We are coming mid August for 5-6 nights. Yes, I have found some openings at B&B's and some lovley Inns. Went crazy looking at rental places. Got a reservation at Whale Walk. My concern is not the town, as we want the upper to mid cape,but how close we can get to a nice beach. Our first desire is to be within a very short walk or even beach front. Any one heard or stayed at WW or Bay Beach in Sanwich or Ships Knee Inn ?Or PLEASE any other lodgings that would fit our hopes. Lovely beach for sunning and walking, non touristy area, quaint and quiet.few steps or none to get to the beach and hopefully not a rocky beach. Thank you

Do you mean the Whale Walk Inn in Eastham? This is lovely but not a walk to a beach. Well maybe 1/2 a mile to Boatmeadow Beach. I am not familiar with the Sandwich location. If you mean Ship Knees in Orleans that would be a walk to Nauset Beach. Closer than Whale Walk.

Chatham Bars Inn is what you want but it is very pricey. www.chathambarsinn.com

There are some B&B's in Harwichport that are pretty close to the beach but I don't know the names of those. Maybe google that.

It sounds like you want the outer cape with its broad expanses of National Seashore beaches. If that is accurate, then Eastham, where the Whalewalk Inn is located is a good choice. But you will not find any B+B lodging in Eastham on the ocean beach side because that is protected by the National Seashore. Well actually our favorite B+B (Fort Hill B+B) is on the ocean side and overlooks Nauset Marsh and Coast Guard Beach but it's on the land side of the marsh so, although you can walk to the waters edge walk through the Fort Hill Area, it is not a walk to the big beach that I presume you mean. You can see the beach from Fort Hill but unless you have a boat, you will have to bike or drive there.
If you are content with a lovely old inn in a quiet neighborhood on the bay side, biking or short drive distance form the beach...then the Whalewalk is the place for you. They have a very good reputation and the innkeepers have been there for quite a long time.
The Ships Knees, in East Orleans, is a bit more casual than the Whalewalk and gives you access to Nauset Beach, a town-run beach that is part of the great outer beach system. From my point of view, price is probably the determining factor in choosing between these two places.

Thank you. Sorry I knew the Whale Walk was in Easthmen. I called the Fort Hill and they were booked. The beach you mentioned near the WWis it a nice good walking beach and i hope not too crowded?.

Well, I hate to say this but it is not a good walking beach. It's quite small and the tidal marsh is to the right of it. So no walking. If you drive up (a mile or so) to First Encounter you can walk for 5 miles on the beach. You need a parking permit ($50 per week)or $15 per day. You can park on any of the beaches or ponds with the permit.

Thanks again. Now one more ?on a B&B or Inn?Any other suggestions .? The 2 posts so far sound very firmilar with the Cape.We still have some days to cancel without losing our reservation & down payment at the Whale Walk.We would be more than willing for the cost the Whale Walk is to rent a place ,but to be honest the web sites for rentals are so long .Also this late its slim pickings.A important concern is driving and parking. Or should we not be concerened in that area of mid and upper Cape?

We have stayed several times at the Inn at Duck Creeke in Wellfleet & highly recommend it. Wonderful place for the price. It is not within walking distance of a beach, though. It is a 2-3 minutes drive from Mayo Beach & 10 - 20 minutes from Head of Meadow Beach, Race Point Beach & Herring Cove Beach on the National Seashore, where you can walk for miles & miles. It is even closer to Cahoon Hollow & Marconi Beach. It is in lower cape but I think that is the more desirable part of the Cape. You could also go to First Encounter Beach from there.

Last week we stopped at Little Inn on Pleasant Bay to see some rooms & check out prices. It is in Orleans, close to Chatham line, & is absolutely GORGEOUS!!! Pricier than Inn at Duck Creeke but worth the splurge, I think, with a full European breakfast buffet.

Seadar Inn in Harwichport is across the street from Bank St. Beach. Nice cozy, somewhat rustic place to stay. Reasonable prices.

Good luck!

Thank you. The Little Inn on P Bay was full. We do like the Outer and Mid cape. I hope this is right. Some sites name these areas differently.So we are looking at Weelfleet, Eastham, Orleans ect.

You've been given very accurate and good advice on WW, Inn at Little Pleasant Bay, Boatmeadow beach, etc. My post is simply meant to give you some other ideas.

First, be sure you recognize that there is quite a big difference between the Atlantic Ocean beaches and the bay beaches. The Atlantic, while spectacular and great for sunning and walking can be very cold (was 57 degrees when we went to Nauset in early July). August will be warmer but most people can't stay in too long. The bayside beaches are much warmer as the tide goes in and out VERY far. And it's calmer if you have young children.

Have you tried www.weneedavacation.com? That's the website we use to advertise our house (which isn't available) and I find it very user friendly.

I would add Brewster to your towns to consider. Quaint, bay beaches only, access to the bike trail (which you also have in Wellfleet, Orleans and Eastham), cute shops. One thought is to consider Ocean Edge resort. Not as "quaint" as WW (which looks lovely) but with more amenities.

