What are the most beautiful places on Martha's Vineyard? Martha's Vineyard is widely considered one of the most scenic destinations on the East Coast, not that we’re biased. The Island spans six towns Aquinnah, Chilmark, West Tisbury, Edgartown, Oak Bluffs, and Vineyard Haven (Tisbury), each with its own landscape, character, and beauty. From ancient coastal cliffs and glacial heathlands to historic lighthouse beaches and centuries-old fishing villages, the Island's most beautiful places range from famous landmarks to quiet local secrets that even many visitors never find.
This post covers twelve of the most breathtaking locations on Martha's Vineyard, with details on what makes each place special, where each is located, and what to expect when you visit.
There are places on Martha's Vineyard that stop you in your tracks. Places where you catch your breath, look around slowly, and think: I didn't know a place could feel like this. The Island has always been like that for those who know where to look. Beyond the well-worn paths and postcard views, there are corners of this Island that feel like they belong only to you. Think golden light hitting a still pond at dusk, a cliffside so dramatic it seems borrowed from another world, a beach so quiet in the early morning that the only sound is the tide.
These are the places locals return to again and again. Some you may know, others you may have yet to discover. All of them will stay with you.
1. The Gay Head Cliffs, Aquinnah
Location: Aquinnah, the westernmost town on Martha's Vineyard
What it is: A National Natural Landmark, ancient coastal clay cliffs rising above the Atlantic Ocean
Managed by: The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah)
Best time to visit: Golden hour (late afternoon) or early morning; beautiful year-round
The Gay Head Cliffs are one of the most dramatic natural landmarks in New England and arguably the single most iconic sight on Martha's Vineyard. Designated a National Natural Landmark, the cliffs rise dramatically from the Atlantic shoreline, displaying vivid horizontal bands of red, rust, white, and ochre clay formed by glacial activity over tens of thousands of years. They are sacred land, cared for by the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah), one of the oldest Indigenous communities in the nation.
There is no preparing yourself for the Gay Head Cliffs. You round a bend on the up-Island road, and suddenly the earth opens up into something ancient and extraordinary: towering striations of clay tumbling down to a wild Atlantic shore below. The cliffs carry their weight quietly and powerfully.
Come at golden hour when the setting sun ignites the clay in shades of amber and rose. Come in fog when the lighthouse above the cliffs disappears and reappears like something from a dream. Come in any season. The cliffs are never the same twice, and they are always magnificent.
2. Aquinnah Lighthouse
Location: Aquinnah, at the far western tip of Martha's Vineyard
What it is: An active Coast Guard lighthouse, owned by town of Aquinnah
Also known as: The Gay Head Light
Best time to visit: Early morning; open for climbing on select dates in summer
Standing sentinel above the Gay Head Cliffs, the Aquinnah Lighthouse, also known as the Gay Head Light, has guided mariners since 1799, making it one of the oldest lighthouses on Martha's Vineyard. The current cast-iron brick tower, relocated in 2015 to protect it from coastal erosion, is painted brilliant white and stands against one of the most dramatic sky backdrops on the Island.
On a clear day, the view from this far western tip of the Island stretches across Vineyard Sound and Nantucket Sound in every direction, with nothing between you and the horizon but open water and the salt wind off the Atlantic. The lighthouse is open for climbing on select dates during the summer season, offering a once-in-a-lifetime vantage point.
Visit early in the morning before the day warms and the road fills, and you will feel like the Island belongs entirely to you.
3. Menemsha at Sunset
Location: Menemsha Harbor, Chilmark, on the western shore of Martha's Vineyard
What it is: A working fishing village with west-facing harbor; the Island's most celebrated sunset location
Best time to visit: Sunset, any evening from late spring through fall
Menemsha is a small, working fishing village in Chilmark, and it holds what many consider the finest sunset view on Martha's Vineyard. The village harbor faces directly west over Vineyard Sound, making it one of the only spots on the Island with an unobstructed view of the sun setting over open water.
Ask anyone who has witnessed it: the sunset from Menemsha is not just beautiful, it is an event. On clear evenings the sky transforms into something so vivid and layered, deep pinks, burning oranges, long washes of gold, that strangers gather to clap together upon sundown. Fishing boats rock gently in the harbor. The lobster shacks glow. Families settle onto the smooth stones of the beach with paper bags of clams and cold drinks, waiting together.
It is the most communal, most purely joyful ritual on the Island. Don't miss it.
