10 Best Things to Do for Couples in Cape Cod

Cape Cod sunset cruises whisk you out over the cobalt-blue waters of the North Atlantic. They allow you to watch the evening light dip over the dunes and sandy stretches of the peninsula from a whole different angle. The little romantic port town of Hyannis is the main place they depart from, but there are options from Eastham and Provincetown, too.

Most sunset tours by boat take around 75 to 90 minutes. They can either be fully narrated or silent, so you can soak up the sound of the sloshing waves below. Departing out of Hyannis is the best choice if you want to catch a glimpse of the grand Kennedy homes on the shoreline. But the options out of Provincetown are better if you're keen on seeing wetlands and rugged nature.

Martha's Vineyard is a great place to go to slow down the pace of your romantic jaunt to the cape. It's a whole separate island, linked to the mainland at Woods Hole just out of Falmouth by a regular 45-minute ferry ride. Once you're there, though, it's best to hop in the saddle.

This 96-square-mile dot in the Nantucket Sound is tailor-made for exploring on 2 wheels. There are loads of marked trails where cyclists have right of way. They can take you to the bijou boutiques of Edgartown or down to the secluded sands of Lambert's Cove Beach, not to mention right through the middle of the hidden Manuel F. Correllus State Forest further inland.

Race Point Beach is a scythe of golden sand that caps off the whole of Cape Cod at its northern end. To get there, you can either trundle over the dunes from your hotel in Provincetown or cruise up the whole of beautiful Route 6 if you're staying further afield.

Long, uninterrupted runs of powder dash below oat-topped dunes. The waves lap against the sandbars on the other side, and groups of shorebirds flit and fidget in the air. The highlight of a loved-up hike at Race Point Beach is likely to be the white-tinged Race Point Lighthouse at the western end of the bay.

The Cape Cod Lavender Farm is for channeling a taste of French Provence on the Eastern Seaboard. It's located in the heart of the southern cape – just north of Harwich and a touch south of the main Route 6, down a hidden cul-de-sac filled with high oaks and big mansions.

Covering 75 acres of land, the farm encompasses lush gardens that bloom with different types of lavender in the peak summer season. It's totally free to visit but there's an onsite shop where you and your other half can pore through locally made goodies, such as soaps, hand creams, and herbs for cooking.

Hyannis Harbor is one of the nerve centres of Cape Cod. This bustling boat hub cuts its way inland from the Nantucket Sound on the far south side of the peninsula, spreading its watery wings under the gaze of the lovely Hyannis Harbor Light.

There's plenty to do for couples at Hyannis Harbor. It's the go-to spot for organizing boat trips around the beaches and coves of Lewis Bay, as well as the elegant Joseph P. Kennedy House. But sticking to the salt-washed quaysides is also a good idea, mainly because there are more Massachusetts clam shacks and ice cream parlors than you could possibly hope to get through.

The Nauset Lighthouse is often hailed as one of the most photogenic on this whole stretch of Cape Cod’s shoreline. This really is saying something since there is no shortage of lighthouses. You'll find it shouldering above the dunes and dwarf forests almost midway between Chatham and Provincetown, a 5-minute detour off Route 6.

First off, it's a cracking spot for a romantic picnic. You can choose to sit in the shadowy woods behind the landmark or hit the wave-washed beach out front. There are also regular guided tours of the lighthouse itself. Run by the Nauset Light Preservation Society, it’s a great way to hear tales of the building that dates back to 1877.

Despite the name, the Great Island Trail is pleasantly accessible and doable in a single day. It starts just out of Wellfleet on the Chequessett Neck Road and can either be a short 3.9-mile loop or a longer challenge that hits 8.8 miles, depending on what turns you take.

Both are pretty fantastic, offering vistas of lush, grass-topped sand dunes that flow to the horizon, stopping at empty beaches of white powder, and walking through reed-sprouting wetlands replete with rare waterfowl. You will need to check that the tide is right to complete the hike, as some sections of the trail can get submerged when it's high.

Twenty-Eight Atlantic is one of the most decorated restaurants on the cape. But the food can wait for a moment, because the location is worth some plaudits – the joint sits on a perch just meters from the waters of Little Pleasant Bay, with sweeping views of the wetlands and dunes from its dining room.

That should already have piqued the romantic interest. Then, you've gotten the menus. They're packed with seasonal New American cuisine, a medley of oysters and foraged forest mushrooms, steamed halibut and sea grapes, all cooked masterfully by Chef James Hackney. There's also a sommelier-led wine list to match.

The Cape Cod National Seashore is the natural showpiece of the Massachusetts peninsula. It's hard to miss, because the reserve covers 43,000 acres of land, running the whole way up the eastern shoreline from the Monomoy Lighthouse to Long Point.

Between its borders are plenty of places where you can ditch the crowds and escape as a honeymoon duo. Check out the picket-fenced stretches of Ballston Beach, where you can spy rock reefs at low tide. Or head to the Cahoon Hollow Beach, where the dunes soar like bulwarks on one side. Lighthouses are ever-present, too, from the lovely Nauset Light to the lonely Long Point Light in the far north.

Truro Vineyards are one of the pioneers of viticulture in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Their cellar door is at a restored 1800s farmhouse on the South Hollow Road, conveniently sat just a whisker off the main Route 6 that runs north to south on the cape.

You can indulge in a gourmand's selection of wine testings. The tipples change from day to day, but invariably include the plum-raspberry notes of the Zinfandel and the oaky-vanilla Chardonnay. The folk at Truro Vineyards also host weddings and couple's photoshoots to a backdrop of the idyllic Truro countryside.