Here at Woods Hole Inn, it is our privilege to celebrate the men and women who have sacrificed their own lives and luxuries to protect our freedom. To that end, we show our thanks by honoring them each year with a complimentary stay on Veterans Day, aiming to provide a relaxing and inviting experience from the moment they walk through our door. This year, on a clear and bright November morning, these special guests gathered in our sunny breakfast room, where they enjoyed the panoramic view of Great Harbor and swapped stories of their service.
Their ages and branches differed, but they shared one similar quality – they were all quick to downplay their sacrifice. John, a 26-year Navy veteran, praised his wife, Elaina, for raising their three children and managing the household on her own during his many absences, while being forced to move the family every three years.“My job was easy. You go on a ship and you do what you have to do. It’s my wife who deserves all the credit. She was home doing the hard part,” he said.
Although Don and Debi live in nearby Mashpee, they were grateful for a much-needed and well-deserved staycation. After graduating from Bourne High School, Don spent four years in the Air Force, and then went on to join the 102nd Fighter Wing at Otis Air National Guard Base. Since staying with us last year, Don and Debi have become part of the Woods Hole Inn family, and because they’re Cape Codders, they know the off-season is often the best season, particularly in Woods Hole, when life moves at a slower pace in our seaside village. When asked what he enjoys about their Veterans Day visit, Don answered simply, “Everything. The food, the people. We can’t say enough about it. We’re taking care of aging parents, and I commute to Boston for work, so it’s important to be close to home,” he said. Debi also enjoys the quaintness of Woods Hole. “We love having dinner and drinks right next door at Quicks Hole Tavern, and the fact that we can walk to everything,” she said. Like his fellow servicemen, Don is also hesitant to accept accolades. “I don’t look at it as a big deal. People rise to the occasion when they are needed,” he said.
Innkeeper Beth Colt and the entire staff here at the Woods Hole Inn are grateful for the chance to roll out the proverbial red carpet each November for these distinguished guests.“Veterans Day is one of our favorite times of the year. We all look forward to meeting those who have served our country in the military, and thanking them with a free stay in Woods Hole. Over breakfast, we try to get to know our visitors and hear about their lives,” she said. “It is always a true pleasure making these special connections year after year. And often they have never been to Woods Hole, so introducing them to our wonderful village is also a great joy.”
Many people flock to Cape Cod for sea and surf, but just as many think the holiday season is the most wonderful time of year! Make Woods Hole your home base to experience all the Cape and Islands have to offer for a quintessential Cape Cod holiday. The Falmouth Chamber of Commerce presents the Holidays by the Sea Weekend, this year from December 7-9, kicking off Friday night with caroling at historic Nobska Light. The fun continues on Saturday morning with the 6th Annual Jingle Jog 5K & Kid’s Elf Run, and the evening will feature an array of activities when Main Street closes to automobile traffic for the Holiday Stroll in Falmouth Village. The shops will be open for special evening hours prior to the Annual Lighting of the Green which features holiday music from the Falmouth Brass Band. Americana at its best!
Nothing says Christmas like an old-fashioned holiday bazaar, and the Renaissance Fair is Woods Hole’s one-of-a-kind version that doesn’t disappoint. This time-honored tradition will be held on Saturday, December 1 from 10 AM to 3 PM at the Community Hall on Water Street, just steps from the Inn. Boasting an array of vendors and artisans offering hand-made wares such as pottery, apparel, jewelry, jams and jellies, and art of various media, the event also features singing, children’s games, lunch and baked goods, and a holiday wreath sale. Shop like a local while supporting the Cape Cod art community. Win-win. Take a trip to yesteryear and check out Holidays at Highfield at the 1878 restored estate of the Beebe family, which features a gift gallery and elaborate decorations, on weekends beginning November 30 through December 9. For something totally different, don’t miss the Brazen Belles Winter Spectacular right across the street at the Landfall Restaurant from December 19-21, featuring irreverent entertainment by Cape Cod’s premier burlesque group.
