Your Martha's Vineyard CME conference.

Martha’s Vineyard after your study day

Study days finish at 2:00 PM Martha’s Vineyard time. For an easy afternoon, choose one outing near your study setting: the historic walking tour of downtown Edgartown, the Flying Horses Carousel in Oak Bluffs, or the Martha’s Vineyard Museum in Vineyard Haven. Leave time for seasonal hours, because several island landmarks open only on certain days and in certain months.

Travel, accommodation and any ferry or admission arrangements are made separately. Your conference is built around your specialty and interests; the island is the setting you choose for it.

Edgartown and Oak Bluffs

The island’s tourism site describes Edgartown, on the east side, as a mix of old-world charm and wide open spaces, and notes that the town includes Katama and Chappaquiddick. The Carnegie Heritage Center there offers a Living Landmarks exhibit and a Historic Walking Tour of downtown Edgartown. Check which days it is open before you plan around it. The Vineyard Trust, which runs it, looks after 20 historic landmarks, including the Old Whaling Church, Vincent House & Gardens and the Dr. Daniel Fisher House & Gardens in Edgartown, Union Chapel in Oak Bluffs and the Nathan Mayhew Schoolhouse in Vineyard Haven.

Oak Bluffs is described as the island’s liveliest town, more high-spirited than haute. An inn there lists Inkwell Beach, State Beach and South Beach as easy day trips, and describes the Oak Bluffs harbor with its pier and harbor walk. The Flying Horses Carousel has turned in Oak Bluffs since 1876 and is described as America’s oldest platform carousel, though it keeps seasonal weekend hours. The Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association, in an area called The Campground, is home to the colorful Gingerbread Cottages and an iron Tabernacle, and the site is a National Historic Landmark. The association’s roots go back to the early 1800s.

Vineyard Haven and the museum

Vineyard Haven, also called Tisbury, is the island’s year-round port, with a working harbor, and ferries from Woods Hole run every day of the year. The Martha’s Vineyard Museum is at 151 Lagoon Pond Road and is about a 10-minute walk from the Steamship Authority ferry terminal, according to the museum. Check its current days before you go.

Among its collections is the story of moving the Gay Head Light. The current brick tower was built in 1856, and erosion had left it dangerously close to the cliff edge by the early twenty-first century. From Edgartown, an inn on the island lists whaling captains’ homes and the Edgartown Lighthouse among nearby sights. Choose the museum for a rainy afternoon, and compare its hours with your 2:00 PM finish.

Up-island farms, harbors and cliffs

West Tisbury is described as the island’s farming heartland, with farm stands, cool ponds, a white church steeple, the historic Alley’s General Store and the Field Gallery’s sculptures. Chilmark has rolling hills and the fishing village of Menemsha. Aquinnah, the westernmost town, is home to the Gay Head Cliffs and lighthouse, and the tourism site calls the cliffs a place for over-water sunsets.

The tourism site says the island has five lighthouses, many beaches and miles of off-road trails. These towns are farther from the main ferry ports, so allow plenty of time to get there, and check the distance from your study setting against the check-in area before you choose one.

When to visit Martha’s Vineyard

Summer is the busiest time for ferries. The seasonal ferry from Falmouth into Edgartown runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day, and ferries into Oak Bluffs run from mid-May through mid-October. Ferries into Vineyard Haven run all year.

Both the Camp Meeting Association’s Tabernacle and the Flying Horses Carousel are in Oak Bluffs, so one stop can cover both, though the carousel keeps seasonal days. Hy-Line also runs a seasonal ferry between Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket from late May to early October. Use the local forecast when you plan outdoor time, and check ferry schedules for your dates before you rely on a crossing.

Getting to Martha’s Vineyard and your study setting

Martha’s Vineyard Airport (MVY) is the arrival point shown in this guide. The airport’s website gives its address as Airport Road in West Tisbury, lists car rentals and ferries among its ground transportation topics, places taxis in Lot A, and tells hotel guests to ask their hotel about shuttles. Year-round flights connect the island with Nantucket, according to the Nantucket Island Chamber of Commerce.

The Steamship Authority runs from Woods Hole to Vineyard Haven, with Oak Bluffs as a seasonal terminal. Passengers without a vehicle do not need a reservation and can go straight to the terminal.

The map shows straight-line distances from Shift’s designated center. These are orientation distances, not driving distances or travel-time estimates. Check your exact address against the conference’s check-in area before booking.