Sea Crest Beach Hotel: Classic Cape Cod

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No New England summer would be complete without heading “down the Cape” for a beach getaway. I took my first Cape Cod vacation to Falmouth, and decided to spend the weekend at the Sea Crest Beach Hotel in Falmouth. From a private beach to newly renovated rooms, this hotel is the next best thing to having your own personal beach house (or maybe even better, since you don’t have to worry about cooking or cleaning on vacation. Also, I do not have a private beach house at my disposal…)

(Photo: Sea Crest Beach Hotel)

One of Sea Crest Beach’s main draws is its location—it’s just over the Bourne or Sagamore bridges, and is situated on Old Silver Beach in Buzzard’s Bay. Unusually for Falmouth, the hotel’s private beach is white sand, not the typical rocky shores that dot the coastline in this area.

(Photo: Caroline Morse)

A water sports hut on the beach offers easy rentals of paddle boats, jet skis, windsurfers, kayaks, and stand-up paddle boards (SUP.) If you’re looking to throw an intense workout into your beach day, give SUP a try. I attempted it for the first time here, and my sore muscles can verify that it’s an intense workout. The choppy bay will make it extra challenging, but if you can get going, it’s a great way to explore the water from a different viewpoint. After giving it a shot and falling pretty spectacularly a few times, lounging on the free beach chairs under an umbrella and watching the many people attempting to learn SUP and windsurfing provided quality entertainment and made me feel better about my own skills (or lack thereof.) A refreshing beverage or two from the beach waiters and poolside bar may have helped with my bruised ego and bruised knees as well. (Hey, falling on that board can hurt!)

(Photo: Caroline Morse)

After a cold winter, the water in Buzzard’s Bay was still pretty chilly, even on a sunny and hot June day. Luckily, the Sea Crest Beach Hotel features two heated saline pools (one indoor and one outdoor,) plus an indoor hot tub. The hotel property itself is pretty large—there’s over 260 rooms, a courtyard, plus the aforementioned pools and private beach. The whole place feels very modern without losing the classic beach cottage feel—likely due to the $15 million renovation it underwent recently. The renovation is most evident in the chic guestrooms. I stayed in an ocean view room, which had a private balcony and as promised, amazing views of the water. The rooms were spacious and very new looking, and I appreciated the small bar area with a mini-fridge, perfect for keeping drinks and leftovers cool.

(Photo: Sea Crest Beach Hotel)

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Speaking of leftovers, the hotel’s food options are unexpectedly delicious. Normally beach hotels aren’t known for their five-star cuisine, but I could have eaten every meal without leaving the property and have been satisfied. As a coffee-lover, I appreciated that the small lobby cafe serves Starbucks coffee. (The rooms feature K-Cup coffee machines, but I needed an espresso fix!) Breakfast is served in the Ocean View Dining Room, which is beautiful (it’s rented out for weddings or other functions during most evenings.) The breakfast buffet is massive, and includes tons of fresh fruit and healthy options, as well as more decadent fresh baked breads and pastries. The made-to-order omelet or waffle stations are definitely the best, if not most nutritious, ways to start your day.

(Photo: Sea Crest Beach Hotel)

The new restaurant and lounge, Red’s (named for a previous owner of the hotel, and former Boston Celtics’ coach and full of memorabilia for sports fans) is perfect for dinner or a quick drink. The menu changes seasonally, and I was able to sample the summer menu. There’s something for every kind of diner on there, from super fresh seafood to perfectly cooked steak, or creative dishes like a vegetable tart for vegetarians. Save room for dessert—the cakes and ice cream are worth it, plus you’ll be sure to work off all those calories on the SUP tomorrow, right?

(Photo: Caroline Morse)

Another one of my favorite things about the Sea Crest Beach’s location is its proximity to the Shining Sea Bikeway. This 10.7 mile path runs from North Falmouth to Woods Hole, winding through cranberry bogs and along the beach. It’s perfect for bike riders of all capabilities, as it is flat the entire way, and there’s no motor vehicle traffic to deal with. Even non-bikers, like myself, can tackle the whole path round-trip in a few hours. The start of the trail is a quick drive from the Sea Crest Beach Hotel in Falmouth, and the end in Woods Hole offers plenty of restaurants and bars to refuel at before heading back. If the weather’s nice, take a cold drink out to the back deck of the Landfall Restaurant and snag one of the chairs facing the water, for an incredibly relaxing time.

(Photo: Caroline Morse)

The Sea Crest Beach hotel’s location makes it a great base for exploring Cape Cod, although the private beach and pools make it tough to leave the property! This may have been my first Cape Cod vacation, but I doubt that it will be my last.

Have you been to Cape Cod? What’s your favorite area of the Cape? Tell us in the comments.

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