Adam and I moved to Massachusetts in July, 2020 for a 10 month stint while he completed he graduate program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. We chose to live in Marblehead, an adorable oceanside town right next to the town I grew up in, which meant family was 5 minutes down the road for the first time in 12 years. We cherished every single minute of that time, even if it was during a global pandemic and therefore seeing my extended family was immensely challenging / limited. To wrap up our time in Massachusetts we took a trip down to Cape Cod. I wish (1) we had more time (2) we were able to go over the summer (3) we were able to stay at multiple locations throughout the week across the Cape, but alas, we worked with the time we had and found this absolutely spectacular cottage that is well worth sharing with all of you! This blog will detail the Airbnb we stayed in with our dogs, the community it is located in, as well as a few of the places we visited during our brief stay.
Visiting Cape Cod out of season is less than optimal in my opinion. Sure, you avoid the crowds and influx of tourists, but I find that your options for dining, beaching, boating, and other activities are limited. For reference, we stayed in late April, 2021 and everything is at peak season between June – August. I believe visiting in September / October is most ideal as you can avoid some of the crowds and still take advantage of things being open!
It is worth noting that while Cape Cod has a quaint and ‘small town’ feel to it, it is actually quite large, and each region is different. There is SO much to do across the Cape that we did not do during our brief off-season stay (surfing, SUPing, sailing, whale watching, hiking, etc.) so keep an eye on other blogs that highlight those activities!
Quick Overview of Cape Cod
- Travel & Accessibility: I highly recommend renting a car / having your car there. UNLESS you are traveling to Provincetown, which is accessible by ferry / cruise and totally walkable
- Cape Cod has 15 towns broken up by: Upper Cape, Mid-Cape, Lower Cape, and Outer Cape
- Upper Cape: Falmouth, Mashpee, Sandwich & Bourne
- Mid-Cape: Barnstable / Hyannis, Yarmouth & Dennis
- Lower Cape: Chatham, Orleans, Harwich & Brewster
- Outer Cape: Provincetown & Wellfleet
- Martha’s Vineyard & Nantucket are highly recommended to visit as well and are both accessible by ferry from Hyannis and Wood’s Hole!
Our Cottage Stay in New Seabury, Mashpee (Upper Cape)
New Seabury is a 2,000-acre, self-contained resort on the Nantucket Sound in Mashpee. The community itself has stunning amenities for home owners – golf courses, country clubs, restaurants, marina’s, hiking trails, and more! Our Airbnb was located within this community and while we did not spend much time adventuring around New Seabury itself, I must say that the community is in an ideal location to visit lots of other nearby attractions!
Here are just a few amenity highlights of our Airbnb
- Large yard and charming outdoor space
- Located in a quiet cul de sac
- The furnishings are stunning and so comfortable – with 3 bedrooms (master suite with King bed, room with bunk beds, and another room with a large day bed) – the downstairs is also completely finished / furnished with additional sleeping arrangements
- The kitchen was fully stocked with all cooking appliances
- Firepit and grill outside with a large table for outdoor dining
- Erin and James are outstanding hosts – they provided such great recommendations, and were available the instant we needed something during our stay!
- They have a 4.96 star rating with nearly 50 reviewers — clearly a consistently spectacular place to stay while in the Cape
Dining
So much good food, thank goodness we were only there a few days or I would have gained 10 lbs on this trip! Some highlights listed below
- Añejo – located in Falmouth (though they have another location in Hyannis) – visit for Mexican food and delicious margaritas
- Bleu – located right down the road in Mashpee Commons (a great shopping area) – French cuisine (order the mussels)
- Bad Martha’s Brewing Company – located in Falmouth (though they have another location in Edgartown) – good beer, but if your pregnant like me, good snacks – we loved the cheese and veggie platter and the soft pretzels
- Raw Bar – located in Popponesset – open limited hours off-season, but open 7 days a week during peak season – lobster, oysters, crab cakes, chowder … what more could you want on the Cape?
Sight-Seeing
- Wood’s Hole & Nobska Light – the view from Nobska is just stunning, and the drive around the coast of Wood’s Hole was wonderful!
- Sandy Neck Beach Park – this long-stretching beach has permit-based ‘on the sand’ parking, miles of hiking trails through the dunes, and has ample space so you won’t feel overcrowded! It was also pet-friendly year round (on leash)!
- Chapoquoit Beach – located in Falmouth, I loved my morning trip to this beach. Much smaller than Sandy Neck but the sand and water was beautiful and had ample parking
If you have visited Upper Cape and have additional suggestions (especially for visits during peak season) please drop them in the comments below! If you are yet to visit, I hope you take advantage of this incredible Airbnb and share how your stay was with me!
A Blonde Escapes 