If you’re looking to venture beyond Falmouth, then be sure to check out Gardens Aglow at Heritage Museums & Gardens, located in Sandwich, Cape Cod’s oldest town. The expansive grounds are illuminated from November 23-December 30, and the tour also includes festive indoor holiday decor and numerous activities around the grounds and galleries. While you’re there, be sure to take in Sandwich Glass Museum’s 9th Annual Glassblower’s Christmas, which runs November 12- December 30. For an Island experience, head to the Steamship Authority Ferry Terminal just steps from the Inn, followed by a short boat ride for Christmas in Edgartown, December 6-8. Take a drive to Hyannis where you can pick up either the Steamship or the Hyline ferry for the Nantucket Christmas Stroll, which runs from November 30 – December 2. Contrary to popular belief, the Pilgrims first landed in Provincetown, and their 1620 arrival is celebrated each year starting Thanksgiving week with the annual Lighting of Pilgrim Monument, one of Provincetown’s most photographed landmarks. This year’s event will be held on November 21 from 5 to 7 PM, with the lighting at approximately 6. This iconic symbol of hope and new beginnings will be illuminated until early January.
Whatever you do, don’t miss the highlight of Falmouth’s Holidays by the Sea Weekend, the 55th Annual Christmas Parade, which steps off from Dillingham Avenue on Sunday, December 9 at noon. Known as Southeastern Massachusetts’ largest holiday parade, thousands of spectators pack the parade route each year to take in decorated floats, marching bands from all over the region, costumed characters, and majestic Clydesdales followed by Santa himself. This year’s theme is “Unwrap the Magic of Falmouth,” and is not to be missed! Join us in our seaside village as we celebrate the season with the perfect Cape Cod holiday celebrations.
Join us at the Woods Hole Inn this spring for your “Spring Fling” weekday escape PLUS a complimentary “Oyster Three Ways” appetizer when you enjoy dinner next door at Quicks Hole Tavern, named Best Gastropub by Yankee Magazine. Get a true taste of the Cape with three local oysters prepared to your pleasing — fried, broiled or straight up raw.
*King Room with private bath starting at $149 per night Sunday through Thursday
*Free breakfast, wifi and parking included with your stay
* Includes a free “Oyster Three Ways” appetizer with dinner at Quicks Hole Tavern
Cozy up in a Standard King (Sunday – Thursday) starting at $149 per night plus tax with free WiFi, award-winning breakfast and parking. Upgrade to a Deluxe King for just $20 per night. Reserve online using Booking Code: GLOBE18 or call us at 508-495-0248 to book this special offer today.
*Offer will be valid on bookings up to June 21st 2018; subject to availability and blackout dates; cannot be combined with other offers; new reservations only. Book now, while supplies last.
Whether you celebrate Valentine’s Day or absolutely loathe it, the holiday is the perfect opportunity (or excuse!) to get away. This year, we’re doing something special, with steep discounts on all the rooms and too-good-to-pass-up add ons. Join us for two nights and you’ll have a bottle of chilled Prosecco waiting when you arrive, an order of “Oyster & Pearls” plus two craft brews at Quicks Hole Tavern, and a hearty breakfast to start the day in our sunny reading room. Plus, we’ll let you decide which weekend is better for you — the one before or the one after — Valentine’s Day. Check out the pricing here.
So, pack your bags, bring your loved one, and enjoy the peace and quiet of Cape Cod in the winter! Woods Hole Inn is across the street from the Martha’s Vineyard ferry terminal, so adventurous souls need not feel restless. Other options: the best pastries on Cape Cod at Maison Villatte (we recommend the chocolate chip cookies, chocolate almond croissants and olive cheese bread), a picturesque sunset walk on the Knob, or a day trip to the National Seashore.
For those of you inclined to stay inside, we’ve got you covered with 600 thread count sheets and all the rom coms you could ever want. 🙂
See pricing details here, and call (508) 495-0248 to book today!
