Orleans sits at the elbow of Cape Cod, where the warm, calm water of Cape Cod Bay meets the Atlantic surf of the National Seashore. From Orleans Holiday House you are three minutes from Skaket Beach, seven minutes from Nauset Beach, a short walk from Eldredge Park and downtown, and twenty minutes from the Nantucket fast ferry. Five bedrooms, sleeps ten, private hot tub, and eight bikes in the garage.
Check Dates & BookOrleans is the only town on the Cape where you can pick your ocean by the hour.
Warm, calm, and shallow. Skaket Beach and Rock Harbor face west over the bay, so this is where you go for low-tide walks on the flats, tide pools and hermit crabs with little kids, shelling and sea glass, and the sunset. The water here runs 65 to 75 degrees in summer.
Ten miles of dunes and surf inside the Cape Cod National Seashore. Nauset Beach is the classic: lifeguards, food trucks, boogie boards, surfers at the north end, and Monday night concerts at the gazebo all summer. Bring a sweatshirt for after the swim; the Atlantic side runs cooler.
One beach pass covers both the same day, so a Skaket morning and a Nauset afternoon is the easiest plan on the Cape.
The bay beach, and the one we send families to first. Warm water, tidal flats at low tide, outdoor showers, a snack stand, and the best sunset in Orleans. Bikeable from the house.
The Atlantic beach. Ten miles of sand, dunes, and surf, with lifeguards and food trucks in summer. Arrive early on hot weekends; the lot fills.
A working fishing harbor with a small sheltered beach, the famous clam trees at low tide, and free parking. Watch the charter fleet come in around dinnertime, then stay for the sunset.
Clear freshwater swimming when you want a break from the salt. Parking is limited and may be residents-only in peak season; ask us.
A quiet 39-acre pond for swimming, kayaking, and picnics.
Small, calm, and off the beaten path in South Orleans. Street parking only.
Skaket and Nauset require a sticker or daily pass during enforcement hours, typically mid-June through Labor Day, 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM. After 4:30 parking is free, which makes an evening swim and sunset the best deal on the Cape. As of 2026, a daily pass runs about $32.50 at the gate and a weekly sticker about $165, valid at both beaches for seven consecutive days. Weekly stickers are sold online by the Town of Orleans (allow five business days) or in person at the Sticker Office on Giddiah Hill Road. Bikes and pedestrians enter free at both beaches, and Rock Harbor never charges. Prices and dates are set by the town and change; confirm at town.orleans.ma.us before your trip.
Orleans Holiday House sits in a quiet residential neighborhood with a footpath into Eldredge Park. From the park it is a ten to fifteen minute walk to Main Street.
Eldredge Park, with playgrounds, tennis and pickleball, a skate park, and free Orleans Firebirds baseball from mid-June through early August. Hog Island Beer Co. for local brews and live music on summer Saturdays. Jo Mama's for coffee and sandwiches. The Alley for BBQ, candlepin bowling, and an arcade. Charles Moore Arena for public skating. Main Street for galleries, the Artist Cottages, the Saturday farmers market, Hot Chocolate Sparrow, and Snow Library.
We keep eight bikes and helmets in the garage, and bikes enter every Orleans beach free. Favorite rides start at the driveway: Skaket for sunset and back through town for ice cream (four to six miles, flat, perfect with kids), the Cape Cod Rail Trail two minutes away, and for stronger riders the Rail Trail north to Coast Guard Beach in Eastham, one of the most beautiful beaches in America, about eight miles each way.
Most people know the Cape in July. We think the other eleven months are the secret. Here is what each one looks like from Orleans, with the full top-ten list for every month on our blog.
Quiet Luxury
Fireplaces, the hot tub under a clear cold sky, the indoor winter farmers market at the Community Center, and restaurants with no wait.
Top 10 for JanuaryValentine's by the Sea
Empty beaches for two, live music at The Barley Neck, and the Chamber's February vacation-week events for families.
Top 10 for FebruarySt. Patrick's + Spring Stirrings
The Cape Cod St. Patrick's Parade in Yarmouth, the Gloriae Dei Cantores spring concert at the Church of the Transfiguration, and the first warm afternoons on the flats.
Top 10 for MarchEaster + Spring Break on the Cape
Arts Week in Orleans, the Earth Day beach cleanup on the National Seashore, whale watch season opening in Provincetown, and Brewster in Bloom at the turn of the month.
Top 10 for AprilThe Cape Comes Alive
Shops and stands reopen, the Nantucket ferry starts running, Figawi race weekend on Memorial Day, and the beaches before the stickers.
