Where to stay on the Jersey Shore
 

My wife and myself are planning a trip to the Jersey Shore in May but we're not sure what town/city to stay in. We're not party animals but we would like to be close to a town/city with a nice boardwalk. Can anyone suggest a town/city on the beach and also a nice hotel/motel/BB thats on the beach as well? Thanks!

Check out Spring Lake. Nice, beautiful town with a lovely non-commercial boardwalk. Close to Pt. Pleasant if you want to stroll a boardwalk that has all that commercial stuff. The Hewitt Wellington, though not on the beach, is a great place to stay hewittwellington.com

I totally agree with Spring Lake. Used to be they didn't allow cars to be parked on certain streets after a certain hour...why? Not because of safety, but rather because of appearances!

Beautiful homes, immacualte lawns, and, unfortunately, a beach you had to pay a fee to use!

P.S...if that doesn't suit you you might consider staying farther south, in Stone Harbor.

You can stay in Cape May (tons of B&B's). THey have a nice, quiet boardwalk and it's a short drive to Wildwood, which has a more active boardwalk.

Thanks for all the input! I think we're leaning towards cape may although I've found that the hotels/motels/B&B's tend to me a bit more expensive.

Is there anywhere for a family w/ young kids to stay on the Jersey shore? We can't do a B&B, but would love a condo with a pool.

intrepid1, just about all beaches in NJ require beach badges. This is normal.

lisettemac, try vrbo.com

Jamer28 I would stick with Cape May. May will be still perhaps to cold for the beach and you will want to occupy yourself with other activities. Go to capemay.com and tons of info will come up.

Lisette, I would try biscaynesuites.com they are on Ocean City there is a nice pool and Ocean City is extremely family oriented. There is also the Watsons. They are all condo hotels.

Other than Atlantic City and maybe Cape May there are very few hotels which are actually ON the beach. Some are across the street, some are a few blocks in. Also, much as I love Spring Lake, there is NOTHING on their boardwalk, it is just a boardwalk for walking or running; there are no restaurants, game booths, rides, cotton candy, waffles, etc. In northern New Jersey, you should try the Point Pleasant area if you want an actual Jersey-shore boardwalk experience. Specifically Jeninksons Pier, go to www.jenkinsons.com. I cannot guarantee that all the rides and booths will be open in May. Point Pleasant is a nice, but not in any sense of the word upscale, town. It does not have the charm of Cape May. A beachfront hotel in Point Pleasant would be:

White Sands Ocean Front Resort Hotel
1106 Ocean Ave.
Point Pleasant Beach
732-899-3370
http://www.thewhitesands.com

If you want some very nice B&Bs in more upscale neighbouring towns, considering the ones below. You could drive to the boardwalk at Point Pleasant in 10-15 minutes for an afternoon.

The Breakers
1507 Ocean Avenue
Spring Lake
Phone: (732) 449-7700 ~ Fax: (732) 449-0161
breakershotel.com

The hotel is across the street from the ocean but has pretty much uninterrupted views. Spring Lake has a nice downtown with some good shopping, and a lovely lake area with a cathedral.

Another nice town is Bay Head, another quite upscale community with a nice beach and little downtown with quite good shopping, it has several good B&Bs.

The Grenville
345 Main Ave.
Bay Head, NJ 08742
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (732) 892-0599
Fax: (732) 892-0599
http://www.thegrenville.com/

This is ocean front. It has an excellent restaurant, I would recco a trip there if you are staying in the area.

Bay Head Gables Inn
200 Main Avenue
Bay Head NJ
732-892-9844
http://www.bayheadgables.com/

Website for Bay Head is bayhead.org

Website for Spring Lake is springlake.org

For a list of other B&B's go to http://www.jerseyboardwalk.com/bed.htm

I agree that May is a bit early for the Jersey Shore, it will most likely be cool and the water will be quite cold. You could of course luck out and get a great warm few days. I hope so. The plus is that it won't be crowded, and esp around Spring Lake and Bay Head, there are good opportunities for bike rides.

If you are in the Point Pleasant Bay Head area and get bad weather, consider going inland to see Colts Neck, which is quite pretty, or going up to Red Bank which has a pretty good size and nice shopping area and several very good restaurants.

For the record, Spring Lake, like many other beach towns, has a rule prohibiting overnight street parking. This is to discourage group rental houses, not just for appearances (although the aim is kind of the same; i.e. group houses are not always well kept and therefore unattractive).

Sorry, have to correct my own post, the Grenville in Bay Head is not ocean-front, it is one block in from the ocean.

There's always Wildwood...and no fees to use the beach, either!!

Another vote for Spring Lake. Spent a summer there, masquerading as one of a friend's 10 "cousins" because the town officially frowns on summer rentals. Great place, known to some as the "Irish Riviera."
Otherwise, Avalon. Cooler by a mile.

I wouldn't rule out Long Beach Island, either. It's a barrier island off the coast with plenty of hotels and things to do. The whole island is less than a mile wide (barrier island), so you'll never be far from the beach. I would also second Stone Harbor as another destination. They have a great downtown area on 96th St. with lots of cute shops and restaurants. Wonderful beach too. There are a handful of bars is you are interested, but it's definitely not a Jersey shore "scene". Which is a good thing, IMO!