With the years flying by faster than ever, it gets harder and harder to find the time for a pause, no matter how brief. At the Woods Hole Inn, we want you to be able to treasure your stay as much as possible, so we’ve created our “Same Time Next Year” special with that in mind; just ask for a piece of our beautiful custom paper, find a quiet reading spot at the Inn (or settle into one of our Adirondack chairs on the deck) and write a letter to your future self. We’ll keep it tucked away for safe keeping until you return. And by booking your next year’s stay now, we’ll honor the current rate, plus take 10% off. Consider it the best gift you could give your future self, and a well-earned moment of reflection.
We love being your letter’s safe haven, but the the best part by far is seeing all your smiles as you pass them over!
Planning a honeymoon on Cape Cod? With its sandy beaches, fresh squeezed summer cocktails, and picturesque bike paths, the Cape has always been high on the list for newly-weds looking for a romantic and restorative honeymoon. Below, we’ve rounded up our five favorite lodging options for the Upper Cape, your honeymoon Cape Cod dream locale. Starting with…
Conveniently located just steps from Falmouth’s Main Street, this upscale Bed & Breakfast has a classic, 1950’s elegance — with rooms that will make you feel both comfortable and special. Breakfast can be enjoyed on the expansive veranda overlooking the grounds and gorgeous greenery. We recommend their made daily and in-house blueberry scones, perfect destination for your honeymoon Cape Cod style.
Want something a little more modern? The Nobnocket Inn, newly restored with a contemporary, British flare, is Vineyard Haven’s best new Bed & Breakfast, and the perfect excuse for the forty-five minute ferry ride over. You won’t want to leave once you arrive, and owners Simon and Annabelle will instantly make you feel at home. Spend your honeymoon window shopping the adorable (Obama approved!) shops in Vineyard Haven, or take a day trip down island for a chance to enjoy the many picture-perfect beaches. See our complete tour of the Inn here.
At the Belfry Inn & Bistro in Sandwich, every room is different. Once a Catholic church with high, vaulted ceilings, you’ll have a chance to sleep in a king bed below a magnificent stained glass window! Gold Winner of Cape Cod Life’s best Bed & Breakfast — the Inn also houses one of the Cape’s finest restaurants, where an evolving menu offers a fresh and seasonal take on American cuisine. Try the local burrata with eggplant Caponata, or the Belfry burger with tomato jam and crispy Prosciutto.
Sticking to a budget, or more of the outdoors-y types? Rent a tipi at Sippewissett Campgrounds, which offers 100 sites equipped with picnic tables and fire pits — and even a laundromat. Take advantage of the campground’s free daily shuttle to the beach and ferry, or rent bikes for a scenic trip into Woods Hole for hot coffee and Popovers at Pie in the Sky. A honeymoon Cape Cod complete with s’mores and catching fireflies in a jar could be yours!
And last but not least — the Woods Hole Inn. We could go on and on about the romantic charm of this bustling port town — from the waterfront restaurants to the sweet seals at the aquarium to the best lobster tacos on Cape Cod — all just walking distance from the Inn. Take a trip to the Vineyard (the Inn is just steps from the Steamship Authority ferry terminal), or keep it local with lots of beaches, a bike path that hugs the shore, and evenings sipping champagne on our private water-facing deck. We can guarantee you’ll fall in love with this place we call home.
Summer has just begun, but fall is around the corner and we are partnering with the Cape Cod Chamber to create a fabulous “Beer Bed & Breakfast” weekend on Cape Cod in November (4th – 6th, 2016). As the season comes to a close, true Cape Cod lovers will gather for a fall weekend filled with romance, respite, delicious breakfasts and a killer craft beer dinner at Quicks Hole (Saturday Nov 5th at 7 pm).
You can read all about the menu here. This craft beer noshfest will feature local draft beers, lobster taco bites, chicken tacos and a kale, corn & beans salad with cumin corriander lime dressing. Finish the evening off with a taste of our famous “bag of donuts” all while looking over the ferry terminal from our year-round restaurant Quicks Hole Tavern, located next door to the Woods Hole Inn.