Top 10 for MaySalty Air + Sandy Feet Season Begins
First Fridays in downtown Orleans, the Firebirds' opening day at Eldredge Park, and the Provincetown film festival and Portuguese Festival.
Top 10 for JuneHigh Summer on the Cape
Fireworks over Rock Harbor, the Fourth of July parade, Monday concerts at Nauset Beach, the Hydrangea Festival, and lobster roll church suppers.
Top 10 for JulyPeak Cape Vibes
The Pan-Mass Challenge rolling through town, the Orleans Police block party on Main Street, the Catboat Gathering on Pleasant Bay, the chamber music festival, and Provincetown Carnival.
Top 10 for AugustThe Locals' Favorite Month
Warm water, empty sand, no stickers after Labor Day, Cape Cod Restaurant Week, the Eastham Windmill Weekend, and the Provincetown Schooner Regatta.
Top 10 for SeptemberLong Weekend Getaways
Wellfleet OysterFest, the Outermost Roots and Blues Festival on Nauset Beach, Halloween strolls downtown, and foliage on Route 6A.
Top 10 for OctoberThanksgiving on the Cape
Orleans oyster season opens November 1, the Tis the Season stroll on Thanksgiving weekend, and a full house around two fireplaces.
Top 10 for NovemberA Seaside Holiday
The tree lighting at Depot Square, Chatham's Christmas Stroll, Provincetown Holly Folly, and First Night Chatham to close the year.
Top 10 for DecemberEvent schedules change like Cape Cod weather, but there is always something fun to do, and we're glad to have you.
The Knack for lobster rolls and burgers after the beach. Land Ho! for the local legend seafood dinner. The Barley Neck in East Orleans for our favorite night out, with live music most evenings. Hog Island Beer Co. and Town Cove Tap House, a beer garden hidden behind a century-old hardware store, for a casual evening. Hot Chocolate Sparrow and Sunbird for coffee and breakfast. Nauset Fish Market when you want to cook the catch at home. Cape Cod Charcuterie for a board to bring to Skaket at sunset. And Arnold's in Eastham, Brewster Fish House, and the Beachcomber in Wellfleet when you are ready to drive. The Cape's food scene changes every season, so ask us for the current favorites when you book.
Skaket Beach on Cape Cod Bay is a three-minute drive or an easy bike ride. Nauset Beach on the Atlantic is seven minutes. Rock Harbor, with free parking and the best sunsets in town, is five.
Skaket. The bay water is warm and shallow, and at low tide the flats stretch out for a quarter mile of tide pools, hermit crabs, and shelling. Nauset is the surf beach, better for older kids and anyone who wants real waves.
Yes for Skaket and Nauset in season, roughly mid-June through Labor Day, 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM. Daily passes are sold at the gate and weekly stickers are available online from the Town of Orleans; one pass covers both beaches the same day. Bikes and walk-ins enter free, which is why we keep eight bikes in the garage. Rock Harbor is always free.
It helps for Nauset, Chatham, and Wellfleet, but you can happily spend days without one. Eldredge Park, Hog Island Beer Co., Jo Mama's, The Alley, the ice rink, and Main Street galleries are all walkable, and the Cape Cod Rail Trail and Skaket Beach are a short ride on the house bikes.
Yes. The Freedom Cruise Line fast ferry leaves from Harwich Port, twenty minutes away, with free day-tripper parking and about an eighty-minute crossing, Memorial Day through Columbus Day. Book the return before you settle into a long Nantucket lunch.
September is the locals' favorite month: warm water, empty beaches, and every restaurant open without a wait. October brings Wellfleet OysterFest and the Roots and Blues Festival at Nauset Beach. Winter is fireplaces, the hot tub under the stars, and a town that stays open year-round. Orleans is always in season.
The Alley (BBQ, candlepin bowling, arcade) and Indoor Golf Sims are two minutes away, the Himalayan salt cave and Orleans Yoga are on Main Street, the Whydah Pirate Museum is a forty-minute drive, and the house has a lower-level game room with ping pong, foosball, and karaoke. Rainy-day hot tub soaks are a guest favorite.
Yes. The house is in a quiet residential neighborhood with a cut-through to Eldredge Park, and from the park it is a ten to fifteen minute walk to Main Street, the Artist Cottages, and the Saturday farmers market.
Come sea us when you're ready to get away. Five bedrooms, a private hot tub, two fireplaces, and the whole Cape within reach.
Check Dates & BookReturning guests enjoy complimentary linens when they book direct.