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Cape May County,
New Jersey
The Jersey Cape is
Still One of the Best Values for Family
Vacationing Anywhere
A national economy in a
slump and soaring gas prices don’t have to put
an end to the family vacation. Not too far
away – less than a tank-full of gasoline – is
the Jersey Cape, where recreational, educational
and economical opportunities abound.
Whether it’s the free beaches in The Wildwoods,
an exploration of the county’s bayside or a
visit to the Cape May County Park Zoo, visitors
to the Jersey Cape don’t need to spend a lot of
money to have a whole lot of fun. What’s
more, children have the opportunity to find
their own diamonds – of the Cape May variety.
“Cape May County is
truly the best vacation spot for any family –
whether they’re on a budget or not – because
we’re easily accessible from so many places on
the East Coast, we have high-quality
accommodations and businesses, the number of
special events and attractions we have is
enormous and of course, because we are the
seashore,” said Diane Wieland, director of
tourism for Cape May County.
While it’s true that
most visitors to the Jersey Cape pick the area
for its natural beauty, situated on New Jersey’s
peninsula at the south, there’s much more to
Cape May County than lazy days on the beach.
Some vacationers prefer to spend their entire
visit on the beach by day and in the area’s fine
restaurants and nightclubs by night. There
are many, however, who come away from a vacation
on the Jersey Cape with more than they bargained
for. From Cape May Point to Ocean City,
the Jersey Cape is filled with free, or nearly
free, activities and attractions to satisfy any
interest and any budget.
1. CAPE MAY COUNTY
PARK AND ZOO
Filled with hundreds of animals from all over
the world, the zoo is surrounded by a park,
which has picnic areas, a playground, trails and
biking paths. For a nominal fee, the
littlest ones can even ride on a train or a
carousel as part of the Zoo’s newest
attractions. Visitors can spend an entire
day at the county’s zoo, which is free and open
everyday from 10 a.m. until 4:45 p.m. and
Wednesday night until 7:45 p.m.
2. TAKING IN
NATURE’S SIGHTS
Cape May is THE location for observing birds in
North America, favored by such celebrated
naturalists as John Audubon, Tory Peterson and
others. More than 400 different species have
been seen on the peninsula during the fall
migration and the area is known for spectacular
flights of peregrines, merlins, ospreys, and
sharp-shinned hawks. Cape May Point is one the
premier places with marked, easy-to-follow
trails to help even the novice birder spot
ducks, swans, osprey, and other shore birds and
wildlife along the way.
The Wetlands Institute, at the entrance to Stone
Harbor, is an educational – but fun – treasure
that entire families can enjoy. The
Institute, which admits children free with
paying adults, is dedicated to education and
preservation of the Jersey Cape’s environment.
World-renown researchers make the Wetlands
Institute their home in the summer.
Families can view exhibits, take ecological
tours or participate in a long list of special
events offered at the Wetlands Institute.
3. FREE MOVIES
ON THE BEACH
Free movies under the stars are part of the
summer event line-up in Sea Isle City.
Bring your favorite blanket or beach chair to
JFK Blvd. & Pleasure Avenue at Dusk and enjoy
the latest screen favorites.
If one free movie per
week isn’t enough, take Ocean Drive to the
historic landmark City of Cape May where the
family can relax with a pail full of popcorn
instead of sand and watch movies under the stars
at the beach at Stockton Street every Thursday
in July and August.
4. HUNTING FOR CAPE
MAY DIAMONDS
At the southern tip of the Cape is Sunset Beach,
where the area’s only stone-bearing beach is
located. The stones at Sunset Beach have
been polished during their travels that took
them hundreds of years until they met their
resting place on Sunset Beach. There are
all sizes, colors and varieties, but the most
famous are the beautiful quartz stones, better
known as Cape May Diamonds. Once
professionally cleaned and polished, Cape May
Diamonds look like genuine diamonds and children
and adults alike have enjoyed collecting them
for generations.
5. BAYSIDE
BEACHES
Surprisingly, the Atlantic Ocean does not hold
exclusive claim to beaches in South Jersey.
