The Tabernacle House, a rental property located inside the campground community in Oak Bluffs RELATED LINKS Return to City Guide: Martha's Vineyard

If you're looking for a lively, youth-oriented beach scene on the Vineyard these days, the down-island town of Oak Bluffs is the place to go, and in high season it's the only spot with a touch of hedonistic night life. The town's roots, however, go back to strictly pious gatherings of New England Methodists who began coming here in the 1830s to camp out in a the countryside and assemble for daily sermons and marathon prayer sessions. Over time, the Methodists' summertime campground evolved into a permanent village of ornate little wooden cottages, several hundred of which still stand a short distance form the waterfront at the site of the old tent revivals. The unique and colorful cottage architecture tops the list of historical attractions in Oak Bluffs, which is well worth exploring even if the kitschy commercial district is not your cup of tea.

Virtually all of the Methodist cottages are privately owned, but visitors are permitted to stroll through the grounds admiring the whimsical gingerbread designs. One cottage is open to the public as a museum, with period furnishings, photographs of Cottage City life in the 1800s and other historical artifacts. Visitors also are welcome at the Tabernacle at Trinity Park, a large open-air chapel erected at the center of the cottage complex in 1879. The Tabernacle still hosts Sunday services and various cultural events in summer. For more information, see the Martha's Vineyard Campmeeting Association Web site at www.mvcma.org.

Other Oak Bluffs attractions include Ocean Park, 7 acres of waterfront greenery surrounded by an impressive collection of Queen Anne and Gothic Revival mansions from the Victorian era; the Union Chapel, an impressive non-sectarian place of worship built in 1870; and the Flying Horse Carousel, a working carousel built in 1876 and moved here from Coney Island, N.Y., in 1884.

Next: Waikiki Beach