Pilots don't need to travel to the Bahamas or Caribbean for some island time. Check out this list of fun islands to visit from New England to the Chesapeake Bay.
Plum Island, Massachusetts: About 27 nautical miles northeast of Boston’s Logan International Airport you’ll find the Plum Island Airport. From here it’s an easy walk to what many say are the best “lobstah” rolls in New England at Bob Lobster, also a fresh seafood market. A barrier island, Plum Island is home to large tidal marshes that provide outstanding waterbird habitat—bring your binoculars! A mile east of the airport is the Plum Island Grille, upscale dining in a casual atmosphere, and the resort town of Plum Island.
Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts: Martha’s Vineyard Airport gets you quick access to this famous summer colony for the affluent and influential. Visit the town of Oak Bluffs, home to rows of gingerbread cottages and some of the island’s best night life. Pick up fresh cod in Menemsha, the fishing village memorialized in a Carly Simon song (the singer has a home on the island). Menemsha is where Steven Spielberg filmed Jaws and also where you’ll find New England’s best sunsets. Walk the windswept beach at Gay Head or take a spin on the Flying Horses Carousel, America’s oldest platform carousel, constructed in 1876, and don’t forget the lighthouses and museums.
Block Island, Rhode Island: Situated about 9 nm off the coast between Long Island and Martha’s Vineyard, Block Island State Airport sits on an unspoiled, sparsely inhabited refuge island that has escaped the ravages of overdevelopment. Walk the nature preserve just south of the airport or scour the beaches for one of 550 glass fishing floats made by a local artist and hidden in early June 2017. Rent a bike or moped, visit the lighthouses, go fishing or kayaking, or join in the nightlife in Old Harbor.