Does anyone know if any of these beaches are dog friendly, or where the closest one is?

i stopped by asbury park recently and saw it has greatly improved since my last visit a decade or so ago.

another good option is ocean grove. it's the next town over from asbury park, and can be reached in ~1 hr from jersey city. it's got a very small town feel, and there are lots of good restaurants a few blocks from the beach, as well as a great ice cream parlor.

parking isn't usually a huge issue either, and if you park on the side streets it's free.

Another vote for Asbury Park. I've been going there for about five years now, since it was pretty bad, and it's improved so much in that time. There's plenty of restaurants on the Boardwalk, Cookman Ave and Bangs Ave a couple blocks inland has restaurants and shops, live music at the Stone Pony, the Wonder Bar and the Saint and the beaches are relatively uncrowded. If you want something quieter, you can walk through the old Casino to Ocean Grove and explore the Victorian houses, tent communities and general quiet-ness.

But don't tell too many people about it because then people will start going there

Sandy Hook is great if you get there after 4pm. Bring a picnic dinner and stay until about 8-9.

Theres a beach in Staten Island, well not really a beach considering you are going in the Hudson River to swim but there is a beach with sand & its only like a 20 min ride.

Asbury is wonderful, I'm there at least once a week. You don't have to pay to park in Asbury if you are willing to park 2 or 3 blocks away from the beach during the week, and much further away on the weekend. Look for the spots that do not have numbers assigned to them. All Jersey Shore beaches stop charging to get on the beach at around 4pm.

You can avoid paying to get into Sandy Hook if you ride a bike in. I've done this a few times both during the week and on weekends. You can park in one of the towns before the bridge.

The bridge on the way to Sandy Hook has been under construction as of late, and this makes the drive time over an hour. It's roughly the same drive time for either Sandy Hook or Asbury.

Asbury has fireworks on the beach on Wednesday's and shows films on the beach on Thursday's for free.

I like what they've done with Asbury Park, but if you have a thing against brightly colored Speedo's on guys, it might not be for you.

If you want something quieter, Sea Bright is the call.

I would say Asbury Park. Sandy hook is not that close when you factor in lights on State Highway 36. Take the Parkway down to exit 102. The Beach Bar is awesome too...

I frequent Sandy Hook and Asbury Park (almost every weekend)

Regardless of the beach... I recommend getting there early (pre 11AM).

Sandy Hook is $10 per car to get in

Asbury Park is $5 per person to get on the beach... parking is pretty cheap ($3-$4) depending on how long you stay.

Sea Bright is the closest civilized beach to Jersey City. It is just south of Sandy Hook. After that you have Monmouth Beach and then Long Branch. I would never go to Sandy Hook on a weekend unless you love crowds and families of 12 running around. Weekdays are a bit better. Asbury Park is much improved, but a bit further than the ones I mentioned.

=Quote:

That's why I like to stick to NY. You can be topless on any beach in New York State.

http://blog.nj.com/njv_mark_diionno/2 ... pment_of_asbury_park.html

Asbury is the place, it's a little over an hour away exit 102 off the Pkwy and down Rt. 66/Asbury Ave. to the water. Parking is great, $5 to get on the beach, plenty of eateries, cool surf shop, bike shop, and then some. Biggies from Hoboken is there. It has a nice family atmosphere. I also heard that Long Branch has gotten much better, they have imported palm trees everywhere.

Asbury Park is exit 102 off the parkway. I get there in an hour, and the beach is awesome. The boardwalk is great too, I recommend you try there as well....

Clothing is only optional at Gunnison Beach - and even there, you have to stay between the "Nude Bathing Area" signs...

I learned that the hard way, but was allowed to sunbathe topless for about an hour before a nice Park Ranger corrected me

If you have a car, you can get to Sandy Hook in about an hour. Its federal parkland and is super clean. Fills up fast on the weekend though, so get there before 11am. On the weekends, they run a ferry from NYC.

http://www.sandy-hook.com/

Sandy Hook. Clothing is optional.

I'd like to stay in NJ.

