Karen

I just don't understand all these people who wish to spend long weekends, first sitting in horrid traffic to get to Cape Cod, then shelling out way too much for accomodations that are generally pretty run down, and then battling more crowds as they walk around.
Is there any water-side summer retreat near Boston that is a good alternative? Marblehead? Please help!

capeann

I prefer the "other" cape, Cape Ann. I spend summer weekends in Manchester-By-The Sea. Most of the "action" so to speak on Cape Ann takes place in Gloucester and Rockport-thats where the majority of the lodging establishments/restaurants etc. are. Great restaurants, beaches, and scenery. Yes it's crowded on weekends , but certainly not like Cape Cod. While Cape Cod is a beautiful place and worth visiting, the best time to visit is OFF season IMO.

charles

Martha;s Vineyard & Nantucket

joesorce

Drove through Beverly, Mass last year and it was very nice. There must be some bed & breakfasts in the area?

Wells Beach, about 90 minutes up the coast from Boston, in Maine, is an inviting seaside town. Busy in summer but nothing like Cape Cod

Gene

Well, Karen, since you can't find the Cape Cod Magic I guess you are better off looking for an alternative.

The rest of us will be better off also, with one less car in the horrid traffic and one less person in the crowds.

Where did you stay on the Cape that led you to say "...accomodations that are generally run down"?

As for traffic, you should know better as a local, then to try and head to the cape on a Friday evening or late Saturday morning during the Summer.

bennie

No fan of the Cape here- its great if you own a house on the water but other than that forget it. Try Plum Island, Newburyport Mass - about an hour north of Boston at the mouth of the Merrimac River. Far less crowded, beautiful beach, cottages available to rent - though hotel rooms are small in number. Newburyport has shopping and dining.

rebecca

Well- I'm not sure what you want in vacation but if you head up to Hampton beach you can stay dead cheap and spend your days at Odiorne State Park (Incredible waterfront park) or one of the Rye beaches. It's an hour away and on your way home you can spend detour and spend a few hours in Gloucester, Newburyport or Rockport.

Karen

Karen,
As a local I am happy to steer tourists off to alternatives. I grew up going to the beaches in Rhode Island: Anywhere between Naragansett and Watch Hill. Newport is nice but crowded in the Capish way you seem to dislike. I wouild highly recommend anywhere in South County in Rhode Island. The surf and sand are actually better then the Cape and the crowds and traffic are much less overwhelming.

The North Shore is nice too but the water is c-c-c-cold and personally I feel like I am in a Boston suburb when I am there and not "getting-away"

mare

The best alternative to crowded Cape Cod is Cape Cod in mid-to-late September. The weather is usually priceless and the crowds are long gone.

People who complain about traffic have to realize that when THEY are sitting in traffic, THEY are part of the traffic problem. Just as guilty as everyone else is of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The problem with Cape Cod is that SO MANY PEOPLE all insist on going in July and August.

I hate traffic too, and if I was stuck in it for hours, I probably wouldn't enjoy anything about the rest of my vacation either. Road Rage runs rampant these days, is contagious, and traffic stress is the culprit.