Owen Park Beach

A tiny harbor beach right in Vineyard Haven where you can watch the ferries come and go. Barely more than a sandy cove, but the location and calm water make it perfect for a quick dip between errands.

Owen Park Beach is the Vineyard Haven town beach in name, but in practice it's a small sandy cove tucked beside the harbor master's office, with a perfect view of the Steamship Authority dock and the ferries thrumming in and out. It's the kind of beach where parents let kids splash in the calm harbor water while they sit on the lawn of Owen Park with iced coffee. The bandstand hosts free concerts on summer evenings. The sand strip itself is small — maybe a hundred yards — but the location, steps from Main Street and Black Dog Bakery, makes it more useful than its size suggests. Lifeguards are on duty in season. Parking is street-only and brutal in summer; walk from town. No facilities directly on the beach, but a public restroom is at the park.