Jersey Shore and Atlantic City

The Jersey Shore is New Jersey’s Atlantic coast: a chain of barrier islands, sandy beaches and resort towns between New York and the mouth of the Delaware River. Since the 19th century it has welcomed families from the region’s big cities, who arrived by train and later by car along the Garden State Parkway, the highway that runs along the coast.

Atlantic City is the best-known town on the shore. It opened the nation’s first wooden boardwalk in 1870 and, from 1978, casinos that turned the waterfront into a row of hotels and performance venues. Beyond gambling, the city offers an open beach, the Steel Pier amusement pier, the Absecon Lighthouse and, in neighboring Margate, Lucy the elephant, a 19th-century wooden building.

At the southern tip of the state, Cape May preserves one of the country’s largest collections of Victorian houses, with porches and colorful facades just a few blocks from the beach. The 1859 lighthouse, the dunes at Cape May Point and the fall migration of birds complete the visit, and a ferry crosses Delaware Bay to Lewes.

Inward in Jackson are Six Flags Great Adventure, with roller coasters and a drive-through area of African and Asian animals, and Hurricane Harbor, open only in summer. This New Jersey town is not related to Jackson, Wyoming.

This destination brings together 3 cities: Atlantic City, Cape May, Jackson.