1. The Earl Of Sandwich
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (508) 888-1415, (800) 442–3275
Address: 378 Rte. 6A
Description: Built around a duck pond in a rural setting, the Earl of Sandwich has landscaped grounds, a pool, and rooms in the Old English Manor style. Many rooms have exposed beams and canopied beds, and all have air-conditioning, refrigerators, private baths, color cable TV, telephones and wireless Internet access. A complimentary continental breakfast is included with your stay. The Earl of Sandwich is located within a short drive from area beaches, shopping, and the many historical sites in nearby Sandwich. Be sure to call ahead if you plan on bringing the family pet. Pets are welcome but with some restrictions.
2. Spring Garden Inn
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (508) 888-0710, (866) 345-5641
Address: 578 Rte. 6A
Description: The Spring Garden Inn is located along a quiet section of the Old Kings Highway at the east end of Sandwich. On a hillside overlooking a 2,500-acre conservation area, the inn offers views of marsh stretching out toward the Scorton River. Pine-paneled rooms with beam ceilings include private baths, coffeemakers, refrigerators, cable TVs, private phones, air-conditioning and wireless Internet access. The motel also features a two-room suite in the original living quarters of the inn, built in the 1940s, and two garden efficiency apartments. The efficiency studio features a queen bed, pull-out sofa, and a full-size, fully equipped kitchen. The one-bedroom efficiency apartment has a kitchenette and dining table, and leads to a garden patio area. Families will enjoy the swimming pool and a spacious backyard for the children. Scorton Creek is a great spot for canoeing and fishing. Complimentary continental breakfast is served each morning. The inn is open year-round.
3. Spring Hill Motor Lodge
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (508) 888-1456, (800) 647-2514
Address: 351 Rte. 6A
Description: The Cape Cod–style Spring Hill Motor Lodge has exceptionally well-maintained grounds spotted with colorful junipers. Its 22 rooms are equipped with color cable TVs, direct-dial telephones, coffeemakers, refrigerators, and individually controlled heat and air-conditioning. The lodge also features a heated pool and surrounded by a large sundeck, a lighted “tournament quality” tennis court, a basketball hoop, and a picnic area with tables. Bright one- and two-bedroom contemporary cottages feature custom kitchens, cathedral ceilings, French doors, and bay windows overlooking the manicured grounds. Spring Hill Motor Lodge is open all year.
4. Pine Grove Cottages
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (508) 888-8179
Address: 358 Rte. 6A
Description: These 10 charming heated cottages sit side by side off Route 6A, with ample space between them to ensure privacy. In fact, you can have your own private Cape Cod one-room cottage, perfect for two people, for half the cost of an average motel room. Some deluxe cottages have two bedrooms, a living room with sleep sofa, TV, and a fully equipped kitchen. Pine Grove specializes in hosting families and accommodating reunions or other large gatherings. The cottages rent by the night or the week. For less than $70 a night you can rent a rustic cottage with color TV and efficiency area. The complex has a swimming pool and a play area for young children, and they provide cribs, baby baths, barbecue grills, linens, and towels. Pine Grove Cottages are available from May through Nov.
5. Beach Realty
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (800) 886-4998
Address: 133 North Shore Blvd.
Description: This office carries approximately 200 property listings in seven beach areas from Sagamore to Town Neck. Properties differ in size, and most of them rent by the week, though vacation rentals are available. Homes rent for $550 to $3,900.
6. The Rehabilitation Hospital For The Cape And Islands
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Health Care
Telephone: (508) 833-4000
Address: 311 Service Rd.
Description: An independently owned rehabilitation hospital, the Rehabilitation Hospital offers comprehensive rehab treatment for adult inpatients and adult and child outpatients. With 60 beds and a staff of 200, its resources include a therapeutic pool, a home-activities apartment, specialized evaluations (including hearing), state-of-the-art exercise equipment, and orthotics and prosthetics clinics. The hospital provides treatment for a variety of conditions, including stroke, joint replacement, neurological conditions, complex medical conditions, back and neck injuries, amputation, chronic pain, and work-related and sports injuries. The hospital has a branch in Orleans, which provides comprehensive outpatient therapy for children and adults.
