Chatham Bars Inn

“Best Place on Earth!”

Location, Staff, Accommodations - Simply the Best!!! Chatham Bars Inn never let's me down. Whether it is off season or peak of summer, I am always impressed.

“Great Birthday”

Quick overnight trip to celebrate a birthday. Staff is extremely helpful and polite. From the moment you arrive, the valet, the front desk, the restaurant staff all made the experience top notch! The buffet is excellent.

“A Grand Address That Falls Somewhat Short of Its Own Considerable Promise”

Four Stars. Though Not Without Reservation. Chatham Bars Inn presents itself, and indeed has long presented itself, as the crown jewel of Cape Cod hospitality — a grand resort of the old tradition, where refinement, comfort, and the particular magic of the New England coastline converge into someth… more

Four Stars. Though Not Without Reservation. Chatham Bars Inn presents itself, and indeed has long presented itself, as the crown jewel of Cape Cod hospitality — a grand resort of the old tradition, where refinement, comfort, and the particular magic of the New England coastline converge into something genuinely special. One arrives with expectations set accordingly high. And for the most part, the property obliges. The grounds are handsome. The setting upon the water is, one must concede, genuinely magnificent. The staff conduct themselves with warmth and professionalism that reflects well upon the establishment. These things are not nothing. They are, in fact, considerable. And yet For the rates commanded — and they are commanded with extraordinary confidence — one expects an experience entirely without friction. One expects to feel, at every turn, that the establishment is fully aware of what it has promised and is wholly committed to delivering it. There were moments during my stay where that commitment felt somewhat less than total. Service that occasionally suggested a establishment coasting upon its reputation rather than actively earning it. Dining that was accomplished but rarely transcendent, which at this price point is a distinction that matters considerably. Certain appointments in the accommodation that, examined closely, revealed a property in need of sharper attention to detail than was presently being paid. Chatham Bars Inn is not a disappointment in the ordinary sense. It is something more particular than that — it is an establishment that knows exactly what it ought to be, has all the necessary ingredients to be precisely that, and yet somehow stops just fractionally short of its own highest standard. On Cape Cod, with that view, at those rates, fractionally short is not quite good enough. One returns home having been comfortable, certainly. Having been impressed, occasionally. But having been genuinely transported — which is surely the point of a resort of this ambition — rather less than one had hoped. Four stars, then. Warmly given for what it is. Withheld in full for what it very nearly could be. — A Gentleman of High Expectations, Partially Met

less