Pilgrim Memorial State Park & the Plymouth Waterfront

Last weekend, Mike and I decided to take a drive over to Plymouth for a stroll along the waterfront. This was our first time back in several years, so we decided to head over to explore some history and take a few updated pictures. Unfortunately, the Mayflower II replica was undergoing repairs at the time.

The iconic Plymouth Rock, located in Pilgrim Memorial State Park, commemorates the year 1620 when the Pilgrims arrived via the Mayflower. This beautiful state park on the waterfront is a must visit for any history buffs out there. If you are already visiting Boston, it’s a quick and easy daytrip. There is easily enough to do to justify the drive in my opinion, especially if you love history, seafood, and the coast. Update: The Mayflower museum is now open. There is a combo ticket where you can visit the replica, plus Plimoth Patuxet and Plimoth Grist Mill.

Historical Sites

There are lots of informative plaques where you can read more about the park and historic sites. If you are a history buff, this is a nice perk. According to the park website, more than 1 million tourists visit the park each year. It was pretty busy during our summer visit, and I would guess that this is the busiest tourist season.

The iconic rock is located at 79 Water Street. It symbolizes the Pilgrims first landing in 1620. It is open 24/7 and there is no fee to view. As you can see in this pic, there is a gate around the rock to prevent vandalism. You can see a piece of the rock at the Pilgrim Hall Museum. This is a great place to visit if you want to learn more about the Pilgrim’s arrival and the entire story of the town’s founding. This museum was built in 1824, making it the oldest continuously operating museum open to the public.

Other historical attractions on the waterfront include:

• Cole’s Hill Burying Ground: The first Pilgrim Cemetery. Est in 1620. Across the street from the rock.
• Pilgrim Mother Garden: This statue of a Pilgrim women was a gift (in 1921) from the Daughters of the American Revolution.
• William Bradford statue: Dedicated to one of the Mayflower pilgrims.

The waterfront is a nice area to take a stroll, with the majority of attractions consisting of historical attractions and tours. Summer is the most popular time to visit as winters can be extremely cold and windy – definitely not the ideal weather for walking around! That being said, if you would like a more peaceful experience, it may be worth braving the cold.

Dining and shopping

There are dozens of local restaurants on the waterfront, including plenty of seafood options. I recommend dining alfresco and doing some shopping – I plan to try Mamma Mia’s Italian sometime soon. We dined at a cute local cafe recommended by my sister called Carmen Cafe Nicole. We loved the water views via the outdoor deck and enjoy some great wraps.

Update: Mamma Mia’s is a wonderful local Italian dining choice. The food is amazing and affordable and views are great via the outdoor deck. The downtown area is just a block or so from the waterfront. After dinner, you can browse around various gift shops. There are also numerous art galleries and museums in the area.

If you are looking for great seafood, I recommend a local gem we recently visited called Wood’s Seafood. I am not a big fan of seafood, but my dad was visiting and had to enjoy at least one lobster. Also, Mike is a fan of seafood and he enjoyed one of their sandwiches. As for me, I enjoyed the views and a few sides while everyone else feasted on seafood.

The beautiful waterfront & beaches

The Pilgrim Trail at the state park is about 2 miles long and paved. It will take you past all the major historical attractions I mentioned earlier. In addition to enjoying a history lesson, there are nice views of the waterfront and also a few beaches you can enjoy.

I heard that Long beach is a hotspot for seaglass, although I had no luck. Despite not finding any beach treasures, I did enjoy the pretty scenery and there is a nice 3 mile stretch of sand to enjoy a morning walk.

Other recreational activities to consider include: Brewster Gardens (located on the Pilgrim trail), Plymouth Seaside Grace Trail (a 1 mile trail through Coastal Pine Barrens – also located on the trail), and my favorite: Myles Standish State Forest (a 15 min drive but worth it). You could hike or bike at this wonderful state park all year and never get bored. It’s a beautiful big reservation with so many peaceful hiking and biking options.

Update: Since originally composing this post, I have visited this state park many times. Mike and I moved to nearby Fall River and we pretty much enjoy daytrips here throughout the year. If you prefer more action and a heavy tourist vibe, visit in the summer.

Fall and winter, on the hand, are better suited for anyone who wants a bit of solitude and serenity. As you can tell in my pics below, the vibe in summer is much brighter and more touristy. The vibe in the fall/early winter is more serene and a bit eerie (perfect for Halloween and ghost tours!).

Some of the activities I have enjoyed recently include: whale watching and an amazing ghost tour.

And, if you feel like shelling out a few bucks, consider a whale watching adventure. Massachusetts is one of the best places in New England to do so. Sightings guaranteed so you get to come back if you don’t see any whales. We saw so many whales – it was so much fun trying to capture the perfect photos.

Our tour guide gave us a nice history lesson on the city and we learned a lot more about whales too. He was nice enough to move the boat around so everyone could get a great view. I highly recommend booking tickets in advance in case they sell out. Also, there are great views of Plymouth rock from the tour!

I am not surprised that this city is haunted. With the old history and many creepy old cemeteries, it’s pretty much a given. I saw that the town offers ghost tours (we took the Plymouth Night Tour) and jumped on the opportunity. I have always been fascinated by the supernatural. Adding a bit of history to the mix makes a ghost tour even more exciting.

Our tour guide was super entertaining and we really enjoyed listening to all the ghost stories. We got to walk through Burial Hill – a super old cemetery where some Mayflower passengers are buried. I really loved that all guests got to use their own ghost monitoring equipment to make the experience feel a bit more hands on.