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The Best Shopping
No matter how spectacular the scenery or splendid the weather, certain towns have so many intriguing shops that you'll be lured away from the beach, at least temporarily. The inventory is so carefully culled or created that just browsing can be sufficient entertainment, but slip a credit card into your cutoffs just in case.
Chatham: Old-fashioned, tree-shaded Main Street is packed with inviting storefronts, including the Chatham Glass Company (tel. 508/945-5547), where you can literally look over their shoulders as artisans craft glass treasures, and Mark, Fore & Strike for classic and sporty Cape Cod clothes (tel. 508/945-0568).
Wellfleet: The commercial district is 2 blocks long; the art zone is twice that. Pick up a walking map to locate the galleries in town: Cherrystone Gallery (tel. 508/349-3026) tops the don't-miss list. Seekers of low-key chic will want to check out two designers, Hannah (tel. 508/349-9884) and Karol Richardson (tel. 508/349-6378). For designer produce and impeccable seafood, peruse the array at the homey Hatch's Fish & Produce Market (tel. 508/349-2810 for fish, or 508/349-6734 for produce) behind Town Hall.
Provincetown: Overlooking the import junk that floods the center of town, the 3-mile strip of Commercial Street is a shopaholic's dream. It's all here, seemingly direct from SoHo: sensual, cutting-edge clothing (for every sex and permutation thereof), art, jewelry, antiques, and more. And whatever you really need but didn't know you needed can be found at Marine Specialties (tel. 508/487-1730), a warehouse packed with surplus essentials.
Nantucket: Imagine Martha Stewart cloned a hundredfold, and you'll have some idea of the tenor of shops in this well-preserved 19th-century town. Centre Street -- known as "Petticoat Row" in whaling days -- still caters to feminine tastes, and the town's many esteemed antiques stores would never deign to present anything less than the genuine article.
Vineyard Haven, Martha's Vineyard: Though it's the dowdiest of Martha's Vineyard's six towns, this ferry port boasts the best shops, from Bramhall & Dunn for housewares (tel. 508/693-6437) to The Great Put On for designer and contemporary women's wear (tel. 508/627-5495). And don't miss Carly Simon's Midnight Farm (tel. 508/693-1997) for country home and personal furnishings. You might want to save some cash, though, for the multiethnic boutiques of Oak Bluffs or the pricey preppy redoubts of Edgartown.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
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