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Circuit Avenue in Oak Bluffs is Martha's Vineyard's entertainment hub. Gingerbread houses, shops, restaurants, and nightlife along the one street everyone ends up on.
Circuit Avenue is the main commercial street and heart of Oak Bluffs, the island's main summer nightlife strip. Family-friendly by day with ice cream shops, fudge, and the carousel; a lively bar and music scene after dark.
Filmed May 2021The island moves on: shops, signs and prices may differ from what you see here. The text of this guide was checked September 2026.
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The plaque on the Flying Horses building: the carousel dates from 1876 and is kept by the Martha’s Vineyard Preservation Trust. Circuit Avenue starts right here.
At 15 Lake Avenue, at the base of Circuit Avenue. Built in 1876 and originally at Coney Island; moved to Oak Bluffs in 1884. The oldest operating platform carousel in the United States, designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987. Features hand-carved horses with real horse-hair manes and tails, glass eyes, and the original brass ring game. Music by a 1923 Wurlitzer Band Organ. Summer hours: 10 AM–9 PM daily, rides $5 each; after Labor Day hours shrink and the carousel closes for the season in October, so check before you go. Celebrating its 150th birthday in 2026.
Circuit Avenue on a busy August afternoon: the sidewalk full, planters in bloom, the line of parked cars along the curb.
Sharky’s Cantina on Circuit Avenue by day: orange and blue chairs under the string lights, and the sign out front marking 21 years since it opened in 2005.
Coffee on the avenue comes from two places: Mocha Mott's in the basement at the bottom of the street, open since 1994, and Mister Pugg's Mugg further up, a corner nook with a chalkboard menu and frozen drinks for a hot afternoon.
The way in to Mocha Mott’s: down the outside stairs and along a brick walk between the glass walls, syrup bottles and handwritten notes in the window and water bowls for dogs by the door.
A block over on Kennebec Avenue there is a third: Aalia’s Coffee at number 16, a pale blue shingled house with yellow trim and a counter under the awning out front, where you can sit with a cup and watch the street.
Aalia’s Coffee, a block over from Circuit on Kennebec Avenue: pale blue shingles, yellow trim and a counter under the awning where the morning regulars sit.
The corner of Mister Pugg’s Mugg: weathered shingles above, green painted brick below, and the small signs for frozen cappuccino, fruit slushies, Italian soda and dirty chai.
Ben and Bill’s Chocolate Emporium sign lit at night, the ice cream and candy line that runs until closing.
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Behind the bar at the Sand Bar and Grille at the bottom of Circuit Avenue, bottles lined up for the evening.
Tivoli Day in September: the street closed, a band under a tent, and dancing on the yellow bike-lane paint.
Linda Jean's Restaurant (25 Circuit Ave), the Oak Bluffs diner that ran for 47+ years, was sold in November 2025 for $4.9 million. It reopened on April 1, 2026 as Highlands General, a year-round fast-casual breakfast, lunch and coffee spot with a small market, run by a group that includes the owners of Nancy's and Nomans. See our Oak Bluffs guide for hours.
Some of the seats are above the street. A Rooftop Seating sign in an alley off Circuit Avenue points up an outside stair; ask inside, it says, about availability.
Circuit Avenue connects to Ocean Park, the large waterfront green with a Victorian bandstand, and is steps from the ferry terminal. See our Oak Bluffs Complete Guide (2026) for the full experience, or explore Inkwell Beach nearby.
Circuit Avenue on a September night after the summer crowd has gone: lit storefronts, empty sidewalks, a few cars.
Step 1 · WhenMonth PickerTwelve months compared on NOAA numbers, crowds, prices and what is open. 
Step 2 · DaysDay-by-Day Trip PlannerMorning, afternoon and evening sketched for every day, events dropped in, emailed to you. 
Step 3 · CostTrip Cost CalculatorFerry, beds with the rooms tax, meals, getting around and activities in one honest range. Steps. Walk off the boat, cross to Ocean Park with its Victorian bandstand, and Circuit Avenue starts right there with the Flying Horses Carousel at the bottom of the street on Lake Avenue. No car needed for a day in town.
Spaces near the harbor fill by mid-morning in August, and Circuit Avenue itself is not the place to hunt for one. Arrive by ferry or bus if you can. Our parking guide has the town lots and what they cost.
Summer hours are 10 AM to 9 PM daily and rides cost $5. After Labor Day the carousel drops to weekends and runs until around Columbus Day, then closes for the season. Check the exact last day before you go. 2026 is its 150th birthday.
By day, yes: ice cream, fudge, the carousel and the harbor are all within a few blocks. After dark it turns into the island's main nightlife strip, with the Ritz, the Lampost and the Sand Bar. Our family guide has more.
Less than in July, but Oak Bluffs does not go dark. Offshore Ale on Kennebec Avenue is open year-round, and Highlands General, the old Linda Jean's, runs year-round for breakfast, lunch and coffee. Many seasonal spots close in the fall, so confirm hours before you go.
Inkwell Beach on Seaview Avenue, about five minutes on foot from the ferry, with calm, shallow water that suits small children. Read our Inkwell Beach guide for the history and the practical details.
Island tip of the day Driving No. 16 of 86 New tip at midnight, island time
Driving an EV? The island's only DC fast charger is at the Harbor View Hotel and it is Tesla-only. Town Level 2 chargers: free in Aquinnah and West Tisbury, 25¢/kWh at the Oak Bluffs and Edgartown park-and-rides.
The Martha's Vineyard Songwriters Festival, September 17 to 20, 2026: a free kickoff at Nomans and three nights of Nashville writers at the Strand Theatre in Oak Bluffs, with our photographs from inside the Strand, the night-by-night lineups and practical notes for next year.
The Feast of the Holy Ghost in Oak Bluffs, held every third full weekend of July since 1928: the Queen Isabel legend behind the free soup, the Sunday parade from the ferry up Circuit Avenue, the crown blessed at Our Lady Star of the Sea, the sopas at the Portuguese-American Club, the club the rest of the year, and how a visitor should behave at the island's Portuguese feast.
East Chop Lighthouse in Oak Bluffs: the 1878 cast-iron tower on Telegraph Hill, the Sunday sunset openings run by the Martha's Vineyard Museum, the semaphore and Chocolate Lighthouse history, and the bus stop and parking below the hill.
Shearer Cottage, Dorothy West, the Inkwell and 30 marked sites across the island: how to walk or tour the African American Heritage Trail of Martha's Vineyard.
Take a guided Jaws tour of Martha's Vineyard with local guide Mike Currid. Walk the real Amity Island in Edgartown and book the “Amity” Walking Tour.
A first-hand look at the Edgartown Historic Walking Tour and “Amity” Jaws Tour with Mike Currid of the Edgartown Tour Company: what to expect, what you'll learn, and how to book.
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