Chatham Bars Inn- Chatham, MA

Chatham Bars Inn personifies Old Cape Cod, or at least how I picture it. A stately shingled hotel, looking out over the water. A large grassy lawn, where late afternoon cocktails are consumed. A collection of cottages above windswept dunes. And, of course, a serene white sand beach. It is truly an idyllic piece of the past, alive in the present.

Constructed in 1914 as a private hunting lodge for Boston’s elite, and named for the sandy deposits just off the coast, the property offered deep-sea fishing and shorebird shooting for city slickers. During subsequent years, the property grew to 50 rooms and nine cottages, with amenities including steam heat, saltwater baths, a golf course, pool, tennis courts, yacht club, and several restaurants.

The hotel stayed afloat during the lean days of World War II, even hosting the exiled Princess Juliana of the Netherlands in 1944. Over the subsequent years, the Inn both expanded and changed hands several times, most recently in 2006.

Following that sale, the property received a $100 million renovation, which included all rooms, restaurants and public spaces. In 2012, the Inn acquired a nearby farm, elevating the property’s dining program. In 2014, the owners purchased The Inn at Perry Cabin, an equally stunning property down the coast.

As expected, the upscale inn is pricey, but definitely worth the expense, if only for a sunset cocktail, or a clam bake on the beach. Here, the Cape experience remains largely unchanged (sans shorebird shooting of course), making it possible to glimpse what it was like for the early travelers who came to Chatham over a century ago.