1. Josiah Dennis Manse And Old Westschoolhouse
City: Dennis, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (508) 385-2232, (508) 385-3528
Address: 77 Nobuscusset Road at Whig Street
Description: This 1736 saltbox was the home of the town’s founding father, Rev. Josiah Dennis, who lived here until his death in 1763. The manse is now a museum featuring artifacts of early Dennis life, with a children’s room and spinning and weaving exhibit. A maritime room holds models, paintings, and equipment from the Shiverick Shipyards, which produced eight large clipper ships during the mid-19th century. On the grounds is a 1770 one-room schoolhouse. The museum, which is owned by the town, is closed from mid-Sept to late June but, in season, welcomes guests on Tues morning (10 a.m. to noon) and Thurs afternoon (2 to 4 p.m.). Admission is free, but donations are accepted.
2. Cape Playhouse
City: Dennis, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (877) 385-3911
Address: 820 Route 6A
Description: This venerable playhouse has entertained the Cape since 1927. The most polished and consistent of Cape summer stock theater companies, the Cape Playhouse offers crisply produced shows starring freshly minted musical theater grads working alongside equity actors. Six shows are produced throughout the summer. Recent productions have included The Graduate, Legally Blonde, and Footloose. The Kids Bits series of family performances packs them in with a varied selection of plays, storytelling, puppetry, music, and magic on Thurs and Fri at 11 a.m. all summer.
3. Cape Cod Rail Trail
City: Dennis, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Insider Pick:
Description: Enjoy some of the best nature that the Cape has to offer on the Cape Cod Rail Trail, one of the most popular bike paths in the entire state. The trail starts from Dennis, crossing much of mid-Cape before ending at the Cape Cod National Seashore in Wellfleet. The flat, paved 22-mile path follows the Old Colony railroad track bed past Harwich’s cranberry bogs, dipping into oak and pine woods at Nickerson Park before ending with cool ocean headwinds at Le Count Hollow Beach. Along the way there are plenty of places to stop for a bite to eat or to take a dip.