7. The Bee-Hive Tavern
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (508) 833-1184
Address: 406 Rte. 6A
Description: The day the Bee-Hive opened in 1992, it was so mobbed it ran out of food and had to close two hours early! Now under new ownership, the tavern has maintained the standards on which such success was built, offering cozy seating, reliably good food, and a personable staff. The menu offers a mix of specials, traditional entrees, and fresh seafood. Rolls and desserts are baked on-site, and the homemade Bee Sting ice cream makes a memorable dessert. The Bee-Hive is open daily year-round for lunch and dinner and serves breakfast on Sunday only.
8. 6A Cafe
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (508) 888-5220
Address: 415 Rte. 6A
Description: This cozy, personable diner-style cafe offers excellent food at unbelievably low prices. Adding to the fun atmosphere, an electric train circles the dining room overhead, not unlike the train that travels along the tracks crossing Route 6A not far from the cafe. You can order anything from pizza to burgers. 6A Cafe offers specials on weekdays. This comfortable, spotless cafe serves breakfast and lunch daily from 6 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
9. Sandwich Council On Aging
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Retirement
Telephone: (508) 888-4737
Address: 270 Quaker Meetinghouse Rd.
10. Titcomb’S Bookshop
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (508) 888-2331
Address: 432 Rte. 6A
Description: This four-decade-old bookstore’s three floors have all manner of cozy places to sit and peruse the large selection of new, used, and historical books. Titcomb’s specializes in rare books, local authors, and regional history, and their wide range of children’s selections includes the popular American Girl series. It’s open daily.
11. Horsefeathers Antiques
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (508) 888-5298
Address: 454 Rte. 6A
Description: Owner Jeanne Gresham has created a distinctly Victorian and feminine feeling in this lovely shop, which carries table and bed linens, antique lace and trim, and a mix of everyday and special items such as china teacups and paper valentines. Antique christening gowns and other children’s clothing are usually available. Call ahead for an appointment.
12. Benjamin Nye Homestead & Museum
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (508) 888-2368
Address: 85 Old County Rd.
Description: The Benjamin Nye Homestead offers a peek into the lives of the Pilgrims and the many generations that settled on the Cape after them. The house dates back to at least 1685, but many believe the structure first went up in the 1670s. The original structure was expanded into a saltbox-style house and then enlarged into a colonial dwelling. It was a private residence until 1958 and has been operated as a museum since 1972. On occasion, the museum offers special demonstrations of hearthside cooking, spinning, and candle making. To this day, the Nye Family Association, which runs the museum, makes new discoveries in the house, uncovering old floors and locating other original items that have been tucked away over the centuries. The museum is open from mid-July through mid-Oct (Tues through Sat, except holidays, noon to 4:30 p.m.), and an admission fee of $3.50 is charged for adults and $1.00 for children.
13. Green Briar Nature Center And Jam Kitchen
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (508) 888-6870
Address: 6 Discovery Hill Rd.
Description: You’re still in Thornton Burgess country here: The Old Briar Patch comes to life at this nature center, which abuts 57 acres of conservation land. Kids can visit frogs and turtles at the Smiling Pool and wander on the nature trails to look for signs of other critters. The Jam Center, established in 1903, is a kitchen nestled back in the woods where jams and jellies are still made the right way—by hand. Take a tour of the kitchen and see them being made, then buy some to take home. You can also take one of the center’s regularly offered jam-making classes—available for both children and adults—and take home the fruits of your own labor. Green Briar is open daily Apr through Dec (10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mon through Sat, 1 to 4 p.m. Sun), Tues through Sat (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) Jan through Mar. Admission is by donation.
14. Thornton Burgess Museum
City: East Sandwich, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (508) 888-4668
Address: 4 Water St.
Description: In the picture-perfect village of Sandwich, this charming museum dedicated to children’s author and Sandwich native Thornton Burgess evokes the idyllic woodland setting of the author’s beloved storybooks. The museum features memorabilia relating to both Thornton Burgess’s role as an early conservationist and his famous animal characters, including Peter Rabbit, Reddy Fox, and Jimmy Skunk. Open Mon through Sat, early June through mid-October. Note: 2 miles down the road, the Thornton Burgess Society also maintains the Green Briar Nature Center and Jam Kitchen (6 Discovery Hill Rd., East Sandwich; 508-888-6870), where visitors can walk the trails and/or sign up for jam-making workshops.