Shannon O'Brien Travel Itineraries

The best destinations

Photo of New Jersey
Photo of New Jersey

The Best of New Jersey

#57 best destination in the world

Map view

Mountain Creek Resort, Vernon

Photo of Vernon

Best time to visit: Jan-Feb, Dec

Cost: $$

  • Ski resort in Vernon Township, containing land for skiing area, night skiing, snowboarding, and snowmaking activities
  • The resort also includes a snow tubing park, zip-lines, an alpine coaster, and a bike park

Cape May Lighthouse

Photo of Cape May

Best time to visit: May-Sept

Cost: $

  • Lighthouse located at the tip of Cape May, in Cape May Point State Park, built in 1859
  • Cape May Lighthouse is the third fully documented lighthouse to be built at Cape May Point
  • The first lighthouse was built in 1823 and the second in 1847
  • The exact locations of the first two lighthouses are now underwater due to erosion
  • Within immediate view are Cape May Cove and Battery 223, a harbor defense battery originally built during World War II

Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration

Photo of Ellis Island National Museum of Immigration

Best time to visit: Jan-Dec

Cost: $

  • Ellis Island is a federally owned island in New York Harbor, situated within the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York, that was the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States
  • From 1892 to 1954, nearly 12 million immigrants arriving at the Port of New York and New Jersey were processed there under federal law
  • Today, it is part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument and is accessible to the public only by ferry

Old Barracks Museum, Trenton

Photo of Trenton

Best time to visit: March-May

Cost: $

  • Historic building located in Trenton, and built in 1758 to house soldiers of the British Army during the French and Indian War
  • It is the only remaining colonial barracks in the state and is one of the only tangible surviving elements of the 1776 Battle of Trenton
  • George Washington crossed the Delaware River to catch the garrison by surprise during the Battle of Trenton on the morning of December 26, 1776

The Newark Museum of Art

Photo of The Newark Museum of Art

Best time to visit: Jan-Dec

Cost: $

  • New Jersey's largest museum, which holds major collections of American art, decorative arts, contemporary art, and arts of Asia, Africa, the Americas, and the ancient world
  • The museum's Tibetan art galleries are considered among the best in the world
  • The collection was purchased from Christian missionaries in the early twentieth century
  • The Tibetan galleries have an in-situ Buddhist altar that the Dalai Lama has consecrated

Grounds For Sculpture

Photo of Grounds For Sculpture

Best time to visit: March-May

Cost: $

  • Sculpture park and museum located in Hamilton, located on the former site of Trenton Speedway, founded in 1992
  • The venue is dedicated to promoting an understanding of and appreciation for contemporary sculpture

Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City

Photo of Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City

Best time to visit: March-May, June-Aug

Cost: $$$

  • Casino and hotel on the Boardwalk, owned by Hard Rock International, in Atlantic City, across from the Steel Pier's thrill rides
  • Amenities include a casino, nightclub, theater, multiple restaurants and shops, and a sports and concert arena

Liberty Science Center

Photo of Liberty Science Center

Best time to visit: Jan-Dec

Cost: $

  • Interactive science museum located in Liberty State Park in Jersey City
  • At its opening, it was the largest such planetarium in the Western Hemisphere

George Washington Bridge

Photo of George Washington Bridge

Best time to visit: Jan-Dec

Cost: $

  • Double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee, New Jersey, with Upper Manhattan in New York City
  • The George Washington Bridge is the world's busiest motor vehicle bridge, carrying a traffic volume of over 104 million vehicles in 2019, and is the world's only suspension bridge with 14 vehicular lanes as of 2012
  • It was the longest main bridge span in the world from its 1931 opening until the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco opened in 1937