Visiting Atlantic City New Jersey in the Winter

Since I was a child, I have been going down to the South Jersey Shore several times every year for the past 34 years now. I have been to Atlantic City a few times however, I have never been down to the Jersey Shore in the wintertime to see what snow looks like on the beach.

My hubby and I took a brief trip down to Atlantic City New Jersey back in February 2008 and I was finally blessed with seeing what snow looks like on a beach! This was something on my "to do list" for the past few years and a travel goal that I wanted to accomplish.

We stayed at the Trump Marina Hotel owned by (you guessed it) The Donald!

If you are looking for some travel deals, visit some of the major hotel websites for Atlantic City and sign up for their email lists. They send a lot of special offers and discount coupons to you via email. Our hotel was beautiful and sat right on the edge of the bay.

Atlantic City also has a beautiful lighthouse for the lighthouse fans like myself called Absecon Lighthouse which I will blog about and show some pictures in another blog post later this week.

Atlantic City is not one of my favorite places to go when I am down at the Jersey Shore since I am not much of a gambler, but every few years we like to visit AC just for a little fun or to see what has changed.

Visiting the Cape May Lighthouse in New Jersey

My husband and I are big fans of lighthouses and we try to see as many as possible when we are traveling. One of our favorite lighthouses is the Cape May Lighthouse in Cape May, New Jersey.

The lighthouse sits on beautifully landscaped grounds with a gift shop and a small educational center which is free. However, if you want to climb all 212 steps to the lookout point, you will have to pay the admission price to enter the lighthouse itself. The view from the top of the lighthouse is incredible! You can see for miles upon miles.

On the property you'll find two accesses to the beach. You can go on the beach and enjoy it for FREE here with no beach tags required. In addition, there are public restrooms that you can use, a few picnic pavilions and some walking trails that you can enjoy. It's a beautiful park and beach area that is 100% family-friendly. If you're going to spend the afternoon or day here...pack a lunch and a cooler full of beverages, because there are no eateries located on the property or in the park.

Nearby you'll find Sunset Beach which is one of the prettiest beaches in Cape May...plus you can sit and go on the beach for free (no beach tags required). Sunset Beach also has 3 gift shops and a little cafe/grill where you can grab a bite to eat. Parking at Sunset Beach is FREE! If you're looking for the famous Cape May diamonds...this is the place you want to be!

If you plan on visiting the Southern New Jersey Coast or you are a lighthouse fan, this one is a must see and it's one of my absolute favorite lighthouses in the state of New Jersey.

Visiting the National Civil War Museum in Harrisburg

The National Civil War Museum is located in Reservoir Park in Harrisburg Pennsylvania and overlooks the capital city. When you visit the museum you will find some breathtaking views of the city since the Museum sits high up on a hill. You can see for many miles and take in the beauty of our surrounding landscape.

The National Civil War Museum incorporates collections of artifacts, manuscripts, documents, photographs, and other printed matter that exceed 24,000 items. Although many items have been donated to The National Civil War Museum since its opening, the vast majority of its collections were acquired by the City of Harrisburg between 1994 and 1999 under the auspices of Mayor Stephen R. Reed.

The Museum sits on a big hilltop that overlooks the city and has beautiful landscaped groups with several statues and water fountains. One of my favorites is the pearl bisque cold cast porcelain statue known as the Moment of Mercy, created by sculptor Terry Jones.

Cameras are permitted in the museum as long as you don't use flash, however we couldn't get any good pictures without using our flash. The final photo was taken inside and shows a surgeon working on a wounded soldier doing a leg amputation. The exhibits are very realistic!

My husband and I spent 2 hours inside the museum and another hour outside of the museum walking the beautiful grounds. Admission is $8.00 for adults and $6.00 for children.

I highly recommend going to the National Civil War Museum at least once. Its affordable and highly educational. Make sure you stop into the Museum Gift Shop as they have some awesome and unique souvenirs!

Visiting Ocean City in New Jersey

I have been traveling to Ocean City in New Jersey for the past 35 years. When I was a little girl (age 5) my mother used to take us kids down to the Jersey Shore at least once every summer so I have very fond memories of the beach. Back then, this was my family's preferred summer vacation destination.

Ocean City is a "dry" beach meaning that there is no alcohol being sold within city limits. OC boasts about being a true family resort destination and I would have to agree with that. It is one of the MOST "family friendly" Jersey Shore locations.

We were just down to Ocean City 3 weeks ago for a mini 4 day vacation and I was pleasantly surprised at how much activity was going on down there since it was still "off season" and their official season begins on Memorial Day.

If you are looking for great fudge, I recommend the Fudge Kitchen which is located right on the boardwalk, in my opinion, its the best! (try the chocolate!) Plus, they often times will give you free fudge samples if you ask them!

The beaches are very clean and well maintained although they do charge a fee so you will need to buy beach tags during the IN-SEASON. There is plenty of parking available but most of its via parking meters or parking lots both of which cost money but its reasonable.

We stayed at the Pavilion Motor Lodge which is a 1/2 block back from the boardwalk. Nice and clean and economically priced, however I was disappointed that the heated pool had not yet been filled. The furnishings are very modest. If you are looking for luxury & a upscale hotel, this one is not for you.

One of the great things about going down at this time of the year is that the beach and boardwalk is a LOT less crowded. Almost all of the boardwalk businesses were open for business while we were there and the amusement rides were up & running on Friday night, Saturday and on Sunday. In another week or so, everything will be open 7 days a week until the end of the "in-season", but it sure is nice going this time of the year and not fighting the large crowds.

We took the PA turnpike down to Philly and then got onto the Atlantic City Expressway and then onto the Garden State Parkway and our journey only took 3.5 hours from Harrisburg. The commute was nice except for the Philly Expressway portion. Sigh.

Overall, we had a nice time in Ocean City and you can find some in-depth posts here on our travel blog about the things we saw and did while on our mini vacation by looking under our New Jersey category or by visiting our Discover New Jersey board on Pinterest.