Travel With Teens and Tweens

New Jersey Shore Boardwalks, Beaches and Businesses Will Be Ready for Summer 2013

Posted by Mary Turner on February 23, 2013 Comments Off

Feb 232013

New Jersey Shore Boardwalks, Beaches and Businesses Will Be Ready for Summer 2013

The Jersey Shore is coming back. After taking a pounding from Hurricane Sandy, the New Jersey Shore’s barrier islands and beach towns have been quickly reopening year-round businesses and are pulling out all the stops to make sure the boardwalks, arcades, rides, and beaches are ready to welcome visitors for Summer 2013. Here’s a quick run down of how some of our favorite haunts are doing with the recovery effort. Jenkinson’s Boardwalk, in Point Pleasant Beach has already reopened the aquarium, as well as some of the arcades, bars, restaurants and shops. The $2 million boardwalk repair effort is under construction and is expected to be ready for summer. The rides, many of which had been taken off the boardwalk for winter storage prior to the storm, are already being [...]

“Jersey Strong” Travel Blogger Link-Up

Posted by Mary Turner on November 12, 2012 3 Responses »

Nov 122012

In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, we’ve spent the last two weeks in constant contact with family and friends in New Jersey’s hard hit coastal counties. As of today, the lights and heat are back on for the majority of homes. Gas rationing is being canceled and most students will return to school after missing two weeks of classes. Unfortunately, for thousands of families that had permanent or vacation homes in Shore communities such as Sea Bright, Belmar, Seaside, and Mantaloking, as well as those who saw serious damage in Northwest counties and the Raritan Bay, the hardest part of the storm recovery process is just beginning. It will take time, but, we know the people of the state are “Jersey Strong” and they will recover with help from across the country. In the [...]

Donate to Help the Jersey Shore Recover from Hurricane Sandy

Posted by Mary Turner on October 30, 2012 Comments Off

Oct 302012

Hurricane Sandy devastated the Jersey Shore. Boardwalks and amusement piers in Belmar, Seaside Heights and other towns are gone. Beaches almost disappeared or been heavily eroded. Some train lines and bridges will be out of action for days or even weeks. Schools are closed. The power companies cannot even provide a timetable for when the lights will come back on for well over a million people. Hardest hit have been the barrier island towns such as Seaside Heights, Long Beach Island and Atlantic City. Most residents evacuated before the storm arrived but when they return many will find extensive damage to homes and businesses as is shown by this Air National Guard video of their flight over Seaside today to assess the damage and look for any remaining survivors. We know it will take [...]

The Boardwalk at Seaside Heights, NJ – All This and Snookie Too!

Posted by Mary Turner on July 9, 2012 Comments Off

Jul 092012

The Boardwalk at Seaside Heights, NJ - All This and Snookie Too!

The teens are big fans of the Jersey Shore boardwalks having spent much time over the years strolling the boards on the way to the beach in Belmar, shopping in Asbury Park and Atlantic City and hitting the arcade games and rides in Pt. Pleasant and Wildwood. This year, we added a new Jersey Shore boardwalk to the bucket list with a visit to the infamous mile long Seaside Heights, NJ boardwalk, where, in recent years, the rides, shops and games on the boardwalk have been a bit overshadowed by MTV’s reality show headliners including Snookie, Pauly D, the Situation and the rest. Like any good tourists we made a point to ride the classics including the roller coaster, the merry-go-round, the tilt-a-whirl, the go karts, bumper cards, a death defying vertical round-up type ride [...]

Photo Friday: The Last Sunset of Summer

Posted by Mary Turner on September 8, 2011 3 Responses »

Sep 082011

In our neighborhood, autumn came early this year when Hurricane Irene washed out the last weekend of summer and school started before Labor Day. Just a few days before the hurricane barrelled across New Jersey, New York and Vermont we enjoyed one last summer sunset in Long Branch, NJ. #1 Son caught this image which pretty much sums it all up for us. The last summer sunset of 2011 The lifeguards are all off duty and the bathing suits and suntan lotion have been put away. The backpacks are full of newly purchased school supplies and a new season of Travel with Teens and Tweens adventures awaits. Happy Fall! Note: we shared this post with the Delicious Baby photo friday roundup which is a great place to discover lots of fun family travel bloggers.

Five Favorite State and National Parks for Family Vacations with Teens and Tweens

Posted by Mary Turner on June 2, 2011 Comments Off

Jun 022011

Five Favorite State and National Parks for Family Vacations with Teens and Tweens

With school getting out and summer coming in, many families with teens and tweens will be thinking about hiking, camping and getting into the great outdoors. State and National Parks offer access to a wide array of natural wonders and family adventures. If you are looking for ideas consider some of our favorites from across the country including: Custer State Park in South Dakota Stay at one of the park’s lodges, drive the wildlife loop to see the buffalo herd, big horn sheep, antelope, begging burros and more. Don’t forget to visit Sylvan Lake. Take a mile long stroll around the lake or follow the trail for a thrilling day hike to 7,244 ft. Harney Peak. Its a great hike for teens and tweens. Side trips to Jewel Cave [...]

NJ’s Americana Diner: A Classic

Posted by Mary Turner on September 15, 2010 Comments Off

Sep 152010

According to the American Diner Museum web site, the word “diner” is a derivative of “dining car” and diner designs originally reflected the styling that manufacturers borrowed from railroad dining cars. The first diners were simple prefab affairs with a counter, stools and a cooking area along the back wall. Of course over a number of decades, diners got bigger, tables and booths were added and the decor got a whole lot flashier with stainless steel, neon and chrome being featured prominently. We are always on the lookout for particularly good examples of classic diners and found one in the Americana on Route 35 in Shrewsbury, NJ, just a few miles from the beach and near an upscale mall. We stopped in for lunch (and paid our own tab). The teens thought the burgers, fries and deli [...]

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