If you, like Sean before he met Sofi, have never been to Martha’s Vineyard / are not 100% sure what it is, you’re in luck! It is one of the most beautiful places in the world. But the logistics of the place are a little complicated, so this guide is intended to help newcomers navigate to what the Michiganders among you might call the “Mackinac Island of the East.”
Martha’s Vineyard is an island off the southern coast of Cape Cod in Massachusetts. It’s famous for its beaches, scenery, and Barack Obama birthday parties. It’s also where Sofi grew up, from middle school through high school. Martha’s Vineyard is the name of the island itself, but there are six individual towns that comprise it. It’s quite large--96 square miles, or about 20 times larger than Mackinac Island.
There are a variety of ways to get to and from the island.
Probably the easiest way to get there is by flying into Martha’s Vineyard Airport MVY. In the spring and summer, American Airlines, Delta, and JetBlue fly into MVY, with direct service from New York, Chicago, DC, Boston, and Philadelphia. See details on routes on the airport's website (https://mvyairport.com/airlines/). Many of the seasonal airlines won’t release their schedules for May of next year for a while yet, so it may be worth waiting until you see options from all the airlines. Rental cars are available from the MVY airport. Note: Sometimes, flight search engines will include flights to Boston airport, BOS, when you search for Martha’s Vineyard. Be sure to specify MVY as the airport if you want to fly directly to the island.
You can also drive to Martha’s Vineyard, although the trick is catching a ferry from Wood’s Hole, Massachusetts on the Cape Cod side. You’ll want to book your slot well in advance with the Steamship Authority (https://www.steamshipauthority.com/). You can also leave your car in a parking lot on the Wood’s Hole side and just take the ferry yourself. That’s cheaper and a lot more flexible, but read the Getting Around section before deciding that’s for you.
From Boston, you can take a Peter Pan bus (https://peterpanbus.com/routes/boston-to-woodshole-bus/) to Wood’s Hole and take a ferry from there. If you time your trip exactly right, you could also take the CapeFLYER train (https://capeflyer.com/) to Hyannis and then catch a Hy-Line ferry (https://hylinecruises.com/marthas-vineyard-ferry/) from there. It only runs a couple trips a weekend, though, so it’s not very flexible. From New York, you can take a Sea Streak ferry (https://seastreak.com/ferry-routes-and-schedules/between-new-jersey-new-york-city-marthas-vineyard/) directly to Martha’s Vineyard. It is sometimes a bit choppy and there are typically Wall Street guys getting drunk and then seasick. But is a very direct route and may be an option for those who aren’t faint of heart. A more complex but more comfortable way of getting there involves taking Amtrak on the Northeast Corridor to Providence, Rhode Island (you can catch it from Boston or New York). From there, you take a cab or Uber to Quonset Point, Rhode Island (Google Maps link at http://bit.ly/3VZtz7I); it’s about a 25 minute trip and costs around $30-50. From there, you take a Fast Ferry (https://www.fastferry.com/marthas-vineyard-fast-ferry/) directly to Martha’s Vineyard.
Car is easiest. Carpooling is wise. May 31 isn’t the peak of the tourist season, but it will already be a pretty busy time of year. There is also a decent public bus network. See more info at their website (https://www.vineyardtransit.com/), although note they will have more robust service in the summer than their current winter schedule shows. Bicycling is also possible, but be advised the infrastructure is pretty inconsistent throughout the island. It could be the e-bike capital of the western world, but alas, the roads are narrow and there aren’t bike lanes in most places.
Martha’s Vineyard has a population of around 20,000 in the winter; this swells to around 200,000 in the peak of the summer. What this means is there are a lot of hotels, vacation homes, and even a campground. AirBnB has a lot of options. May 31 isn’t the peak of the tourist peak, but places will still fill up and so booking early would be wise. You may be best off finding additional guests and sharing accommodation in a vacation home. If you’d like any matchmaking with other guests in the same boat, let us know and we can try to connect you. The wedding itself will be in West Tisbury. If you have a car, you can really stay anywhere. If you’re planning to take the bus, Vineyard Haven and Edgartown have direct bus connections to the wedding site. Both of those towns, plus Oak Bluffs, all have good walkable downtowns.
If you’re coming out for the first time, it’s worth doing some sightseeing. The towns of Oak Bluffs, Edgartown and Tisbury are all charming tourist destinations. The beaches are consistently gorgeous, especially places like Great Rock Bight and Menemsha. The cliffs at Aquinnah on the far western part of the island are really stunning. And Chappaquiddick, which is sometimes connected by sand bar to Martha’s Vineyard and sometimes not, is a very beautiful place in its own right. It will likely be on the chilly side when it comes to swimming, although who knows, especially on the eastern side of the island; Sofi and Sean swam on a similarly-timed trip last year that in part inspired the decision to go forward and hold the wedding in late May! I would bring a swimming suit in any event.