Somebody suggested Point Pleasant, but that is about 60 miles away...

Long Branch...Asbury Park....anything closer?

Asbury Park/ Ocean Grove...lovely!

You should try Asbury Park.
It's about an hour and 5 or 10 minutes (Exit 102 off GS)
The boardwalk has been completely rebuilt
Lots of easy parking
Beach is not crowded
Friendly

I love that there are so many shore locals on this site and presumably living in jersey city! long branch is definitely a nice beach and i think it's 7 dollars to get on seven presidents. there are also great places to get italian ices (lighthouse) and food (windmill) and it's not as trafficky as other beach areas.

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Ditto that, I lived in Long Branch for college and still go there as my beach of choice every weekend.

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Applicable only if your an alcaholic mayor of the 2nd largest city in NJ.

For the rest of us, its still a nice beach....

Here is a site with lots of the unknown New York Harbor beaches.

http://newyorkharborbeaches.org

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Sandy hook is good if you're going w/ a lot of people b/c they only charge you by the car, not per person. If you go, go early b/c it fills up fast. After a certain number of cars, they close it off, forcing you to go into Sea Bright... which is not a good beach at all.

I'm a fan of Long Branch beaches, but probably cause I'm from Monmouth County :)

You may want to check out this beach in town, although the website hasn't been updated since pre-9/11, I'm sure its still there.
If link doesn't work google Pat's Beach, Jersey City.


www.geocities.com/soho/studios/9808/patsbeach/

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just don't get arrested there, i heard that they don't like people from jersey city too much

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Bradley Beach, Hands down,less than 1hr from JC, exit 100,
very clean, no amusements and not that crowded on weekdays and the normal on weekends.

Good Luck

CK

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO POSTED SOME BEACH ADVICE!
I really appreciate it !

Sandy Hook without a doubt. Its less than an hour, and admission is by car, not per person. Also available is a ferry from lower Manhattan.

What about Staten Island's beaches?

They are ranked best and worst in NYC.

Article here

Midland Beach and Wolfe's Pond Beach are both on Staten Island and operated by the city's parks department. Roughly the same size, they both stretch about one and a half miles along the shoreline. And on a Monday afternoon in July, the two beaches each boasted one lone swimmer bobbing up and down amid the waves. The similarities ended there, according to New Yorkers for Parks. In its 2007 Report Card on Beaches, the group ranked Midland Beach the best in New York City. Wolfe's Pond Beach came in last.

New Yorkers for Parks, an independent watchdog group, began releasing its Report Card on Beaches in 2003. The rating assesses the seven beaches controlled by the parks department, comparing them to one another as well as from year to year. The group grades beaches on four features: quality of shoreline and condition of pathways, bathrooms and drinking fountains.

In the 2007 rankings, Midland Beach was the only beach that received an overall ranking of "Satisfactory." Four other beaches were deemed "Challenged" and the remaining two, including Wolfe's Pond, were "Unsatisfactory." (The other unsatisfactory beach was Coney Island.)

An Eyewitness Account

Curious about the best and worst beaches in the city -- and how such disparate facilities could be in such close proximity to each other-- Gotham Gazette decided to investigate.

The first thing we discovered was that the age-old mantra of life being about the journey and not the destination is painfully true when heading to Staten Island's beaches. Without a car, there is simply no easy way to access the beaches. Both beaches are at least a 20-minute walk from the nearest express bus stop or the Staten Island Railroad.

Midland Beach had the highest performance rating of any shoreline, and the report noted minimal litter and debris along the beach. The Report Card found the pathways a minor challenge, facing overgrowth and warping or breaking of the asphalt. The bathrooms received a grade of 65 percent due to general disrepair. Drinking fountains at Midland Beach ranked best of those at any beach, though they still only received a "D" because of poor structure and repairs.

Upon arrival at Midland Beach, it was quickly apparent as to why it scored well. With over 300,000 visitors a year, the beach offers an impressive expanse of well maintained somewhat orange sand leading down to the water. Sturdy woven plastic mats stretch across the sands leading to the water, making the beach easily accessible by wheelchair. Families push strollers down the mats and then lift them onto a nearby spot in the sand.

