Nantucket or Martha's Vineyard
 

Weekend in Cape Cod, spending one day on the Cape and trying to decide to take a day trip to Nantucket or Martha's vineyard. Family of 4, 2 boys 20 and 16. We like sight-seeing/scenery, not much on shopping. With 3 men, food is important.
Is it possible to do both in the same day?

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34521499

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34439391

No, you can't do both in one day/ Martha's Vineyard is closer to the Cape. They have high speed ferries to both and it is worth the extra expense if you are short on time.
MV is bigger with several different "sections" or town within it. Each section , southern, middle and northern has a different feel and look. Maybe you could take a driving tour.
Nantucket is much more quaint. Great restaurants, Whaling Musuem, beaches...It is fun to rent bikes if you have time.
I love Nantucket!
What time of year are you going? Both places are very busy in the summer.
More nightlife on MV.

For a day trip from where you are I would prefer MV. Here is a thread with some info, some that will not apply to you b/c you won't have a car, but some that will, just glancing thru it might give you some ideas.

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34692877

W/out a car you would have two options: the island bus which goes between the towns, a tour bus (say out to aquinnah/gay head) or to rent bikes or mopeds to do it all on your own.

While I spent many summers on Nantucket, and still spend a week there every summer, my preference is MV where we spend more time each year. But as people have said, it is just personal preference.
I love the different areas of the Vineyard, and the sunsets/views/beaches -

You would have to look into 'pretend planning' a visit to both and see which has more for your particular interests. You can't go wrong with either island, they both have wonderful things to offer.

If you go for a day, I would plan on leaving Cape as early as possible and staying as late as possible. Personally, I am not wild about the bus tours, just because I don't tend to like that type of thing, but it is a good way to see the island in little time. I would choose the trolley option if you go this route. If you google Martha's Vineyard Tours, etc - you will find lots of sites describing the various tours.

Should you decide to go the bike/moped option, be aware many places will not rent to you with open toe sandals you must have closed shoes like sneakers or docksiders, etc.

You'll love either one !

Depending on where you are staying on the Cape, it might be much easier to get to one than to the other. For instance if you are staying on the Upper Cape (Falmouth and surrounding area), it is a much shorter trip to Martha's Vineyard than to Nantucket.

This may be heresy, but the day-trip to Martha's Vineyard left me thinking I could have been almost anywhere, taking a coastal bus trip and catching the high-spots.

Nantucket, on the other hand, is another experience. That was pure delight!

That's exactly how I feel. There are many great bars and restaurants. Too bad you can't stay over one night. There are wonderful B&B's there.
Rent a bike if you can. Where are you staying on the Cape (which town)?

Thanks for all the info. It sounds like everyone loves Nantucket! That is the way we are leaning. We will be staying in Hyannis, just for one or two nights. We thought it would be easy for the ferry.

Contrary to what one poster said, Nantucket has much more nightlife.

I prefer the vineyard, but think Nantucket is better for a day trip. It has one large town, whereas the vineyard has several small ones spread out over the island.

And from Hyannis it's equally easy to get to either.

Nantucket is my favorite. We flew there from MV on Cape Air ($40.00 a person) and it only took 15 minutes. After our three day stay in Nantucket (beautiful and quaint), we flew from Nantucket to Boston on Cape Air (think it was $102.00 a person) and it took only 45 minutes. Flying is another option other than the ferries.

I much prefer Nantucket over the Vineyard. Nantucket is much stricter with it's zoning so the homes are all charming, you won't get the occasional modern home that looks so out of place like you see on the Vineyard.

Plus, I just love Nantucket's cobblestoned town. IMO there's no more beautiful town in the entire country.

Do I sound biased? I am, I love Nantucket, it's like heaven on earth.

I loved Nantucket! As soon as we got off the ferry, I felt like we were stepping back in time. It's quaint and charming and very relaxing!
I enjoyed exploring the different areas in Martha's Vineyard, but overall Nantucket did it for me!