Fall in Woods Hole is all cozy & romantic, with low light, fireplaces lit and long walks on empty Cape Cod beaches. Or hop the ferry across the street and visit Martha’s Vineyard after the crowds have moved on and sales are in full swing. Cape Cod is fall’s best kept secret, but now you are onto it, so book today as this fab Woods Hole Beer Bed & Breakfast weekend will sell out for sure.
Details and pricing here. The value of this craft beer dinner is $40 pp, but pricing is included in your two night stay. A limited number of seats will be sold to locals as supplies last. Please call the restaurant 508-495-0048 to reserve. Please note that service is not included, and we encourage you to tip your servers.
Explore beaches still warm with Gulf Stream waters, walk in the moonlight, revel in the salty breeze, wake to the sound of migrating birds and halyards clanking on harbor masts. And all this beauty without the crowds, so you breeze into top-notch farm-to-table restaurants, explore local craft fairs and board the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard with ease. Locals cherish these beautiful fall days, and so should you!
Join us for three days plus two nights and enjoy:
Free breakfast
Free parking
A craft beer tasting at Quicks Hole Tavern
40% off ! ($259 queen, $299 king for the whole package)
To book this online, choose your stay of two nights or more, choose “special rates” then enter FallFB18 in the promotional code box. Or call us at 508-495-0248 during business hours.
Small Print:While supplies last, subject to availability, must book before 10/22, valid for visits through April 4, 2019, new reservations only, not to be combined with other offers. Some blackout dates apply.
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When Rachel Ray calls, you answer, right? Last week, we heard she was looking for special romantic breakfast recipes, and what’s more romantic than breakfast for two at the Woods Hole Inn?
So, close your eyes and imagine a perfect parfait of fresh cut berries, layered with thick greek yogurt, and house-made granola, the fragrance of savory bread pudding wafting from miniature cast iron pans, and a warm muffin dusted lightly with powdered sugar. How about the steam off a hot cup of coffee, served in a thick pottery mug that rests softly in the heart of your hand? Plus the smell of salt air fresh off the harbor? Hmm, now that sounds nice.
Open your eyes and look out over Woods Hole Harbor with ferryboats bustling and cumulous clouds floating over distant islands. Spend a moment dreaming about your perfect Cape Cod vacation day — sleeping late in your comfortable bed, walk to the beach, take a long swim, stroll along the harbor, savor a lobster dinner, sip a nightcap with your feet in the Atlantic. Cape Cod vacation perfected.
But how should we relate all this back to Rachel Ray? Enter Charlene, our world class breakfast chef. Her vegan “Tomato Soup” muffins are notorious up and down the East Coast, and we felt confident that Rachel Ray would be suitably impressed by her perfect breakfast spread.
Breakfast at the Woods Hole Inn – always a work of art.
Summer Dreams — I am officially dreaming of summer, long days where the light lasts, and I luxuriate in the cool breeze on my skin after a nice long swim, or sit at the edge of the sand with a tattered New Yorker, a fine sun hat, and strong dark glasses watching puffy clouds pass over Vineyard Sound. Add a chilly drink nestled in the sand at my side, and this is a dream of summer perfection.
With spring officially here, I was hopeful to see witch hazel, snow drops and crocuses popping in my neighbor’s yards here in Woods Hole. But March came roaring through, her most lion-ish self, with a something the weather service was calling a “bomb.” Sounds a lot scarier than it turned out. Nevertheless, Tuesday dawned with snow coming down sideways and wind blowing 50 knots. Nantucket got it the worst, with over a foot of snow. We had high winds and a couple of inches, but it blew around so much you wouldn’t know it. Best of all, no shoveling required. Most people slept in, stayed indoors for the morning — by mid afternoon most everything was back open for business.
Here is a glimpse at the look and feel of the storm at the height — Tuesday morning March 25th, 2014.
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Author Maile Meloy was in Falmouth last week talking with fans about her novels Apothocary (a New York Times bestseller which also won the E.B White Award in 2012) and it’s sequel Apprentices. Eight Cousins Bookshop on Main Street hosted her visit and invited their middle school book club to read the book and come ask her questions.
