By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

Honoring the 50^th anniversary assassination of President John F. Kennedy this November, the JFK Museum Foundation in Hyannis has opened a special exhibit, "Cape Cod: The Summer of 1963 to Nov. 22, 1963," which looks back on the president’s final months on the Cape.

"From the joyful 1963 summer memories of the President and his family, to the palpable fog of grief that settled over Cape Cod after his death, this exhibit will remind us how truly special those Camelot days were," said Rebecca Pierce-Merrick, museum curator, "and how one day in history changed it forever." The exhibit uses photos, videos, wall displays and news clips to tell the story of JFK’s last months on the Cape, where the Kennedy family spent much of that summer, including time spent mourning the death of their third child, Patrick Bouvier Kennedy, who died when he was two days old. Special new videos produced by documentary film producer and Kennedy family videographer Andrew Fone are part of the exhibit.

For more information, visit www.jfkhyannismuseum.org

MBTA service from Boston to Cape Cod begins Friday when the new CapeFlyer will depart South Station, with stops in Braintree, Middleborough, and Buzzard’s Bay, before arriving in Hyannis. The specially-outfitted coach will run weekends this summer through Labor Day.

“Working closely with our partners in the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority, we are thrilled to bring rail service back to Cape Cod to help more people experience the beauty and fun of the Cape while getting there quicker and in a more enjoyable way,” MBTA general manager Dr. Beverly Scott said.

The train service is a welcome option to avoiding notable summertime Cape Cod traffic. According to the MBTA, weekend inbound traffic over the Sagamore and Bourne bridges during July and August averaged nearly a quarter-million vehicles during a typical summer weekend in 2012. Friday’s 5:12 p.m. departure from Boston is scheduled to arrive in Hyannis at 7:50 p.m. Saturday and Sunday service will depart South Station at 8 a.m. and arrive in Hyannis at 10:18 a.m. Bus service will be available at the destination, as well as free shuttle service to the nearby Hyannis docks with ferry service to Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.

The coach will include concessions and bar service (following the Middleborough stop) on the Friday night trip. Bike racks will also be available. A round-trip ticket from Boston will run $35 ($20 one way).

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

AAA Southern New England can design trips for members just about anywhere, but in the interest of saving money and patronizing businesses in its own area, is also keen on creating trips closer to home, officials there say. One of them is “The City Get-Away Boston,” where you can spend the night at the Revere Hotel in the Hub’s theater district, eat at Four Diamond-ranked Asana at the chef’s table, go to Fenway Park for a ball game and get 10-percent off at the team store. You can also hit Huntington Theatre for a $5 discount per ticket or get $10 off at Blue Man Group.

Further south is the “Family Friendly Resort Cape Cod” offering, with a stay at Four Diamond-ranked Wequasset Resort & Golf Club, dinner at the resort’s twenty-eight Atlantic, and a whale-watching trip with Dolphin Fleet Whale Watch, where AAA members get discounts. There is also the “Ultimate Luxury Beach Vacation Rhode Island,” with a stay at Five Diamond Ocean House (a giant hotel on the bluffs that was rebuilt in place of the original one that stood for many years, and using more than 5,000 artifacts and furnishing elements from the original), dinner at the hotel’s Four Diamond Seasons restaurant, and theater at the nearby Theatre By the Sea, a classic barn theater that in its glory years saw the likes of Marlon Brando and Mae West tread the boards there, and where AAA members get 10-percent off select performances this summer.

For all info, check out www.southernnewengland.aaa.com

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

You don’t have to wait for the summer heat anymore to find things to do in Nantucket. Though things ramp up mostly after Memorial Day, and certainly by July 4, the island has a variety of early-season offerings, and hotels and inns with deals to take advantage of them.

