49 Best Sights in Cape Cod, Massachusetts

Truly a breathtaking sight, this is the Cape's oldest lighthouse. The first light on this site, powered by 24 whale-oil lamps, began warning ships of Truro's treacherous sandbars in 1797—the dreaded Peaked Hills Bars, to the north, had claimed hundreds of ships. The current light, a 66-foot tower built in 1857, is powered by two 1,000-watt bulbs reflected by a huge Fresnel lens; its beacon is visible for more than 20 miles.

One of four active lighthouses on the Outer Cape, Highland Light has the distinction of being listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Henry David Thoreau used it as a stopover in his travels across the Cape's backside (as the Atlantic side is called). Twenty-five-minute tours of the lighthouse are given daily in summer; especially grand are the special full-moon tours. Children must be 48 inches tall to enter.

In Main Street's Old Town Hall, this museum explores JFK's Cape years (1934–63) through enlarged and annotated photographs culled from the archives of the JFK Library near Boston, as well as a seven-minute video narrated by Walter Cronkite. Changing exhibits focus on various members of the family at different stages of their life and career. Events include lectures, book signings, a summer author series, and speaking engagements by those with close connections to the family, both past and present. Guided walking tours of Hyannis include stops at ancient cemeteries and public art to reflect on local history. 

This wide, sandy beach has an area set aside for windsurfers and a sheltered area that's good for kids. It's a great spot for watching boats go in and out of the harbor. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: swimming; walking; windsurfing.

On the Atlantic side of the Cape is the site of the first transatlantic wireless station erected on the U.S. mainland. It was from here on January 18, 1903, that Italian radio and wireless-telegraphy pioneer Guglielmo Marconi sent the first American wireless message to Europe: "most cordial greetings and good wishes" from President Theodore Roosevelt to King Edward VII of England. There's a lookout deck that offers a vantage point of both the Atlantic and Cape Cod Bay. Off the parking lot, a 1½-mile trail and boardwalk lead through the Atlantic White Cedar Swamp, one of the most beautiful trails on the seashore; free maps and guides are available at the trailhead. Marconi Beach, south of the Marconi Station on Marconi Beach Road, is one of the National Seashore's lovely ocean beaches.

This town-managed beach—not to be confused with Nauset Light Beach on the National Seashore—is a 10-mile sweep of sandy ocean beach with low dunes and large waves good for bodysurfing or board surfing. Despite its size, the massive parking lot often fills up on sunny days; arrive quite early or in the late afternoon if you want to claim a spot. The beach gets extremely crowded in summer; unless you walk a bit, expect to feel very close to your neighbors on the sand. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: sunrise; surfing; swimming; walking.

Moved 350 feet back from its perch at cliff's edge in 1996, this much-photographed red-and-white lighthouse tops the bluff where the Three Sisters Lighthouses once stood. (The Sisters themselves can be seen in a little landlocked park surrounded by trees; they're reached by paved walkways off Nauset Light Beach's parking lot.) How the lighthouses got there is a long story. In 1838 three brick lighthouses were built 150 feet apart on the bluffs in Eastham overlooking a particularly dangerous area of shoals (shifting underwater sandbars). In 1892, after the eroding cliff dropped the towers into the ocean, they were replaced with three wooden towers. In 1918, two were moved away, as was the third in 1923. Eventually the National Park Service acquired the Three Sisters and brought them together in the inland park, where they would be safe. Lectures on and guided tours of the lighthouses (free, donations accepted) are conducted Sunday early May–October, as well as Wednesday in July and August.

These 1,961 acres were once part of a vast estate belonging to Roland C. Nickerson, son of Samuel Nickerson, a Chatham native who founded the First National Bank of Chicago. Roland and his wife, Addie, lavishly entertained such visitors as President Grover Cleveland at their private beach and hunting lodge in English country-house style, with coachmen dressed in tails and top hats and a bugler announcing carriages entering the front gates. In 1934 Addie donated the land for the state park in memory of Roland and their son, who died during the 1918 flu epidemic.

The park consists of acres of oak, pitch-pine, hemlock, and spruce forest speckled with seven freshwater kettle ponds formed by glaciers. Some ponds are stocked with trout for fishing. You can swim, canoe, sail, and kayak in the ponds, and bicycle along 8 miles of paved trails that connect to the Cape Cod Rail Trail. Bird-watchers seek out the thrushes, wrens, warblers, woodpeckers, finches, larks, cormorants, great blue herons, hawks, owls, and ospreys. Red foxes and white-tailed deer are occasionally spotted in the woods. The over 400 campsites are extremely popular: reservations are necessary.

This imposing lighthouse has spectacular views from its base of the nearby Elizabeth Islands and of Martha's Vineyard, across Vineyard Sound. The 42-foot cast-iron tower, lined with brick, was built in 1876 with a stationary light. It shines red to indicate dangerous waters or white for safe passage. Friends of Nobska Light, a nonprofit group, has been carefully restoring the structure, converting the lighthouse keeper's house into a museum. The grounds are open daily from dawn to dusk for sightseeing, though parking is very limited. Best to arrive by bike along the scenic bike path.

Tours depend on both weather and volunteer availability. Call ahead to inquire.

Here visitors can get a glimpse of the extraordinary scientific marine research that goes on within the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute. Climb inside a replica of Alvin, the submersible that dove thousands of feet deep to explore the wreck of the Titanic. Other exhibits show footage of the rich life at vast depths of the ocean, and how climate change is impacting coral reefs. Scientists give informative lectures on a regular basis in July and August.