Of Meloy’s debut novel Liars and Saints, the New York Times Book Review wrote, ” “Every once in a while a book comes along that upends popular notions of American fiction. There is the literature of family dysfunction . . . There is regional literature . . . There is the social novel about current events . . . And there is the historical novel . . . Liars and Saints, Maile Meloy’s spectacular first novel, is at once all of these literatures and none of them.”
Meloy — a long-time fan of the Woods Hole Inn — visited for this chilly February weekend from her home in Los Angeles. Meloy talked to her readers about growing up in Montana, her daily rituals as a writer, and her creative collaboration with the illustrator Ian Schoenherr. She shared a wonderful slide show, took questions from the audience, and signed a bunch of books.
One of my favorite parts of running the Woods Hole Inn is building a team of people who come together to deliver a fantastic guest experience. I am particularly blessed this summer with a great group who have worked seamlessly together all summer. As we approach the dog days of August, I reflect on how lucky I am to work with such a talented, committed, knowledgeable and thoughtful crew.
Thank you to each and every one of you who made and is making summer 2013 memorable for all our guests. You make it look easy!
One of the greatest pleasures of inn-keeping is the chance to meet people from all over the world. One of my passions is photography, and I enjoy sharing the beauty of Woods Hole on guest “photo-walks” the best of which turn into fascinating conversations about life.
We generally depart from the front door of the inn, and I like to get out when the light is still good, and we explore the village for about an hour, scouring the back alleys for lobster traps, peering down pathways and scampering across Cape Cod beaches. I love sharing my favorite spots, and seeing them anew as guests always point out things I have never noticed. There is always new light, new flora, new angles to explore.
This spring I went out a few times, and one guest Janice Murray (who keeps a great Etsy shop of her work here) even sent me some of her favorites to publish here (see below mixed with mine). Then there was the guy on his honeymoon from the UK, wandering the East Coast for a few weeks with a large camera and an insatiable thirst to understand the American psyche. Here are a few pictures from these great walks/talks. I look forward to many more…
CUT! OK, now that I have your mind buzzing as mine is with the soundtrack of Christmas… let me pause for a moment and wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas, and happy holidays too!
From all of us here in Woods Hole, to you and yours.
Did you know that Falmouth — with all it’s open space, forests, beaches, marshland and cranberry bogs — is known as one of the best places for Atlantic coastline birding?
Yes, you will find the Merlin, the Sanderling, the Cooper’s Hawk and the Warbler all hiding in the rushes here in Falmouth in various seasons. And if you love spotting the dramatic Osprey, the huge hawk that likely gave “Buzzards Bay” its’ name, you will find them nesting in summer here, and delight in watching their enormous wing span, wild twig-ridden nests, and incredible fishing prowess. Osprey migrate from here to the Amazon in winter, but return to this area for nesting and hatching their young.
Craig Gibson is a Falmouth resident and passionate bird photographer. Up at dawn with his long lenses and a sea kayak, Craig hunts the bird life deep in the marshes, and on the small barrier islands and sand dunes where they nest and breed. His collection of photos “A Year of Falmouth Birds” will take your breath away. Copies are available for sale in local book shops, and benefit the 300 Committee Land Trust, our local conservation group. You can also see his great action shots weekly in our local newspaper, the Falmouth Enterprise.
Of course birders will be familiar with the Great Blue Heron, or the Snowy Egret, but for first time visitors to our area, these extraordinary birds will impress and awe you. Come to Woods Hole to learn more!
Today the red chair left the Woods Hole Inn, departing on its latest journey across New England. Friend of the Woods Hole Inn, Kate Kavanagh, volunteered to help the Red Chair reach its destination. There were lots of photographs and a small goodbye as the chair made it’s way out of the inn.
The red chair will be traveling for the next six months to 40-plus inns in the most beautiful corner of America. For it’s first stop, the Red Chair will be visiting the Cliff Side Inn in Newport, Rhode Island. Surrounded by the mansions of the Gilded Age, a scenic cliff walk and ocean-side views, the Cliff Side Inn was the perfect choice for the start of an epic journey.