One popular event is the Nantucket Wine Festival, marking its 17^th year May 15-19, with a schedule of special events such as celebrity chef cooking demos, tastings, seminars, symposia, auctions and a charity gala. For full event schedule and pricing, visit www.nantucketwinefestival.com

The White Elephant is hosting many of the festival events, including the Grand Tastings and Harbor Gala, the former featuring more than 150 wineries from around the world. The gala is the festival’s signature event with 40 stations of dishes prepared by the country’s best chefs, which, naturally, are paired with appropriate wines. The White Elephant and sister properties, White Elephant Village and The Wauwinet, are offering weekend packages including stays, event tickets, dinners at Brant Point Grill and Topper’s, as well as brunches. Rates start at $500 a night. For info, check out www.nantucketislandresorts.com

At Harborview Place, offered by Beautiful Places villa rentals, stay three or more nights in a one- to three-bedroom residence and get a wine festival package with access to a variety of events, including the tasting, VIP party, auction, Friday night supper club and breakfast on the harbor. Visit www.beautiful-places.com/location/massachusetts for information.

Orla and Michael LaScola, owners of American Seasons, are partnering again with West Coast wineries such as Donelan Family Wines and Flowers Winery to host seminars and dinners highlighting domestic wines paired with LaScola’s take on American dishes. For information on the events at the restaurant, visit www.americanseasons.com

If you have flexible travel plans, the antique inn Century House celebrates its 180^th anniversary this year by offering a weeknight stay in a queen room for $180 plus tax and service during select dates in May and June, based on last-minute availability. There is no online booking for this deal: Call 508-228-0530 on the preceding Saturday or Sunday to secure a stay the following Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday night. You can also combine the special with multiple week-night stays at standard rates. And you can help celebrate innkeepers JeanEllen Heron and Gerry Connick’s 30^th anniversary running the inn. Connick’s famous and massive berry breakfast alone is worth the stay.

The next month, the spring version of Nantucket Restaurant Week runs June 2-9 (another runs in the fall), with a variety of restaurants participating, including American Seasons, where they offer three-course dinners from $25-$45. For a full listing, visit www.nantucketrestaurantweek.com Writers have long been drawn to the island, including historic scribes like James Fenimore Cooper and Edgar Allen Poe, and modern authors such as Nathaniel Philbrick. The 2nd Annual Nantucket Book Festival runs June 21-23, with panel discussions, interactive readings for adults and kids, and “Authors in Bars” events giving festival goers a chance to personally toast their favorite writers. A roster of more than 20 notable American writers are expected, among them Philbrick, Paul Hendrickson and Lois Lowry. The Brant Point Grill at the White Elephant, the event’s host hotel, will host the weekend’s closing brunch June 23 with Alice Hoffman, author of more than 20 novels including “Here on Earth,” an Oprah’s Book Club choice. Other events include breakfast receptions with authors Ann Leary and Amy Brill, and a pig roast at Cisco Brewery. Check it all out at www.nantucketbookfestival.org

And lest we not forget the island’s nautical roots, the Egan Maritime Institute will hold “Red, Right, Returning: Present Day United States Coast Guard Lifesaving Procedures and Boat Safety” at the Nantucket Shipwreck & Lifesaving Museum, May 23-Oct. 14. The outdoor exhibit features present day Coast Guard lifesaving procedures, guide to boat safety and a recreational four-person life raft for anyone to try out on dry land. Back by popular demand is last year’s exhibit, “Guiding Lights: Nantucket’s Lighthouses, Keepers and Their Families,” that includes hands-on activities.  Visit www.eganmaritime.org for more information.

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

Provincetown is long known for its art scene. Last year, Harbor Hotel Provincetown introduced ARTBEAT, a series of bi-monthly exhibits celebrating the area’s artistic bent. Beginning May 13, the hotel unveils its newest addition to the series, “Provincetown Award Winners,” featuring the best of the Provincetown Art Association and Museum’s members. The show will feature past and present award winners of the major grants, The Lillian Orlofsky Award and The Romano Rizk Scholarship. The exhibit runs from May 13-June 27, with opening reception May 16 at 5:30 p.m.

The hotel will continue to be home to rotating exhibits of paintings, sculpture, video and film, as well as co-sponsored events with local collectors and museums. It’s also a place to save some spring money: Through May 20, they have a “Pay the Temperature” deal, where daily rate is based on temperature on the day of check-in. The rate can’t be booked online but by calling 855-447-8696. For hotel info, visit www.harborhotelptown.com

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

Ocean Edge Resort & Beach Club in Brewster on Cape Cod, has relaunched its mansion side of the property, part of a $40-million ongoing renovation of the resort that is now complete. The Mansion at Ocean Edge now has 31 two- and three-bedroom Presidential Bay Collection villas (formerly the Bay Pines Villas) on or close to the beach, and 90 Mansion guest rooms that were done last spring.

