Hilltown Families 
Beach Day Trips: 16 Recommendations from Western MA
QUESTION AND ANSWERS
Can anyone recommend a New England BEACH worth taking a day trip to?
- Teresa Barents Van Bramer responds: Misquamicut Beach in Rhode Island.
- Maria Sansalone responds: Rhode Island beaches in general.
- Rae Griffiths responds: Wingaersheek Beach in Gloucester, MA
- Marianne Bullock responds: Plum Island, MA
- Lynne Priest Fitzpatrick responds: Ditto on Plum Island or Gloucester area.
- Lauren Koblara Kostantin responds: Misquamicut Beach and Wingaersheek Beach are both really good ones. Also love Old Orchard Beach, Maine, if you’re looking for old school boardwalk type beaches.
- Julianne Thibodeau Krutka responds: Hampton Beach in NH is my favorite! Has something for everyone no matter what age range! Lots of stuff to do!
- Karen Bayne responds: Rockport, MA: Adorable town beach with rocks made for climbing in picturesque town, dotted with galleries, fudge shops, ice cream shops & hole in the wall lobster roll spots. Park on the street – public bathrooms right on the street where beach is! – Rocky Neck, CT: Lovely state park beach with small waves from the Long Island Sound. Water stays shallow for a long way from shore, so great for younger beach swimmers. Bathrooms, changing stalls, showers – pay to park.
- Alison Platek Webster responds: Agree with Rocky Neck! Went there as a kid and just took my two year old and two month old for the first time last week. Another plus, you actually walk under the Amtrak line onto the beach, so there are lots of train sightings!
- Jannelle Codianni responds: Demarest Lloyd State Park Beach (Dartmouth, MA). I live a lot closer to this beach than many of you who would be traveling out from western MA, but I would still go to this beach if I had to travel 3 hours! It’s a state park so it’s inexpensive, and if you have the parks pass, it’s free. It is a small beach, rocky like your typical New England beach, but it’s in an inlet so there are very few waves. This makes it nice and easy for kids. When the tide goes out there are tide pools galore filled with really interesting marine life to explore and temporarily collect. I’ve never seen it very crowded, and there are usually a lot of families with younger kids there. This is my favorite beach.
- Riqi Kosovske responds: We just went to Hampton Beach, NH for the day. Very honky-tonk but there was something so comforting and down to earth about being on a crowded beach with kids and tattoos of every variety. Good chai right across from the beach and clear, clear water.
- Carmela Smith responds: Nauset Light (Eastham, MA) or Marconi Point on Cape Cod are great beaches to go to. Very peaceful to be at even when its busy it doesn’t seem too bad to be at.
- Betsy-Dawn Williams responds: There is also Rock Harbor in Orleans, MA on the Cape… and in Connecticut, there is Hammonasset Beach State Park (Madison, CT)… the beach in Ogunquit, Maine is quite nice too. That Hampton Beach in NH is COLD!
- Kelly Czupkiewicz Pacunas responds: Old Orchard Beach in Maine! Fun for all ages
- Karen O’Connell Leet responds: As a kid we would go to these: Horseneck Beach, Westport, MA (big dunes); Newport Beaches in Newport, RI (surfer vibe); Onset Beach, Wareham, MA (pretty inlet). These are all about 3 hours away from the Hilltowns.
- Maribeth Blankenburg Ritchie responds: Misquamicut Beach. Lots to do… amusement park, restaurants, beach.
I have to second Karen Bayne’s vote for Rockport, MA, but then I’m a bit partial as I grew up there.
Cranes Beach, run by the Trustees of the Reservation in Ipswich, MA is lovely and totally geared toward kids. There is a great food stand with healthy choices and a bath house with bathrooms, indoor and outdoor showers and changing rooms. I think entry for non-members is $20… maybe more, but it is my absolute favorite beach. During low tide there are loads of fine tidal pools for toddlers and bigger kids can wade out into the shallows without worry. Also, to get there you can avoid cape traffic, but may hit Boston traffic depending on timing. It is a 2-2.5 hour trip.
Misquamicut Beach is one of RI’s most popular beaches. The state beach has a renovated pavilion and the nearby rides and attractions are a nice break away from the beach scene.