New Jersey Attractions

For my wife's birthday I told her "anything goes." She said she wanted me to take her someplace expensive. So I took her to a gas station. (I'm told the bump on my head will go down in a week or so) Don't want to drive to Myrtle Beach with the kids this summer? (Are we there yet?!! Take it easy, we're still in the garage…) That camping excursion to Maine gonna cost more for gas than the entire cabin and lobster dinners for a week? Airline tickets to costly to waste on yet another trip to see Mouse World? What's a Griswold to do?
How about we just eNJoy a perfect and possible weekend right here in New Jersey? Witness as our virtual travel agent conjures up an imaginary itinerary from North to South, and East to West. So grab your sunscreen, plug in your GPS and don't forget to hydrate. Cause it's Road Trip Time.

DAY ONE FRIDAY

It's five o'clock somewhere in New Jersey and we're "sprung from cages on highway 9." The road beckons and we decide to kick off the weekend with a baseball game at First Energy Park. Dog and a beer as the Blue Claws do their thing. Then it's off to Bay Head for a B&B stay with the ocean air wafting through the windows as we sleep with big dreams and a clear head.

DAY TWO SATURDAY

We wake early on Saturday morning and head right to the OB Diner in Point Pleasant Beach. Cholesterol be damned, I'm ordering steak and eggs. Walk off the meal on the boardwalk and make a quick visit to Jenkinson's Aquarium to feed the sharks. Then it's onto the Parkway South and Long Beach Island. Spend the beautiful and not yet crowded morning hours on the beach. Pack it up and check out the Barnegat lighthouse before we move on. Oh but by all means, grab a slice before we go. Why not burn that off with a quick hike through Double Trouble State Park, possibly rent a canoe and drift a bit. After nature's rewards, we hear a different type of call, a call to shop. And it just so happens that we are in close proximity to the outlet shops in downtown Atlantic City. Gucci looks good on you. And then what do you know, its check in time at any one of Atlantic City's fabulous hotels. All dressed up now, and plenty of places to go. Dinner at the Palm at the Tropicana and tickets to see a show. Plenty of time and energy to dance the night away till the wee hours.

DAY THREE SUNDAY

Room service breakfast sounds good. How about a spa treatment afterward? Check out of the hotel and it's off to the Renault Winery for lunch and some wine tasting. Later in the day we head west and up along the Delaware River. A nice stroll through Washington Crossing State Park gives us some fresh air and a sense of history. We finish off with dinner in the hills of Warren County and a concert at New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC).
OK, just writing this has made me tired. Maybe it's time for you to get out there and eNJoy your own wish list. You dream it up, and New Jersey will deliver. And no matter what you do, remember this… No matter what you do or where you go…Monday's on its way.