Cape Cod

Orleans

Orleans has the distinction of being the only Cape Cod town with a French name - after Louis-Philippe de Bourbon, Duc d'Orleans, who supposedly dropped by here in 1790 during his exile from France. Since then, Orleans has become the commercial hub for the Lower Cape, with many fine specialty shops, multi-store malls, and excellent restaurants. Orleans also has a dual coastline on the ocean and the bay.

On its Atlantic side is the glorious sweep of Nauset Beach, one of the Cape's most popular, and the wildlife haven of Nauset Marsh, where Henry Beston lived and wrote his famous 'Outermost House'. On its bay side is Skaket Beach. The waves aren't on a par with Nauset, but younger families tend to stay on this side where the water is warm, and at low tide, you can walk out forever, finding crabs and other sea life as you go! Picturesque Rock Harbor is the center of the local fishing industry and charter boat rentals. If you haven't sailed out of Rock Harbor in pursuit of those sweet striped bass and those juicy bluefish, you haven't lived!

The town also boasts live theatre with its own resident company at the Academy of Performing Arts, which has an eclectic mix of dramas, musicals, ballets and intimate concerts. The French Cable Museum is a little historical gem--it houses the transmission equipment for the first trans-Atlantic messages to France.