zlaor

My parents (early 60's) are looking to go for a weekend somewhere around 2 hours away from NJ.

The reason is that my dad has cancer and is taking oral chemo so if we need to whisk him to the hospital he'll be "close by".

We had some ideas but he doesn't enjoy the sun anymore (Cape May's out), NYC is too expensive etc.

Thanks.

northeast

Philadelphia is a good place to visit. If you go on its website they have good specials. Also, Bucks County is a nice place. New Hope and Doylestown are worth a visit.

VirginiaC

Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA, has beautiful gardens, interesting greenhouses, magnificent fountains with daily light and music shows, and several nice spots for dining. Also nearby is the Wyeth Museum and several spots to delight the American Revolutionary War history buff. Check out the Longwood Gardens website.

Cicerone

I think all the above are excellent suggestions, I especially like the Longwood Gardens recco and would include the Winterthur Museum if they are interested in colonial American antiques. The area around the Brandywine river is charming as well. Take a look at http://www.longwoodgardens.org and http://www.winterthur.org.

It would also help to know where in NJ they are located, as 2 hours from Cherry Hill in south Jersey would reach different places than 2 hours from Ridgewood in far northern NJ. It would also help to know what your parents’ interests are (sports? art? crafts? Does your Dad golf and would he still be interested in that?)

I would suggest Princeton for the charming little town square area, and also to see the campus and some of the campus museums, and they often have musical and other events happening even in summer. In fall it will be lovely with the trees changing colour.

I love the Hudson river area north of NYC where you can tour homes like the Vanderbilt Mansion or Kykuit the old Rockefeller Mansion. Huge homes and acres of gardens and woodlands. Take a look at http://www.hudsonvalley.org/web/kyku-main.html. This could also include a visit to West Point Military Academy, or that area can be a separate trip as well, see http://www.usma.edu. Or look at something like Mohonk Mountain House, in New Paltz New York, about 90 minutes from NYC. Check out their website at Mohonk.com

Depending on where they come from in New Jersey, Gettysburg PA and/or the Amish country around Lancaster PA could be about 2.5 hours, not sure if that is within their window. Annapolis, Maryland may also be within their time window depending on where they are coming from. Certainly all are interesting and in lovely settings.

Depending on where they are coming from, even Washington DC might be within that window. Or if they can take Amtrak, Washington from all parts of New Jersey is within a 2-3 hour window. Tons to see and do there (and good hospitals if for some reason your Dad needed one).

Finally, although it will be a bit outside their time window, they might consider Cooperstown, NY. It has the Baseball Hall of Fame (something most men find interesting) and then many antique shops and restaurants (something women like). It is in a very pretty area and there are lakes. They also have the Glimmer Glass music festival. Might be worth the longer trip.

I would get something like New Jersey Monthly, which always has lots of offerings and seasonal ideas. You might find ideas just by looking at http://njmonthly.com/.

emalloy

They could head up to Connecticut. To cut costs pick up one of the discount travel magazines thai have coupons for hotels and motels or go on line for discounts. There are things to do all along the coast. In the Mystic area there is Mystic Seaport and Aquarium. There are several museums in New Haven. Plenty of hospitals in all the cities along the way. For something different, visit one of the casinos. They have wheel chairs at the entrances for people who can't/don't want to walk and have free and paid shows for people who don't gamble. There are bus trips from NJ that give coupons for food and gaming that are about equal to the bus fare.