Most of your rentals and/or inns will require you to use your car....so be flexible about the walk to the beach part.

The Ship's Knee Inn is in a great location.It's an easy 1/4 mile walk to Nauset Beach, which is in my opinion one of the best beaches on the Cape. The beach is great for walking. I've never seen the rooms at the Ships Knee, but the outdoor pool looks nice.

I've stayed at the Ships Knees a couple times. It's actually much bigger than it looks from the front and has quite an assortment of rooms.

The front 2 room on the street on the bottom floor IMHO are the best. They have a/c, private baths and are fairly spacious.

The 2nd floor is very tight with sloped ceilings (thus the cute name 'ships knees' which I found out the hard way meant the sloped ceilings of the ship) most have shared baths.

My DH actually had to slither out of the bed to get in and out - made for a lot of laughs. The sloped non-ventilated shared BR truly weren't fun though.

The newer rooms in the back are ok but I can't remember if they have shared baths.
The breakfast is self served continental and ok. The pool is decent. As said, you can walk down to the Nauset beach which is nice.

There's a few restuarants and shops fairly close by but not much else.
It's one place you may be able to get into at this late stage.

As for your request for quieter less touristy areas, you'll generally find more of that at the outercape, as mentioned.

Thank you all for the info. So far we will stay at the Whale Walk in Eastham any one who has stayed there Id love some feed back. We still have a few days to cancel. Also Regional Theatre on the Cape not cutsy musicals. Looks like there are some unique acting troops. Any suggestions? Favorite Galleries & fun Antique stores? Around 8/22 how early should one get to a Beach they need to park at?.

On Saturday evenings, during the summer, Wellfleet has an art gallery walk around. All are open, and most serve wine and goodies, as you stroll the village, and walk down Bank St. to Commercial St. and the pier.
Dinner afterward on the lawn of the Winslow Tavern is fun, or you might want to make a reservation at The Wicked Oyster- both in the village.
There is a great little gift shop on Holbrook Ave. that has many neat items made my local craftspeople. That is near the pier.
WHAT-Wellfleet Harbor Actor's theatre has two venues- avantgarde, and some cutting edge. Right now Moliere's comedy School for Wives is playing Sunday and Monday, with the Hunter Gatherers during the week, at their new theatre on Rt.6.
I would suggest you pick up either The Cape Cod Times, or the Provencetown Banner when you arrive- much to do!
Bay side no problem parking. If you are in Eastham,the National Seashore beaches on the backshore (oceanside) fill up quickly. You want to go to the backshore at low tide. Ask your Inn for a tide chart.
Whale Walk is lovely. I have toured it, and have had friends stay.

Capecodshanty has given you perfect advice for all of your questions.

I will only add two restaurant suggestions in Orleans (town adjacent to Eastham): Abba and The Beacon Room. Abba is VERY popular so go ahead and reserve now (small, intimate restaurant with Mediterranean cuisine). The Beacon Room has call ahead service (30 minutes before you want to go in).

Enjoy~

P.S. Nauset Beach (in Orleans and not part of the National Seashore but still beautiful) has a huge parking lot so you needn't get there any earlier than 12 noon.

Everyone thank you!!. Since all the posts have been so helpful,here is another question. WE are thinking of staying in Boston 2 nights before heading to the Cape. Coming from Cleveland area. With so much at the Cape would going to the Cape first for the 5 days and if we want to stay finding a place for 2 nights and either skip Boston this time or do it on our way back?I know its all in personal tastes,but just asking. Living where we do ,the ocean and the beach et is heaven. It is a renewal of the spirit.

Hello again.If we spend our first 5 nights in Easthman at the Whale Walk and we decide to stay 2-3 more nights what town ? it would be 8/27.Dont things wind down a bit?

Things are definitely going to start winding down in terms of occupancy rates if you are going at the end of this month. So you will probably have some flexibility in getting a room.

You might want to consider a trip over to Martha's Vineyard or Nantucket for a different slice of the Cape or to the Falmouth area for the same reason. With 5 days on the Lower Cape, you will have time to visit many of the key locations. Personally, I would just add my two days to Whale Walk (if your budget allows) and have an even more leisurely pace during your stay. But if weather becomes an issue (the Cape is fine for a couple days of rain but not much more), you might want to get back to the Boston area and visit our museums.

Thanks. Does anyone else have any ideas were to spend the last 2 nights if we can find a place? How is the Brewster or Sandwih area compare to where we will be staying our first part?Or what other town to get a diferent taste, but not the real busy minature golf areas.(nothing against MG)Always like to hear about local true Mass.shops & resturants,sights et.

Well, you have received plenty of good advice but I would like to throw in the Commodore in W. Harwich which is 30 seconds from the beach and Alyce's Dunscroft which is one minute from their own beach

dear Sobster I cant find much information about the Commodore? What do you or anyone about this place?. Thanks