Magical Martha's Vineyard

A June 1999 trip to Marthas Vineyard by cr008k

Magical Martha's Vineyard.

  • 2 reviews
Martha's Vineyard is a magical Island broken up into several small towns, each with its own separate feel and its own separate attractions and things that make it special. The whole island itself is kind of small, and has a real community feeling. The people are friendly and willing to give you lots of advice on good places to go to eat and to stay. I'd recommend you stay in Aquinnah because it has the most beautiful views of any part of the Island- the red bluffs are magnificent at sunrise. Visit the other towns though- Edgartown has amazing shopping and is the best place to get a great (albeit fancy and somewhat expensive meal).

Martha's Vineyard is, of course, an Island so you can get your fill of water activities—jetskiing, sailing, or you can go clamming (you might not find a whole lot of clams but it is still fun). The waves are not typically very high so it's a good place to swim or sit on the beach and have a leisurely afternoon.

Of course, make sure you go in the summer—this is Massachusetts so it gets very cold in the winter and most of the tourist stuff is closed. The busy season is memorial day through September, so this is the time to go (although earlier or later in the summer might be less crowded for you if you want a quieter time).

Quick Tips:

Everyone is very friendly and nice to the tourists (tourism is one of the main sources of income on the island. The best way to figure out what to do and what to see is to ask the locals. Also, stay in a bed and breakfast if you are only going for a brief time. It's much quainter and nicer than a hotel and you'll get a much better feel of the hominess of the island. You can also rent houses by the week or for the summer if you want to—this can be great because people will want to visit you there if you rent a house, since Martha's Vineyard is such a well known and wonderful place to visit.

The island is, in general, a casual place although if you go into Edgartown be prepared to dress up a little more and spend a little more money.

Best Way To Get Around:

You cannot bring your car unless you bring it on the fairy, which is kind of expensive—so if you plan to do this make sure you plan ahead and make arrangements and find out the cost. I'd recommend not doing this though—you will spend a lot of time sitting in traffic.

There's pretty good public transportation—you can buy a bus pass for like and take the bus all day.

The best way to get around by far, though is biking—it's a small enough island that you can get almost anywhere by bike and its a really great way to experience the island and enjoy the outdoors. You can rent bikes there, or bring your own if you want to (although if you fly in, might be hard to bring your bike on the airplane).

Colonial InnBest of IgoUgo

Hotel

This hotel was one of the nicer ones I have ever stayed at. We wanted a really cute little homey type place to stay in because I wanted to have a cozy, comfortable, and relaxing experience during my time at Martha's Vineyard. The Colonial Inn was recommended to us by a friend of a friend and so we decided to take a chance and stay there. I wasn't able to find any kind of discount rate on this hotel through any of the online websites that I looked at so I simply called the telephone number that I found and was able to book the room over the phone. There were no AAA discounts or any other sort of discounts really. The price was a bit expensive therefore. It wasn't ridiculous and for the experience that you are getting here I think it is worth the money.

The hotel itself was mid-sized and very, very nice. It was a pretty building outside and the common areas were nice and clean and well decorated and had some nice detailing to them. We did not have to wait long to check in or to check out and the people who were working behind the counter were super nice and friendly and offered us some advice and information without us having to ask (it was nice though they weren't trying to sell anything, just trying to be welcoming and helpful).

The rooms were beautiful. They were good sized and the beds were very comfortable. The decoration was nice, the closets and dressers provided ample space. The bedding was warm. Everything seemed very clean and well decorated and like great care had been put into getting the room ready for us. The housekeeping staff also did a meticulous job and we had nice clean towels and freshly made beds.

The location was convenient to everything we wanted and needed to see. There was parking at the hotel so if you rent a car you can drive. The hotel did offer a nice light breakfast which was very good. There was no lunch or dinner option on site so you do have to go elsewhere for that but there are so many great places to eat in Martha's vineyard you probably would not want to eat at your hotel anyway.

Overall I say you should definitely check this place out and stay there if you want a really nice, convenient and beautiful hotel to stay in.

  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by cr008k on November 14, 2006

Colonial Inn
38 N Water Street Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts
(508) 627-4711

About the Writer

cr008k
cr008k
San Francisco, California

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