Navigating Nantucket Without a Car

Not planning on taking your car to Nantucket? No problem! In fact, leaving your car on the mainland might be the best decision to make your trip easier. 

The key is choosing your vacation rental with transportation and convenience in mind. Stay within walking or biking distance of Town, a grocery store, the beach or a WAVE shuttle route, and you can spend most of your trip getting around on foot or by bike.

Here's what to know before planning a Nantucket vacation without a car.

Do you need a car on Nantucket?

The short answer? It depends on where you’re staying and how you plan to spend your time. Nantucket is walkable in some areas, incredibly bike-friendly, and also offers public transportation. However, a car can be helpful and is almost mandatory if you want to stay in a more remote section of the island. See our blog on whether or not Nantucket is walkable. Below we explain how you can get around the island without having to rely on a car.

For visitors arriving by ferry, going car-free starts out remarkably easily.

Passenger ferries arrive right in Nantucket downtown, or Town, putting you within walking distance of restaurants, shops, bike rentals and many vacation rentals. If you're staying farther away, you can take a taxi or arrange transportation from the ferry to your rental. See our Getting Here page on how to book your ferry tickets.

This is one reason bringing a vehicle isn't always necessary. Instead of making a vehicle reservation and taking your car across on the ferry, you can arrive as a passenger and decide how much transportation you'll actually need once you're here. Also, it's worth noting that if you want to bring a car, ferry reservations for cars book out months in advance.

The neighborhood you plan to stay in makes a big difference if you're intending to book a car-free Nantucket vacation.

Town

Best for: Walking everywhere

Town is the easiest choice for visitors without a car. You'll be close to the ferry terminals as well as restaurants, coffee shops, boutiques, galleries, bike rentals and groceries.

Children's Beach is easily accessible, and Jetties Beach is also close enough to reach on foot or by bike. Town also serves as the hub for The WAVE, making it easy to head farther across the island when you want to explore.

If your goal is to use a car as little as possible, start your rental search here.

Brant Point

Best for: Beach access plus proximity to Town

Brant Point gives you many of the conveniences of Town with a more residential, beach-oriented setting.

Depending on the location of your rental, you can walk to Town for dinner or shopping and easily reach Brant Point Beach and Jetties Beach. Bikes make the neighborhood even more convenient.

For families who want beach time without having to drive everywhere, Brant Point is one of our favorite options.

Cliff

Best for: Biking and easy access to Town

Cliff is another strong choice for a car-free trip, particularly if you're comfortable biking.

The neighborhood puts you close to Town while offering access to north shore beaches including Steps Beach and Cliff Beach. The nearby bike routes also make it easy to head to Dionis and other parts of the island.

Edge of Town and South of Town

Best for: Visitors who plan to bike

Don't overlook the neighborhoods immediately outside downtown. Not only are they walkable/bikeable, they also often offer cheaper rentals than in Town or Brant Point.

Edge of Town and South of Town can offer an appealing mix of convenience and space. With the right rental, you'll be within an easy bike ride of downtown while also having good access to routes leading toward Surfside and other parts of the island.

Check the exact location of a rental before booking, particularly its distance from bike paths, groceries and shuttle stops.

Sconset

Best for: A car-free vacation centered around Sconset

Sconset is a different kind of car-free option.

Located about about eight miles from Town, Sconset has its own village center, beach access and places to eat, making it possible to spend much of your vacation close to home. While it's not exactly close to Town, Sconset offers a quintessential Nantucket backdrop that is both charming and unique.

The WAVE connects Sconset with Town, and cyclists can use the Milestone Road bike path. If your ideal vacation involves mornings in the village, afternoons at the beach and fewer trips across the island, Sconset can work surprisingly well without a car.

Bikes can completely change the equation when you're visiting Nantucket without a car.

Nantucket has more than 35 miles of paved bike paths, with routes connecting Town to popular destinations around the island. Several local bike companies also make rentals especially easy for vacationers by offering delivery directly to island accommodations.

