Jaws - Filming Site Location Visit
- robspolt
- Aug 27, 2015
- 11 min read
There’s not much to say about Jaws that hasn’t been said.
Simply put it’s one of my favorite movies of all time, and commonly considered a near perfect movie both by horror fans, and not such big horror fans. Many people don’t even consider it a horror movie, referencing how it plays more like an adventure movie with thriller elements. I myself go back and forth with how much of a horror movie it is or isn’t in its execution, but what never changes for me is the horror impact it had on me from an early age and just how much of a damn fine film it is in general.
So last week I finally took a trip to Martha’s Vineyard, the filming location of Jaws, and also vacationed around the greater Cape Cod area in general. During this time I packed in a lot of Jaws related activity, and also checked out a number of other places around different parts of Cape Cod.
Here’s what I found:
Cape Cod has a number of beautiful areas, and due to this and it’s general popularity as a prestigious location, it has a lot of overpriced food/drinks/events that are of generally standard quality. Less places stood out on their own here than did in Washington D.C. when I visited The Exorcist locations for example. There were some great places, but they were harder to find mixed in with the noise for sure.
Included here is some of the best and worst of what I found in order to help guide fellow horror lovers planning their own trip to the stomping ground of Spielberg’s mechanical great white giant. Think of it as a travel companion for your Jaws, food, drink, and other attraction needs for the Cape Code area.
My girlfriend Denise and I a lot covered a lot of area while there, but for this list I’ll mostly focus on Jaws related places, a few other stops on Martha’s Vineyard, and the town of Hyannis – the town we stayed in that is a common place for tourists of The Cape to lodge. There are just too many places to get into them all, so if I left it out is was someplace not worth mentioning due to being very average or having little pertinence.
Jaws Locations:
Instead of linking to all the locations individually like I did with The Exorcist filming site location review, I’m just going to refer you to This map I found online, which is very accurate from what I have seen (except for the Amity Hardware store, which I’ll talk about below).
Unfortunately, I was not able to get to every location from the movie due to time and mobility constraints. Some locations in the movie can be about 25 miles apart from each other, and without having a car on the island (you can get yours ferried, but be prepared to pay) the time to take and wait for busses back and forth would just take too long, and I was only on the island for one day.
However, I did get to see most of the main locations of the movie, which are in and around Edgartown, and I suggest you do the same if you only have one day. It’s the best use of your time, and easy to get to by public transportation buses, with the #13 train running back and forth from Oak Bluffs, right near where the closest ferry comes in, about every 15 minutes during most of the day (June 20, 2015 through September 7, 2015: - make sure to check the main page for other dates). The $8 one day pass is your best bet so you can get on and off at different stops freely throughout the day.
As far as the ferry from the mainland, you have a few travel options depending on where you want to leave from. Basically, leaving from Woodshole was the easiest and most economic for us, even though were staying in Hyannis, but check the ferry link and the above map of the location sites to get an idea of what works best for where you’ll be.
Edgartown Tour Company Jaws tour:
Tour of the Edgartown Jaws filming locations with tons of movie and town information.
Without a doubt, this is absolutely essential to your Jaws filming site location visit. Tour guide Mike was a wealth of knowledge, providing interesting little known information about the movie, great filming facts, and an in depth analysis of how the movie shaped and defined the
history of Martha’s Vineyard. Additionally, he’ll stick around afterwards for any questions you might have. If there could be only one mandatory activity for horror lovers coming to the Vineyard for a Jaws trip, this is it. If you love the movie, there’s no way in hell you won’t love this, and the price is extremely fair for everything you get. Kudos.
I don’t have a single bad thing to say about this tour. The only thing I could hope for is more.
The tour clocks in at about 1 hour, and while it’s a perfect length for what is covered I’d love to have seen this span all the locations on the entire island. I realize this is probably unrealistic due to the expenses and resources that would have to go into what appears to be hosted by a small one man tour operation, BUT if there were ever to be some expansion in the future I would have NO problem shelling out more money for say a 3 or 4 hour total island Jaws tour and I don’t think other horror fans would either… (hint, hint, if you’re reading Mike!)
