Boston and Cape Cod June 2016
We flew into Boston with Virgin Atlantic, out in Economy with extra leg room and back Premium Economy, which were both very good. After picking up our car and negotiating the Boston traffic (which is very busy) we made our way through the tunnels under the water to head South to Cape Cod.
We decided to split our stay so we could concentrate on different areas of Cape Cod. We spent our first few nights in Sandwich in a charming Victorian B&B. This is a pretty little village with a few shops and restaurants and has a lovely residential feel with beautiful old buildings and we enjoyed walking around and seeing them. We also decided to walk down to the boardwalk and beach which is a stunning natural beach where kids jump from the boardwalk into the water. Not for us but fun to watch (the water was cold)!
Sandwich was also a great base and we booked as foot passengers onto the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard. We jumped on the bus and stopped at pretty little towns like Oak Bluffs and Edgartown with views across to Chappaquiddick Island and the multimillion dollar "summer houses". We also spent a lovely day in Hyannis Port where we had booked a train excursion through the Cranberry Bogs and then back in time to look around the many shops and have a lovely lunch.
The second part of our trip was based in Chatham, which is a really pretty, up-market coastal town with some stunning houses and a good choice of shops and restaurants. There’s even an old fashioned cinema house.
A walk through the town takes you to the Chatham Lighthouse. The amazing true story of the lifeboat and crew in a massive storm was turned into a film called The Finest Hours, well worth seeing. The odd thing is we had seen the film on the plane on the flight out but didn't know it was about the Chatham Lifeboat until we visited the lighthouse!
The beach access is just opposite where there are miles of sandy beach to have a stroll, sit and have a rest or soak up some sun. From Chatham it is also an easy drive up to Provincetown which is a very bohemian town with lots of art and craft shops. There are also a good selection of boat trips from here including whale watching.
After out stay in Cape Cod we headed back up to Boston where we dropped the car back and took a taxi to our base, the Taj Boston, situated opposite the Public Garden in a great position. Boston is a great city on the water and very easy to walk around. We pre-booked a Duck Tour (I can get tickets for you) which was great fun. I had never been on one before but it is an experience, driving on the streets around the main sites and then driving into the water of Charles River (seasonal tour), whilst you quack at people, great fun!
Visit the Freedom Trail, Faneuil Hall, Boston Harbour, Museums and Beacon Hill, not forgetting the great shopping! Boston has lots to offer, either as a break on its own or with a visit to the mountains or Cape Cod, it is one of my favourite cities.
For more information or if you have any questions, please do get in touch.