Need advice for New England beach vacation

[magicalfoursome]

I am trying to plan a 4-5 night getaway to New England. I live in Pa and I have never been north. I seem to always head south to visit the mouse! I am looking for a quaint New England town with a beach. Martha's Vineyard looks gorgeous but very expensive. I will be traveling with DH, DD17, DS14 and DD's friend 18yrs. Any advice on where to go? Thanks!

 

[CAGirl]

I am not really sure how the beaches are but some that you can research are Mystic, CT (also nearby Ocean Beach, Rocky Neck State Park)
Misquamicut, RI
Newport, RI

Mystic is quaint and central to either RI beaches or CT beaches...so you could stay in Mystic and make day trips to a different beach daily.

 

[ChickieToo]

I live in Connecticut, in a shore town. We are boaters and swim off the boat, and use the beaches all summer long. The water is great. Clean and pretty warm by August. However, it is Long Island Sound, not the open ocean, so there isn't really any wave action on the beaches.

For a real beach vacation I would go further north. Rhode island beaches are great: Misquamicut is a little "honky tonk", but great fun. Watch Hill is beautiful and more upscale. Narragansett has a couple of great beaches, and of course Newport has beaches, mansions, the wharfs, and loads of shops and special events. Massachusettes has the Cape which has a lot of different areas with different styles and you can be as relaxed or busy as you want. For the Cape, I like Chatham, Orleans and Truro.

We go to Maine every year, and the water is cold, but it is gorgeous. We frequent a place called Popham Beach. We also go to Ogunquit and York which are a little further south than Popham. While we are on our way to Maine we also stop at Hampton Beach in New Hampshire. Again, a little honky tonk, but lots of food stalls and souvenier shops. Kids love it.

Figure out what type of beach vacation you want, look up some beaches and find a match. Now that I think about it, you are coming from Pennsylvania, so maybe you don't want too long a drive, so hitting some of the Connecticut beaches may work best for you. Again, lots of options all along the coast. There is a resort in in Westbrook called The Water's Edge, that has it's own beach, restaurants, and it is very close to other resort areas like Mystic, and Stonington which has a very nice, quaint village with lots of restaurants and shops.

Again, there are a lot of options, so do some research to mat h some where that suits your taste. Good luck!

 

[pat fan]

We used to go to York, Maine all the time when our kids were younger. the beaches are great and it's not far from Kittery, Ogunquit etc...

In Ma. there is Hampton Beach (I don't care for it)and Salisbury. Remember the water here is C-O-L-D!!!!! No more than 30 seconds is bearable, IMO.

 

[tekoa]

We used to go to York, Maine all the time when our kids were younger. the beaches are great and it's not far from Kittery, Ogunquit etc...

In Ma. there is Hampton Beach (I don't care for it)and Salisbury. Remember the water here is C-O-L-D!!!!! No more than 30 seconds is bearable, IMO.

Hampton Beach is actually in New Hampshire, but right over the Massachusetts border.

I would suggest Cape Cod for many great beaches.

 

[magicalfoursome]

Thank you for all the great suggestions! I have a lot of research to do. Lots of pretty coastal towns to pick fom!

 

[pumba]

Come to Maine and stay at some of the hotels on the ocean OLD ORCHARD BEACH...very active area and wonderful sandy miles and miles of beach..

 

[luvmy3]

There is no other New England beach vacation other than The Cape for me. I have been to others along the coast but there is just something about Cape Cod that I love. It is very crowded, so we like to stay in the Welfleet/Truro area.

 

[kelleigh1]

We used to go to York, Maine all the time when our kids were younger. the beaches are great and it's not far from Kittery, Ogunquit etc...

We spent our anniversary weekend (June) in Ogunquit, ME. We had been there for the day before and decided to go back for the weekend. We loved it. We didn't spend a lot of time on the beach because June in Maine - the water is still pretty chilly. It's such a beautiful area and the beaches were more than we'd expected. We stayed at this great Inn (the Gazebo Inn) and could walk to the beach. We did walk along the beach, but didn't go in the water, but we did see some people swimming.

There are so many great beaches along the New England coast, from CT all the way up to Maine. Good luck with deciding.

 

[dakcp2001]

I grew up in Massachusetts and while you can never go wrong with Cape Cod for the beaches, my heart belongs in Maine. Maine has a lot more personality. I love the beaches, the quaint little shops, the friendly people. I used to go to York Beach and old Orchard Beach but there are so many beautiful places to go. I think Cape Cod has gotten a little too pricey and has a different kind of crowd. But both have beautiful beaches and you will have a lot of fun. If you can get a good deal for the Cape, take it, otherwise go to Maine.

