Spending Beach Time in New Jersey North Shore

Located in the coastal region in New Jersey, New Jersey North Shore encompasses about 141 miles of the great beach shore. It borders the Atlantic Ocean from Perth to Cape May Point. Known to locals only as “The Shore”, the place is famous for its numerous boardwalks, water parks, arcades, amusement parks, and its great beautiful beaches. 

The Shore is indeed a very popular destination for many people living in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Maryland. But its popularity doesn’t stop there, visitors as far as Quebec, Canada go down south to see New Jersey North Shore’s beauty. Why not? It one of the few places on earth where you can see both sunrise and sunset over the beach from different points of The Shore. 

Although it’s called New Jersey North Shore, there is no specific geographical boundary between northern and southern Jersey Shore. This only means miles and miles of pure beach fun! Some of the top places to visit in the “The Shore” include communities of Belmar, Seaside Heights, and Point Pleasant. 

Locals often recommend these places as they add more life to beach fun. Of course, whenever you go to “The Shore”, even in its tiniest nook, the place is scattered with amazing beaches. Speaking of beaches, there is a wide list of beach life in town, Sea Bright, Ocean Grove, Long Branch, Bradley Beach, Lavallette, and Belmar are all worth seeing. Here are some of the top recommendations in New Jersey North Shore. 

Spring Lake 

If you are looking for either some quiet family time together, Spring Lake is one of the most refined beach spots in the “The Shore”. Located just about 60 miles from downtown New York, it’s one of the most visited places in the area, but because of its topographical area, it doesn’t feel like it. To complete the town experience, check in at the Breakers Hotel. The hotel has undergone major renovations along with some name changes since opened its town in public sometime in the 1800s. 

Ocean City 

Ocean City is far one of the most amazing places to visit in “The Shore”. Often referred to as the “America's Greatest Family Resort”, it never leaves the place as one of the top rank beach in New Jersey. With 8 miles of beach waters, top with mind-blowing sandcastles and fun water activities it's easy why visitors love this place. Even their boardwalk is a celebrated place, it’s teeming with life even more on Thursday nights in July and Augusts which most certainly you will be entertained with live music and magicians. 

Avalon 

The towns of Stone Harbor and Avalon formed yet another great thing in “The Shore”, not just friendly camaraderie, but a wide stretch of beach shore known for kiteboarding. The cool ocean breeze in Avalon is the best in the area which the sand dunes will certainly agree on. Stroll along 96th Street into their shopping strip and you might see the best flip flop in season along with other homemade jewelry and souvenirs. Sealed the hot day with ice cream from Springer’s, with at least eight decades of perfecting this creamy goodness, it’s the best you’ll ever taste.

More Reasons to Visit Nantucket

In a tiny island 30 miles from Cape Cod in the state of Massachusetts, there’s a place known for its beaches adorn with majestic dunes, Nantucket is a beautiful summer destination lined with fantastic restaurants and luxury boutiques. The name Nantucket came from similar Algonquian names meaning “faraway island”, and living to its name, the town is a tourist’s destination and a summer colony. It’s laid back country style paired with the cobblestoned street, rustic cedar-shingled buildings, and century-old churches charm tourists in coming back for more. 

It’s fairly easy enough to get to Nantucket without breaking the bank; you can take the Red Line going to South Station. Once you arrived there, you can catch a Plymouth and Brockton bus to Hyannis and from Hyannis just take the Steamship Authority's ferry to Nantucket. This route is pretty much popular among tourists who come to Nantucket, as the “slow ferry”, can make out most of the journey. Enjoy the fresh air blowing from the sea, as you indulge in good old fashion commute. The ride usually takes about 2 ¼ hours but has small great amenities like café, wifi, and has good seats. But if you don’t like riding the bus or the ferry, you can always book a flight from Boston straight to Nantucket. 

Whether you are coming to see its pristine beaches or just a curious tourist for the day, there are several great destinations to explore in town. The Whaling Museum remains as one of the most popular destinations in Nantucket because of its influence as a 19th-century whaling hub. One important thing to remember, though, if you are coming during springtime, it would be nice to bring rain gears as it can get rainy or foggy in town. 

Renting a bike is a sure way to explore Nantucket thoroughly. The town has designated bicycle paths that are wide and mostly flat, so there’s no worrying about ripping a muscle in a steep ride. Most people prefer to do this as you can go wherever your feet can take you. You don’t even need to bring one, as the town is lined with bike rental shops as soon as you step on the wharves. 

Even if you only have a few hours of spare time, it's nice to check out this hidden summer destination for a day. If you are in Boston, and really wants to get away from it all, you might want to see this beautiful tiny island of Nantucket. 

Some of the Best Destinations in Myrtle Beach

Located on the East coast of Horry County in South Carolina, Myrtle Beach is known as the “The Grand Strand” of the state. Stretching about 60 miles of beach, it attracts hundreds of people swimming in its pristine waters. As one of the major centers of tourism in the state, it ranks as the second fastest growing metropolis in the US. The subtropical weather and the city’s amenities is what makes 14 million people keep coming back for more and to discover Myrtle Beach.

