My female friends and I (mid-20s to mid-30s) are looking for a new place to go for a beach weekend in June. For the past 7 years or so we've gone to Avalon, which is great (quiet beach, excellent nightlife) but we'd like to try someplace new but similar. We don't want a town that's too ritzy (i.e. expensive) or too run down. Any suggestions? I will be taking public transportation from NY while my friends will be driving from Baltimore.

Try Wildwood, clean beaches, good nite life nice people, not far from AC if you want experience real glitz but not stay in the mainstream.

I would suggest Sea Isle City, which is a town over from Avalon, or somewhere on Long Beach Island.

I have been to Wildwood only during the day. What kind of nightlife is there -bars, clubs, live music? Are most of these places on or near the boardwalk? How late does the boardwalk stay open?

I'm also curious about Sea Isle City - please tell me more. Does it have a boardwalk?

If you are taking the train, the suggestion about Wildwood will not work. The NJ Transit North Jersey CoastLine train runs only as far South as Bay Head. To get to Atlantic City, you'd need to connect in Philadelphia.

If you were sticking to the train, you might consider Bay Head. A nice little town with a few nice B&B's. The beach is great and you're within driving distance of Point Pleasant, Sea Girt, Spring Lake, etc.

If you're friends are driving from Baltimore, they could take the NJ Turnpike to exit 7A, and connect to route 195, a road that'll get pretty close to BayHead.

Hi Ryan...
I'll actually be taking a NJT bus. They stop all along the NJ coast. Since there are 4 people from Baltimore and only me from NY, I don't want to make them travel too far north!