dog friendly beaches on cape cod

there are some great beaches that allow pets on cape cod—the perfect place to take your dog during your vacation!

What’s better than chasing a tennis ball through the surf, shaking off on a dry towel, and then curling up below a faded umbrella for a nap?

Select a town below to find pet-friendly beaches throughout cape cod:

Barnstable: dog-friendly beaches

dogs are allowed on beaches in barnstable from september 15th – may 15th. pets are not allowed on beached during the summer season, or in protected areas that are closed due to piping plovers nesting.

Coville Beach

857 craigville beach road, centerville; Centerville Residents only

Craigville Beach

997 craigville beach road, centerville

Dowses Beach

348 east bay road, osterville; Osterville Residents only

Eugenia Fortes (aka East) Beach

Ianough Ave, Hyannisport; Hyannisport Residents only

Hamblin Pond

415 Route 149, Marstons Mills, MA

Hathaway’s Pond

1431 Phinney’s Lane, Barnstable

Joshua Pond

290 Tower Hill Road, Osterville

Kalmus Beach

670 ocean steeT, Hyannis

Long Beach

long beach road, centerville; Centerville Residents only

Loop’s Beach

281 ocean beach ave., cotuit; Cotuit Residents only

Lovell’s pond

1444 Santuit Newtown Road, Cotuit;

Millway Beach

307 Millway, Barnstable; Barnstable Residents only

Oregon Beach

Cotuit Residents only

Orrin Keyes Beach, aka Keyes beach

175 ocean ave., Hyannis

Ropes Beach

85 old shore road, Cotuit; Cotuit Residents only

Sandy Neck Beach

590 Sandy Neck Road, West Barnstable; orv oversand driving permits available. more info on oversand beach driving on cape cod

Veterans Beach

480 ocean street, Hyannis

Wequaquet Beach

460 Shootflying hill road, centerville

bourne: dog-friendly beaches

Bourne doesn’t allow dogs on public beaches from May 1st–October 15th. Dogs are only allowed on the beach in the off-season. Remember to always clean up poop.

All other bourne beaches are resident only, except for Monument beach which requires proof of 1 or 2 week lodging for temporary sticker.

All beaches and boat ramps require a Town of Bourne Parking Sticker. Click on a name below to view a map:

Barlows Landing, Pocasset

Electric Avenue, Buzzards Bay

Gray Gables Beach

Hen Cove, Pocasset

Massasoit Avenue, Pocasset

Monks Park, Pocasset

Monument Beach

Monument beach requires proof of 1 or 2 week lodging for temporary sticker.

Phillips Road, Sagamore Beach

Picture Lake, Pocasset

Pocasset River

Queen Sewell (aka Bumps) Pond, Buzzards Bay

Red Brook Harbor, Cataumet

Sagamore Beach (aka First Beach)

Sagamore Beach (aka Second Beach)

Squeteague, Cataumet

Brewster: dog-friendly beaches

Chatham: dog-friendly beaches

Dennis: dog-friendly beaches

In Dennis, you can’t take your dog to the beach during the summer. No dogs are allowed from memorial day-labor day.

Bayview Beach

Residents only

Chapin Memorial Beach

Cold Storage Beach

Corporation Beach

Dennisport South Village Road Beach

(North Lot)

West Dennis Beach

(West Lot)

Glendon/Dulling

Harborview Beach

Howes Street Beach

Inman Road Beach

Mayflower Beach

Princess Beach

Scargo Beach

Sea Street Beach

South Village Beach

(south side)

West Dennis Beach

(East lot)

Eastham: dog-friendly beaches

Eastham town bylaws prohibit dogs on town-owned public beaches from June 15-Labor day. View all Eastham dog rules courtesy of the eastham dog owners association website.

You can, however, take your dog with you on the cape cod national seashore beaches year round, including:

Coast Guard Beach

Cape cod national seashore

Coast Guard is open to dogs all year long. View national seashore dog rules

Beach rules: Dogs must be on a leash up to 6 feet long | No pets allowed on protected (lifeguarded) areas of beach during summer | Dogs not allowed where there are nesting shore birds | no pets not allowed on shuttle bus, so plan on a hike from parking lot

Nauset Light Beach

Cape cod national seashore

Nauset light beach is open to dogs all year long. View national seashore dog rules

Dyer Prince Rd/ Rock Harbor

Rock Harbor offers one of the greatest sunsets on cape cod.

While the beach at Dyer Prince Road is closed to dogs during the day in the summertime between June 15th–Labor Day, pets are allowed in the morning before 9am and in the evening after 5pm

All Pets must be leashed. Please clean up after your dog! The ecosystem at rock harbor is very fragile, please help preserve the beauty of this wonderful place!