The resort is offering an intro “Relaunching Luxury” rate for the Presidential Bay Collection. Book by April 30 and get 20 percent off regular rates. Guests booking five or more nights have a choice of a free added amenity, which include a round of golf at the resort’s Nicklaus Design course when accompanied by one paying round; two kids’ day passes to EdgeVenture; or use of two bikes for a day. 

Spring isn’t a bad time to save some money at Ocean Edge: Rates at the Mansion wing start at $139 a night in spring, with Presidential Bay Collection villas starting at $600, and jump in summer to $425 and $1,250 a night, respectively. 

For information and to book, visit www.oceanedge.com or call 800-343-6074.

By Kari Bodnarchuk, Globe Correspondent

Want to discover Nantucket’s best family beaches and bike routes, track down good kid-friendly restaurants or rainy-day activities, or find out how to rent baby equipment or hire a local babysitter? A new website, Nantucket-Bucket.com, offers up-to-date info on family-oriented events, activities, and resources island-wide. Look up activities and programs by topic or date. The site, started by Nantucket resident Logan Gomes, also has a blog with do-it-yourself craft projects and entries by guest bloggers from the Nantucket community. Register on the website and receive a weekly e-mail with information on activities, discounts, and special promotions. www.nantucket-bucket.com

By Necee Regis, Globe Correspondent

Here’s a good reason to hope the weather remains cool: The Harbor Hotel is offering a Pay the Temperature promotion. Daily room rates will be based on the Provincetown temperature at 2 p.m., as reported by the National Weather Service on the day of check-in. With an average temperature in April of 55 degrees, this deal could save you a bundle off the Harbor’s posted spring rates (from $99). This promotion cannot be booked online, is based on availability, and stay must be completed by May 20. Guests will be charged a $50 non-refundable deposit.  855-447-8696, www.harborhotelptown.com

Gray seals littered the beach on Cape Cod's Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge on Thursday, one of the most popular spots in New England for the mammals to enjoy the spring sun. The most recent count showed more than 15,000 seals off the coast of the region.

Can you guess how many seals are in the above photo? You can also check out more of Globe photographer David Ryan's photos from the refuge here.

Answer: 153

By Kari Bodnarchuk, Globe Correspondent

See some of the most remarkable “dream” cars ever made, from a 1927 LaSalle to the futuristic Terrafugia flying car, during the Heritage Museums and Gardens exhibit “Driving Our Dreams: Imagination in Motion” in Sandwich. Fifteen concept cars, drawn from museums and private collections nationwide, will be on display April 13 through Oct. 27. Get up close to an Infinium solar-powered car, a 1956 Firebird II, and the 1963 personal Corvette of Harley Earl, a pioneer in auto design and the father of the Corvette. Design and test your own concept car in the Family Discovery Room, and attend talks by leaders in the automobile industry. Adults $15, children ages 3-12 $7, 2 and under free. 508-888-3300, www.heritagemuseumsandgardens.org

By Necee Regis, Globe correspondent

Take advantage of preseason rates and start dreaming about the beach. Nantucket’s retro-chic hotels, The Veranda House and Chapman House, are offering Countdown to Summer 3-2-1 packages (May 19-June 27). Includes two complimentary round-trip passes on the Steamship Authority’s Fast Ferry service from Hyannis (valued at $138) for a three-night stay, and one complimentary pass for a two-night stay. Rates start at $199 midweek and $249 on the weekends at The Veranda House, and $169 midweek and $209 weekends at Chapman House. Both offer a complimentary morning meal, free Wi-Fi, and afternoon chocolate chip cookies.  877-228-0695, www.theverandahouse.com

By Necee Regis, Globe Correspondent

The Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival hosts its 13th annual event (March 15-17) at the Chilmark Community Center with films from the festival circuit as well as shorts and features with local appeal. Watch movies on comfy couches in the “community living room” outfitted with state-of-the-art projection and sound. Stay for post-screening discussions with filmmakers and others. Events include live music hosted by the Hay Cafe and a daily feast prepared by chef Chris Fischer. Tickets $15, members $7. Couch seating add $5. Weekend pass $150. 508-645-9599, www.tmvff.org. The Harbor View Hotel & Resort in Edgartown is offering a Martha’s Vineyard Movie Escape package, including two-night stay (March15-16) and two all-access festival passes, $479, with reserved couch seating $679.  800-225-6005, www.harbor-view.com

Harmless or careless?

