My wife and I are planning a 3 night weekend getaway at Martha's Vineyard in early October this year. We've never been, newbies to the area. Looking for suggestions as to what to see and do. We realize that Cape Cod, Nantucket, and Boston are all points of interest as well. With only three nights to spend we want to choose well!

As to our tastes:

Wife loves to browse shops, and we both enjoy exploring restaurants, so she'd probably be happy if we never left the island. I'm sure we'll rent bikes for at least an afternoon, exploring the island (or at least our end of it in the Oak Bluffs vicinity) that way. We love to walk in beautiful outdoor surroundings, so I'm sure we'll want to take in a nature preserve. We'll want to take a walk along a pretty beach somewhere as well. We're not really into nightlife stuff. Historical attractions are fine if they happen to be there, but are not a major attraction to us. We've done whale watching in Maine, so in this short 3 day time span that won't be on the list. Deep sea fishing is a maybe.

I realize there are fifteen towns along Cape Cod. Ideally, we'd like to take one day to explore there. And I've heard Boston is a must-see. But with the limited time we have, I'm not sure we can even come close to doing a visit there justice--maybe we can spend a day or afternoon there if we choose a couple select points of interest?

Nantucket sounds fun too, but from what I'm reading it sounds like Martha's Vineyard is similar enough such that MV alone will suffice. We'll probably visit Nantucket in the future.

Anyway, any suggestions you all might have as to which things to see and do in just three days--with such a wealth of choices--will be greatly appreciated!

(Suggestions for nature preserves, beach walks, favorite MV shops and restaurants, Cape towns, and Boston attractions will be particularly helpful. Thanking you in advance!)

I’ve been to Nantucket multiple times and Boston once but not MV. You say you are newbies to the area – does that mean you’ve recently moved to MA?

I think three days on MV is too short to consider going off island for two of those days. I would get a guidebook and see if MV offers enough for you to enjoy for three days and just stay there or maybe go one place for a day by ferry.

Thanks for the reply. We live 5 hours away from MV.

We'll arrive mid-day Friday and leave Monday mid-day. So really it's only two full days. I think we might just spend the whole time on the island, the more I think about it.

But we do have the option of hitting the cape or Boston as well...

Unless there is something in either of those other areas that's more compelling than MV, it might make the most sense for folks to recommend what they would do for a weekend on Martha's Vineyard.

There's lots of history on MV. Take a look at the cottages where the folks stayed during the religious revival of the 1800's.

Here's a local take on food.

http://www.mvtimes.com/2013/04/03/go...aurants-14946/

http://pointbrealty.com/marthas-vine...ts-food-dining

Yeah, given the short amount of time and the fact that the car ferry costs $145 we will definitely stay on the island!

Thanks for those links, they're helpful!

Besides eating -- which can be done almost anywhere -- exactly what does one do on MV?

Some points of interest that are tentatively on my list as I research what to do there:

Aquinnah Cliffs
Bike Trail from Oak Bluffs to Edgartown (along beach)
Sunset at Menemsha Beach? (take cab back to Oak Bluffs?)
Artisans Festival/Market at Grange Hall, West Tisbury
Martha's Vineyard Glassworks
Long Point Wildlife Refuge

Chilmark Chocolates - a special needs program
and
Chappy Chappy Chappy!!! So cool on the off season.