South Massachusetts vacation

Hi,

I'm planning vacations with the family mid July and we'd like to go in south MA.

So far we think we'll camp at the KOA capmground near Middleborough so we could go to the beach and maybe a day in Providence and/or a day in Boston.

I'd like to know what are the nice beaches for the kids, with good sand and not too crowded. We don't like tourist shop beaches. If surfing is possible that's a plus.

Regarding Providence or Boston, what are things we should not miss for kids?

Or anything else in the area.

Thanks!

The ocean beaches won't be great near there, unless you guys don't mind cold water. I don't really swim at NE ocean beaches. You definitely won't get surf either on the bay side (Plymouth) or on the sound (Mattapoisett).

Lakes could be another matter. There might be some nice sandy quiet beaches in some of the state parks near there.

How old are your kids?

Horseneck Beach in Westport is really nice.

You could camp at Wompatuck State Park in Hingham (def nicer than a KOA) or Myles Standish SP in Plymouth and have easy access to beaches. Bonus-you could hit the Tues/Weds evening training races at Wompatuck, and excellent mountain biking.

The Boston Museum of Science is great for kids; in Providence, Roger Williams Zoo would be good. Not too much further south to Mystic, CT for the aquarium. Plimoth Plantation is worth a visit, and depending on kids' ages, the MFA in Boston, the JFK museum in Boston...lots of Museum options!

Watch Hill, Rhode Island

Beautiful Beaches, Clear Crisp Ocean Air look for Napatree Beach

http://www.visitrhodeisland.com/what...apatree-point/

It's only an hour south of Boston and a world away!

Hope this is helpful,

KJ

There is a hostel on Nantuket that has separate family sleeping rooms. It's a little more expensive than camping but breakfast is provided and you can cook your other meals right there in a nice kitchen. The hostel is a renovated Life Saving Station right on the beach and reachable by bike or bus and its on a good Atlantic beach that's quite surf-able. The Gulf Stream runs right past there so the water is warmer than what you normally find. My one experience there was pleasant and it's definitely family worthy. It's not quite what you asked but I thought I'd add it to the ether.

To that point, Block Island is terrific--GREAT beaches, relatively quiet, great for kids, decent bike riding.

Thanks guys! All good points there.

Kids will be near 6 and 9 by then.

Fall river is a great town, not to be missed.

FYI, food and gas are much, much cheaper south of the border than in canada (esp. qc). Alcohol too. Although the current 25% difference in currencies wipes out most of the savings.

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Originally Posted by sonnybiker

Fall river is a great town, not to be missed.

FYI, food and gas are much, much cheaper south of the border than in canada (esp. qc). Alcohol too. Although the current 25% difference in currencies wipes out most of the savings.

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Thanks Sonny, we've gone trough this currency difference and we'll make the trip anyway. We usually stop in NH for alcohol as the taxes are none!

Good recommendations all around. Agreed that Horseneck Beach is great. A day trip to Block Island is a nice day out with kids their age. If you are near Providence on a Waterfire night, check that out...one of a kind.

WaterFire Providence 2015 WaterFire Event Schedule | WaterFire Providence

I was going to recommend Plum Island, but it looks like summers are pretty crowded there and the NWR and State Park have off-limits areas for breeding birds. The latter is not a bad thing, but it eliminates some of the areas that were really interesting.

I don't think you can camp on Block Island or Nantucket any longer, but you can on Martha's Vineyard. I think the camping areas are pretty traditional family sites, so I would guess they reserve early.

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Originally Posted by Jonathan

There is a hostel on Nantuket that has separate family sleeping rooms.

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That is right near my sister's home. While her Nantucket digs are much more plush, I've often been tempted to spend some time in the Hostel.

More than a few mighty attractive European summer workers stay there.

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Originally Posted by Matthew J

That is right near my sister's home. While her Nantucket digs are much more plush, I've often been tempted to spend some time in the Hostel.

More than a few mighty attractive European summer workers stay there.

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I did a solo bike tour of the cape and Islands and stayed in Hostels. I was surprised by the numbers of professionals there at the Nantucket Hostel. Physicist with GE and a Corporate Lawyer and a Doc with his kids. The thing they all had in common is that they stayed there in college and go back yearly. They even help doing basic repairs. The young European women were also present. I'm happily married so that wasn't a big plus and I sorta figured out that the foreign girls had been hit on so hard by the time the summer was over they were pretty on to and over American guys. It was a good experience though.

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Originally Posted by Guillaume

Thanks Sonny, we've gone trough this currency difference and we'll make the trip anyway. We usually stop in NH for alcohol as the taxes are none!

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don't forget the fireworks

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Originally Posted by marley

don't forget the fireworks

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I'm sure the wife will not approve this!