There’s a furor brewing in Truro, where some Cape Cod residents aren’t pleased with the town’s depiction of a smiling shark on this year’s beach sticker, arguing that the image downplays the recent fears of sharks swimming along the shore during the summer months.

According to the Cape Cod Times, the sticker won unanimous approval from the town beach commission.

Kelly Clark, director of the town's recreation and beach department, told the Times that she was concerned about the repercussions of taking the Cape’s shark issues too lightly, but was essentially told to “lighten up.”

Truro boasts four beaches, all which require a parking sticker, which can be purchased $15 a season for residents.

More at the Cape Cod Times web site.

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

Sure, Boston has the largest St. Patrick’s Day in New England, but they do it right down the Cape as well: The 8th Annual Cape Cod St. Patrick’s Parade is March 9, starting at 11 a.m. at the intersection of Route 28 and School Street, and ending in Yarmouth, at Forest Road.

The parade features more than a dozen marching bands from all over New England, floats, antique cars and family entertainment, as well as a grand marshal this year who is still a big hit in Boston and all over New England: Derek Sanderson, Boston Bruins bad boy in the 1970s, playing on Stanley Cup teams in 1970 and 1972, before his life spiraled downward due to drugs and alcohol. He later rebounded, with the help of good friend Bobby Orr, and became a TV color analyst for Bruins games, and is now managing director of The Sports Group at Baystate Wealth Management in Boston, counseling young athletes about money management and helping them avoid the disastrous financial mistakes he’d once made.

A movie, “Turk,” about Sanderson’s life is reportedly on tap to be made this year, based on his recent book, “Crossing the Line: The Outrageous Story of a Hockey Original.”

The parade’s grand marshal’s dinner-dance will be held the night before the parade at the Irish Village in Yarmouth. For information, visit www.capecodstpatsparade.com or www.facebook.com/capestpatsparade

By Kari Bodnarchuk, Globe correspondent

Spend the school break on a bluff overlooking Cape Cod Bay. The Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club in Brewster (above and below) hosts special activities Feb. 15-23 with indoor pool programs, a pizza party, and Ping-Pong for kids, and cooking demonstrations, wine and chocolate tastings, and daily fitness classes for parents. The resort also features family movie and karaoke nights, and a Project Runway program during which children can design and showcase their own fashions. Stay in the Britterage Villas, which have living rooms and kitchenettes, or the newly renovated Mansion Wing guest rooms, which offer hotel-style service. One-room villas from $129 per night; guest rooms from $195. Mention “February Vacay” when booking.  800-343-6074, www.oceanedge.com

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

Usually  when you say a food is smokin’ good, it’s a figure of speech. But at the Chatham Bars Inn Resort and Spa down the Cape, it’s quite literal, when it comes to one dessert.

We stayed there last summer, had dinner at the new STARS steakhouse restaurant there that had just opened, and after a whopping dinner of Midwestern beef (you choose your own cuts from a beef cart they wheel to your table, offering by-the-ounce pricing from $2.40 an ounce), were whisked away to a dessert room to partake of dessert wines and decadent desserts, which the night we were there included the "Tobac-Cocoa Ice Cream."

The unique dessert consisted of the bizarre combination of aged tobacco leaf and pure cocoa ice cream, cognac gel, locust bean nougat and, I’m not kidding, actual cigar smoke swirling over all, contained in a glass dome. It was the most interesting dessert we’d ever seen, and most definitely delicious. Cigar smoke isn’t a guy thing, either, we saw several female diners taking part.

It’s all part of the new look of the Chatham Bars Inn, which a few years ago underwent a $4 million renovation, overhauling nearly every aspect of the resort, including gutting and rebuilding its two oldest cottages and opening a new boutique  in the main inn.