A clearly marked bike path and walkway border the beach. The promenade features benches and drinking fountains, as well as a fountain with a prominent sculpture of a sea turtle where children leap about and dodge the squirting streams of water. The park includes playgrounds, a baseball diamond, more benches and shaded areas, among other amenities.

"Minimal" presence of litter, as the Report Card phrases it, can be a relative term, and there were wrappers and plastic bottles in the sand nearest to the water. The rest of the area was cleaner, though, and trashcans were not overflowing. Ten lifeguards surveyed the scene, and most families clustered around their towers. The sound of laughter and children shrieking things like "I see a whale!" followed by "No, it's a shark!" carried along the light breeze, as did a slight fishy odor.

The bathrooms were a bit dark and wet, but each stall had toilet paper, and the sink area had soap and a working hand dryer. The showers were also in good condition, and there was a covered changing area. Drinking fountains were few and far between, and seemed to be in fairly poor condition.

Peter, a lifeguard, said that the beach is frequented mostly by families and gets especially busy on the weekends. He cited the murkiness of the water as the area's only drawback.

That murkiness did not seem to concern Mona Lozah and her three children. A resident of Staten Island, she said that she prefers Midland to the nearby South Beach or Coney Island Beach, the other two parks department beaches she has visited. When asked why, she said, "Parking!" and gestured to the massive and almost empty parking lots. She also praised the beach for its cleanliness, lack of insects and family friendliness. Her kids, totally absorbed in their construction of a sand castle, seemed to agree.

No laughter rang across Wolfe's Pond Beach. In fact, there were no sounds on a July day except the wind, the waves and a circling police helicopter. The entire shore was littered with seaweed, shells and driftwood, as well as broken glass, empty alcohol bottles, a gallon jug of bleach, an old tire, and a rusting metal folding chair. The smell of fish was far more than slight. We could not find the two informal ramps that the parks department Web site says can be used for wheelchair access.

While the Report Card noted that the section of shore open to the public at Wolfe's Pond was well maintained, it cited overwhelming debris, including safety hazards such as glass, as the reason for the shoreline's failing grade. The pathways were rated on par with the rest of the beaches, but New Yorkers for Parks found the bathrooms were closed and locked, accounting for their failing score. There are no drinking fountains on the beach, though there are plenty to be found in the adjoining

Three lifeguards were on duty for the miniscule stretch of beach open for swimming. Pointing to the piles of debris covering the sand near the water, the lifeguards, who would not give their names, said that beachgoers needed to wear shoes or water shoes at all times for safety. When asked if people swim in the water, they replied "Unfortunately." On its Web site, the parks department mentions the large amount of seaweed at the beach, but that seemed to be an understatement as each wave turned over fresh mounds of green leafy plants.

Asked to name the best part of the beach, one lifeguard cited the lifeguards. More seriously, another replied, "The park."

Sure enough, walking up the worn wooden steps to the park seemed like entering another world. Manicured lawns led into playgrounds and picnic areas where families barbecued. Teenagers skated around a roller hockey rink or swatted balls at the tennis courts. Clean drinking fountains and bathrooms abounded.

Better Beaches?

In response to reports on conditions at Wolfe's Pond and other beaches, the parks department cites statistics from its own Parks Inspection Program, which, it says, shows conditions have been improving. "By every measure, New York City's beaches are in better shape now than at any other time," a spokesperson said. However, the department acknowledges that "litter on public beaches is a primary concern" and asks the public to help.

Our visits did show improvement at the Staten Island beaches since last year's Report Card was compiled. Midland Beach had been using one bathroom as a storage space for desks, according to the report. This year, there was no furniture to be found.

New Yorkers for Parkers marked down Wolfe's Pond Beach for not having signs barring swimming in closed areas. This year, behind some trees, you could read a sign that said "Swimming Prohibited: No Lifeguard on Duty."

Beachgoers will more than likely obey.