Your Next Adventure
Your Next Adventure
Cape Cod & Martha's Vineyard Bike Tour
Trip Overview
On this bike tour, you stay three nights at the newly renovated Harbor View Hotel in Edgartown, Massachusetts, where your premier room is in the historic main building.
This tour has everything! On the Cape you follow beach roads and a beautiful bike path as you weave your way past salt marshes, cranberry bogs, bird sanctuaries, barrier beaches and tidal flats filled with egrets, geese and ducks.
A scenic ferry ride takes you to Martha’s Vineyard and elegant Edgartown, a colonial seaport with rows of handsome 18th-century homes. Cycle to Katama with its beautiful barrier beach, and to historic West Tisbury. Plus, visit Vineyard Haven, ride past historic West Chop Light and ride “up island” to the spectacular lookout at Aquinnah Cliffs. Enjoy a picnic at a sculpture garden and visit the picturesque village of Menemsha, where we bike down to the harbor and stroll along the beach. From near the hotel, there's a 2-minute ferry ride to Chappaquiddick. And don't miss cycling along a beautiful bike path to Oak Bluffs. Here we explore famous labyrinthine streets lined with fanciful rainbow-colored gingerbread cottages and visit the town’s antique Flying Horses Carousel before returning to the inn.
Our two inns are the best! On the Cape you stay at the charming Palmer House Inn perfectly situated in the tree-lined historic district of Falmouth. And in Edgartown, you enjoy the wonderful rooms at the Harbor View Hotel where you can look out past the Edgartown Lighthouse and Chappaquiddick Island. From here, you can enjoy walking the narrow streets of this former whaling seaport with its handsome 18th-century houses and white picket fences, as well as high-end boutiques and art galleries.
Itinerary
From start to finish, check out the route.
Sunday we are welcomed to Cape Cod by the innkeepers at the Palmer House Inn in Falmouth. The inn is a delightful Victorian property perfectly situated in the tree lined historic district … and only a 4-minute walk from all the wonderful shops, galleries and restaurants of Falmouth. In the evening we gather for the short stroll to one of the area’s finest restaurants followed by a friendly get together in the common areas of the inn.
Monday’s ride is spectacular. Part of the day we follow the famous Shining Sea Bikeway as we weave our way past salt marshes, cranberry bogs, bird sanctuaries, beaches and harbors. We follow some quiet roads to the shores of Vineyard Sound in Falmouth, and then follow Surf Drive and Beach Road past Little Pond and Inner Harbor where hundreds of yachts and sailboats sway at anchor. We skirt past Oyster Pond and can pause here to breathe in the sea air or watch osprey and heron or take a brief side trip to Spohr Gardens where we are treated to an array of over 100,000 daffodils, lilies, magnolias and azaleas.
After a superb breakfast, you ride back into Woods Hole to start our ferry ride together to Martha’s Vineyard. This is a delightful transition from mainland to island and includes gorgeous views of the harbor and Vineyard Sound. You arrive 45 minutes later in Vineyard Haven. Ride from there along a lovely route (that includes a seaside bike path) to the easterly end of the island. Streets lined with handsome 18th-Century houses surrounded by white picket fences and topped with widow walks announce that you have arrived in Edgartown, a world-renowned seaport that still reflects the wealth and good taste of the phenomenally successful whaling captains of the early 1800’s.
Now’s a great time for a short stroll and lunch. If the rooms are not ready yet, then cycle to a 2-minute ferry crossing to Chappaquiddick for a spin. You return via the short ferry to Edgartown to check in at the elegant Harbor View Hotel — your home for the next three nights — just a few minutes’ walk from all the boutique shops and waterfront galleries for which Edgartown is so rightfully famous. Dinner is on your own in Edgartown tonight.
Today’s ride first takes you to Menemsha, a supremely picturesque fishing village situated on Menemsha Pond and Vineyard Sound. This historic harbor serves as the point of departure for most of the local fishermen and is usually bustling with activity. Then head through quaint and quiet villages that evoke the island’s maritime past. Fuel your ride and indulge your artistic side with a picnic lunch at the Field Gallery and Sculpture Garden.
Then ride out to Aquinnah Cliffs (formerly Gay Head), one of the most spectacular spots on the island. After enjoying the multi-mile views from the lookout, you take the boardwalk to the beach so as to better see the mosaic of colors for which the cliffs are rightfully famous. You might also stop at the top of the cliffs to visit the several interesting shops owned by the indigenous Wampanoag Indians.
Follow bike paths to West Tisbury, home to a number of Vineyard artists, and galleries, and to Alley’s, a quintessential New England general store. You then weave your way past Lambert’s Cove and take back roads into Vineyard Haven where you visit the handsome West Chop Lighthouse with its great view over Vineyard Sound. Here you might also enjoy the numerous small shops in the village and maybe stop for refreshments at the iconic Black Dog Tavern.
Then cycle along a beautiful bike path to Oak Bluffs. Here you explore famous labyrinthine streets lined with fanciful rainbow-colored gingerbread cottages and visit the town’s antique Flying Horses Carousel. You may also want to splurge at one of the local ice cream emporiums before finishing the day’s ride along the Beach Road bike path as it cuts its way between the ocean on one side and beautiful salt marshes on the other. You end your ride in Edgartown to get ready for our celebratory last evening together.
On Friday you ride to Katama, where you can relish the morning light along the beautiful three-mile barrier beach, then return to the hotel for a quick shower. You end your tour with a ride on the ferry back to Woods Hole and a shuttle to the Palmer House Inn.
Map
Dates & Pricing
Prices are per person based on double occupancy (2 people in one room). Single supplement for private room is listed at the top of this page. A deposit of $500 holds your reservation for most tours. For weekend tours, the deposit is $300.
What’s Included
5 nights' lodging, 5 breakfasts, 1 picnic lunch, 3 dinners (you are on your own for dinner 2 nights in Edgartown). Round-trip ferry to Martha’s Vineyard and the ferry to Chappaquiddick. Free transfer provided from Falmouth bus station at the start of the tour. We also include detailed maps and itineraries, experienced guides, full van support — plus use of a bike and helmet. Airfare and car parking at ferry not included.
Dates & Pricing
Prices are per person based on double occupancy (2 people in one room). Single supplement for private room is listed at the top of this page. A deposit of $500 holds your reservation for most tours. For weekend tours, the deposit is $300.
What’s Included
5 nights' lodging, 5 breakfasts, 1 picnic lunch, 3 dinners (you are on your own for dinner 2 nights in Edgartown). Round-trip ferry to Martha’s Vineyard and the ferry to Chappaquiddick. Free transfer provided from Falmouth bus station at the start of the tour. We also include detailed maps and itineraries, experienced guides, full van support — plus use of a bike and helmet. Airfare and car parking at ferry not included.
Inns
Where you stay along the way.
Guests say …
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Gallery
Images from this tour. Click each to see it larger.
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