IPSWICH, Mass. – Crane Beach, a longtime favorite bathing beach for Massachusetts residents and visitors, is getting ready for a busy summer season. With weather forecasters calling for a warmer than average temperatures, families looking for a day at the beach should consider the white sand of this 1,234-acre beach located in Ipswich. Even if the forecast changes, as it did last summer, every day at Crane Beach has the potential for enjoyment.
With more than 350,000 visitors each year and five miles of beach, Crane welcomes visitors this summer with amenities such as a bathhouse with bathrooms and changing booths, outdoor rinsing stations, a beach store, equipment rentals, and a snack shack operated by Relish Catering. Crane Beach is also home to five miles of dune hiking trails. Dogs are not permitted during the summer season.
In addition to sunbathing and swimming, CraneOutdoors will be offering guided, weekend kayak excursions starting Memorial Day weekend and running through mid-October. More details are available under “Things to Do” on the Trustees’ website at www.thetrustees.org.
“The Trustees is committed to making our properties welcoming to everyone, and that includes Crane Beach,” said Trustees President and CEO Katie Theoharides. “Spending time on the beach with family and friends is a summer tradition in Massachusetts, and the Day Pass system is intended to help us ensure more people can enjoy this spectacular beach.”
The new admissions process makes access to the beach more equitable for visitors. The Trustees ended the beach permit system in place during the pandemic. The new system includes Day Passes to come to Crane Beach being released twice a week. Passes are for a carload and will be released Thursdays at noon for Fridays through Mondays visits, and Mondays at noon for Tuesdays through Thursdays visits.
Day Pass pricing varies depending on Trustees membership level. Sustaining, Sponsor or Founder’s Circle Members receive free admission to Crane Beach as part of their Trustees membership. Other levels of Trustees membership will be charged between $10-18 per carload during the week, and between $10-20 per carload on the weekends. Rates are further discounted after 4 p.m. on weekdays and weekends in the summer. Trustees’ members arriving on foot or bicycle are admitted for free.
Non-members will be charged $35 per carload on weekdays, $40 on weekends and holidays, and $5 for those arriving on foot or bicycle.
Ipswich residents with a valid Ipswich Beach Sticker are admitted for free and do not need an advanced reservation. More information on admission rates can be found on the Crane Beach webpage.
For visitors who don’t live on the North Shore, public transit options to the beach are available. Commuter train riders can take a Cape Ann Transportation Authority shuttle bus from the Ipswich commuter rail station to the beach. The Ipswich Essex Explorer charges $2 to Trustees Members (free admission to beach) and $5 to non-members ($2 beach admission included). Trustees’ Members arriving by bus, bicycle or on foot are reminded to bring their Trustees membership card.
“The public transit option is a great value for visitors who are coming from Boston or other communities not on the North Shore,” said Chris Moore, property director for Crane Estate. “It also reduces traffic congestion along Argilla Road in Ipswich and beachgoers don’t need to worry about parking a vehicle or making an advanced reservation. It’s easy and convenient.”
More about The Trustees
Founded by landscape architect Charles Eliot in 1891, The Trustees has, for more than 130 years, been a catalyst for important ideas, endeavors, and progress in Massachusetts. As a steward of distinctive and dynamic places of both historic and cultural value, The Trustees is the one of the oldest preservation and conservation organization, and its landscapes and landmarks continue to inspire discussion, innovation, and action today as they did in the past. We are a nonprofit, supported by members, friends and donors and our more than 120 sites are destinations for residents, members, and visitors alike, welcoming millions of guests annually. www.thetrustees.org.