Is Cape Cod Child friendly?
 

My husband and I were thinking of going to Cape Cod this summer. We would like to bring our daughter who will be 1 year old at that time....are there any hotels and restaurants that are child friendly? We would like to take the ferry to Martha's Vinyard and to Nantucket, it it a good idea to bring her, or should we leave her with Grandma? <BR>Thanks!!!!

Missy, <BR> <BR>We love the Cape. We've been taking our kids since they were babies. Are you staying long enough to consider renting a cottage for a week? That's what we've always done, so I can't really speak to the "friendliness" of hotels. <BR> <BR>When our daughter was little, we went to Nantucket for a day. Be aware that it's a full day, and that it's not inexpensive. Since that time, we've always thought about it but never done it. Too cheap, I guess. <BR> <BR>If you stay somewhere near the elbow of the Cape, you'd be easily accessible to some great stuff--the National Seashore beaches; the National Seashore hiking trails (our daughter and son did some one-year-old "hiking" on them); the bay side of the Cape, with its low, low tides; the freshwater ponds, which are great splash pools for kids. <BR> <BR>We like the Marshside Restaurant in East Dennis, which isn't touristy and is definitely kid-friendly. There are any number of other places that are great--just stay away from the Hearth and Kettle chain, which we have an unkind name for. <BR> <BR>There are lots of seals in the Chatham area, near Monomoy Island. I keep wanting to do a "seal watch," and perhaps this year we will. Your daughter might be too young, but perhaps not. <BR> <BR>One place for further info is <BR>http://capecodguide.com/ <BR> <BR>I recommend it--we live just north of Boston and thought we might tire of the Cape, but we return year after year. <BR> <BR>Have fun planning. <BR> <BR> <BR>

I mainly agree with the previous post. The Cape with a 1-year-old should be no problem, though I can't comment on how kid-friendly specific hotels are. <BR>Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard with a 1-year-old? Hmmmm. Let's put it this way: There's not much there that will entertain a 1-year-old (but, hey, maybe you'll get lucky and she'll sleep a lot). Could be time to call Grandma.

We stayed in Falmouth(SP?). It was across the street from the ferry to Martha's Vineyard. The rooms were huge with kitchens.It overlooked the marina. We just looked in the CSAA book (for MA)and the pictures were quite clear.

The Cape is as child friendly a place that you can find. Its made for kids. The beaches are great. The beaches on inlets are generally very calm. My parents owned a summer place in Falmouth while we were grewing up and we had the best childhood as a result. My kids love it now. Try going to Heritage Plantation - its a beautiful place to walk around and there's an indoor merry go round (they never make you get off either). Also there's a natural science musuem in Brewster with guided nature walks - we went with 1,2,3,&5 year olds. The 1 needed to be carried for a portion but seemed to like what she saw. Everyone else thought it was great. There are tons of hotels on the Cape but most are the motel type and are of varying quality. The ones on RT 28 are the least expensive and it shows. The Chathams Bars Inn is very nice. Most restaurants are casual too - so don't worry about the baby.

Cape Cod is a great place for kids. My husband went there as a kid, and we now are tryin to make it an annual vacation as well. When I didn't have a child, I went to Nantucket or Martha's Vineyard for a day trip, where we would ride bikes all day. I haven't been there since we had our daughter (now 4), bc/ I think the trip would be too long for just a day. We are trying to figure out where we can stay this yr so that we can be near the beach and the bike trails. If we can't find a place on the cape, we may end up on one of the Islands. But then it would be for the whole time, not just a day. I would definitely leave him/her w/ Grandma for a day trip to the islands.