Spanning a 70-mile-long hooked peninsula on the Atlantic Coast, Cape Cod has been a beloved beach getaway for generations. The Cape is dotted with lighthouses, sandy beaches, and 15 New England beach resort towns stocked with charming vacation rentals. There are saltbox cottages and weathered, shingled bungalows as well as ice cream parlors, candy shops filled with saltwater taffy, and seafood shacks that claim the best lobster rolls around.

The peninsula is divided into four regions. The Upper Cape, which includes Falmouth, Mashpee, and Sandwich, is closest to Boston and historic Plymouth. The Mid-Cape is the densest region and includes Barnstable, Yarmouth, and Hyannis, where you’ll find the John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum. The former whaling village of Brewster is in the Lower Cape, alone with Chatham and Harwich. Don’t skip the Outer Cape — it might be quite a drive, but the gorgeous Cape Cod National Seashore and the artsy, LGBTQ+ destination of Provincetown are well worth it.

Peak season on Cape Cod is between Memorial Day and Labor Day, when the days are long, sunny, and hot, with temperatures around 80 degrees Fahrenheit. There can be isolated summer thunderstorms, but rain is rare at this time of year. Humidity, on the other hand, is not. But while the crowds flock here for summer vacation, the Cape is a year-round destination. Fall has become increasingly popular, thanks to its sunny, brisk, 60-degree days and brilliant foliage, and spring visitors enjoy warm, 70-degree beach weather before the summer crowds arrive. Even Cape Cod winters, when temperatures drop into the 40s and snow falls, are charming if you like lonely, blustery beaches and curling up by a fire.

Cape Cod National Seashore

While lively, convenient beaches line the peninsula, it’s well worth visiting the pristine beaches within the 27,000-acre Cape Cod National Seashore. But the park is not all about sandy shores: thirteen hiking trails and three bike trails wind through pristine dunes, wetlands, and scrub oak forests.

Whale-Watching

Between mid-April and late October, hundreds of humpback, finback, and minke whales arrive at their feeding grounds along the Massachusetts coast. Many tour companies will guarantee sightings. Boats leave from various locations including Hyannis, Provincetown, Barnstable, Orleans, and Plymouth.

The Islands

You could spend an entire vacation rubbing shoulders with famous folks on Nantucket or Martha’s Vineyard, but passenger ferries from several Cape towns make it possible to visit either on a day trip. On Nantucket, spend an afternoon wandering the historic town and the Whaling Museum; on Martha’s Vineyard, be sure to visit the town of Aquinnah, home of the local Wampanoag people, and its beautiful clay cliffs, as well as the old-fashioned historic carousel in Oak Bluffs.