The Soundings Seaside Resort is in Dennis Port MA. Which is for all intents and purposes Cape Cod. This resort was right next door to another resort I had just stayed at, so the commute was not an issue.
Day One Arrival was Really a Transfer
All I had to do was move from one resort next door to this one. But I had flown into the area a few days earlier. Most folks would like to drive in from somewhere else to Cape Code and then head to Dennis Port, but for this change in resort, all I had to do was move the car.
This resort in every way was much bigger than Breakers that I had just stayed at. Bigger is not always better, but I was happy to have the chance to stay in Cape Cod longer and see which resort won my heart in the end.
While this location had larger rooms available, there were also some smaller studios too. Again, they had smaller rooms in the 1-bed and 2-bed sizes that were smaller than most accommodations you would find around the country. With studios starting at 300 sq ft to 2 bedrooms and going up in size to 800+ sq ft.
With these smaller units again you get a fridge, microwave, and fireplace, but no kitchen. This is fine because the local food in the area is great and not through the roof in pricing. You could find cheap eats or expensive meals that anyone would like.
This resort has a 360 tour so it is worth checking that out when we talk about the resort itself. It gives you a better feel for the location.
I had booked a King Suite, which was laid out well and felt spacious. Everything seems small in Cape Cod. I guess most places are older and well-established and the cost of the land here must be through the roof. There is not a lot of space on Cape Cod, so that may be why everything seemed small to my eye. Even some restaurants you go to have a small seasonal feel to them. Instead of bothering me, I kind of liked the feeling. It felt like it was a fishing village more than a beach town.
In the 360 hours do not be caught off guard. Whoever designed the tour centers you on the hot tub instead of the pool when you first land on that page. When I looked at it writing this, I was like that is not the pool and laughed preparing to joke with you about the views from the World’s smallest pool. The pool can be seen in that image you just have to turn around and zoom in. The pool itself is somewhat small but it is a nice heated pool for their short summer seasons.
They also have an indoor pool but they do not share pictures of that on the website for whatever reason. My guess is though that you would want to get into the indoor pool most months out of the year because of the outside air temps here.
From the website, you find these notes on the pools.
Resort has an outdoor heated pool and heated spa for guest use. Please note, the outdoor swimming pool is seasonal and usually closes in mid-September with a reopening in mid-May. Guests may utilize the indoor pool and outdoor hot tub year-round.
What Recent Guests had to Say in Online Reviews
“My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Soundings Seaside Resort. Our view of the beach from our unit was wonderful. The front desk staff was most helpful and gave us tips on where to go for various excursions along the Cape (Martha’s Vineyard, Whale watching, etc.).
It would have been nice to have both the outdoor pool and hot tub open but due to Covid restrictions they were closed.
The resort is located close to the “Mid-Cape” area so visiting Provincetown, Hyannis, etc. well within driving distance. Great restaurants are also very close to the resort.”
“The Soundings is hard to beat for location. It’s easy to drive all over Cape Cod from there. The views from most of the rooms are fabulous. I wish all of the villas had the same amenities. It is hard to know what you will find when it is different each time you go.”
“Villa was clean, spacious, and had an amazing view of the beach. This is literally the perfect beach vacation resort.”
“Sunrise & sunset from the same deck or beach chair, just absolutely amazing. Great location, many units don’t have an oven but the outdoor grills are readily available.
Fire pit & indoor pool nice amenities for the cooler months. Would definitely return.”
Those are some great reviews from real local visitors and guests. People can be hard on reviews these days so those are great ones for sure.
I found my room to be perfect for what I wanted, and I liked the extra options of this resort versus the last one. This had an indoor pool and a better beachfront setup. Although between Breakers and Here there is a beach park, so both really have amazing beach access.
I could see people coming here with the kids for a week in the summer or couples coming here year-round for some romance and time together. The seafront location just would draw two people together with the great views and fireplace.
I had taken a nap (maybe it was the salt air, could have been the few beers I had earlier). When I woke, I thought to myself, time for dinner. I walked from the resort to the Ebb Tide. I had just had fish tacos for lunch but I love seafood so the idea of more did not bother me at all.
Here the menu was a little pricy. Not bad, but just more than I would like to spend if I had the whole family with me. But I would say fine for a couple on a romantic trip, and it was a quick walk over from the resort, which was nice to not have to get in the car.
They have stuffed clams here that they call bakes stuffed Quahog. That was tasty and they say it is a local favorite. After that, I realized I had not had any lobster yet so I tried the lobster mac and cheese. I was glad I did the cheesy goodness worked well with the lobster claw meat.
Dessert was hard to choose. They had one of most things I love but I landed on the Blueberry Pie which was as good as I have had. It really made the meal for me. The meal here after a tip was almost as much as the train trip meal just to put things into perspective. But the food was good. There were also less costly options on the menu. I just went for what I wanted and that was not the cheapest item on the menu.
Day Two at The Soundings Seaside Resort
Today I wanted to check out the sunrise. Here on Cape Cod, there is no light pollution, and you have direct ocean views so I thought it would be a great place to catch the sunrise, and maybe even a sunset since you were in effect on almost an island.
The Sunrise was lovely. It seemed different than the view in the Keys, or Florida’s East Coast. Somehow the sunrise seemed different in a cooler climate. It was beautiful and had a nice feeling about it. But on this day I did not get the many cloud colors that you sometimes see with a sunrise.
For breakfast, I headed over to a local bakery close to the resort called Woolfie’s. This spot is literally in someone’s neighborhood. Truly one of that local kinds of places someone has to tell you about to find. It was great, however. The muffins would make anyone a happy camper. For breakfast, it makes a light breakfast and a great treat. I would think if you were staying at the resort with the family the first adult up could sneak over (since they open at 7 AM) and get breakfast muffins fresh for everyone and bring them back.