The “Jaws Bridge”:
Marked on map as “Estuary attack bridge” - accessible on the way to Edgartown from Oak Bluffs via the #13 bus. Just like Washington D.C. has the “Exorcist Stairs” that all locals know it as, Martha’s Vineyard has the “Jaws Bridge”. Known as a summer rites of passage type of a spot, the Jaws bridge that is about 15 feet from the water’s surface and is a very popular spot where both native islanders and tourists alike are constantly jumping off of. This is the filming site location where the famous leg bite scene occurs when it is discovered that the shark is “in the pond”. It’s also right near the scene where the young boy, Alex Kitner, is eaten by the shark. If you’re a big Jaws fan you simply HAVE to take the plunge. I did and it was a lot of fun. Once you do jump you can easily swim to the shore on either side of the bridge. There’s also a beach area right next to it, so if you don’t feel like hopping off, you can still get into the water there. It clearly say no jumping from the bridge allowed on a highway sign, but don’t let this deter you. It’s almost like it’s a joke (or likely a way of preventing getting sued if someone does hurt themselves stupidly), because within one minute of being there you’ll see that not only is jumping off okay - it’s ENCOURAGED. Passing cars will honk and cheer as people jump off, just adding to the fun of this great spot.
The Port Hunter:
The Port Hunter bar/restaurant, also in Edgartown, is technically a filming location in the movie. I say technically, because, although no bar exists in Jaws, this is the location of the inside of the hardware store in the movie where Brody goes to get supplies to make the “beaches closed” signs. At the time of filming it was a bait and tackle shop and later was turned into a bar. In the movie, Brody APPEARS to walk into what is now the general store in real life, so many people wrongly assume this is where the inside shots were filmed, although this is not true. Thus my note about the “Amity Hardware Store” on the map being incorrect. This info was given to me by Mike of Edgartown Tour Co.
Anyway, the place doesn’t look the same at all as it did in the movie. They have a decent selection of craft beer at a price that is mid-ranged for the area (so a little high in general) and Denise enjoyed her margarita. The thing that really bothered me about it though is that I have never seen so many young children (like 4 – 6 year olds) in a bar before in my life. Not so much of an ethical objection so much as it is that that shit was just plain annoying. Stop in, snap a pic, maybe grab a beer if the nursery is slow the day you go, and be on your way
Also on Martha’s Vineyard:
Sharky’s:
Shark themed Mexican American food restaurant. No real official Jaws stuff (except for t-shirt for sale which you can get ANYWHERE in Cape Cod), instead just “sharky” in general.
Yay: Decently priced on an overpriced island. Food isn’t bad, it’s just… food that is hard to mess up. Worth a stop to eat on the island and save your money for other things.
Nay: Denise despised her Watermelon Margarita, which tasted like dirty water (we were refunded at least). It’s obviously a “cash in on the hype of Jaws being filmed here, without being able to reference trademarked Jaws stuff” kind of place. Money grabs like this kind of annoy me, but you could do worse at the end of the day.
Bad Martha’s Brewery:
Brewery right next door to Sharky’s
Yay: about 10 varying styles of beer, and you can get them in mason jars… I like mason jars. Had a flight of four samples and the two best of it were the weizenbock and black lager
Nay: overpriced for generally really crappy beer. The casked brown ale and smokehouse dunkel were horrid. Even the two I said were better were average at best. In their defense, it is only their 2nd year operational and sometimes breweries take a bit to find their groove. Trust me though, I LOVE breweries, and for me to say skip it means something… Maybe try it in a year or two.
Seafood Shanty:
Seafood restaurant on the downtown waterfront in between Jaws filming location spots.
Yay: Good seafood – We had spicy peel and eat shrimp, wine and shallot mussels, and sea bass with feta cheese and seasonings. Diligent and considerate service (even when I forgot to sign my debit card receipt and he had to chase me down the road. Whoops!) Located right in between a number of the filming location sites of the movie.
Nay: A little pricy, but most things here are.
Hyannis:
America’s Best Value Inn:
Yay: Very well priced for the area, both indoor and outdoor pool, decent sized and quality continental breakfast, clean, pretty quiet, within walking distance of tons of main street shops, bars, restaurants, and attractions. While it’s not prestigious by any stretch of the imagination I kinda like staying in places like this if I’m only going to sleep there and not spend much time around it. Saves money for other things. Worth it for sure if you just want a clean bed and possibly a dip in the pool
(shower suggested after)
Nay: It’s a cheap motel, complete with all the cheap motel trappings – dingy outside look, not sure if that woman’s a prostitute, people are way too comfortable doing… whatever they’re doing around the property. A little greasy for sure, but I never felt unsafe.
Spinnaker Records:
Yay: THE BEST store I found anywhere in Cape Cod. As a horror fan you MUST GO. If you like any (I’ll take all) of the above in the description don’t miss it. I picked up a Dark Night of the Scarecrow DVD
and a cool Quint’s fishing Jaws shirt. FANTASTIC selection of DVD both new and used including rare stuff and bootlegs – one of the
best store front movie shops I’ve seen in a looong time. Good selection of varied horror and band shirts and movies, and tons of vinyl- all at competitive prices. I was skeptical when I first saw it, since I wouldn’t think something in the middle of Hyannis’ main tourism section would have such great eclectic stuff, but it was smart of them to set up in a place where horror fans often stay to check out the Jaws filming site.
