Getting Around

Public Restrooms on Martha's Vineyard, Town by Town: Where They Are, Which Are Seasonal and the Winter Fallbacks (2026)

Public Restrooms on Martha's Vineyard, Town by Town: Where They Are, Which Are Seasonal and the Winter Fallbacks (2026)
Vineyard Haven · Water StreetPhoto by MV Vacation

Water Street in Vineyard Haven, with the ferry terminal across the road. The town’s public restroom stands in the Stop & Shop parking lot, a minute from the boat, and the terminal itself has another.

Every public restroom we know of on Martha's Vineyard, town by town: the two ferry terminals (open year-round), Kennebec Avenue in Oak Bluffs, Church Street in Edgartown, the Stop and Shop lot in Vineyard Haven, West Tisbury Town Hall, the Menemsha beach lot and the Aquinnah cliffs, which beaches have them (not State Beach), what is seasonal, and the fallbacks that work in winter.

Nobody puts public restrooms in a travel guide, and everyone on a day trip needs one by eleven. Martha’s Vineyard has them, but they are few, they are mostly where the boats and the buses are, and a good number of them lock for the winter without telling anyone. This is the list we would want in our pocket: every public restroom we know of, town by town, with what is next to it so you can find it without a map, which ones are open all year and which ones are seasonal, and the three fallbacks that work in every town when the town’s own door is locked. Hours are posted on the doors and change with the season, and where we don’t know them, we say so.

05 LINES
BY THE BOATS The two Steamship terminals

The Vineyard Haven terminal on Water Street has restrooms inside and the Oak Bluffs terminal on Seaview Avenue has them beside it, open whenever the boats run, which is every day of the year in Vineyard Haven.

DOWN-ISLAND TOWN CENTERS Kennebec Avenue, Church Street, the Stop & Shop lot

Oak Bluffs keeps a public restroom on Kennebec Avenue behind Circuit Avenue; Edgartown’s is at the Church Street visitor center by the bus stop, the only one in the village; Vineyard Haven’s is in the Stop & Shop lot off Water Street. All three are a short walk from where the bus drops you.

UP-ISLAND West Tisbury, Menemsha, Aquinnah

The old Agricultural Hall next to West Tisbury Town Hall, where the bus stops; the entrance to the Menemsha Town Beach lot below the fish markets; and the small building below the overlook at the Aquinnah cliffs. Seasonal, all three.

THE BEACHES Owen Park, South Beach, Menemsha; not State Beach

Owen Park in Vineyard Haven has permanent restrooms and showers; South Beach has them at the changing rooms at both ends; Menemsha Town Beach has them at the lot. State Beach has none at all; the nearest are at the Oak Bluffs terminal.

THE FALLBACKS Libraries, the museum, the terminals

All six town libraries are open year-round with restrooms during their hours; the Martha’s Vineyard Museum in Vineyard Haven has accessible ones; and the Vineyard Haven terminal is open every day of the year; the Oak Bluffs one only while boats land there, through October 22 in 2026. In summer, a coffee bought at a café buys the key.

Town by town

Know Before You Go

Where they are, and what is next to them

OAK BLUFFS

Three. On Kennebec Avenue, the street behind Circuit Avenue by the post office, in the town lot; next to the Steamship Authority terminal on Seaview Avenue; and on the harbor next to Our Market, where the harbor bathhouse also sells showers for a small fee. The Kennebec one, at 21 Kennebec Avenue, is the one to remember on Circuit Avenue; map services list it as open 8 AM to 6 PM, which the town does not confirm online. Ocean Park itself has none.

VINEYARD HAVEN

Three. Inside the Steamship terminal on Water Street, year-round; in the Stop & Shop parking lot off Water Street, a minute from the boat; and in the park behind the fire station on Beach Road. Owen Park’s harbormaster building has restrooms and showers by the beach. The Mansion House sells day shower privileges.

EDGARTOWN

One in the village: the visitor center at 29 Church Street, just off Main Street beside the Old Whaling Church, where the VTA buses stop; the town lists the center and its restrooms as seasonal, the bus stop as year-round. Otherwise South Beach’s changing rooms at both ends of the beach in season, and the restaurants. Memorial Wharf has none that we know of.

WEST TISBURY

The old Agricultural Hall building next to the Town Hall on State Road, where the bus stops. The Grange Hall festivals bring their own. Lambert’s Cove Beach has no permanent restrooms; Long Point has portable toilets in summer only; Cedar Tree Neck has a portable one at the trailhead.

CHILMARK AND MENEMSHA

At the entrance to the Menemsha Town Beach parking lot, below the fish markets, in season. Lucy Vincent has porta-potties in its lot and nothing else. Chilmark center has no public restroom we know of.

AQUINNAH

The small building below the overlook at the cliffs, near the paid parking lot, in season; portable restrooms sit at the entrance to Moshup Beach. The shops at the Circle run roughly Memorial Day to Columbus Day.

CHAPPY

No public restroom building on Chappaquiddick that we know of. Mytoi keeps year-round portable toilets at its lot, including an accessible one; Wasque and Cape Poge have the Trustees’ seasonal facilities, so it is worth going before the Chappy ferry.

Street signs for Circuit Ave Ext and Oak Bluffs Ave in front of the red Flying Horses carousel building in Oak Bluffs
Oak Bluffs · Circuit and Oak Bluffs AvenuesPhoto by MV Vacation

The Circuit Avenue Extension and Oak Bluffs Avenue street signs by the Flying Horses. The Kennebec Avenue restroom is one street behind Circuit; the terminal one is a five-minute walk down Oak Bluffs Avenue.

