New Jersey Beaches?

[Anonymous]

Can anyone tell me about New Jersey beaches? DH and I grew up in the area and have been to OBX, OC, Dewey, Bethany, Lewes, VA Beach....want to try someplace different. DS is 14 months - we were thinking about going up north and don't know anything about the area. What are the beaches like? Is it worth going? Are the prices for rental homes relatively the same? Is there a particular area that's good for families with young children? I don't want to end up someplace that is geared towards teenagers or 20-somethings. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

For this trip we would prefer to go somewhere that we can drive to, so please, no beach suggestions that require boarding a plane. Grandma lives in Florida, so I try to avoid going anywhere by plane other than trips to see her.

[Anonymous]

Jerseygirl here. For family friendly beaches you might want to consider Mansquan, LBI, Spring Lake and Cape May are a few

Manasquan: It is a quiet little beach town but is close to Pt. Pleasant if you want to go to the boardwalk. A few 20 somethings rent homes, but it is not like Belmar or Pt. Pleasant, which seem to cater them. I am not a big fan of staying at the beaches that have the boardwalk (Wildwood, Seaside, AC), but if you are those are a few to consider.

LBI: Very family friendly, and pretty much all family. I think your prior post mentioned 14 months, so it might be too young for some of the attractions, but it is a great beach town.

Cape May: Historic family friendly beaches

I believe renting a house for a week is affordable, but it also depends on what you want. Ie: if you want a house on the water, you might have to shell out more $$, vs. a little more inland. Also the time of season can give you a discount. ie the end of August might be cheaper than mid-July.

The ride to NJ from the DC area isn't bad and can take anywhere between 3-5 hours depending on where you are going/coming from.

[Anonymous]

Thanks, 16:46! Very informative. I'll start exploring some of the towns you mentioned.

[Anonymous]

Another Jersey Girl here who seconds the PP: LBI (Long Beach Island) is a great option for families and a little closer to here than Point Pleasant. If you want to go to the boardwalk in Point Pleasant, good family options are also Chadwick/Ocean Beach and Lavallette, or Bay Head if you want to spend $$$ on a house on the beach. From DC, other good family options are Stone Harbor/Ocean City.

[Anonymous]

Ocean City, NJ is also very family friendly. We took our son there for his 3rd birthday and we all had a great time! The Scarborough Inn is a very nice family-friendly B&B. Dixie Picnic has great lunches and they're famous for their "upcakes" which are upside down cupcakes that come in a million flavors.

[Anonymous]

You may also consider driving to Lewes, and taking the family - car and all - onto the Cape May Lewes Ferry. You get off the ferry in Cape May, NJ and continue on your way. We did this two summers ago and it was wonderful!

[Anonymous]

I grew up with a house in Ventnor, loved it. Very low-key. MArgate is also cute.

[Anonymous]

Wow! Great suggestions - I think we might go there this year and explore the different areas. We've been to the DE, MD, and NC beaches, so we are ready to try something new!

I had actually thought about going on the ferry - did that years ago for a day trip to Cape May and thought it was great!

[Anonymous]

We love Stone Harbor and Avalon. Just beautiful, very family-friendly, and not much more of a drive than Bethany.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up with a house in Ventnor, loved it. Very low-key. MArgate is also cute.

I second this! I love Margate and Ventnor where my in-laws have a place. Very kid and family friendly, groomed wide beaches, nice deli, restaurant and little store options. And close enough drive to Atlantic City for some boardwalk and casino (and now outlet) action if that is your thing. The drive to Philly is also only about an hour or so, completely do-able on rainy days if you want to take the kiddos to a museum instead of being cooped up. Nice cool weather, too.

[Anonymous]

OP here - thanks for all the great suggestions. I really don't know too many people in the DC area that go up there for vacation, so it's very helpful to hear from people that go and love it.

One question - I am not familiar with paying to go onto the beach - how does that work? Do you buy a wristband or something? If so, where does one get them?

Thanks again!

[Anonymous]

ANOTHER Jersey girl here. At the entrance to the beaches, they'll have someone in a booth who can sell you the beach pass for the day. In my day, it was a plastic pin that you could stick to your bag or your bathing suit.

[Anonymous]

A lot of rentals will provide the beach badges, but they are easy to purchase.

The reason that people do not go to NJ (and even people from NJ are now coming to DE) is that the taxes are SO high, it makes rentals pretty pricey. I mean, REALLY pricey.

OP, do some comparisons of say, Ventnor to Bethany in DE and see what you get for your buck.

I Love NJ, btw, it is just expensive...

[Anonymous]

NP here. Ah Beach Tags. They so offend my surf loving soul... but then I grew up in Atlantic City where we had the casinos so they didnt need to be as creative with the tax revenue. You should be able to pull the info up if you just google [this town] nj beaches.

Margate and Ventnor are very nice and quiet communities, and along with Longport are on the same barrier island as Atlantic City. Brigantine to the north is another good bet, and Ocean City to the south (which is dry by the way) has an amusent pier and iirc a waterpark.

If you do go, take the Delaware Memorial Bridge over and drive up Rt 40. It takes a little longer than going through Philly and down the Expressway, but especially with little kids, its totally worth it. Lots of fun things to see like horse and cow farms, a rodeo/fleamarket called Cowtown, Richland's Ice Cream and more farmstands than you can shake a stick at. I think we even passed a tiny airfield last time we went. There were planes right next to the fence.

[Anonymous]

Thanks again for all of the great suggestions! These are definitely things I wouldn't know if I hadn't asked about it on DCUM!