Pilgrim Monument and Provincetown Museum — Attraction in Provincetown

For folks with mobility considerations:

The good: the ride up from downtown to the monument in the glass elevator is gorgeous and pretty seamless, and the view from the base of the monument is stunning. The inside of the museum is reasonably easy to navigate.

The obstacles: The monument itself is all stairs to the top, no elevator, alas. As for the rest of the site, they've done a serviceable job retrofitting a difficult hill, but it's definitely not barrier-free, so it's good to plan ahead. You may want to consider taking a car rather than going up the elevator from downtown (although I highly recommend doing the elevator just for kicks if you do - just show your ticket to the museum). Getting from the monument to the museum and back again is definitely a challenge. If you use a manual chair or are a walker user who's easily winded, it's worth knowing that the ramp from parking into the museum and the road from the museum to the monument are both quite steep and don't have rest platforms. There is no ramp directly into the museum from the monument, so chair users have to use the road. There's a gate across the road, so if you're traveling alone, you have to get the attention of an attendant inside the museum so they can open the gate - and when you leave you have to let the person know as you leave the museum that you'd like the gate opened to go up to the monument (don't forget to do this before you walk out the door! Nothing worse than going down a steep ramp, crossing a parking lot, heading up the hill, and then seeing the gate and realizing you have to double back). They do have a few parking spaces up by the monument for folks who have a license plate/placard for those who would like to take a car.

Overall: If you want to do the museum and the monument together, driving from downtown might be easier for some folks than taking the elevator, especially if you're traveling without a companion that can walk down the stairs to get the attention of someone at...

(Note: I write these reviews in part for my own nationwide business clients, for travel and activity inspiration. Follow me for more! I’m a financial planner - CFP®️practitioner - with a focus on retirement wealth strategies, primarily serving business women and LGBTQ individuals. #VirtualPlanningCraftedWithCare®️)

This is an excellent visit for anyone who loves American history. Easy to find, plenty of parking and aside from the actually climbing the tower, it’s handicap accessible. The other exception is the restroom. It’s down a steep set of stairs. However, the have a new elevator that brings you up from Commercial street and the museum is all accessible.

It’s a larger museum than you might expect to find. And the tower is a 15-20 min climb to beautiful views. The entire thing is appropriate for people of all ages. And it’s affordable for the time you’ll likely spend there.

Lastly, Ptown is one of the most gay friendly places in all of MA, if not our country. All are welcome. There’s even a current exhibit that explains that Ptown might be so LGBTQ friendly due the to Portuguese immigrants from the Azores that respect and inclusive of diversity. Me being a daughter of Azorean immigrants and a first generation American, this makes me so proud.

Check out Ptown and this...

Made the Pilgrim Monument a part of my family vacation since my daughters and I love "castles". Once they saw the monument they couldn't wait to go up. The location is really easy to find and the parking is just $15 and it includes a pass to the monument. There is plenty of public parking nearby as well. When we arrived there was a private event at first and the workers told us about the museum. The museum is small and its at the entrance before the monument. It had cool exhibits about the history of Provincetown. I really loved the replica Mayflower and the huge whale jawbone. We had an hour and a half to go so we headed down a small hill outside and walked Commercial St. After shopping around we came back. I brought two water bottles which they let in and proceeded to climb the monument. The monument has a combination of steps at the base then its most ramps til the top then a few more stairs. The ramps are what made the climb easier and we made it with no problem. The view from the top is amazing! You can see everything! I really loved looking at all the sand doons and coast line. I highly recommend this spot!! I also recommend wearing comfortable shoes for the monument and walking on...