We said goodbye to our heaven-on-earth in Falmouth and made our way into the notoriously busy and traffic congested town of Hyannis. In the summer months the city of Hyannis sees a huge increase in population as tourists flock to its ports to catch ferries to Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. It’s known as Cape Cod’s capitol city. After dropping off our bags at the hotel, we headed into town and checked out Hyannis’s Main Street shops, JFK Museum and the public parks before heading to the harbor to board our ferry to Nantucket.
Our Hy-Line Cruise high speed ferry was called “The Grey Lady” (which also happens to be a nickname for Nantucket) and it took us from Hyannis to Nantucket Island within an hour. If you decide to take the high speed ferry be prepared because tickets are a whopping $71/person round trip!
Hyannis Lighthouse:
An hour and a couple cups of hot chocolate later we arrived in Nantucket harbour. This place is charming in every way. Old cobblestone and brick streets are lined with luxurious clothing and antique shops, art galleries and one-of-a-kind restaurants and bars. Everyone on Nantucket dresses up when they go out. The ladies all put on their pearls and diamonds and the men wear khaki pants and blazers (even when they’re out sailing!). Did I somehow stumble into a J. Crew ad?
One of the first things Cole did was go antique shopping! This particular antique shop was jam packed full of all sorts of cool stuff. Maps, pipes, paintings, old wooden signs, furniture, and so much more. There was hardly any room to walk around in here!
A whale’s tooth for $525…
Floor to ceiling displays of antique china!
I loved this cute little shop called “Sweet Inspirations”. Nantucket is famous for its cranberries and this chocolatier specializes in chocolate dipped cranberries that are just divine! They also sell small paintings and sketches of the Nantucket landscapes and lighthouses which I really enjoyed.
Cole does some more antique shopping:
The houses we saw on Nantucket were so unique and stunning! These are some of my favorites.
Colorful bicycles and their little weaved baskets. Mom and I loved that! Too bad we didn’t have enough time to get our own bikes and make our way around the island. Next time I’d give us a lot more time to explore the island’s famous bike trails.
I love all the little details on the shops and houses like this cool antique lamp.
And the old wooden sign boards on shops and restaurants:
Tragically we missed our chance to see the Nantucket Whaling Museum! I was so upset over this but how were we supposed to know they closed at 5pm? I wish the signs wouldn’t just say “Open from 9am until Close”.
Nantucket has some cool rides! Wish I could cruise around in one of these!
We had dinner at a place called “The Brotherhood of Thieves” an 1840’s whaling bar!
The sun started to set and it was time for us to re-board the Grey Lady back to Hyannis. Here are some shots of Nantucket and the harbor as we left. I hope to come back to Nantucket one day. I feel like I needed so much more time here to soak everything in and explore the island more. It is definitely one of the most charming and beautiful places I have ever seen in my life!
