Featured Stories & Articles from Cape Cod Travel Magazine: Legacy Lodging - Discovering Cape Cod Inns

Visits to Cape Cod have been chronicled since the Pilgrims first touched land in Provincetown and settled in Plymouth, exploring much of the Cape on their journey.  Today, visitors have the luxury of staying in their choice of accommodations on the shores of the Cape, ranging from beach rentals to luxury condos, motels and hotels. 

 

The sheer range of lodging choices speaks to the popularity of a Cape Cod getaway, but travelers “in the know” would say to truly experience the Cape and feel the heartbeat of its amazing history, nothing compares with Cape Cod’s scores of inns and bed & breakfasts. 

 

Built by prosperous sea captains and wealthy merchants, this timeless legacy lodging echoes the spirit of the Cape’s settlers and its historic movers and shakers in this picture perfect corner of the world, perched on the edge of a deep blue ocean and wrapped around a pristine turquoise bay. 

 

In the architecture of these wonderful buildings, ranging from true colonial era Capes to magnificent nineteenth century Victorian and Federal manses, we find the handiwork of craftsmen who fashioned corbels and cornices, built porches and pillars, constructing these homes for generations to come.  These special properties are filled with gracious spaces, nooks and crannies, eves and attics, widow walks, pergolas, gazebos nestled in antique perennial gardens, history and comfort.  Tall windows allow the sea breeze and the clear liquid light, sought after by artists, to filter into gracious guest rooms furnished with your heart’s desire in mind.

 

Innkeepers in every village on the Cape have transformed these wonderful properties, adding every modern amenity and service imaginable while preserving the sunlit and sea-washed memories of the past. Innkeepers are stewards of history and dedicated to providing guests a portal through which they can experience the Cape today and yesterday.

 

Inn guests begin their days with a perfectly prepared breakfast, often served on porches and in gardens overlooking the view or in beautiful fireplaced dining rooms with gleaming hardwood floors and gracious intimate tables for quiet conversation or contemplation.

 

Innkeepers know the perfect little known spots: the finest bistros, quietest beach dune, most majestic light house, the most popular picnic spot off the bike trail and the best bargains, whether antiquing or looking for flip flops. They know the perfect old climbing tree or sandy spit for star gazing like no where else on earth. Your innkeeper will rival the finest five-star hotel concierge in meeting your every need and wrapping your stay in your personal brand of luxury.

 

Spend your days drinking in the spectacular outdoors on broad sandy beaches and shaded bike trails while pedaling through forests and cranberry bogs. You can sail the blue sea, kayak the calm waters of the bay, fish with a sea worthy captain, whale watch with a naturalist, and play world-class golf. Curl up in the gazebo and read a book or while away hours in museums ranging from natural history to pirate treasure, modern art to collections of history.

 

Spend your evenings at an old fashioned band concert on a village green, lit with fireflies and friendly smiles. Enjoy live professional theatre in historic venues with a 100 year tradition. Dine in the finest possible style or picnic on local fare, from lobster to fried clams. Homemade ice cream can be found at every turn. Ask your innkeeper for their personal recommendations.

 

Inns can be found in every village of the Cape and Islands. They are as unique as their owners, past and present, and as welcoming as an old friend. Maybe that’s why inn guests tend to return year after year in every season. These lucky guests have found the magic that happens when history and hospitality combine in a setting as beautiful and rare as the sweet salt air. These inns are a gift from the past preserved in the present like a personal time machine awaiting your pleasure at every turn.

 

Carol Edmondson operates an inn on Cape Cod.  There are more than 250 inns on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.