This long, beautiful crescent of soft white sand is anchored by the Sea Crest Beach Resort at one end. It's especially good for small children because a sandbar keeps it shallow at the southern end and creates tidal pools full of crabs. Very popular, this beach has its share of crowds on nice, sunny days. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: swimming; walking.

The first thing you'll see in Provincetown is this grandiose edifice, somewhat out of proportion to the rest of the low-rise town. The monument commemorates the Pilgrims' first landing in the New World and their signing of the Mayflower Compact (the first Colonial American rules of self-governance) before they set off to explore the mainland. Climb the 116 steps and 60 short ramps of the 252-foot-high tower for a panoramic view—dunes on one side, harbor on the other, and the entire bay side of Cape Cod beyond. At the tower's base is a museum of Lower Cape and Provincetown history, with exhibits on whaling, shipwrecks, and scrimshaw. There are also arrowheads, tools, and images of the local Native American Wampanoag tribe, the town’s first fire engine, a recreation of a 19th century sea captain’s parlor, a diorama of the Mayflower Compact being signed, and more.

This harbor was the site of a War of 1812 skirmish in which the Orleans militia kept a British warship from docking. In the 19th century Orleans had active saltworks, and a flourishing packet service between Rock Harbor and Boston developed. Today it's the base of charter fishing and party boats in season, as well as a small commercial fishing fleet.

The historic Coast Guard vessel CG36500, featured in the book and film, The Finest Hours and owned by the Orleans Historical Society, is berthed at Rock Harbor each summer. The 36-foot wooden lifeboat, the only operating vessel of its class on the East Coast, can be viewed from the dock; talks and tours are sometimes scheduled. Sunsets over the harbor are spectacular, and it's a great place to watch the boats float past. Parking is free.

Fronting the harbor, the magnificently adorned Church of the Transfiguration incorporates mosaics, frescoes, sculpted bronze, wood, stone, and glass to illustrate acts of God from Genesis to Revelation. Constructed of limestone, with a massive bell tower, the church is an architectural masterpiece. The church is typically open for tours (free) daily except Wednesday, when it closes for services. 

Shimmering glass was manufactured here nearly two centuries ago, and the Sandwich Glass Museum shows you what the factory looked like in its heyday. There's an "ingredient room" showcasing a wide spectrum of glass colors, along with the minerals added to the sand to obtain them, and an outstanding collection of blown and pressed glass in many shapes and hues. Large lamps, vases, and pitchers are impressive, as are the hundreds of candlesticks on display. There are glassblowing demonstrations daily on the hour from 10 to 4. The extensive gift shop sells some handsome reproductions, including many made by local and national artisans. The glass museum is part of the Sandwich Historical Society.

Sandy Neck Beach stretches some 6 miles across a peninsula that ends at Sandy Neck Light. The beach is one of the Cape's most beautiful—dunes, sand, and bay spread endlessly east, west, and north. The marsh used to be harvested for salt hay; now it's a haven for birds, which are out and about in the greatest numbers in morning and evening. The lighthouse, standing a few feet from the eroding shoreline at the tip of the neck, has been out of commission since 1952. It was built in 1857 to replace an 1827 light, and it used to run on acetylene gas. As you travel east along Route 6A from Sandwich, Sandy Neck Road is just before the Barnstable line, although the beach itself is in West Barnstable. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: sunset; swimming; walking.

On a clear day, you'll have unbeatable views of Scargo Lake, Dennis Village's scattered houses below, Cape Cod Bay, and distant Provincetown from the top of this tower. A wooden tower built on this site in 1874 was one of the Cape's first tourist attractions; visitors would pay a nickel to climb to the top for the views. That tower burned down, and the present all-stone 30-foot tower was built in 1901 to replace it. Winding stairs bring you to the top; don't forget to read the unsightly but amusing graffiti on the way up. Expect crowds at sunrise and sunset.

On Cape Cod Bay, Skaket Beach is a sandy stretch with calm, warm water good for children. When the tide is out, you can walk seemingly endlessly on the sandy flats. The parking lot fills up fast on hot July and August days; try to arrive before 10 or after 2. The many tide pools make this a favorite spot for families. Sunsets here draw a good crowd. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets. Best for: sunset; swimming; walking.

Encompassing 3,000 acres of estuaries, woodlands, salt marshes, and barrier beaches, this research reserve is a good place for walking, fishing, and birding. In July and August, there are nature programs for families, including an outdoor lecture series on Tuesday evening. On the grounds, check out the Wampanoag wetu (summer dwelling); indoors, a Discovery Room offers nature exhibits for kids. South Cape Beach State Park is part of the reserve; you can lie out on the sand or join one of the interpretive walks. Flat Pond Trail runs through several different habitats, including fresh- and saltwater marshes. You can reach Washburn Island on your own by boat; it offers 330 acres of pine barrens and trails, and swimming.

For information about restricted beaches, call the Wellfleet Beach Sticker Office. You can also purchase weekly or seasonal stickers here if you are renting a house in town (you'll need a proof-of-stay form).

This is one of the best beaches on the south shore (Nantucket Sound), with the crowds to prove it. A breakwater was started here in 1837 in an effort to protect the mouth of Bass River, but that was abandoned when a sandbar formed on the shore side. It's a long, wide, and popular sandy beach, stretching for 1½ miles, with marshland and the Bass River across from it. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); toilets. Best for: swimming; walking; windsurfing.