4. Lambert's Cove Beach, West Tisbury
Location: North shore of Martha's Vineyard, West Tisbury
What it is: A sheltered, north-facing beach on Vineyard Sound; one of the Island's most beloved locals' beaches
Notable for: Calm, warm water; fine pale sand; dog-friendly atmosphere
Access: Seasonal; sticker required for non-residents in peak season
Lambert's Cove Beach is located on the north shore of Martha's Vineyard in West Tisbury, sheltered from the open Atlantic by the arc of Cape Cod. Because it faces Vineyard Sound rather than the open ocean, the water here is notably warmer and calmer than the Island's south shore beaches, making it particularly popular with families and dog lovers.
The sand is fine and pale, the dunes are threaded with beach grass that moves in long, slow arcs in the breeze, and in the early morning hours Lambert's Cove has a quality of stillness that is almost sacred.
5. Squibnocket Pond, Chilmark
Location: Chilmark, up-Island Martha's Vineyard
What it is: A coastal salt pond (lagoon) bordered by open heathland and rolling hills
Notable for: Mirrored reflections, abundant wildlife, extraordinary stillness
Access: Views accessible from roadsides and walking paths; largely undeveloped
Squibnocket Pond is a quietly breathtaking place, a coastal lagoon of blue-green water tucked between the rolling hills of Chilmark and the south shore of Martha's Vineyard. The surrounding landscape is largely undeveloped, with low heathland hills rolling to the horizon. On calm days, the pond surface mirrors the clouds and sky in perfect reflection. Great blue herons stand motionless at the water's edges. There are no buildings in sight.
This is up-Island Martha's Vineyard at its most elemental: land, water, light, and silence. Squibnocket Pond is one of the places on the Island that visitors rarely mention in travel lists but never forget once they have seen it. Come here when you need reminding why this Island is unlike anywhere else.
6. Menemsha Hills, Chilmark
Location: Chilmark, up-Island Martha's Vineyard
What it is: A protected conservation area of glacial hills and coastal heathland
Managed by: The Trustees of Reservations
Trail access: Hiking trails open year-round; no fee for access
Best time to visit: Late afternoon for golden light; autumn for peak heathland color
The Menemsha Hills Reservation, managed by The Trustees of Reservations, encompasses some of the highest land on Martha's Vineyard. It boasts a landscape of rolling glacial hills, scrub oak, and coastal heathland that opens without warning into panoramic views of Vineyard Sound, the Elizabeth Islands, and on clear days, the distant hills of the mainland.
The Menemsha Hills are one of Martha's Vineyard's best-kept secrets and among its most rewarding walks. The trails wind through heathlands of scrub oak and bearberry, and the late-afternoon light here is extraordinary, low, golden, and long, the kind of light that makes the landscape look painted. In autumn, the heathlands turn shades of burgundy and bronze that rival any New England foliage. It is the Island seen from above and from within, and it is unforgettable.
7. Gingerbread Cottages in the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association, Oak Bluffs
Location: Oak Bluffs, Martha's Vineyard
What it is: A National Historic Landmark; a community of more than 300 Victorian gingerbread cottages surrounding an open-air Tabernacle
Established: Mid-1800s as a Methodist revival meeting ground
Official name: Martha's Vineyard Camp Meeting Association
Best time to visit: Early morning or dusk; open to the public year-round
The Martha's Vineyard Camp Meeting Association (MVCMA) in Oak Bluffs, commonly known as the Campground or the Gingerbread Cottages, is a National Historic Landmark. More than 300 Victorian cottages, each painted in vivid combinations of pink, lavender, mint, and gold, are arrayed in concentric circles around the great open-air Trinity Park Tabernacle at the center.
Established in the mid-1800s as a Methodist revival meeting ground, the original tent campground grew over generations into a permanent community of remarkable character and color. Nothing quite prepares you for the sight of it. Wander the narrow pathways in the early morning or at dusk when the cottage lanterns glow and the air smells of salt and roses. There is no place like it on earth. For a special treat visit The Campgrounds in August for the annual Grand Illumination when the cottages light up in spectacular unison.
8. Edgartown Lighthouse and Harbor
Location: Edgartown, Martha's Vineyard, at the end of North Water Street
What it is: An active lighthouse on a sand bar in Edgartown Harbor; one of five lighthouses on Martha's Vineyard
Originally built: 1828; current structure dates to 1939
Access: Walk along the Edgartown lighthouse beach from downtown Edgartown
The Edgartown Lighthouse stands at the end of a narrow sand bar in Edgartown Harbor, reached by a walk along the lighthouse beach from the end of North Water Street. It is one of five lighthouses on Martha's Vineyard, and one of the Island's most classically beautiful sights: white and red-capped against the sky, surrounded on all sides by the blue shimmer of the harbor.
