Buy Seaside Souveniers on Main Street, Hyannis
Main Street, Hyannis is the perfect spot for people who want the urban version of a Cape Cod vacation. You’ll find hotels on Main Street, as well as some of the best Cape Cod restaurants and cafes, live music, lots of shopping in cute local stores and even some history with the John F. Kennedy Museum. You’re just a walk to the waterfront and the Nantucket or Martha’s Vineyard ferries. If you want you can even take the bus from Boston and then a cab to Main Street.
Local commerce is alive and well in Hyannis. Puritan Cape Cod has been on Main Street for over 50 years, selling classic clothing styles. If you want to stock up on your preppy polo shirts, this is definitely the place. If more casual clothing is your style, you’ll find Cape Cod sweashirts and t-shirts just about everywhere on Cape Cod. Looking for a bargain? Then be sure to check out the Hyannis Flea Market. It’s an indoor paradise for a savvy bargain hunter.
British Beer Company, Main Street, Hyannis
Since 1997 Cape Codders have loved eating, drinking and dancing at the British Beer Company. Starting in Falmouth, expanding to Sandwich and Hyannis locations, the BBC as its known here, has provided some excellent live music. Almost every Friday and Saturday night you can walk in to a BBC knowing that you can get a great reasonably priced meal, a great beer, and then dance the night away. Folks of all ages hang out at the BBC. So if you’re not under 30 don’t worry about stopping in to listing to the music. You might even see me there! Every BBC is different. So just because you’ve been to one, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t check out the others.
For delicious Northern Italian food give Alberto’s Ristorante a try. Since 1984 locals and tourists have been enjoying the casual elgance of dining at Alberto’s. Personally I love the Scallops Balsamico, which are very fresh scallops pan fried with just the right amount of balsamic vinegar, seasonings and greens. If you want that one special meal when you’re visiting Cape Cod, Alberto’s Ristorante would be a great restaurant choice.
Browse the day away at Tim's Books
Avid readers who love to browse used bookstores will love Tim’s Books. It’s just what you want from a casual used bookstore. There’s piles of books that you can rummage through, a relaxed staff that lets you browse and wander at will – but that’s always will to help as well. I think it’s the perfect spot to spend a rainy afternoon on Cape Cod.
Once you’ve found the perfect book, you can duck into one of the Main Street coffee shops or find a homemade ice cream cone at Katie’s Homemade Ice Cream Shop. You can’t miss it go out the door of Tim’s turn right and walk until you see a bright pink building with a white picket fence. If you prefer Ben & Jerry’s, walk out of Tim’s Books and turn left. You can’t miss the cow pattern. Surrounded by books and ice cream, does life get any better?
If you’d like to stay at a hotel on Main Street. Take a look at the Hyannis Inn Motel. It’s a member of AAA and has a pool and sauna, and some of the rooms have whirlpool baths. Room prices vary by the month, day of the week, holiday and whirlpool, ranging from a low of $52/day in April to a high of $172 in July. There may also be minimum stay requirements for popular weekends. So it’s best to call ahead and get the details. Here’s the number 1-800-922-8993.
Oh and here’s a geography tip. If you’re looking on a Cape Cod map for the “Town of Hyannis,” you won’t find it. Hyannis is a village of the Town of Barnstable. It can be confusing trying to find you’re way around Cape Cod. There are probably ranches in Texas, bigger than the total land area here, but we’ve managed to cram 15 small towns into it. And then because we weren’t being provincial enough, we divided those small towns into even more official tiny villages. Hyannis has it’s own post office and zip code, here that makes you quite official and the residents start thinking of themselves as belonging to the village and not necessarily the Town. And Hyannis isn’t the only village in Barnstable. Here’s the official list of all seven of them – village of Barntable, Centerville, Cotuit, Hyannis, Marstons Mills, Osterville, and West Barnstable. There are probably Main Streets in all of them. So you have to be careful.