Beautiful, less traveled beaches also abound on
the bay side of the peninsula, cooled by the
waters of the Delaware Bay. Unlike the
ocean beaches, the bay side beaches are
primarily unprotected, so swimming should be
done so with caution. These bay side
beaches, which stretch from Sunset Beach into
Lower Township, are perhaps the most
breathtaking because they are used primarily for
fishing and walking, rather than swimming and
sunbathing. Untouched by beach-cleaning
vehicles and much less traveled by visitors,
these beaches are less restrictive and provide
great spots for wind surfing, jet skiing or
skipping along in a colorful Hobie Cat.
6. STROLLING
THE BOARDWALKS
While there is a charge for rides on boardwalk
amusement piers and water parks, the Cape’s
boardwalks in Ocean City and The Wildwoods offer
amusements at costs lower than comparable
facilities. Strolling the “boards” in
Ocean City and the
Wildwoods to absorb the sights and sounds of the
seashore at its best is free, and on family
nights, the entertainment is free too!
Free entertainment in the Wildwoods happens
every Wednesday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Cedar
Avenue. Every Thursday through Labor Day,
visitors can enjoy free entertainment, including
live bands, magicians, karaoke, from 7:30 to
9:30 p.m. in Ocean City. The Wildwoods
summer Fireworks extravaganza is a real crowd
pleaser and takes place every Friday night at
10:30 a.m. at Pine Avenue and the Boardwalk.
7. CONCERTS AND
DANCE PARTIES
The Jersey Cape invites the littlest to the
biggest ones in the family to rock around the
clock from Monday through Saturday all summer
long in free concerts and dance parties hosted
by Sea Isle City and Avalon.
Sea Isle City hosts two free family fun events
billed as “Summer Concerts Under the Stars” on
Monday and Wednesday nights from 7:30 to 9:00
p.m. at the Promenade and JFK Boulevard.
On Thursday nights all summer long, everyone in
the family can shake their groove thing at the
Family Night Dance Parties from 7:30 to 9:00
p.m. at the Promenade and JFK Boulevard.
On Friday and Saturday in the summer, the
Borough of Avalon shows visitors why it is
cooler by a mile as the town invites visitors to
get sand in their dance shoes and enjoy a free
concert at 30th Street on the Beach from Noon to
3 p.m.
8. SPECIAL
EVENTS
Whether it is on the Beach or Boardwalk or in a
special venue like the Ocean City Music Pier or
the Wildwoods Convention Center, everyone in the
family can find fun to be extremely affordable
or free simply by checking the
special
events calendar.
9. TREK THROUGH
HISTORY
Nearly every seashore town at the Jersey Cape
has a historical society or historical
museum that vacationers may visit to learn a
little more about the local history. The
Cape May County Historical Museum, along Route 9
in Cape May Court House, has no admission fee
and has a large collection of documents and
artifacts that trace the county’s history to
before the Revolutionary War.
Historic Cold Spring Village in Lower Township,
just north of Cape May, offers visitors a
glimpse of a 19th-century village with working
trades and craftspeople.
There is a small admission fee to the village,
but it’s well worth the cost to have children
sit in a class at a one-room schoolhouse; watch
a blacksmith create shoes for one of the
village’s horses or pet the farm animals on the
village grounds.
10. ENJOYING AN
ARCHITECTURAL TRIP BACK IN TIME
Well-known for its bed and breakfast inns and
large quantity of historic architecture, the
City of Cape May is one of the few
municipalities that, as a whole, is considered a
national historic landmark. Visitors are
free to roam the streets of Cape May on their
own to gaze at the exquisite buildings, but the
Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts, housed in the
Physick Estate near the entrance to the city,
has a variety of walking and trolley tours for a
nominal price.
Annette Funicello and
Frankie Avalon no longer play Beach Blanket
Bingo but the motels with the pink and aqua
color schemes, colorful neon signs and swaying
plastic palm trees are still here, with memories
of a '57 Chevy, saddle shoes and golden age of
endless summers in the Wildwoods. More than 200
Doo Wop style-buildings are clustered in the
Wildwoods, a resort town famous for its
boardwalk and beaches. Motels with names like
the Starlux recall the Space Age and
architectural features that seem to defy gravity
are winning national recognition for the 1950s,
a time like no other in America's history.
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