Summer tourists frequently rush past the first part of Cape Cod on their way to the outer beaches. Because of that, the Upper Cape is sleepier and more residential than the rest of the peninsula. It’s worth visiting, however, for two very different towns—historic Sandwich and the bustling research center of Woods Hole.

The Mid-Cape is traversed by three parallel highways. On the bayside, Route 6A is known as the Old King’s Highway, and it retains the colonial feel of some of the oldest towns in the state, crawling with quiet bed-and-breakfasts and antiques stores.

Along Nantucket Sound, meanwhile, Route 28 is the bustling beachfront terrain of mini-golf courses and sticky fried seafood, anchored by the relative metropolis of Hyannis. In between the two routes, US Route 6 is the featureless but efficient express route to the Lower Cape.

Getting There

Cape Air (800/352-0714, www.flycapeair.com) runs daily flights from Boston, Providence, and the Islands (Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard) to Barnstable Municipal Airport (480 Barnstable Rd., Hyannis, 508/775-2020, www.town.barnstable.ma.us). Buses by Plymouth & Brockton Bus Lines (508/746-0378, www.p-b.com) run from Boston and Plymouth to the Hyannis Transportation Center (215 Iyannough Rd., Hyannis, 508/775-8504).

The Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority (800/352-7155, www.capecodtransit.org) runs the Breeze shuttle throughout Hyannis and along Route 28 from Woods Hole to Orleans.