They say it takes a village. And in the lovely town of Falmouth, Mass (where there are eight villages that make up the municipality), I would say it takes NINE.
Nine Bed & Breakfast’s that is. All members of the Falmouth B&B Association. Together we offer over 70 rooms with many styles and locations. Want the beach? Try Baileys, Inn on the Sound, or the Beach Rose. Love being in the middle of town? Well there are four great spots clustered around the Falmouth Green, walking distance to the shops, restaurants AND the beach. Want a convenient way to take the Martha’s Vineyard ferry? Try your options in Woods Hole… and the list goes on.
This august group came together last winter and decided to re-do our association’s website (check it out here!) AND add some video as part of the “Better Way to Stay” campaign. Since I have some film experience, I was elected to usher the filmmakers around town. And be the craft services team, and the first AD, and the production coordinator, and the still photographer… See unlike my former days in Hollywood, where a crew might be about 200 people, this was a lean, mean operation.
Our “guests” were wonderful local actors and all-around great people like Davidson Calfee, Maura Aldrich, Jenn Perault, and Jared and Jennifer. We were so grateful they donated their time to make this shoot a success.
Here are a few “behind the scenes” shots of the “making of” the Falmouth Better Way to Stay video! And if you want to see more of the “Better Way to Stay” campaign, look here. Stay tuned as we wait for the final edited version that we hope you will help us share with the world.
Falmouth, and it’s nine bed and breakfasts, are FOR SURE, the smarter way to visit Cape Cod.
Luke Stafford of Mondo Media is behind the camera, while Jared and Jennifer (owner of the “Pink Polka Dot” a Falmouth gift and wedding boutique) serve as our breakfast models at the newly renovated Captain’s Manor Inn.
Maura Aldrich and Davidson Calfee playing guests at the Palmer House, an original Queen Anne property with 17 rooms on the Falmouth Green.
Luke works deftly to get this romantic silhouette shot on the porch of Bailey’s by the Sea, a wonderful B&B right on the beach in Falmouth Heights. Davidson Calfee and Jenn Perrault oblige with faux martini’s and a toast to the sunset.
Thanks to all who made this day happen. Stay posted for the results.
While we renovated the inn this winter, we did not renovate our website, SO for the time being, this post will serve as an introduction to the look, feel, vibe of the “New Rooms” at the Woods Hole Inn.
Some general comments: these rooms are all on the second floor of the inn. They all have vintage restored wood floors, the same wood floors that were always here just polished up. All have rain showers and bath tubs. All have views either of the village of Woods Hole, or over the harbor of Woods Hole. All have king beds, luxury linens, ipod docking stations, cable TV with DVD players. air conditioning AND free wireless internet access. Two have private water view decks, and all share a large deck with a great view of the Martha’s Vineyard ferry coming and going.
We continued with numbers on some, and others received names, like the birthing of infants which is not unlike how making them felt at certain moments. So without further ado…here they are:
ROOM 10: private entryway, private bath, king room with peekaboo view of the Eel Pond
ROOM 11: private entryway, private bath, king corner room with views out over the village green
Nobska Room: Delux private bath with vintage bathtub and glass rain shower, king room with killer views of the harbor and Martha’s Vineyard ferries
Penzance Room: Private water view deck, large private bath with twin pedestal sinks, vintage bath and glass rain shower in a large king room with water views
Nonamessett Room: Private water view deck, large private bath with distinctive wall mount sink, vintage bath and glass rain shower in a large king room with water views
So there you have it, pictures and information about the five new rooms! Please use our secure online booking agent at www.woodsholeinn.com OR call 508-495-0248 to book these rooms. We look forward to welcoming you to Woods Hole.
Don’t just flirt with Woods Hole. Fall in love. 
beauty without the crowds, so you breeze into top-notch farm-to-table restaurants, explore local craft fairs and board the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard with ease. Locals cherish these beautiful fall days, and so should you!