Which ones are open in winter

The terminals, the libraries and the museum. The Vineyard Haven Steamship terminal is open every day of the year because the boats are; the Oak Bluffs terminal keeps its hours only while boats land there, which in 2026 is mid-May to October 22. The beach and harbor restrooms, the Menemsha lot, the Aquinnah building and the West Tisbury hall are seasonal and close with the businesses around them, roughly Columbus Day to Memorial Day, and none of them publish a date that we have found. The Kennebec Avenue restroom in Oak Bluffs and the Stop & Shop lot one in Vineyard Haven are the town-center ones most likely to be open on a cold day, but we have found both locked out of season, so plan on the terminal. All six town libraries stay open all year on winter hours, and the what’s open year-round guide lists them; the seniors guide and the accessibility guide note which restrooms are accessible, with Owen Park and South Beach the listed ones on the beaches.

A child's drawing on a Carry In, Carry Home sign, with a fish in a bottle, sea creatures, waves and a sun
A beach sign · carry in, carry homePhoto by MV Vacation

A child’s drawing on a carry-in, carry-home beach sign. At Menemsha the town beach restrooms are at the entrance to the beach lot, below the fish markets, in season; the fish markets themselves have none for the public.

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The day-trip plan

Know Before You Go

Where to stop, in order

OFF THE BOAT

The terminal is the easy first stop. In Vineyard Haven it is inside the building; in Oak Bluffs it is beside it on Seaview Avenue. Both have room for a queue.

IN TOWN

Oak Bluffs: Kennebec Avenue, behind Circuit. Edgartown: Church Street by the bus stop, and the bus itself stops there. Vineyard Haven: the Stop & Shop lot or the terminal. Edgartown has no second restroom in the village, so Church Street is the one to use there.

AT THE BEACH

Owen Park and South Beach have them; Menemsha has them at the lot; the Inkwell is a five-minute walk from the Oak Bluffs terminal; State Beach has nothing along its two miles, so a stop in Oak Bluffs or Edgartown first helps. The beach guide lists facilities for all twenty.

UP-ISLAND

West Tisbury Town Hall, then nothing until Menemsha or Aquinnah. The bus tour stops at the cliffs, and the building below the overlook is handy while the group photographs the lighthouse.

THE RULES

Changing in the lots and rinsing wetsuits in the sinks are frowned on, and whatever you carry in goes home with you, as the Menemsha sign puts it. Water bottles refill free at the Take Back the Tap stations in schools, public buildings and parks around the island; the packing list has the map.

A shop sign on Church Street in Edgartown with white clapboard buildings and a wet street on a winter day
Edgartown · Church StreetPhoto by MV Vacation

Church Street in Edgartown, off Main Street by the Old Whaling Church. The visitor center with the village’s only public restroom is on this street, at the bus stop.

What we do not know

Opening hours. The towns post them on the doors, not online, and they change with the season and the staffing. We have listed every restroom we have used or seen and the Vineyard Gazette’s own public list, and we have said seasonal where we have found a door locked in the cold months. If you find one open, closed, moved or missing from this page, tell us through the contact page and we will correct it the same week.

Plan the whole trip, one step at a time

The towns by bus, on film

Our own footage from the routes that pass every restroom on this page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where are the public restrooms in Oak Bluffs?

Three: on Kennebec Avenue behind Circuit Avenue by the post office, next to the Steamship Authority terminal on Seaview Avenue, and on the harbor next to Our Market, where the bathhouse also sells showers. Ocean Park has none.

Where are the public restrooms in Edgartown?

One in the village, at the visitor center on Church Street just off Main Street by the Old Whaling Church, where the VTA buses stop. In season South Beach has restrooms at the changing rooms at both ends. Memorial Wharf has none.

Where are the public restrooms in Vineyard Haven?

Inside the Steamship Authority terminal on Water Street, open every day of the year; in the Stop & Shop parking lot off Water Street; in the park behind the fire station on Beach Road; and at the harbormaster building at Owen Park beach, with showers.

Are there restrooms at State Beach?

No, none along the whole beach. The nearest are at the Oak Bluffs Steamship terminal at the north end or in Edgartown at the south, so it’s worth stopping before you catch the bus.

Which restrooms are open in winter?

The Vineyard Haven Steamship terminal every day, the six town libraries during their winter hours, and the museum in Vineyard Haven. The beach, harbor and up-island restrooms are seasonal, and the Oak Bluffs terminal closes when the boats stop landing there in late October.

How we checked this

Locations are from our own use of them over the seasons and from the Vineyard Gazette’s published list of public restrooms, cross-checked in September 2026 against the town beach pages, the Edgartown visitor center listing and the Trustees’ property notes; the Steamship terminal facilities are from the Authority’s terminal descriptions. The towns don’t publish hours, so we don’t give them; seasonal notes are from what we have found open and locked. Corrections are welcome and go live the same week.

Island tip of the day Shopping No. 31 of 86 New tip at midnight, island time

The Chappy Ferry costs $5/person round-trip and $17 for a car with driver. Cards work at the Edgartown-side kiosk; bring cash for the boat itself.

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Disclaimer: The information in this article is provided for general guidance only and was accurate at the time of writing. Beach conditions, hours, prices, lifeguard schedules, ferry fares, and business operations change frequently and without notice. Ocean swimming carries inherent risks including rip currents, undertow, and cold water shock. Always verify current conditions with official local sources before your visit. MV Vacation assumes no responsibility for any loss, injury, or inconvenience resulting from the use of this information. Swim only where lifeguards are on duty, supervise children at all times near water, and follow all posted safety signs.

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