Falmouth: dog-friendly beaches

Harwich: dog-friendly beaches

Dogs are only allowed on beaches in Harwich during the off-season. Dogs not allowed on harwich beaches during the summer season, which ranges from Memorial Day – Labor DAY each year.

Pleasant Bay Beach

#1 BEACH DOG RULE for pleasant bay beach in harwich on cape cod: you Must clean up after your dog! please bring a bag and clean up your mess, keep the beach looking cleaner than when you found it!

harwich’s pleasant bay beach allows dogs to play in a limited sandy beach area. main beach tends to be rocky and have broken shells. bring foot protection. pleasant bay beach’s access road on chatham side of the beach can flood in high tides, be aware or your tires will get to say hello to the ocean.

Pleasant bay beach in harwich is a fun place to swim after a tennis ball. the shallow, gentle waters of pleasant bay are great for youngsters or poor swimmers, dog and human alike. lots of hermit crabs, blue crabs, and horseshoe crabs will keep children entertained all day long.

Bank Street Beach

Bank Street Beach in Harwich requires a town parking sticker. The beach is very popular and the parking lot fills up early in the day. You can always walk from the free town lot (from the beach, take a left at rt. 28 and its just ahead on your right, near the Chamber of Commerce). Dogs only allowed during the off-season.

Earle Road Beach

parking sticker required. Earle Road Beach is a fairly small beach with a similarly sized parking lot. Fills up much later than Bank Street.

Long Pond Beach

Pleasant Street Beach

parking sticker required. Pleasant Street beach is pretty popular. Large parking lot usually fills up during nice days. If you get there and it’s full, head back towards Lower County road and take a right to try Earle Road Beach which is close by.

Red River Beach

Red River Beach is a long, narrow beach with a large parking lot. It is the only beach in Harwich that sells daily parking passes. Because it is so long, you’ll have more room to spread out your towel here than at most other beaches in the area.

There are lots of jetties (and occasionally lots of seaweed onshore). Drive to the left to the far end of the parking lot for a great beachcombing, there’s a path down the shore side to a narrow river that fills with the tides.

Red River Beach is the only beach in Harwich that allows dogs in the summer – but not on the sand. Dog walking is allowed in the parking lot from 7:30am-9:00am and also from 4:30pm-dusk year round.

Mashpee: dog-friendly beaches

Orleans: dog-friendly beaches

Nauset Beach ORV trails

Dogs are allowed on the main area of nauset beach only in the off-season, from Labor Day to May 15. The ORV trails at nauset beach in orleans are open to dogs all year long, including summers. but there is a catch.

Nauset beach’s off road vehicle trails south of the main parking lot are usually closed or greatly restricted for most of the summer due to piping plover nests (often memorial day through labor day). so don’t bother planning to get an orv sticker if you’re only here for a week or two, as it’ll likely be closed all season.

more info about orv trails and oversand beach driving on cape cod

When nauset beach’s ORV trails aren’t closed due to piping plovers, they’re an awesome place to take your pet.

here are nauset beaches’s dog rules and regulations:

dogs Must be on a leash up to 30 feet, unless below high tide mark
dogs Not allowed on areas closed to human or vehicle traffic due to nesting piping plovers’
orv trails typically closed from the end of may through early-mid august due to piping plover menace, so plan accordingly
dogs should be prepared to battle sharks on extended swims, great whites hunt off nauset all summer long and a splashing dog can look mighty tasty at times.

Skaket Beach

Dogs are allowed at Skaket Beach in Orleans during the off-season, from Labor Day to the Friday before Memorial Day.

provincetown: dog-friendly beaches

Dogs may be off leash on Provincetown town beaches from 6am-9am and 6pm–9pm. It’s the only public off leash beach on cape cod. one of the highlights of any dog’s vacation is to run off-leash in p-town with some new friends.

Lots of dogs tend to gather to place at provincetown cove Dog Beach, which is located off of Commercial Street behind Lands End True Value Hardware.

The same rules apply as at a dog park – don’t bring aggressive dogs or animals that don’t respond to your voice commands. That being said, most dog owners we’ve met here are cool so you’ll have a blast! And of course always clean up after your pet.

Race Point Beach

Cape cod national seashore

race point beach is open to dogs all year long. View national seashore dog rules

Race Point Beach is amazing. One of the most beautiful spots on the cape. Whales swim just offshore for most of the summer. Lots of seals, and of course the occasional great white shark.

Race Point has some of the best ORV trails on the cape as well. Even when closed for piping plovers, they usually keep stretches open with limited access. It can get crowded, but at least you’re out there! There is a section for campers as well if you’re really looking to settle in on a beach for a few weeks.

