2025 Cape Cod

Day 1 – Saturday, September 6

The tour will begin and end in Providence, Rhode Island. We will have a welcome dinner at our hotel this evening.

Day 2 - Sunday, Sept 7

Today we’ll go on a whale watch from Barnstable on Cape Cod. We’ll get a close view of Sandy Neck Light, and professional naturalists will be on board our comfortable boat to tell us about the magnificent whales and other wildlife. We will then head to Chatham Light, which will be opened for us by the Coast Guard. This is the first of three nights at a hotel in Hyannis.

Day 3 - Monday, Sept 8

We’ll take a ferry to Martha’s Vineyard, where we will board a sightseeing bus for a tour of the island. We will stop at West Chop Light, East Chop Light (tower open), Gay Head Light (tower open), and Edgartown Light (tower open - requires a quarter mile walk on a sandy trail), all of which will be opened for climbing. We will also have a stop at the Martha’s Vineyard Museum for a close view of the incredible first-order Fresnel lens from Gay Head. After dinner at Oak Bluffs on the island, we will take the ferry back and return to our hotel for the night. Second of three nights at a hotel in Hyannis.

Day 4 - Tuesday, Sept 9

Today we travel by ferry to the island of Nantucket, which once was the whaling capital of the world. There will be free time in the downtown area and the option of visiting the Nantucket Whaling Museum. A centerpiece of the museum is a second-order Fresnel lens from Sankaty Head Light. Lunch will be on your own. We will then board a bus for a sightseeing tour of the island. We will stop at quaint Brant Point Light (short walk on a sandy beach), as well as Sankaty Head Light (tower open) in the village of Sconset. We’ll stop at the Nantucket Shipwreck and Life Saving Museum to see a third-order Fresnel lens from Great Point Light. We’ll have dinner on Nantucket and then head back to the mainland and our last night at the hotel in Hyannis.

Day 5 - Wednesday, Sept 10

This morning we will head to the Lighthouse Inn, originally established as the Bass River Light, for a photo and passport stamp opportunity. We’ll stop at the Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham, where the Fresnel lens from Nauset Light is on display. We’ll continue a short distance to Nauset Light (tower and keeper’s house will be opened for us) and the Three Sisters – the only place in the country where three lighthouses were established in one location. Next is Highland Light, the oldest light station on Cape Cod. We will also visit the Old Harbor Lifesaving Station out on the dunes, and we’ll have dinner at the Lobster Pot restaurant in Provincetown. We’ll check into a hotel in Provincetown for the first of two nights.

Day 6 - Thursday, Sept 11

We will have a special visit via four-wheel drive vehicles across the beach to Race Point Light (tower open), a spectacular location with beautifully restored buildings. Humpback whales are frequently seen from shore here. We’ll have an afternoon sail to view the Long Point and Wood End lights. There there will be free time for strolling down Commercial Street in charming Provincetown, with dinner on your own. We’ll have one more night at our hotel in Provincetown.

Day 7- Friday, Sept 12

We will leave our hotel in Provincetown and head to Nobska Point Light (tower open) in Falmouth, with a new museum in the keeper’s house. We’ll continue to Wings Neck Light (tower open) in Pocasset, a location that’s usually off limits to the public. The next stop is Neds Point Light (tower open) in the town of Mattapoisett. We’ll then be boarding a boat for a short ride to Pomham Rocks Light (tower open) in East Providence, RI – another beautifully restored light station with a museum in the former keeper’s quarters. Then it’s back to our hotel in Providence for our farewell dinner.

Day 8 - Saturday, Sept 13

Breakfast and flights home.