Nantucket Bike Shop, for example, offers island delivery, while Cook's Cycles offers delivery to rental homes, inns and hotels. Easy Riders also offers bike delivery. Young's Bicycle Shop, conveniently located near the ferry, offers both shop pickup and delivery to island addresses.

Some Nantucket vacation homes may also include bikes for guests. If you're renting a home, ask what's included before making a separate reservation.

During busy summer weeks, reserve bikes ahead of your arrival, especially if your group needs children's bikes, trailers or e-bikes.

Nantucket's public bus system, The WAVE, is one of the easiest ways to explore the island without driving.

The Nantucket Regional Transit Authority operates routes connecting Town with destinations around the island, with some routes operating year-round and others seasonally. Better yet, rides are free through 2026.

The WAVE can be particularly useful for trips that are farther than you'd like to walk or bike. It can also be paired with cycling since WAVE buses have bicycle racks.

Check current routes and schedules before heading out, since service varies by destination and season. See our sidebar for more info on the NRT WAVE.

Rideshare services operate on Nantucket, but don't make them your only transportation plan.

Availability can vary, particularly during peak periods or later in the evening. If you have a dinner reservation you can't miss or need transportation to the airport or ferry at a specific time, arranging a taxi in advance can give you more certainty.

Think of Uber and Lyft as another option rather than the foundation of your car-free vacation.

Groceries are one of the details visitors sometimes forget when deciding whether they need a car.

Staying in or close to Town makes grocery shopping much easier. If you're staying farther out, think about how you'll handle a larger grocery run before you arrive.

For a weeklong rental, one practical option is to take a taxi to pick up groceries at the beginning of your stay and use bikes, shuttles or walking for smaller trips afterward.

You can also use grocery delivery services on Nantucket, including Instacart (which delivers from Stop & Shop and other local retailers) as well as island-based grocery delivery and concierge services offered by some property managers and private providers. These can be especially helpful if you're arriving without a car or getting in late on your first day.

The farther your rental is from Town and Mid-Island, the more you'll want to plan this part of your trip ahead of time.

Going to Nantucket without a car doesn't mean you have to commit to an entirely car-free week.

Several local companies rent cars and Jeeps on the island. Young's Bicycle Shop, located steps from the ferry on Broad Street, rents Jeep Wranglers as well as cars. Affordable Rentals, also located in Town near the ferry terminals, offers Jeep Wranglers, Jeep Gladiators, Ford Broncos and other vehicles. Both offer vehicles with beach permits, which can be especially useful if exploring Nantucket's drive-on beaches is part of your plans.

If you're closer to the airport, Nantucket Island Rent-A-Car and Nantucket Windmill Auto Rental also offer Jeeps and other vehicles, including options with beach-driving permits.

Renting a vehicle for part of your stay can be particularly useful if you want to explore farther afield, including Madaket, Polpis, Quidnet, Wauwinet or Tom Nevers, or simply want a break from biking.

One-day rentals may be available, but minimum rental periods can apply during peak summer weeks. If you know you'll want a Jeep or car during your vacation, check availability and rental requirements ahead of time.

Absolutely, but where you stay matters.

For the easiest car-free vacation, look first at Town, Brant Point, Cliff, Edge of Town and South of Town. These areas give you some combination of walkability, bike access, nearby beaches, groceries and convenient connections to other parts of Nantucket.

Sconset can also work beautifully if you're happy spending more of your vacation on the eastern end of the island and using The WAVE or bikes for trips into Town.

Neighborhoods such as Madaket, Tom Nevers, Polpis, Quidnet and Wauwinet offer privacy and access to some of Nantucket's quieter corners, but transportation requires more planning.

Before choosing your rental, think about the places you'll visit most often. If you can walk to dinner, bike to the beach and catch The WAVE when you want to venture farther, you may find that the best place for your car is back on the mainland.