Red Jacket Beach Resort

It was so easy to leave the car parked and walk straight from our room to the beach. The Red Jacket is ideally located, with pools, pickleball and ping pong on site, plus mini golf, restaurants and the pirate museum nearby. Hyannis shops are about 15 minutes away if you’ve forgotten something. The staff were the kindest and most accommodating we’ve ever experienced, and we felt completely relaxed. The downside was hearing other guests through the walls and from the halls, outside, and overhead.

We’ve stayed at the Red Jacket over the years and it has always surpassed what we expected. This time was a little anniversary getaway, and our updated oceanfront room was lovely. Grace at reception gave us a very warm welcome and was so helpful. I also always enjoy catching up with Patrick, the groundskeeper. He’s a consummate professional and a genuinely nice guy, and the resort is lucky to have him. We’re already looking forward to another visit.

The indoor reception space felt warm and welcoming for dinner and dancing, and the whole day ran smoothly. Staff made sure everything felt special for everyone. I photographed a wedding at Red Jacket Beach Resort & Spa in South Yarmouth, where the ceremony was held just outside the hotel with the ocean behind it. It was a breathtaking backdrop and a joy to capture. Guests had cocktail hour beneath an outdoor tent, with fresh sea air and a relaxed feel before heading inside. For a Cape Cod venue with coastal views and thoughtful hospitality, it’s well worth considering. As a photographer, I couldn’t have asked for a prettier, better-run spot.

The walk-out beach is lovely, and the pools are cool, but this place needs real investment in both its facilities and staff before it can be a top-notch destination. At this price, it’s hard to say it’s worth it. This has been a sad decline, getting worse each year. Our room was so damp with moisture that my phone wouldn’t charge, and the floors were so dirty the kids’ feet turned black within an hour. Breakfast cost $31, the food was burnt, and there was a 20 percent gratuity on everything we ordered, even takeaway we carried out and cleaned up ourselves. In the past they unloaded the car and brought our things by golf cart. Now workers race around in carts and don’t help. Two people from the old days are still kind and helpful, but most of the staff were standoffish and unpleasant. The crib had a wheel missing this year, so we had to prop it up with our own things to get it to sit level. A patch of grass they tried to fix last July was still messed up a year later. The kids also got splinters from the porch more than once. It’s frustrating that nothing seems to get improved.