Going to Cape Cod later this week and weekend for business meeting..have a few hours to myself..what/where is the one most important place on the Cape to see or do???

With just a few hours, where on the cape is your business being conducted?

Hyannis

If it's a nice day, the National Seashore. Probably either Nauset Light or Marconi beach, depending on where you are. The miles of unspoiled sand dunes and beach are breathtaking.

If you have the time, call one of the Dune Tour companies in Provincetown, and go out to ther Provincelands, viewing the dune shacks that still house artists and writers who have been chosen to work there. If yhour here on a weekend, drive along Ocean View Drive in Wellfleet, and at White Crest Beach, on the Atlantic, you will see the kite surfers riding the waves, as well as the wind riders catching the thermals off the cliffs(dunes).
Visit the Chatham fish pier, view the lighthouse, rent a bike and bike the rail trail, rent a kayak and paddle the ponds in any of the towns, visit the National Seashore Visitors center in Eastham, and walk to the Old Coast Guard Station at Coast Guard Beach. Afraid you'll have to stay a bit longer to be able to enjoy all these things!

Sorry, forgot to add get out of Hyannis, if you can- if not, take a tour of the harbour, I believe they still go past the Kennedy compound. You'll get a bit of a feel of the Cape on the water, but not in Hyannis itself. nIt really is just another small city.

Take a drive down RT6a - its very quaint.

I agree with Zootsi....with just a few hours to escape Hyannis (and I suspect you've never been to CC), I would head straight for the National Seashore. Maybe Marconi Beach. The sand dunes are incredible.

Then I'd follow Bennie's advice and drive Rt. 6A on the way back.

If Im correct in thinking you have time .....DO go to Nantucket for the day or even a few hours.Not sure where you are from ..but Nantcket is like no where you have ever been .While in hyannis if you like Mexican OR Southwest traditional foods DO go to Sam Diegos .Nice southwest atmosphere and great food

FOUR SEAS ICE CREAM!

Here is what I would do with just a few hours in Hyannis:

Get down to Kalmus Beach/Park at the end of Ocean Street. Take a stroll around then move up Ocean to walk along the Korean War park and Kennedy Memorial.

Move along to the Ocean Street Docks park then go to the Kennedy Museum on Main Street.

Go to Wood's hole. Check out the lighthouse then take the ferry to Martha's vineyard. Have a nice time . From Belgium. Paul

capecodshanty - Why "get out of Hyannis"? I was actually thinking about renting a house there for a week this summer for our whole family. We have a grown daughter and her husband, their two children (2 and 10 months), and two teenagers (18 and 14). I thought that a house within walking distance to the beach and the shops in town would be perfect for us. Could you recommend another place on the Cape? The only other time we've been up there, we stayed at New Seabury. I would appreciate your input. Thanks.

Can't speak for capecodshanty but Hyannis is generally the most suburban of the villages on the Cape. It doesn't have the same small town feel as Chatham or even Falmouth because of the malls and prevalence of chain restaurants. But it does have a nice harbor area, and mini golf and movies. The further out on the Cape you go the better the beaches tend to be.

I agree with capeshanty, zootsi and others in that, you really need to go up to the elbow of the Cape (look at a map)to start to see the more natural and expansive parts of the Cape. That's basically beyond Chatham up to P-Town as stated. There are other pockets of beautiful things, beaches, historical villages, resturants and shops closer to Hyannis if your time is limited. How much time do you actually have, will it be during the day and are you more interested in quite outdoor locations or is activity ok?
Enjoy!
Sherry

p.s. just looked at joewilly's dates which means my message to him was quite after the fact and irevellant. I wonder where he went or if indeed he had time to venture out.
S

TexasJill, it is hard to get a house that is a walk to beach and also the town. The only place I can think of would be the Kalmus Beach area. That's at least a mile to town maybe more like two. Hyannis is a city and you would miss a lot of the flavor of the Cape. It is central if you want to do day trips (Martha Vineyard, Nanucket, Woods Hole, Heritage Plantation in Sandwich).

The Outer Cape (starts with Eastham) has the National Seashore and is beautiful. The bay beaches are warm and perfect for small children. Teens love the Ocean beaches. Lovely shops and galleries in Orleans and Wellfleet. What kind of vacation are you looking for? We can help!

Hello Texas Jill,
We have a place in N.Truro down the Cape that we rent out. We're on a bayside beach and when the tide is out you can walk up to P-town, walk around, have lunch at one of the many outdoor resturants, check out the shops and then take the trolley which runs often back to the cottage. Opposite the bayside of the penisula is National Seashore which has as others stated, endless beautiful ocean beaches. You'll also find great bike and hike trails, good kayaking, lot's of childrens activities, ferry's to Boston, whale watching and more. The town before Truro is Wellfleet which is a great walk around town - got to drive to get there. There's also a flea market and a drive in as well. We use cyberentals.com. If your thinking of booking, check the site out soon as our end of the Cape is already booking for next year. I'm sure you'll find a cottage/house to suit your needs.
Best of luck;
Sherry

Not sure where you are from, but we took the boat tour at Cape Cod years ago--I didn't understand a single word the tour guide said (it was my first trip to Boston) but it was nice being on the water and get a feel of Cape Cod. The elderly lady sitting behind me didn't undestand a word either so I didn't feel so left out.

We are from Fort Worth, Texas. Cybor and gomiki, we are planning to stay one week. The guys will want to play golf a couple of times; we did a whale watching trip out of P-town last time and I think most will want to do that again; we like shopping and eating. I wanted a place where my daughter and I would be comfortable when stuck at home with the kids at nap time and a place close enough to shopping and stuff that the teenagers won't get bored. We'd like to go over to Nantucket and/or Martha's Vineyard and want to find Four Seas Ice Cream again. I just said close to the beach because I like to look at the water, but I don't really anticipate spending that much time there. We are used to 80 degree water and the ocean up there is just too cold! I would greatly appreciate any help you can give me. Thank you!