Hello travelers!
I'm trying to plan a family vacation (6 adults including 1 grandmother who has some physical limitations) in New England. We are in Boston and I was thinking of taking everyone to Cape Cod or Nantucket.

I am trying to decide between staying at a B&B in Nantucket (Century House) or renting a house in Cape Cod. The houses that I like and are available in Cape Cod are in Pocasset and Harwich.

What do you think is better (between Cape Cod and Nantucket)? I initially thought of staying in cape cod but looked into Nantucket primarily because my grandmother cannot do a lot of the "active" things like biking, hiking and swimming. She will primarily be walking around, strolling, browsing stores etc and my feeling was that places like Pocasset and Harwich are much smaller than Nantucket. I know MV is bigger than Nantucket but I thought Nantucket might be a good place to stay because the main area/downtown is pretty concentrated?

I don't want my grandma to be bored on our mini-trip. For the rest of us, we are looking for a place with easy access to great beaches, swimming, kayaking, etc.

Thanks so much!!

You don't mention how long your mini-trip will be? I think that your grandmother could enjoy a few days of strolling around Nantucket town. There are many shops to explore, plus the Whaling Museum to keep her busy. There are also benches to sit in the shade and people watch along Main Street if she needs to rest. She can also take one of the many Island tours to get outside of town and see the rest of the Island. My vote is for Nantucket.

If you're going for a week, I'd opt for renting a house rather than a B&B, so, therefore, I'd choose the Cape. Harwich is a great town and it's close to Chatham and Provincetown, which both have a lot to do (outside of the beaches).

If you'll be there for less time, then Nantucket would work. Nantucket is beautiful, but keep in mind the extra travel costs and the fact that it's overall, a very expensive island.

If you rent you might want to look at the site cyberrentals.com or commonwealthrealty.com (google it at commonwealthrentals cape cod). Harwich does not have much village to walk around in. Harwichport, maybe. Hyannis, P/town, Wellfleet, Chatham, yes.

oops. google it at commonwealthrealty cape cod

Hi sharona555!

I know you mentioned youd ruled out Marthas Vineyard b/c you thought other areas would be more concentrated. The neat thing about MV is that there are several small towns and, depending on how long you plan to stay, you can dedicate a day to each one b/c they all have their own little shops, cute eateries, events, or interesting points. Edgartown (my fav), Aquinnah (cliffs), Oak Bluffs, Chilmark (chocolate), Tisbury. And they are all a very short drive from each other so you can really stay anywhere on the island and easy access to all. Plus, you have Chappaquiddick right at your finger tips as well (Mytoi is lovely).

There is also a ferry you can catch from MV to Nantucket if the urge hits so you can get the both of all worlds if you wanted to!

Of all my travels MV was one of my favs. There is really so much history there. Just a neat, neat place.

Escargot, if she is still around fodors, is a pro in the mass area as a whole and was very helpful when I planned my trip so maybe she will respond along with the other great advice youve gotten from the other helpful folks!

Have fun wherever you guys end up!

I think you'll have a much better time renting the house in Pocasset or Harwich because you'll be able to so much more. You can browse the cute antiques shops on 6A, go for the best ice cream at Four Seas, and walk along Main St. in Hyannis. Nantucket is very isolated and only really worth a day trip.

Hi everyone! Thanks for your responses!! Our trip is only 3 days long.. it sounds like we can't go wrong either way. =)