 

[Desnik]

Newport, RI!!! It has become our favorite vacation spot (2nd to Disney of course )

 

[RadioFanatic]

We spent our anniversary weekend (June) in Ogunquit, ME. We had been there for the day before and decided to go back for the weekend. We loved it. We didn't spend a lot of time on the beach because June in Maine - the water is still pretty chilly. It's such a beautiful area and the beaches were more than we'd expected. We stayed at this great Inn (the Gazebo Inn) and could walk to the beach. We did walk along the beach, but didn't go in the water, but we did see some people swimming.

There are so many great beaches along the New England coast, from CT all the way up to Maine. Good luck with deciding.

I totally agree with Ogunquit - I went there in october for the first time and really fell in love with the place. the views are stunning, food great and just an all around great place.

 

[leebee]

It's making me smile to read so many positive things about Maine, and especially York . Thanks, everyone!

We spent every summer in York Beach, as my grandfather owned a cottage there. If you are looking for a great beach, try to stay on Long Sands Beach in York. It's about 2 miles of white sand beach on the open Atlantic shore. There's scenic Nubble Light at one end, and you can look out across the ocean to Boone Island and the Isles of Shoals (NH). There are many hotels right across the street from the beach... we used to rent cottages at a place called Sea Latch, where you'd walk from your cottage, across Rt 1A and onto the sand. Deluxe, and wonderful sunrises! Downtown York Beach is a little honky-tonk, but there are lots of gift stores, a couple of good places to eat, a bowling alley and games arcade, The Goldenrod (salt water taffy!!), and York's Wild Kingdom (amusement park, zoo-ish park). Just north of York (15 minute drive) is Ogunquit, with quaint shops, great art galleries, and the Ogunquit Playhouse, if you are interested in a little theater. York itself is an historic town, founded in 1624, with several restored colonial homes to visit and (I think) a haunted cemetery walking tour.. and is the home of Stonewall Kitchen. Just south of York is Kittery, home of the endless outlet mall, and south of that (maybe 10 minute drive) is Portsmouth, NH, a lovely little city with a LOT of history and culture, great restaurants, quaint bars, outdoor theater, etc.

This is a great place to vacation... if you are lay-on-the-beach types, you can do that all day, or you can shop, sightsee, tour, etc. There's something for everyone, and in August, the Atlantic Ocean is even tolerable!!

 

[Lynn CC]

Come to the Cape...there is so much to do here!
http://www.capecodonline.com/

there are so many places to stay here is a link if it's going to be a once in a lifetime visit this way this place is right on the beach! http://www.chathambarsinn.com/accommodations

If that is too expensive there are so many places to choose from.
Let me know if you have any questions I'd be happy to answer them for you if you decide to come visit!!!

 

[Sweettears]

I grew up in Massachusetts and while you can never go wrong with Cape Cod for the beaches, my heart belongs in Maine. Maine has a lot more personality. I love the beaches, the quaint little shops, the friendly people. I used to go to York Beach and old Orchard Beach but there are so many beautiful places to go. I think Cape Cod has gotten a little too pricey and has a different kind of crowd. But both have beautiful beaches and you will have a lot of fun. If you can get a good deal for the Cape, take it, otherwise go to Maine.

What makes you say that? Because everyone there in the summer is from Jersey or NY?

Spent lots of summers on the cape. There are accomodations at every price level. Depending on the type of vacation you prefer I'd go to South Dennis, Harwich or Chatham. The water on the south side of the cape is the warmest. Always perfect for swimming in the summer.

 

[PatriciaH]

Rockport, MA and Newburyport, MA are nice and close to a lot of other towns and Boston.

 

[luvflorida]

Come to Maine and stay at some of the hotels on the ocean OLD ORCHARD BEACH...very active area and wonderful sandy miles and miles of beach..

There are many beaches in Maine, but Old Orchard Beach probably has the longest, widest and least rocky stretch of sand. From Pine Point to Ocean Park, you'll find miles of beautiful sand and ocean. The whole area has a very casual, laid-back feel to it. There aren't many chain hotels/motels, but there are lots of locally run motels, cottages and cabins, most right on the beach or within a very short walking distance.

There are many new condos closer to the downtown/Main steet area, which is also the most crowded area on the beach in the summer. Travel just a bit away from the downtown area, and it's much less crowded.

If you're looking for a beautiful, wide, sandy beach, and not looking for fancy restaurants or shops, then I highly recommend OOB!

 

[pat fan]

Hampton Beach is actually in New Hampshire, but right over the Massachusetts border.

Right. But like I said, I don't like it, so I guess I don't pay attention to the pesky details of where it is!

Everyone has their likes, but I can't stand the Cape. We went once for our anniversary because everyone raves about it and we were very disappointed. But maybe we just don't "get" it since so many other people like it. I still vote for Maine

 

[luvsmickeymouse]

Westport, Massachusetts for Horseneck beach. About an hour from Cape Cod.

 

[rockydek]

Ogunquit Maine!