We stayed in one of the spa suites in one of the 29 cottages a short walk away from the main inn, where the bulk of the resort’s 217 rooms area, a beautifully renovated open space that had two king beds, a gas fireplace separating the bed area from the bath, which had a huge Jacuzzi tub, frosted-glass shower that doubles as a steam bath, and full-out sauna, a great place to sweat out all that food. We also had treatments at the spa, which opened in 2010, a quick massage and then relaxing at the adults-only small swimming pool. Spa suites are pretty pricy in summer, at around $1,100 a night, but in winter can be had from $465.
 
Granted, the resort is one of the Cape’s prime summer getaways, located on a gorgeous stretch of beach,  but it’s also a place of year-round activities. Next up on the winter agenda is a "Girlfriend’s Seaside Escape" weekend, Jan. 18-20, packages starting at $459 per person and included two nights lodging, welcome amenity gift with merchandise, shopping discounts and certificates, Friday night martinis and massage reception and dinner, followed by a ladies-only psychic party with Jon Stetson. Also included are Saturday night dinner and entertainment, breakfast each morning, fitness classes (as many as you can take, yoga, Pilates, Zumba among them). It wraps up Sunday with a nature walk or yoga on the beach. All info is at www.chathambarsinn.com/files/2013%20girls%20getaway.pdf

The resort also runs Thursday night prix fixe at STARS, three courses for $38 per person every Thursday night, and Wednesday and Thursday nights in the Sacred Cod Tavern, with a two-course lunch for $12 or three-course dinner for $33.

And if it’s on the dessert menu, do give the cigar-smoke special a try. Even non-smokers may find it interesting. For information on everything at Chatham Bars Inn, visit www.chathambarsinn.com

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

The Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce and dozens of the Cape's establishments and attractions are offering a variety of events this holiday season. The chamber also offers a "Christmas on Cape Cod Passport," which encourages local shopping and gives the chance to win cash prizes, up to $9,000 in all. A new feature in this year's Cape holiday party is the Polar Express train ride aboard the Cape Cod Central Railroad, chugging through the Cape's countryside, with hot cocoa and treats, a cast of characters from "The Polar Express" book and movie, and visits from Santa. Check it out at www.capecodpolarexpressride.com

Inns and resorts throughout the Cape are also offering value-added stay packages, including dinner gift certificates, passes to holiday events and seasonal amenities. The passport the chamber offers alows visitors to get theirs stamped at each business they visit, giving them entry into a contest to win gift cards of $500, $250 or $100. With the accumulation of five stamps, the holder is eligible for a grand prize, Christmas in July, a two-night stay at the Cape Codder Resort and Spa in Hyannis.

For information on all of what the Cape is offering this season, visit www.ChristmasonCapeCod.com or call 888-332-2732.

For the first time in 25 years, Boston to Cape Cod rail service is being restored, with weekend trains from South Station to Hyannis beginning in May.

According to the Barnstable Patriot, “the plan is to attach a couple of air-conditioned rail cars and a bike car at South Station to Boston-Middleborough/Lakeville trains, which will continue without switching to Hyannis. Beyond that South Shore station, the Cape-bound train would stop at Wareham, Buzzards Bay, and either West Barnstable or Sandwich before arriving in Hyannis.”

The introduction of rail service to the Cape should hopefully help alleviate summer Cape traffic, but it will come at a cost. Weekend round-trip service is slated to be priced at around $30. Service would include departures on Friday evenings, and Saturday, and Sunday mornings with return trips Saturday and Sunday evenings. The Patriot reports there is also the possibility of an early-morning Monday return train as well.

“I think we’ll have a modest start,” Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce CEO Wendy Northcross told the Patriot. “It’s going to be weekends only, so there will be some restrictions there.”

Further details are still being worked out, but Tom Cahir, administrator of the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority, said service can hit a break-even point with a mere 650 passengers per weekend.

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

If pork is your thing, you must consider taking in the fourth annual "Hogtoberfest" Oct. 13 and 14 on Nantucket. Chefs Michael LaScola of American Seasons on the island, and Matt Jennings of Farmstead in Providence (James Beard nominee for Best Chef-Northeast and three-time Cochon 555 winner), pair up for a back-of-the-house carving demo on Berkshire-Tamworth hogs, hand raised on Nantucket's The Faraway Farm. They then use each cut throughout the weekend for beer/charcuterie tastings and a multi-course meal of inventive pork dishes paired with American Seasons' small-production American wines.