There was a bit of a line at 8 AM when I got there but it was worth the few minutes wait. The owners and staff were very nice, especially when very busy. I would highly recommend this bakery. They get my stamp of approval.
After the first 2 muffins from a 6 pack, I put the rest back in the car and planned to set them aside for snacks and or breakfast tomorrow. Note to self, purchase some large ziplock bags to keep them fresh.
I feel like I never get up to this area, so today I wanted to drive to Martha’s Vineyard and see what all the fuss is about. It is a scenic 2-hour drive or so from the resort so not bad just slow moving and very centered on the nature around you during your trip.
If you want to take the ferry and your car, there is just one ferry. The steamship authority ferry. Going on foot is cheaper and likely what I should have done. But I wanted the rental car to see as much as I could in one day in the area. I plunked down the $118 for the round-trip ticket.
I had planned for this after doing my research before the trip online. You need to have reservations ahead of time to catch the early ferry over because they book up fast for cars. Walk-on access is possible almost anytime but you need a reservation for your car. Since this is what many people do, you may need to book way ahead during the summer months. I booked my car 2 weeks ahead and barely made it for this Sunday run over on the ferry.
Imagine an ideal visual island town and you have Martha’s Vineyard. No matter what you picture, it likely is on this island somewhere. But this is not a cheap place to buy real estate or spend your time. A quick look at the real estate will show you a small 1-bedroom condo that will run you well over ½ a million dollars if you can find one available. Family homes here are in the multimillion-dollar range with most being over 5 million.
If you want to see how the other half lives, this is a great spot to see things from. It is not as in your face as the Hamptons but it clearly has that feeling of old money.
On the Martha’s Vineyard website, they share this that I thought was helpful.
“Locals commonly refer to “up-Island” and “down-Island”. Technically it’s a longitude/latitude thing, but basically when you hear “up-Island” it means the western, more rural towns of West Tisbury, Chilmark, and Aquinnah.
“Down-Island” refers to the busy port towns of Tisbury (Vineyard Haven), Oak Bluffs, and Edgartown.
If you look at a map, down-Island looks like it should be up-Island, but now we’re back to that longitude/latitude thing.“
If you liked the movie Jaws make sure to visit Chilmark. It will make you feel like you are in the movie. It is also just a heck of a nice fishing village and location with a little beach as well.
I headed to Oak Bluffs town next, and this place was amazing. Just very neat and ideal. There was also the Flying Horses Carousel which is the oldest functional one of its kind in the United States. It was built in 1876 and while small is lovely and they offer private bookings during the season so you could have a child’s birthday here.
It was moved from Coney Island where it first provided amusement more than 100 years ago. It was purchased by a trust and moved in 1986 to its current location. All to save this historic wonder.
For lunch, I went to a local’s spot called Sharky’s Cantina. I had a couple of drinks and a nice lunch. I stayed simple and went with a large order of their nachos because I saw that they made their own chips in-house and that is always a great sign. I had mine with pulled chicken in half and ground beef in the other. It was huge and great tasting.
Given the very exclusive island location, the prices here were downright bargains and the food was great. The atmosphere was wonderful as well as the staff 5 stars for a whole in-the-wall kind of spot, it was great!
There are a ton of great little shops here. Not sure how all these places staff their businesses because no real estate on the island is affordable. So even if people rode a ferry over they had one heck of a commute to come work at the restaurants or little shops. The behind-the-scenes stuff like that always makes me think when I travel.
I went on to visit several smaller towns throughout the day. I think I will try and come back to Martha’s Vineyard again, maybe even come stay somewhere on the island sometime.
Day Three Back on Cape Cod
I could really make a trip to Martha’s Vineyard a thing. It was an amazing island to check out. All the little towns were fun and I was impressed by the value of some of the places you could visit.
If I get the chance to go again, I will make time to visit the Martha’s Vineyard Museum that I did not make it to yesterday. But today I was back on Cape Cod for the day and I was excited to see more of the area.
One thing that is neat to do is to try out a salt cave. This one on cape cod is man-made but done very well. Sessions here are very affordable as low as $35 for a 45-minute session.
A salt cave when the supplement with a salt air generator as this one does can be very beneficial. Especially if you have sleep issues or any kind of breathing concerns.
For most people traveling to the area, you will likely want to check out the amazing lighthouses in the area. I enjoy them myself but opted out on this trip because I have seen so many back around my home, and I wanted a chance to get on a boat and check out migrating whales.
For my trip I chose Captain John’s they seemed to offer a good package for the whale watcher. It is about a half-day trip at 4 hours and you should bring a few layers of clothing since it can be 15 degrees cooler than when on land, and a good hat and sunscreen. I would also bring some water or something else to drink as well since it is 4 hours.
As you leave the port you are informed and educated by a professional marine biologist who is very much a real deal naturalist. Very knowledgeable and informative. If I had not watched every episode of Nova on marine life when I was young a few hundred times, I would have not been aware of all that they cover on the trip.
On our trip, we saw 2 types of whales and several schools of fish. Humpbacks and minke were the two types we got to see on our trip and they were amazing to see in person. The tickets were a little costly at $65 a person for adults but well worth it when you saw these amazing creatures so close, and the biologist was so informative.
It made for a special last day on Cape Cod and in the area. Because of my flight, I had already checked out of the resort this morning. So now I just needed to gas back up the rental and return to the airport in time for my flight. There was not a straight flight back to Norfolk, but just one layover so it would not be bad.
I strongly recommend Cape Cod and visiting Martha’s Vineyard too if you get the chance. Staying at this resort is a great option as well.
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