Nay: It isn’t closer to home… Besides that, sure, some things are slightly cheaper online, but the experience makes it worth it.
Vanilla and Chocolate:
Yay: Lots of fun novelty items, shirts, and a huge selection of pop culture posters. I got a nice Blues Brothers one (a favorite non-horror movie of mine!). Another shop you should really check out for some fun stuff.
Nay: Not nearly as good as Spinnaker, having some similar items. Some of the posters are printer out from a personal printer it looks like. A good quality on, and on good stock, but still…
The Egg and I:
Yay: Not much. It’s right in the middle of town and easy to walk to from nearby lodging, but so are a lot of other places.
Nay: When we went everything was dry and burned, service was slow, and the price, while comparable to the area was definitely not worth the cost of admission to eat their shitty food. This place is extremely popular too, and has been here for a very long time. I have no idea why. Maybe it was a bad day. Found out this place is a small nationwide chain (and for some reason this location isn’t on their website – not a good sign…) There are so many better places to go than this, like the next place on the list…
Gourmet Brunch:
Breakfast and lunch spot specializing in omelets right next to The Egg and I
Yay: Well priced for really good food. Lots of options and just about everything we had was great.
We ended up going twice we liked it so much. Literally RIGHT next door to The Egg and I, yet light-years away in quality. Try the hickory (smoked cocktail sausage) onion, tomato, and swiss omelet or the French toast with hot cooked bananas and pecans in maple reduction. Also, the waitress was a little old quirky lady who kept saying weird things and calling potatoes “taties” – if you’re not sure about this, trust me, it was fucking adorable.
Nay: The coffee was really weak and kind of tasteless. Shouldn’t deter you from going though. Grab a cup somewhere else before or after.
Tugboats:
Yay: Right on the water with good atmosphere. Lobster bisque was pretty good.
Nay: Pricy for pretty sub-par food. Lobster roll was bland and tasteless. Had a terrible experience with the bartender. He made me one of the worst martinis I’ve ever had that was obviously watered down. Then when I told him I really wasn’t feeling it and it wasn’t made right he got defensive and said he wouldn’t replace it with another martini, but would make something else instead. I chose a Manhattan, and it was just as bad. Then, although I’m not sure because the prices weren’t listed, I think he overcharged me since he knew he wasn’t going to get a good tip. I was pissed about this experience for days... ask Denise, she had to hear me keep talking about it…
Cape Cod Duckmobiles:
Yay: It’s an old war vehicle remodeled as a tour bus that can go into the water because it's also a boat. That’s pretty cool if you haven’t been on one.
Nay: Unless you’re under 8 years old or suffer from brain trauma it’s extremely fucking annoying. The tour guide cracked corny jokes that were painful, which is sometime okay if done with the right attitude, but she didn’t have it. Then she also kept doing this thing where she would lie about information on the tour with a completely straight face to be funny, and would then be like “just kidding!” and tell the real information. She was doing it to keep people listening, but it made me tune her out because I had no idea if she was bullshitting something so I stopped caring. Also, they kept trying to make us quack at everything… I decide when I quack, not you. Good for kids, otherwise skip it.
Bay Spirit Tours:
Yay: Informative and at a
good length (75 Min). Covers info about area and lighthouse history, as well as fishing info from the captain on various aquatic life caught in the area. Free sunscreen (which I subsequently got in my eyes and cried like a little girl the whole time – don’t do that).
Nay: Tends to have a lot of people on it who just walk around as they please. Make sure to pick a good spot where people won’t get in your way and block the views.
British Beer Company:
Yay: Best bar in town we found. Decent prices, nice selection of microbrews, and decent pub food. Easy and quick to stop into off the main road, right by local lodging.
Nay: Avoid at night. We went one night and there was some annoying karaoke and it was much more crowded of course. Stick to the afternoon and you should be fine.
Others worth Mentioning:
Nantucket (where Peter Benchley wrote the book Jaws and originally based the story location on) and Provincetown are both out of the way, but if you travel to them while in Cape Cod check these out:
Nantucket: Brotherhood of Thieves (had to mention it because it was the best place we ate while in Cape Cod – get the potato skin poutine!), Cisco Brewers (and associated winery and distillery in the same location), and Barrett’s Tours tour bus
Provincetown: Take the Provincetown Trolley
Hope this gives you some ideas to plan your trip and make the best of it, or gets you thinking about other horror locations you can visit and build your own personal memories around.
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