Katama Beach/ South Beach

Three miles of Atlantic barrier beach with serious surf and wide open sand. The left side faces the ocean (big waves), the right side faces Katama Bay (calm water) — pick your adventure.

Known to most visitors as 'South Beach' and to locals as 'Katama,' this is the Vineyard's classic Atlantic surf beach — three miles of wide, sandy barrier shore with shoulder-high waves on most summer days and calm Katama Bay water just over the dunes on the back side. The town runs free parking at the main Katama lot, plus a paved bike path from downtown Edgartown that makes the four-mile ride from town a Vineyard rite of passage. Lifeguards are stationed at the main lot in season; outside the guarded section, rip currents are real and there are no patrols. Surfers and bodyboarders work the bars on the east end; families with young kids cross over to the bay side. There are restrooms and an outdoor shower at the main lot, plus seasonal food trucks. Crowds peak July–August; September here is genuinely magical, with empty sand and water still warm.