My day at the Cape starts with something I rarely do — waking up early, in a private two-room suite overlooking the Atlantic ocean to watch the sunrise. I roll out of bed, walk into my expansive living room, start the coffee machine, and pull back the drapes to see a yellow sun begin its ascent over the horizon of blue water. I see a white seagull, flying fast and low, just skimming the ocean’s edge, and hear a bird chirping in reply to the distant caws of other seagulls.
As the ocean wakes up, its waves gently break onto the sandy shore below my second floor hotel suite. Five minutes later, I’m outside on my private deck, in my pajamas, a big mug of coffee in hand, feeling the cool, ocean air on my face. The sun, now fully realized, paints the sky in a spectacular array of light — golden yellows, pinks, oranges, and baby blue.
Later, for lunch, I make my annual run for fried clams at Mac’s Seafood — driving down Route 6 through Wellfleet until I reach the pier overlooking Wellfleet Bay. I order clams and fries at the shack’s take-out window and find a seat at one of the communal picnic benches on the sand overlooking the water.
Cape Cod, Massachusetts hasn’t changed much since I first visited as a kid. Sure, there’s more traffic, but its still a place people come for the simple pleasures: to lie on the beach, swim in the ocean, bike along the National Seashore and eat seafood.
Summer, the most popular time to visit, is when families bring their kids and revisit their own childhood. You can still play mini-golf, or go to the Wellfleet drive-in, and get salt water taffy in Provincetown. So, pack your car, grab a map, and settle into one of these eight Cape Cod hotels on the beach.