The Cape and Islands have many clusters and pockets of activities.
Here are some suggestions:
Imagine a summer theater where talent like Betty Davis, Henry
Fonda, Basil Rathbone, and Gregory Peck all have graced the same oak stage.
You don't have to look any farther than the
Cape Playhouse
820 Route 6A in East Dennis (508-385-3911).
If you like deep-sea fishing, harbor cruises and sightseeing,
call Hy-Line Cruises at 508-778-2600.
For great historic perspective, step back in time at Plimoth Plantation
in nearby Plymouth, a re-creation in every form of Pilgrim Village in 1627.
For more information, call 508-746-1622.
On Route 28 between west and south Yarmouth, try miniature golf
at Pirate's Cove (508-394-6200) or Thunder Falls (508-778-4339).
While you are in the area, take in ZooQuarium (508-775-8883).
In the Mid-Cape, another best bet is Cape Cod Storyland Golf (508-778-4339)
off Main Street in Hyannis, opposite the bus terminal. With more than
two acres of playing surface, it is considered New England's largest mini-golf course,
according to its owners.
Visit Harbor Glen Miniature Golf, on Route 28 in West Harwich
near the Herring River Bridge; it is an 18-hole Astroturf miniature golf course
with a nautical theme.
In Harwich heading down Route 28 toward Chatham, you will come
across the Trampoline Center and a lot filled with them. "No shoes"
and "no flips" are the only rules here.
Test your batting eye in Harwich on the old Iron Mike. The Batter's
Box in Harwich (508-430-1155) offers an assortment of speeds from
Baby Ruth Wiffle Ball to Roger Clemens Speed Baseball.
In Orleans, don't miss Cape Escape Golf (508-240-1791), with its
natural outdoor setting of waterfalls and ponds.
While in Hyannis, take a ride on the Cape Cod Scenic Railroad
(508-771-3788) and which is in walking distance from Storyland Golf.
In the Sandwich village area, visit the Thornton W. Burgess Museum,
Heritage Plantation and Yesteryears Doll Museum. The Burgess Museum
on Water Street (508-888-4668) honors the famous children's naturalist
and author of the Peter Cottontail books and Old Mother West Wind. Heritage Plantation
at the corner of Pine and Grove Streets (508-888-3300) has an antique carousel,
acres of beautiful gardens, an antique car collection and craft exhibits. Yesteryears
Doll Museum at the corner of Main Street and River Street (508-888-1711) has one
of New England's largest collection of antique dolls, doll houses
and toys.
Whale watching is one of the Cape's top attractions for children,
and adults as well. The vessels are all equipped with toilets and snack bars.
Call Hyannis Whale Watch (1-800-287-0374) for reservations; Hyannis Whale Watch leaves
out of Barnstable Harbor off Route 6A. If you plan to leave from Provincetown, call:
the Dolphin Fleet (800-826-9300); Ranger V (800-992-9333); or the Portuguese Princess
(800-442-3188).
Rain or shine, there are plenty of things to do on Cape Cod
and the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. For
example, have you ever tried beachcombing or crabbing?
Cape and Island beaches, ponds and marshes are open air
museums for more than a thousand species of plants and
marine animals, some of them as large as a pilot whale,
others as small as a codfish egg.
How about touring Cape Cod by rail? The Cape Cod Railroad offers scenic 42-mile
trips from Buzzards Bay to Hyannis that will take you past marshes, cranberry bogs,
sand dunes, Cape Cod Bay and the Cape Cod Canal. Five nights a week, a special
dinner train is available for a three-hour, five-course gourmet dinner. Call 508-771-3788
for information and reservations.
Don't miss the old Aptucxet Trading Post Museum on Aptucxet Road
in Bourne, overlooking the canal from the Cape side. Billed as
the first-known commercial enterprise in English-speaking North America,
the trading post was established in 1627 by Pilgrims as a place to trade
with the Dutch from New York and to barter with Native Americans,
notes a museum brochure.
You should also plan a day in Sandwich. From Route 6, take Route 130 into the center
of Sandwich Village. Along the way, visit the Hoxie House, built in 1637 and is
considered the oldest house on Cape Cod. Near the Hoxie House is the
Thornton W.Burgess Museum, the old Town Hall and Dexter's Grist Mill,
as we note in the essay on Sandwich. The Burgess Museum was established to honor
the memory of the renowned children's author and naturalist, a Sandwich native who
wrote more than 15,000 stories and 170 books.
While in the town center, you should see:
the Yesteryear Doll Museum, one of New England's largest collection
of antique dolls, doll houses and toys; and Heritage Plantation,
a mile from the town center at the intersection of Pine and Grove
streets. This museum has 76 acres of lush gardens and woodlands,
military artifacts, and an impressive collection of antique cars,
including the first official White House car and a white 1909
steamer originally owned by President William Howard Taft.
Heading down Cape to Brewster, we suggest you visit the following: the Cape Cod
Museum of Natural History, off Route 6A, which offers exhibits, trails, summer
workshops and lectures (call 508-896-3867); Bassett Wild Animal
Farm (508-896-3224), on Tubman Road off Route 6A which has a children's
petting zoo with picnic tables, pony rides and a hayride; the
New England Fire & History Museum (508-896-5711), off Route
6A, housing the largest display of old firefighting equipment
in the world as well as a reproduction of an old New England village
complete with blacksmith shop, an original apothecary shop, a town common and
four ornamental gardens.
In Provincetown, whale watching wins hands-down for the best children's
activity. Try the Dolphin Fleet (800-826-9300), off MacMillan
Wharf, with researchers aboard from the Center for Coastal Studies;
the Portuguese Princess (800-442-3188) or Ranger V (800-992-9333).
