First Encounter Beach, Cape Cod

First Encounter Beach is a beautiful bay side beach in Eastham with a bath house and frequent visits from ice cream trucks. An Eastham beach stick gets you access, or you can pay a per-visit fee at the beach. At low tide, the water is way out with many small pools of warm water perfect for small kids. At high tide, there is still enough beach to enjoy the sun and build sand castles.

First Encounter Beach is a quiet bay beach. The gentle tides make it perfect and safe for kids. Sunsets are a daily gathering - bring your beach chair!

For 20+ years, we have experienced the best sunsets at First Encounter Beach! Low tide is the perfect time to walk out through warm wading pools, with grassy little islands, and gather up your shells and ocean findings.

We loved visiting First Encounter Beach — it was great at low tide for kids to explore the tidal pools and find marine life and shells. At high tide, it was a safe environment to wade and swim.

Kid friendly tide goes way out and creates a huge beach. Public bathroom and water station. Good walking beach.

First Encounter beach is a beautiful bay beach and especially good for children as they can actually play in the water. Any of the national seashore beaches are beautiful.

Sunset at First Encounter cannot be beat!

Good swimming at high tide; long walks on the beach at low tide; parking available; and gorgeous sunsets.

Plenty of space for a big family to be together and not feel on top of others! Perfect for paddleboarding! The only thing is how hot the sand gets, would be great for the dune paths to have a runner to protect your feet when come and go carrying all your stuff.

Insane sunsets - you can walk for miles at low tide and high tide doesn't go overhead. Parking is $30 daily until 4. Beach does get crowded, but you'll find a spot.