The weekend lineup includes the carving demo which will show head-to-tail carving and showing diners how to harvest and use each part of the animal; a beer and charcuterie master class; an "All-Things Pork" dinner, featuring a range of pork specials at American Seasons.

For complete pig-out information and reservations, visit www.americanseasons.com/hogtoberfest.html or call 508-228-7111.

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

Nantucket has always been a rather forward-thinking sort of place - abolitionist Frederick Douglass gave his first speech before an all-white audience there in 1841.

So the Nantucket Project seems a good fit, it running Oct. 5-8, a veritable think tank which brings together big-brained types from many disciplines, such as writer and businessman Jack Abramoff; CNN political analyst David Gergen; Eric Schmidt, Google chairman; Henry Louis Gates, Harvard professor of black culture; John Abele, founder of Boston Scientific; and Doug Melton, founder of the Harvard/MIT Broad Center for Stem Cell Research. For full information and ticket pricing, visit www.nantucketproject.com/#blank

The Nantucket Project is one of a few cool things happening on Nantucket in the off season, a time with still lots of sun but lower temperatures and prices. For cheaper fall stays, check out the "Hot Dates, Cool Rates" program. Nantucket Island Resorts is offering discounted fall nightly rates, including at places like Jared Coffin House, with rooms going for $125. Check it out at www.nantucketislandresorts.com/hotdates.php

There are a lot of great restaurants on the island, and many are showing their stuff during the Nantucket Restaurant Week Sept. 24-30, including Topper's at the Wauwinet, home of a notable butter-poached lobster, and Brant Point Grill at the White Elephant, known for its duck confit Bolognese. Visit www.nantucketrestaurantweek.com/ for complete information.

The 10th annual Cranberry Festival is scheduled for Oct. 6, when the Milestone Cranberry Bog and Nantucket Conservation Foundation host a festival celebrating the island's historic bogs. Events include cranberry foods of all stripe, bog tours, hay rides, and sheep-shearing workshops. Check www.nantucketconservation.org/page.php?section=3&page=cranberry_festival for more info.

And rounding out the season, the Brant Point Grill offers a New England Thanksgiving and on that morning, the island hosts the 11th Annual Turkey Plunge on Children's Beach. For information on all, visit www.nantucketislandresorts.com or call 800-475-2637.

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

One of the special places for Jackie Kennedy, wife of President John F. Kennedy, was the Cape, and a special summer exhibit, "Jackie Kennedy - Life on Cape Cod," is running through Sept. 30 at the John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum. The exhibit includes rare photos, handwritten letters and other artifacts from the First Lady's time spent in Hyannis Port, and a special display chronicling her visit to India in March 1962. The exhibit opens with a LIFE Magazine cover article from 1953, entitled "Senator Kennedy Goes A-Courting," featuring a four-page spread of images that shows JFK and his fiancée, then Jacqueline Bouvier, frolicking on the Cape.

Other images show her life on the Cape during her husband's presidency, photos taken by photographers such as Cecil Stoughton, Robert Knudsen, Jacques Lowe and Stanley Tretick. Other artifacts include hand-written notes from the First Lady, a painting she did, called "The White House Long Ago," and a leather-bound copy of "Profiles in Courage," written by her husband with an inscription by her.

Museum curator Rebecca Pierce-Merrick said while Jackie Kennedy was famous the world over, "it was here on the Cape she was able to simply enjoy carefree days with her family. This exhibit allows our visitors to see a glimpse of that Jackie."

The museum is located at 397 Main St., Hyannis, and admission is $8 for adults. For information, visit www.jfkhyannismuseum.org or call 508-790-3077. 

Photo from the estate of Stanley Tretick, taken summer 1964

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

Century House on Nantucket, which began life as a lodging house in 1833 and is reportedly the oldest continually operating in on the island, won a 2012 Editors' Choice Award in Yankee Magazine's Travel Guide to New England. The inn, a short walk from downtown, is a veritable showcase for plein-air artists, who regularly stay at the inn, trading lodging for their art work. Hundreds of painting adorn the Century House walls, each with a story that innkeepers Gerry Connick and Jean Ellen Heron will gladly tell you about.

