Brant Point Road

Home to the iconic Brant Point Lighthouse — the second-oldest lighthouse in America. Watch ferries glide in and out of the harbor. Calm water, easy walk from town, and a Nantucket must-see.

Brant Point sits at the entrance to Nantucket Harbor, with the squat red-roofed lighthouse — the second-oldest in America — anchoring the spit of sand where every arriving Steamship Authority ferry slows for the channel. The beach is small, the water is calm, and the entertainment is constant: ferries, sailboats, the harbormaster's launch, an endless rotation of boat traffic just yards offshore. There are no facilities here and no real swim beach — the channel currents at the harbor mouth are strong — but Brant Point is the postcard view of the island, and a fifteen-minute walk from downtown makes it the easiest beach visit on Nantucket.