Provincetown Inn: Historic hotel on the tip of Cape Cod
Looking for a reasonably priced room with arguably one of the most breathtaking views in Massachusetts? Provincetown Inn, located at the beginning of Commercial Street near the historic park where the Pilgrims first set foot on Cape Cod on Nov. 21, 1620 before signing the Mayflower Compact, is a historic hotel that boasts to-die-for seaside views of Provincetown Harbor and Cape Cod Bay.
Originally built in 1925, the Provincetown Inn began as a luxury hotel for the rich and famous who visited the Cape. During World War II, the hotel was contracted for use as a military training ground for new recruits. The hot spot was refurbished in the 1950s, adding a new section on the second floor and a motel-style expansion outside of the Inn that created 32 rooms armed with decks facing the water. The management team led by Chester “The Bossman” Peck built an Olympic-sized pool facing the harbor that’s shaped like a Pilgrim’s hat, an obvious homage to the Mayflower travelers who made a pit stop in Provincetown before setting up shop in nearby Plymouth.
Before Peck sold the hotel in the ‘70s to the Evans family, he contracted local painter Don Aikens to craft murals throughout the property depicting Provincetown’s historical legacy, including its bragging rights as the first landing place of the Pilgrims, to its heyday as the early fishing capital, to its status as a summer hideaway for famous writers and artists.
Today, the Provincetown Inn is a favorite among frugal-minded tourists and weekend warriors looking for no-frills accommodations but offering instant access to some of the West End’s more stunning natural resources, mainly a 500-foot seashore that recedes in the morning but becomes a beach during high tide and a man-made jetty that connects Provincetown with Long Point beach and takes about an hour to cross by foot.
HelloMetro Tip: Herring Cove Beach, part of the Cape Cod National Seashore, is just a 15-minute walk from the Provincetown Inn. Many tourists ride their bike down King’s Highway before sloshing through the Moors to get to Herring Cove or you can hop on the shuttle which stops outside of the hotel to avoid the $15 parking fee.
Posted by Sam Baltrusis
