1. The Even’Tide Resort Motel And Cottages
City: South Wellfleet, MA
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (508) 349-3410, (800) 368-0007
Address: 650 U.S. Rte. 6
Description: This friendly, family-owned motel is set so far back among the woods that you may feel like you’re vacationing in the middle of a forest—if forests came complete with a 30-by-60-foot indoor pool. All the rooms at this facility come with refrigerators, cable TVs, clock radios, coffeemakers, individual temperature control, and private, ceramic-tiled baths with tubs and showers. The most popular units are the queen-size rooms with their pretty custom-made oak furnishings. Eight cottages, five of them A-frames with woodstoves, are also available, all with decks. An off-site property is also offered by the Even’Tide—a surfside cottage at South Welfleet’s LeCount Hollow Beach. Biking enthusiasts take note: The Cape Cod Rail Trail runs right through the backyard. In addition to an outdoor play area, complete with basketball court and horseshoe pit, guests can entertain themselves at the newly added minigolf course, shuffleboard court, or fitness facility. The Even’Tide is open from May 1 through Nov 1.
2. Mainstay Motor Inn
City: South Wellfleet, MA
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (508) 349-2350, (800) 346-2350
Address: 2068 U.S. Rte. 6
Description: The Mainstay is convenient to everything. Tennis courts are within walking distance, the Cape Cod National Seashore is a scallop shell’s throw away, Wellfleet Harbor’s marina is practically in the front yard, and whale-watching boats in Provincetown are a few miles away. When you’re tired of sightseeing, relax by the Mainstay’s indoor pool, or soak in the Jacuzzi. Each of the 30 rooms here has a king- or queen-size bed or two double beds with a full bath, refrigerator, and outdoor deck. Some rooms are efficiencies with refrigerators and microwave ovens as well, and there is also a three-room cottage available for rent by the week in season. A complimentary continental breakfast is served daily in the coffee room, which also houses the Mainstay’s free lending library. It’s open from Apr through Nov.
3. Russ And Marie’S Marconi Beach Restaurant It-Il-Do Bbq
City: South Wellfleet, MA
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (508) 349-6025
Address: 545 Rte. 6
Description: Russ and Marie’s specializes in southern-style wood-smoked barbecue. The wood-beamed, red-walled interior sets a warm stage for Russ’s “famous” grilled specialties, among them ribs, chicken, pulled pork, chicken, and a full complement of fresh-caught seafood. Or try the raw bar, or one of the hearty home-style pastas (Wellfleet seafood fra diavolo is a special favorite). They serve lunch and dinner from Apr through mid-Nov.
4. Van Rensselaer’S Restaurant &Raw Bar
City: South Wellfleet, MA
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (508) 349-2127
Address: 1019 U.S. Rte. 6
Description: VR’s, as most locals call it, serves wholesome food in a casual setting at reasonable prices. Popular breakfast items include the Homegrown—scrambled eggs with fresh basil and tomato, served with fresh fruit. The dinner menu, enhanced by a terrific salad bar, lists specialties such as mixed seafood grill, seafood linguine, and steak tenderloin au poivre. The menu also includes a number of vegetarian dishes, and there’s a children’s menu too. Van Rensselaer’s is open May 15 through the end of Oct for breakfast and dinner, daily in season, and on weekends in the fall. All items are available for takeout. Early-bird specials are from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., and a new raw bar happy hour runs from 4 to 6 p.m.
5. Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary
City: South Wellfleet, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (508) 349-2615
Address: 291 U.S. Rte. 6
Description: This Outer Cape treasure offers many fascinating programs that let you sample the Cape’s different habitats, from coastal heathlands to meadows, from fresh and saltwater inlets to barrier beaches. Both on-site programs at the sanctuary and off-site programs that include nearby Nauset Marsh and Monomoy Island are offered. Programs include interactive field trips, guided walks, cruises, and informative lectures by Audubon naturalists. You can sign up for an organized program or just come to walk the beautiful trails or the tidal flats at low tide. The sanctuary trails are open 365 days a year from 8 a.m. to dusk (8 p.m. in the summer). The nature center is open daily, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Memorial Day through Columbus Day, and closed Mondays after Columbus Day. Admission is free for Massachusetts Audubon members. The fee for nonmembers is $5 for adults, $3 for kids 3 to 12 and younger and senior citizens, and free for those under 3.
6. Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary (Massachusetts Audubon)
City: South Wellfleet, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (508) 349-2615
Address: 291 Route 6
Description: One of Mass Audubon’s more far-flung reaches, Wellfleet Bay has 5 miles of interconnecting trails that wind through woodlands, salt marsh, and barrier beach dunes. Guided walks and a full slate of programs for kids are offered year-round. The spiffy Platinum LEED-certified nature center is a model of green architecture, utilizing solar panels, composting toilets, and gray-water gardening methods.