Gentle, toddler friendly beaches in NJ - do they exist?

truth

Jul 9, 2014 at 6:52pm

Because Ocean Grove is "Dry" the beach scene is very copacetic with more children and women than men out for a fun day at the beach and acting very civilly. Parking (if you can find it) is free and Asbury Park is no more than a six minute walk if anyone needs adult diversions.

jed

Jul 3, 2015 at 3:56pm

Just spent a magical day at Avon beach, thanks to all your recommendations. Jackson, we took you up on the Norwood suggestion and I am so glad we did! Our 3.5-year-old had a blast playing with the other kids and we adults had a joyful and relaxing time sipping G&Ts and watching the kids play. The beach was just perfect, exactly as you guys said, and we got there right as the tide was going out for the afternoon so had lots of play time in the shallow tide pools and sandbar. Some amazing sand sculptures there, too!

Since we left after lunch, we did hit plenty of traffic but it wasn't too terrible. Took us about an hour and a half. I would highly recommend Avon-By-the-Sea to anyone looking for a beautiful, relaxing, and fun beach day with little ones!

This is what I love about MOL. Thanks so much for your suggestions!

Jackson_Fusion said:

debpod said:

Thanks
we are going on a weekday next week, so hopefully it'll just be the usual GSP madness without lots of added beach volume.
Avon definitely sounds like our afternoon stop! I love catching crabs and other sea creatures. Hoping to foster that same interest with my very curious toddler. Does the dollar store around here sell beach stuff like nets?

If not amazon has a ton of them.

Time for a secret, since you're rolling Avon.... The Norwood Inn. Take the kids on a weekend in the later afternoon. Weekdays too, just less people and consequently kids.

Go sit at the picnic tables in the fully fenced, massive back yard. Order a beer, the crab pretzel, and the shrimp boil. It's a giant play date. Your kids will have a blast making new buddies and you will get a few hours of blissful summer relaxation, local style.

Best thing about Avon is it lacks the things that attract "goin' down da shore" types.