Rates at the inn start at $175 per night depending on the date, and they include a breakfast Connick creates daily, heavy on healthy fruits, that is dubbed "Gerry's Berry Buffet Breakfast." For information on the inn, visit www.centuryhouse.com, or call 508-228-0530.

WBZ Photo

There may be an abundance of lobsters in New England this summer, but nothing like this.

WBZ first reported this week that a 21-pound lobster was caught off the shore of Nauset Beach in Orleans. The lobster is currently on display at Capt'n Elmers in Orleans, where manager Elise Costa told WBZ that the lobster's claws are measured at about a foot long.

"Usually, for every four and a half pounds of live lobster, once you cook it and clean it, you get one pound of meat. So 21 divided by four and a half, that would give you about five pounds of meat," Costa said.

Don't go rushing to the Cape just yet though for any weekend bake plans. Costa plans to display the lobster for a period of time before selling it or raffling it off for charity.

Outdoor Life Magazine posted the photo of the lobster on its Facebook page Wednesday night and got people wondering just how old a 21-pound lobster might be, with a few commenters opining that it might be some 147 years old.

The largest lobster on record was a 44-pounder caught in Nova Scotia. 

By Patricia Borns

Don't worry. I'm not suggesting you download Edmund Wilson, Mary McCarthy or Bernard Malamud for your Wellfleet getaway. even if they and other luminaries did and do hang out there. Instead I'm proposing the new e-book by the town's "accidental innkeeper" Alexandra Grabbe, whose fairytale B&B Chez Sven lies hidden in leafy woods behind Route 6 (Wellfleet, An Insider's Guide To Cape Cod's Trendiest Town). The irony of Grabbe authoring an "insider's" guide is that she and her husband Sven Rudstrom opened the inn as recently as 2005. But as often happens with special places, the Grabbes took Wellfleet to heart as passionately as local families who date themselves to the Mayflower. Grabbe has an eye for what's defining about the place, starting with the fact that the official poem of Barnstable County is posted in the town hall. She gives a history the way good innkeeps do: pouring on anecdotes and curious details to explain that mudflat you grounded on used to be an island, and by the way, the historical society offers a history of Billingsgate if you want to know more. Which, the way Grabbe lays it out, you might. Interwoven with the attractions found in most guidebooks are favorite local activities like yoga at the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. Even the photos have an untouristy quality, nice but not slick, taken from vantage points where locals are likely to stand. Passages from the Wellfleet comprehensive plan (designed to discourage McMansion builders) might not be the stuff of Fodor's or Lonely Planet, but that's what makes this an insider's guide. When you finish, you feel like a local has shown you around. Because she has.

Patricia Borns photo. All rights reserved.

By Paul E. Kandarian, Globe Correspondent

The Inn at the White Elephant Village on Nantucket opened on July 4, with 20 units, including 14 suites and six deluxe rooms, and is offering introductory prices throughout the summer. Stay two nights, get the third free, and summer rates start at $750 from July 15-31, and fall rates start at $475 from Sept. 3 to Oct. 27.

As part of the newly created White Elephant Village, the new inn, along with the existing White Elephant Residences, offer guests use of the heated outdoor pool, workout room and free bicycles. Also includes is access to the White Elephant Spa and a 15-percent discount at the Brant Point Grill.<

When booking at www.whiteelephantvillage.com, use promotional code INN, or call 800-475-2637. Caveats include the deal being subject to availability, not being applicable to the Residences or the hotel, or on Columbus Day and other event weekends.

The inn, with the Residences and hotel, is part of the newly created White Elephant Village, and as part of the expansion, the village will have its own lobby, concierge, fireplace, gift shop and business center. Nantucket interior designer Kathleen Hay did the work creating the décor, which features oversized windows, Nantucket wainscoting and linens by Pratesi.

Nantucket Island Resorts owns the village, as well as other island properties including The Wauwinet, Jared Coffin House, the Nantucket Boat Basin marina, and The Cottages & Lofts at the Boat Basin.