THE CLASSIC EAST COAST SUMMER EXPERIENCE

Fly into: Logan International Airport, Boston (BOS)

Check out: Cape Cod, Massachusetts

The lure: Beaches lined with sand dunes, bike rides through Main Street towns, and clambakes on the shore—all within a two-hour drive of the city, even with summer traffic

The experience: Even if the ocean doesn't really warm up till late summer, all of the outdoor pools feel just right. The ice cream shops and seafood shacks are all open to much fanfare, and preppy locals clad in Nantucket Reds dive into the fried clam rolls and steamers they've been craving all winter. As the summer wears on, the place just gets better.

Where to stay? The Chatham Bars Inn on the Lower Cape (or CBI, as the Boston Brahmins who have summered here for decades call the resort), which has the charm of a beach hotel with many more comforts. Think oysters served on silver trays, a regulation croquet court, clay tennis courts, and weekly clambakes.

Oh, and: Don't go home until you've tried candlepin bowling and caught a Cape League baseball game. The Chatham Athletics play on a field just off Main Street, where you can lounge in the sun and slurp down a bowl of wicked clam chow-dah. (Trust us!)

Chatham Bars Inn
Tel: 800 527 4884
Doubles from $295

NEXT: Delicious days of Texas-size barbecue >