or call ahead. 508-228-9273.
Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge on Chappaquiddick Island, adjacent to Martha's Vineyard.
Breathtaking Views

A highlight of natural beauty on Martha’s Vineyard is Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge on Chappaquiddick Island, adjacent to Martha's Vineyard. Chappaquiddick Island’s eastern edge is a barrier beach that extends for seven miles, passing the Cape Poge Lighthouse to the Gut. The refuge offers 14 miles of beachfront and oversand vehicle and walking trails. Facilities include picnic tables, bike rack, restrooms, which are open May 30 to October 30. Tours include a natural history tour, a wildlife kayak or canoe tour, a fishing discovery tour, and Cape Poge Lighthouse tour. Open year-round, daily, with an entrance fee May 30 to October 15. Phone: 508-627-8390.
Martha's Vineyard Camp Meeting Association, located in the town of Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard gingerbread cottages
Charming Neighborhood With Deep History

The Martha's Vineyard Camp Meeting Association, located in the town of Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard, is a neighborhood of hundreds of colorful, ornate gingerbread cottages that are a delight to the eye and great fun to see and photograph. The neighborhood has its roots in the religious revival camp meeting movement of the 1850s. Members of the campground – originally a tent community -- conducted popular Bible meetings where the cottages are now.
Pilgrim Monument on the Provincetown waterfront cape cod
Pilgrim Monument and Provincetown Museum

The Pilgrim Monument, a granite obelisk dedicated in 1910, is a visual icon of the Provincetown waterfront, visible from land and sea. The Monument, on High Pole Hill road, commemorates the history of the Mayflower Pilgrims, who landed at Provincetown before moving on to Plymouth. From May through October, visitors can climb to the top for a glorious view of the sweeping curve of the coastline. The adjoining Provincetown Museum describes the arrival of the Mayflower Pilgrims, the town’s maritime history, the early days of American theater in Provincetown, and the building of the monument. There’s a re-creation of a 19th century sea captain’s parlor at home and his quarters at sea and a scale model of the first theater of the Provincetown Players. 508-487-1310.