The walk to the lighthouse, past dune grass, wild roses, and the gentle lap of the harbor, is an experience in itself. From the lighthouse, you can watch the small “On Time” ferry make its crossing to Chappaquiddick, sailboats tacking in the harbor wind, and the white clapboard faces of the Edgartown waterfront glowing in the afternoon light. It is a view that captures everything Martha's Vineyard is.
9. Lucy Vincent Beach, Chilmark
Location: South shore of Martha's Vineyard, Chilmark
What it is: An ocean beach on the Atlantic, notable for dramatic clay cliffs and rock formations
Access: Chilmark residents and seasonal pass holders; limited access for non-residents ; open to the public off season
Best time to visit: Early morning for light on the cliffs; all seasons
Lucy Vincent Beach is located on the south shore of Martha's Vineyard in Chilmark, where the full force of the Atlantic meets a coastline of pale sand, polished stones, and striking rust-red clay cliffs. The rock formations along the waterline are among the most dramatic and photographed on the Island, ancient, worn smooth by centuries of tide, and impossibly beautiful at any hour.
10. Alley's General Store, West Tisbury
Location: State Road, West Tisbury, Martha's Vineyard
What it is: The oldest operating business on Martha's Vineyard, open since 1858
Managed by: Martha's Vineyard Preservation Trust
Alley's General Store in West Tisbury has been in continuous operation since 1858, making it the oldest operating business on Martha's Vineyard. Managed today by the Martha's Vineyard Preservation Trust, the store retains its original character: weathered shingle exterior, hand-painted signs, and a front porch where locals have gathered for generations. It is listed among the Island's most historic and beloved landmarks.
Some places are beautiful not because of grand scenery, but because of the feeling they hold — and Alley's is one of those places. In the late afternoon, with the summer light slanting across the old building and the smell of freshly cut grass drifting from the surrounding fields,
11. North Water Street, Edgartown
Location: North Water Street, Edgartown, Martha's Vineyard
What it is: A historic street lined with 19th-century whaling captains' homes; known for spectacular summer hydrangea displays
Notable for: Greek Revival and Federal-style architecture; peak hydrangea bloom in June and July
North Water Street in Edgartown is an architecturally distinguished and frequently photographed street of New England. Lined with stately Federal and Greek Revival homes built by 19th-century whaling captains, the street is softened every summer by cascades of hydrangeas in every shade of blue, violet, and white, spilling over garden walls, framing doorways, and tumbling across picket fences in extraordinary abundance.
The street unfolds toward Edgartown Harbor with a quiet, unhurried grandeur that is entirely its own. In June and July, when the hydrangeas are at their peak bloom, North Water Street is simply otherworldly. Slow your pace, notice the light, and let the beauty be what it is.
12. Wasque Point, Chappaquiddick
Location: Chappaquiddick Island, accessible by the “On Time” ferry from Edgartown
What it is: A remote barrier beach at the southeastern tip of Chappaquiddick and managed by The Trustees of Reservations
Access: Via the “On Time” ferry from Edgartown, then by car or bike across Chappaquiddick
Notable for: World-class surf fishing; sunrise views; undeveloped Atlantic shoreline
Wasque Point (pronounced "WAY-skwee") sits at the far southeastern tip of Chappaquiddick Island . Managed by The Trustees of Reservations, Wasque is one of the most remote and unspoiled spots of theVineyard landscape: an open Atlantic beach with no development in any direction, only dunes, shore birds, world class fishing opportunities and the enormous open sky.
Sunrise at Wasque is one of the Island's great experiences — the sun lifting off the water's edge, the beach still cold from the night, the world quiet and vast and full of possibility.
Where to Find More of Martha's Vineyard's Most Beautiful Places
Martha's Vineyard reveals itself slowly, in layers, to those willing to wander. The twelve places above are starting points. The Island's deepest beauty is also found in the unplanned moments: a path through the Manuel F. Correllus State Forest at dusk, Menemsha Harbor at low tide on a weekday morning, a meadow in West Tisbury lit by afternoon sun, the view from Peaked Hill in Chilmark, the lighthouse at Cape Pogue on a foggy morning.
Come with time to spare and an open heart. The Island will do the rest.