Race Point’s ORV trails have amazing views. Head towards Powerline Road to get an up close view of a Race Point Light Station. If you really want to immerse yourself, you can even sleep there.

Race point dog rules are the same as at other cape cod national seashore beaches:

Dogs must be on a leash no longer than 6 feet
Not allowed on protected (lifeguarded) areas of beach during summer
Not allowed where there are nesting shore birds
dogs Not allowed on Province Lands bicycle trails
clean up your dog’s poop.

That last rule is important. Very few beaches on the cape allow pets, so lets all make sure to not ruin the national seashore’s dog-friendly atmosphere.

Herring Cove Beach

Cape cod national seashore

Herring cove beach is open to dogs all year long. View national seashore dog rules

Herring Cove Beach is the most popular beach on the National Seashore. Amazing sunsets, good sized parking lot, a concession stand, great bathrooms. It’s a great beach.

Dogs don’t wear bathing suits. People do. But not all people. Especially at this beach.

There’s a few remote sections of this beach where the breeze rushes freely across all beachgoers, if you get our drift. One area is female only, one is male only, and the last is for couples. Your dog won’t care, but curious children might ask some uncomfortable questions. These beaches require some walking to get to, so stay near the main parking lot and you’ll be safe.

Here are the national seashore’s dog rules:

Dogs must be on a leash no longer than 6 feet
Not allowed on protected (lifeguarded) areas of beach during summer
Not allowed where there are nesting shore birds
dogs Not allowed on Province Lands bicycle trail
clean up your dog’s poop.

Sandwich: dog-friendly beaches

Truro: dog-friendly beaches

Head of the Meadow Beach

Cape cod national seashore

head of the meadow beach is open to dogs all year long. View national seashore dog rules

Head of the Meadow beach is one of the nicest beaches on the cape. The national seashore beach is adjacent to a town owned beach that shares the same entrance road off of route 6. Because of the remote location in truro, it is typically less populated than other National Seachore beaches.

Dogs must be on a leash up to 6 feet | Not allowed on protected (lifeguarded) areas of beach during summer | Not allowed where there are nesting shore birds | dogs Not allowed on Province Lands bicycle trails.

Herring Cove’s dog rules:

Dogs must be on a leash no longer than 6 feet
Not allowed on protected (lifeguarded) areas of beach during summer
Not allowed where there are nesting shore birds
dogs Not allowed on Province Lands bicycle trails
clean up your dog’s poop.

On all other town-owned public beaches in truro, dogs are allowed in the off-season only. You can take your dog to the beach from Labor Day to the 2nd Saturday in June, but only before 9am and after 6pm. Pets are not allowed in areas protected due to plovers nesting.

Ballston Beach

Residents Only. Beware of sharks, Truro! You have some might hungry great whites cruising offshore here. In 2014 a swimmer got attacked at Ballston beach. Worth keeping in mind before swimming far offshore or throwing a tennis ball.

But don’t live in fear over great white sharks, because realistically you’re swimming with sharks off of all the outer cape beaches. They want seals, not you or your dog.

Learn how to avoid getting eaten by a great white shark

Beach Point

no sticker required, Residents Only

Cold Storage Beach at Pond Village

Residents Only

Great Hollow Beach

Residents Only

Coast Guard Road Beach

Residents Only. Very limited parking. beware of pedestrians, lots of foot traffic here, especially due to coast guard road being a short walk from a nearby dog-friendly campground.

Coast guard road beach has ORV trail access in the evening for fishing purposes only. The trail runs right through where people sit, so watch out! There isn’t an air station here, so make sure you bring your own air pump.

Note that this beach is different from Coast Guard Beach in Eastham.

Corn Hill Beach

public parking available

Fisher Beach

Residents Only

Head of the Meadow (town-managed side)

public parking available

Long Neck Beach

Residents Only

Noons Landing

no sticker required

Ryder Beach

Residents Only

Wellfleet: dog-friendly beaches

Wellfleet beaches are open to dogs all summer long!

Cahoon Hollow Beach

Must be on a leash between May 15 — October 15 | Not allowed on lifeguarded areas 9:00am – 5pm during summer

Marconi Beach (cape cod National Seashore)

Marconi is another great beach for dogs on the national seashore. Lots of room here, with a huge parking lot rarely fills up. This beach has some really tall sand dunes, and a matching set of tall wooden stairs. Plan on walking a bit to either the right or the left on the beach to get to the unprotected area.

The beach is named for the italian inventor marconi. From a site here, Marconi successfully completed the first transatlantic wireless communication between the U.S. and England in 1903. Most people don’t bother checking out the Marconi Station exhibit, but it is interesting. No dogs allowed there though.

Herring Cove beach’s dog rules: