Top Things to do in New Jersey
Top Hotels in New Jersey
Things to do in New Jersey, United States: The Best Water & Amusement Parks
Whether you are looking for sun-drenched beaches or outdoor activities in beautiful countryside, New Jersey has plenty to offer. Those who love the great outdoors should head for the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, which runs along the Delaware River for forty miles. Here you can go rock climbing, canoeing, kayaking or fishing, or simply admire the stunning waterfalls. There is a huge range of hiking trails to choose from as well as historic sites to visit. In winter, you can enjoy cross-country skiing near Blue Mountain Lakes, and birdwatchers might be lucky enough to catch sight of bald eagles. If you are looking for a change, visit one of New Jersey's eleven lighthouses that are open to public, such as the one in Cape May. For art and history enthusiasts, New Jersey State Museum in Trenton has historic artifacts and American fine art from the nineteenth century to the present day as well as a Planetarium.
Restaurants in New Jersey
1. Breakfast in The Sky
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 32 reviews
Up and at 'em! Start your Jersey Shore morning right, with our exclusive and unique “Ferris Wheel Breakfast." Imagine a picnic in the sky complete with white linens and china with culinary delights created by our Executive Chef, Wally Jurusz. Advance reservation required. Up to four guests per car. Seating is limited.
2. Storybook Land
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 557 reviews
For over 60 years, Storybook Land has been keeping the spirit of childhood alive in an entertaining and educational atmosphere. We invite you to relive your childhood while introducing the innocent themes of wonderment to an entire new generation. Your children's and grandchildren's memories will be with them throughout their lifetimes! The timelessness of childhood will ring true as your family literally walks through its all-time favorite stories and nursery rhymes at Storybook Land. Children's classics are interspersed with exciting new family rides and attractions in a remarkably clean and enjoyable park setting. Join us several times a year for memorable family experiences. You are certain to enjoy your visits!
Reviewed By P7235GUdonnag - Mays Landing, United States
First trip to Storybook Land today. I'd been passing it for 2 years after I moved to the area and it always seemed it was a little cheesy and intended for tourists. Today I had the chance to take my 2 year old granddaughter - what a wonderful sweet place! It is definitely set up for the 6 and under crowd - all of the rides are small-ish. There is minimum 36" height to ride alone on most rides so a child is going to be 2.5 years and have enough awareness to be able to ride. A few of the rides are for 42" and have a few more thrills and then there are rides like the train and tram for everyone. The rides seemed very clean, well maintained. The grounds were lovely with flowers and the overhead tree canopy keeps most areas of the park in the shade. There are wonderful statues/stationery items that are perfect for snapping pictures. We had a light lunch and it was obvious that they thought about kids needs: a kid's hot dog meal included waffle fries, gummies and chocolate milk contained in a little Storybook land lunch box. The park is a reasonable size for young kids and grandparents - not too big like a Great Adventure. Two hours was plenty for a 2 year old to ride almost every ride she could. I'm looking into season passes as it was that good. COVID: The attendance is currently limited and you have to register ahead - not sure what they have set the capacity at, but it was a very workable crowd to socially distance. We got on all of the rides, no waiting. The ride operators cleaned the seats used after every ride. All of the operators had masks as did the visitors. They even have the cutest little masks for young kids with the park logo on the front (not like my 2 year old would put up with it). They appear to take this seriously.
3. Morey's Piers and Beachfront Water Parks
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,707 reviews
Morey’s Piers, located on the boardwalk in the Wildwoods, New Jersey is a classic seaside amusement park, family owned and operated since 1969. Voted the second best seaside amusement park in the world by Amusement Today, Morey’s Piers has over 100 rides and attractions spanning over eighteen acres along six beach blocks and includes three amusement piers and two beachfront waterparks. Convenient to the major population centers of the Northeast, yet a world apart, Morey’s Piers along with Morey Resorts combines the pure joy of an amusement park, the sights and sounds of a classic boardwalk, outstanding accommodations, together with the rhythm of beach life. Visit them at Surfside Pier, featuring the Ocean Oasis Waterpark and Beach Club at 25th Avenue, Mariner’s Landing Pier, featuring Raging Waters Waterpark at Schellenger Avenue, and Adventure Pier at Spencer Avenue.
Reviewed By Smhd2020
This water park is the best!! Clean, comfortable and outstanding supervision by the lifeguards!! Raging Waters is a deal... we try to go during the week days, so there aren’t too many people. Love the Lazy River! The children’s area is well maintained and supervised. There is plenty of table space for eating, and food prices aren’t out of sight. Restrooms are very clean and maintained. No visit to the shore is complete unless you visit Morey’s water park!
4. Ocean Oasis Waterpark
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 178 reviews
Reviewed By 610lisar - Effort, United States
This water park is fun for all ages of people. Sometimes people are afraid of the beach. The sand is hot to walk on in summer so this water park is a place for all people of all ages to have fun. And its clean. I love the water park.
5. Crystal Springs Family Waterpark
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 44 reviews
Reviewed By LucyM210 - Skillman, United States
We visited Crystal Springs for the first time last week. My two grandchildren ages 3 1/2, 1 1/2, my husband and adult daughter. I was very, very impressed upon entering with the friendly greetings of the staff and patience in explaining the layout to us. The waterpark was immaculate and so well run I cannot say enough about it. I feel it must be managed very well because with the crowd of families and children there it could easily become unsafe. I observed the lifeguards correcting behavior of adults and children both and in every case I saw professionalism and one to one contact explaining what the individual was doing wrong. I myself sat on a wall, not seeing the sign “No sitting on wall“. I was politely corrected by the lifeguard. The lifeguards were everywhere and every lifeguard enforced the same rules. Each employee we came in contact with was friendly and very well informed. Our two little grandchildren had an absolutely wonderful day. As did we, being able to relax as we watched them enjoy the water, the showers and the slides. We ate at the concession stand and enjoyed our lunch. (Next time we will probably pack a picnic lunch to save some money. It’s great that this is an option.) We did bring our own lawn chairs so we could be sure to sit in the shade. My compliments to all of the staff for their hard work and compliance and to the management for running a beautiful and safe family facility. We will be back and possibly season passes next summer. Thank you to all for a wonderful outing on a summer day!
6. The Wheel at Steel Pier
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 12 reviews
Reviewed By Fearless186864
The wheel was very impressive to see by the water. the fun things for the kids and fair food. Great entertainment and views.
7. Six Flags Great Adventure
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 3,552 reviews
This park truly is a great adventure for the whole family, which features 100 rides, shows, special events and theme areas such as Boardwalk, Frontier Adventures, Fantasy Forest and Movietown.
Reviewed By momofsan - New York City, United States
We had an amazing weekday VIP Tour at Six Flags GA while the park was open for the April spring break week. See more details below. Bottom line, we were very happy we took this route for our one-time visit, and would highly recommend this for people looking for a special day of park thrills (and okay with the cost of ~ $400 per person). The cost includes entry to the park, front of line access on all rides, preferred parking, lunch/snacks/drinks, all ride photos, one of 3 extreme rides (which otherwise costs $15 pp - we chose the slingshot), and one knowledgeable/helpful/friendly VIP tour guide for up to 8 hours. A VIP Tour rep contacted us the day prior to coordinate the start time (tour lasts up to 8 hours and starts anytime at/after 10:15a) and meeting location, discuss what type of rides and attractions were our priority, and pick a lunch option. After parking in their preferred parking lot, we met our VIP Tour guide Kristen in front of the park. We bypassed the long security line already mounting @ 10:15a and entered through the side security entrance. We made our way across the park to the first ride by the time the park officially opened at 10:30a. My 10-year old daughter and I wanted to ride all the main thrill rides, the safari adventure, and slingshot extreme attraction. Except for the one extreme attraction, we were taken to the very front of the line for each ride (i.e. walked through the ride exits) and choose our seats (i.e. the front row) before the next group of riders were allowed on. We were also allowed to stay in our seats and ride any ride twice, if desired (we did that on about 8 rides). My daughter wanted to go twice in a row on a few rides that I did not want to, and it was great that Kristen could ride with her as she hates riding alone. Also, there were a couple rides I could not stomach, so Kristen rode with her (lifesaver!). From about 10:30a to 5p, we got in over 20 rides and lunch and a snack: Justice League, Skyway cable car, Swashbuckler, Batman, Bizarro (x2), Cyborg (x2), El Toro (x2), Green Lantern (x2), Kingda Ka (x2), Nitro (x2), Runaway Mine Train (ugh, not our fav as a rough ride that hurt our legs), Skull Mountain (x2), Sky Screamer swings (gets cold at the top so don’t forget a hoodie), Dark Knight, Joker (x2). Superman was closed temporarily for maintenance both times we had stopped by, and Zumanjaro was not open. For lunch, we sat at a reserved VIP table outside, and Kristen took our orders and brought the food and drinks to our table. At the end of the day, she sent us all our ride photos, so we did not have to spend any time waiting for those. There is no way we could have gotten in all the rides we wanted to do in our one day at the park, without this tour. We don’t live close, so have no plans to come back this year and a seasons pass does not make sense for us. If you have a fast pass (even their highest level one), it only reduces the wait time for you to get into the shorter fast-pass queue, but there is still a wait for the last part of the line for each thrill ride, and for specific seats on the thrill rides (i.e. if you want the first/last rows). Some rides like the Skyway cable have no separate fast pass access. We were pretty exhausted by the end of the day as we hit everything we wanted to, so we left around 5pm. But you could stay and get on more rides (un-guided) if desired. Not having to wait in any line was a treat. But one downside to note is that there is not much time in between thrill rides for your body to recover, if you have a sensitive stomach (was kind of an issue for me after some of the spinning rides… not an issue whatsoever for my daughter!)
8. Hippo water slide
9. Wild West City
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 227 reviews
A true model of Dodge City, Kansas in the 1800’s. Wild West City presents an interactive experience bringing tales of the wild west to life through historical characters, dramatizations and demonstrations by period craftsmen. Ride in style on the Wild West City Stage Coach Line, aboard the narrow gauge train, or younger buckaroos can ride a pony! Experience the best of the Wild West in the heart of the East! Getaway to the beautiful, scenic Skylands Region of Sussex County for folks who want to disconnect from the modern world and reawaken the spirit of the American West.
Reviewed By 159larrym - Chatham, United States
What a terrific piece of Americana! So glad that this type of family fun location still exists right here in NJ. My kids loved it. Glad to be outside, close to horses and other animals and take a pony ride! For adults, it may be a little stale (so go to the bar--they have good liquor) and watch your children's faces light up. A wonderful time. Free parking reasonable admission costs and pay as you go for the train ride or pony ride. Loved it.
10. Land of Make Believe & Pirate's Cove
Overall Ratings
4.0 based on 387 reviews
Reviewed By JVerdon
During this pandemic, it was great to be out and about. We were there yesterday, September 1, 2010. Not crowded, pleasant experience as always there. Everyone is trying as hard as they can to do things to entertain kids. Best chicken nuggets. Be patient...nothing is normal right now. Don't say "Horrible". Stay home.
