Best Dog-Friendly Hotels in Cape Cod and the Islands

Before you go

What happens when you get there

National Seashore beaches

Dogs are allowed on the Cape Cod National Seashore's ocean beaches on a 6 foot lead, except on lifeguarded beaches in summer and in the shorebird closures. Those closures run 1 April to 15 October at five named places: the right side of Coast Guard Beach and Nauset Marsh in Eastham, Jeremy Point and Great Island in Wellfleet, and Hatches Harbor and the north-west part of Herring Cove in Provincetown. That is five stretches and the guarded sections, not the whole Seashore, so in summer a dog on a lead can still use the unguarded beach either side of a lifeguarded section.

National Seashore trails and ponds

Dogs are allowed on all the fire roads and on two walking trails only, the Doane Trail in Eastham and the Pilgrim Spring Trail in Truro. The Head of the Meadow bike trail takes dogs all year, and the Province Lands and Nauset bike trails take them from 1 November to 30 April. The freshwater ponds are open to dogs from 16 October to 14 May. Every other walking trail and the Seashore trams are off limits.

Town beaches

Each town on the Cape sets its own beach dates and hours for dogs, and they differ from town to town. Check the town's own page for Provincetown, Falmouth, Harwich or wherever you're staying before you head for the sand, and don't carry one town's rule over to the next.

Nantucket

Nantucket has a leash law. The Nantucket Land Bank allows dogs on the beaches and trails of its own properties and asks you to pick up after them. For the town's beaches, check the town's own page for your dates. Brass Lantern Inn points guests to Sanford Farm, Sanford Farm West and Tupancy Links for walks, reached by the shuttle towards Madaket.

Martha's Vineyard

The Martha's Vineyard Land Bank sets a dog rule property by property. Roughly 57 of its 73 properties take dogs all year, among them Chappy Point Beach and Poucha Pond Reservation. Eight take no dogs from April to September, including Tashmoo Preserve, Great Rock Bight Preserve and Tisbury Great Pond Beach, and seven never take dogs, including Felix Neck Preserve and Aquinnah Headlands Preserve. Look up the property you plan to walk, and check each town's own page for its beaches.

Ferries

The Steamship Authority carries pets free. They must be on a lead or in a container and under your control, and they aren't allowed in food service areas or on seats and tables. Hy-Line Cruises also carries pets on its island ferries at no fee, on a lead or caged and off the furniture, with one exclusion, the Captain's View section of the Nantucket ferry Grey Lady IV.

Fees

USD 200 a night in summer and USD 100 off season at Wequassett, The Nantucket Hotel and Winnetu. USD 50 a night at Crowne Pointe, Pilgrim House and Palmer House, and USD 50 per day per dog at Brass Lantern. USD 100 per pet per stay at The Brant and a USD 75 cleaning charge per pet at Mansion House. Veranda House, Regatta Inn and Chapman House quote both USD 50 per night per pet and USD 175 per stay, so confirm when booking. The Brass Key and The Hob Knob don't publish a fee.

Leaving your dog in the room

Not allowed at Brass Lantern, Palmer House Inn or Pilgrim House, and the three Nantucket Resort Collection inns ask that dogs aren't left alone. Wequassett, The Nantucket Hotel and Winnetu allow it if the dog is crated, and Mansion House if the dog is crated and quiet. Plan dinners around that, because most of these hotels keep dogs out of their indoor dining rooms.

Best walks

On the Cape, the Cape Cod Rail Trail takes dogs through six towns and runs to about 25 miles. In the National Seashore, the fire roads, the Doane Trail in Eastham, the Pilgrim Spring Trail in Truro and the Head of the Meadow bike trail are open to dogs on a lead, as are the unguarded ocean beaches outside the shorebird closures. In Falmouth, Palmer House Inn points guests to Falmouth Dog Park, The Knob and the Beebe Woods trails. Thompson's Field in Harwich is the local nature walk near Wequassett. On Nantucket, Sanford Farm, Sanford Farm West and Tupancy Links are the long walks out towards Madaket, with Brant Point Light and the harbour front in town. On Martha's Vineyard, Mansion House names Owen Park Beach and Veteran's Field Park in Vineyard Haven, and the Land Bank's Chappy Point Beach and Poucha Pond Reservation take dogs all year.

When to go

From mid-October the Seashore gets much easier with a dog. The shorebird closures end on 15 October, the freshwater ponds open to dogs from 16 October to 14 May, and the Province Lands and Nauset bike trails open to dogs from 1 November to 30 April. The resort dog fee also halves outside summer, from USD 200 to USD 100 a night after 30 September at Wequassett and outside June to September at The Nantucket Hotel and Winnetu. June to September is the hardest stretch: lifeguarded Seashore beaches are closed to dogs, each town's own beach rules need checking, and the resort fees are at their peak. Mansion House and Veranda House are open all year, but many Cape and island hotels are seasonal and a lot of Nantucket shuts in January, February and March, so check the hotel is open before you plan around it.