What: Martha’s Vineyard Gourmet Getaway
Where: Harbor View Hotel, Edgartown, MA
When: Monday through Thursday, until April 15
Why: This is a smart, sneaky time of year to visit Martha’s Vineyard. Built in 1891, the Harbor View Hotel is located near an old whaling port and brings a modern sensibility to a classic New England aesthetic–one that you can’t normally enjoy for less than $315 on a peak season night if you’d like a room with breathtaking water views. Going into the shoulder season, Harbor View is offering $109 rates and a welcome basket with spa goodies to boot. And while the Hamptons may still seem closed up, Edgartown is a vibrant, hospitable slice of the vineyard that’s best visited before its narrow streets are swarming with tourists.
As part of the “Gourmet Getaway” package, guests can taste Chef Levon Wallace’s three-course dinner for $28 per person. The menu features locally-sourced ingredients and fresh produce from the island and New England farmer’s backyards. It should make for a pleasant change of pace on a weekday evening; order the Edgartown Bay scallops with lobster, leeks, and house-cured bacon, ease into the cozy elegant setting of the dining room, and let the salty ocean breezes move over your face.
How to get there: For your end of winter getaway, take a Peter Pan or Greyhound bus from Port Authority to Woods Hole, and anticipate brief layovers in Providence or Bourne, Massachusetts. Take the ferry from the Steamship Authority in Woods Hole to either Vineyard Haven or Oak Bluffs. (Harbor View Hotel, 131 North Water Street, Edgartown, Mass., 800.225.6005, harbor-view.com)
Sarah Knapp is a Brooklyn based entrepreneur whose love for the outdoors and community building led her to the October 2013 creation of OutdoorFest. She has a BA in History, is a Wilderness First Responder and a NY state hiking, camp and boating guide. Her proudest achievement to date is reading the Aeneid in Latin. 
Allison was one of our first top writers and Chief Editor but is no longer working with offMetro. Allison is a native New Yorker, who has lived in Rome, Tuscany, Melbourne, Toronto and Los Angeles. She frequently contributed travel pieces to Family Travel Forum, using her own children as guinea pigs as they travel the globe. She never missed a chance to sample local delicacies, as her love for travel goes hand-in-hand with her love for food and wine. 
Josh Laskin is a freelance travel writer and photographer based in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. When he is not at work or on the road, you can find him in the mountains snowboarding, climbing, hiking, fly fishing, mountain biking, and eating bagel bites.
Annie is a travel writer, environmentalist, and surfer based in Venice, CA. She heads up our West Coast team, keeps our grammatical errors in check, and makes sure our California writers always have a plan for their next adventure. Follow Annie’s travels @annelisemcb.
Carly Pifer is a freelance writer who has been known to follow whims inspired by romantic movie scenes or colorful street style shots to India, Japan, Tunisia and Argentina. After stints living in Seoul, Boston, Paris and Los Angeles, writing and searching for something intangible, she landed somewhat steadily in Brooklyn and has begun to find inspiration in her more immediate surroundings. 
Kate E. O’Hara is a New York based freelance writer and photographer who loves all things food—especially the people who make it and market it. Her writing aims to capture the essence of the food experience; the stories that go well beyond a plate of ingredients. In addition to her love of food, Kate is also known to have a hankering for red wine and craft beer. You can also find Kate on Instagram