Myrtle Beach is home to at least 32,240 people as of 2016 and is known for its celebrity-designed golf courses, and beachfront boardwalk. Boasting of a 60-mile long of beaches, visitors can never go bored sightseeing and exploring it many souvenirs stands, restaurants as well as it arcades. A popular tourist destination in town is the old-fashioned Family Kingdom amusement park which has the SkyWheel and the tallest Ferris Wheels in all of the US states. 

Visitors often stay all day gushing about the perfect beach weather along the string of beaches in Myrtle Beach. People can’t get enough of the southern hospitality of its local, eating the freshest seafood, and marveling at the stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean. Families with smaller children can surely enjoy the mild waves of Myrtle Beach. The beach also has great water activities like Jet Skiing and deep-sea fishing for boating fanatics. 

It would really be fun choosing a hotel or a rental property along the shores of Myrtle Beach, as it's difficult finding a public bathroom and much more hassle finding shower rooms. Aside from going to the beach, here are some of the places worth visiting in Myrtle Beach. 

Ripley's Aquarium 

One of the most popular destinations in the country, Ripley's Aquarium has great exhibits all year round. Located along the Broadway at the Beach complex, the aquarium has a massive 340-foot underwater tunnel called the Dangerous Reef. The tunnel is home to some of the amazing fish species like tarpons, sharks, and manta rays along with green moray eels. Kids will love the interactive Discovery Center Exhibits where they can know more about the puffer fish and horseshoe crabs. The aquarium also offers a swim with stingrays experience, behind-the-scenes tours, and hosts children parties for additional fees. 

The Carolina Opry 

Since its debut in 1986, The Carolina Opry has been the main venue in Myrtle Beach for live music and shows. The best time to see any show in The Carolina Opry is during the Christmas season when they held their Christmas special events. Many who saw the show raves by its amazing performances that are Broadway quality. 

Mt. Atlanticus Miniature Golf 

As Myrtle Beach is known for its golf courses, it's mandatory to visit even just one golf course in Myrtle Beach. One of the most popular golf courses in town, Mt. Atlanticus Miniature Golf has very interesting obstacles that anyone can enjoy any day. They have real mountains and various architectural challenges in its complex 36 holes mini-golf courses. It’s a great family activity when the waves are too strong for the little ones. 

Things to Do in Moosehead Lake

Moosehead Lake as the name suggest resembles an antlered moose. And it’s just the beginning; it was named as such because the lake has been home for countless of moose since time immemorial. People would come to the lake just to take a glimpse of a moose and it will not go home disappointed. Every day people can take pictures of a moose, lots of them effortlessly without fail.

When Henry David Thoreau and his companions arrived at the are, they were amazed in the beauty of the lake and its surroundings. Thoreau even describes the lake as “a gleaming silver platter at the end of the table”. Considered as the largest lake in Maine, Moosehead lake sits between Longfellow Mountains with its water coming from the Kennebec River. The lake hides about 80 islands with Sugar Island as the largest. It’s part of the region that includes the West branch of Penobscot, the Pleasant, the Saint John rivers, and the Piscataquis. 

There are so many reasons why you need to see Moosehead Lake as there are a number of things to do in the lake for the whole family. But is seeing the great moose out of nowhere every single day isn’t enough for you then perhaps hiking and the fall foliage may get you going in this lovely place. Moosehead Lake boasts of activities of the great outdoors all year round. 

But the first thing you need to do when you arrive at Moosehead Lake is to find some moose, as you can’t go to the lake without looking for one. The lake is home to more than 70,000 moose in the state of Maine, so chances of finding one are super real. June has the most sightings of moose throughout the year and you may need to be extra careful driving especially at night when they are known to cross streets. To even have more fun in your moose sighting adventure, the lake offers a number of moose guide and tours. 

Hiking is a huge part of Moosehead Lake region and most that come here never miss the Moosehead Pinnacle Pursuit. Part of the challenge is hiking through the six mountains in the area namely, Borestone Mountain, Number Four Mountain, Mount Kineo, Whitecap Mountain, Eagle Rock, and Big Moose Mountain. These hikes can really challenging but are very doable and rewarding as the views on top are really amazing. The bonus part of the hike is during the winter season as you can collect the Winter or Winter Ultra badge for hiking these mountains. 

The Moosehead Lake really transform into a great picturesque beauty of nature, turning forest of luscious greenery into a work of art of varying colors. Fall foliage is a time when the autumn leaves are in their most colorful; imagine leaves of different colors like fiery red, orange, purple and yellow. Timing is everything if you want to see the trees in their finest; arrive too early and you may see mostly green leaves, arrive too late and the leaves may already wither and fall into the ground.