Okay, so I’m going to an amazing wedding there in June (at a friend’s old family home) and my current plan is to fly to Boston, rent a car, drive on over, stay somewhere on Cape Cod that night, and get up the next morning and drive to P-town where I’ll be staying with friends the rest of the week.
My question is around “stay somewhere that night.”
It’ll be a Wednesday night (lucky) and I’ll be driving from Boston…my thought is to stay somewhere when I first get onto the island since I’ll be on the other side of the island the rest of the week. But where? I really don’t know the layout at all. Should I stay in Falmouth?
Why don’t you forget the car and take the ferry from Boston to P’town? Depending upon when your plane arrives, you could either go on to P’town or spend the night in Boston. Much more fun than driving the length of the Cape, and you don’t really need a car in P’town, especially if you rent a bike.
I hear you but, unfortunately, we have to have a car for the wedding…and my friend in P-town doesn’t have a car so I"m renting one in Boston…its cheaper…and I really like to drive
And how long do you want to drive Wednesday night? That would decide whether to stay in Falmouth or go further to Hyannis or Chatham for the first night.
On a Wednesday night, you should be able to drive from Logan to Provincetown in about 2-1/2 hours. What is the point of staying in Falmouth? Falmouth is fine, but it’s not so fine vs. other places on the Cape that it’s worth making a special trip to be there. Personally, I would much rather spend time in P-town, which is really lots of fun – beautiful beaches, real arts and culture, lovely houses, fun tourist stuff, colorful people.
Are you looking for someplace beautiful but different from Provincetown? Chatham (sedate, old money, picturesque) would qualify; it’s about halfway between the Sagamore Bridge and Provincetown. Or Wellfleet, which is only about 20 minutes from Provincetown, and has a lovely town center with lots of inns. Sandwich, which is right after you get onto the Cape, is also nice. A convenient place to stop? Starting in Eastham, and then in South Wellfleet and also in Truro, there are hotels and motels right on Route 6 (the road to Provincetown). But, really, if I got onto the Cape, I would keep going until I got to P-town.
I’m sure there are nice places to stop around Plymouth, too, before you get on the Cape. That would still be a little closer to your destination the next day than Falmouth.
Born, raised and wilting away here on Cape Cod. If you don’t want to drive the 2.5 hours to Ptown on your travel day, I’d stop in Plymouth (just north of the Sagamore bridge to Cape Cod and about an hour from the airport). Its a lovely town, hotel prices will be reasonable on a Wednesday night in June, its walkable if the weather is right, and some really good restaurants around.
And no, I wouldn’t go to Falmouth. Its 15-20 minutes out of your way and honestly, its not a good representation of what people think of when you say Cape Cod. That also holds true for Hyannis. If you really want to see what Cape Cod is, drive 6A from the bridge to the Orleans rotary (it’ll take you an extra half hour but worth the scenery). From that point, there are no other options from Orleans to Provincetown. Well, there is but not any you want to take or that are well known.
I agree with NEPatsGirl…I grew up in Hyannis and would steer clear of staying there.
Also, 6A is such a beautiful ride. I think there are some B&Bs you could look into…the truth is, I have only stayed in a hotel there a couple of times. Once because we were there for a surprise party and couldn’t stay with my parents. The other was due to a family funeral …only one of them still exists and it was in Centerville , right across the street from the best ice cream place.
^Agreed but I’ll make a few points…CBI is very expensive, Chatham is 15 minutes out of your way, and honestly, if you get that far you’re only 50 minutes from your destination and I’d just keep going UNLESS you change your mind and intend to spend at least a half day the next morning exploring all that Chatham has to offer. It really is beautiful.
I agree with either Sandwich or Plymouth. I think I would suggest Sndwich as it gets you a little more on your way to Provincetown. Charming town…and I bet you could find a B and B there.
If your goal is to see more of the Cape, I would go to Sandwich or Chatham. Avoid Hyannis. I spend almost every weekend on Nantucket from April to October and the traffic from the Boston area to the Cape (Hyannis) can be horrendous, depending on when you go. Avoid driving on Friday afternoon if possible.
Another Cape Cod girl here. If all you’re doing is looking for a place to lay your head and don’t have time to do/see anything on Thursday, I’d just drive to Ptown that night. Or if you’re arriving late and not interested in a long drive, Plymouth (this side of the Sagamore bridge) or Sandwich (Cape side of the bridge) would likely have reasonably priced places. In Plymouth, there’s a Hilton Garden Inn right off ext 5 and a Comfort Inn right off exit 6B. There’s a Hampton Inn a little further off the highway. There aren’t any chain hotels in Sandwich but lots of motels and inns. Make sure you take Route 3 to the Sagamore Bridge. Falmouth is way out of your way. Make sure you get a malasada at the Portugeuse Bakery on Commercial St!
