Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Northern New Jersey
Stay east and you'll experience the Jersey urban jungle. Go west to find its opposite: the
peaceful, refreshing landscape of the Delaware Water Gap and rolling Kittatinny Moun-
tains.
Hoboken & Jersey City
A sort of TV-land version of a cityscape, Hoboken is a cute little urban pocket just across
the Hudson River from NYC - and, because of cheaper rents that lured pioneers almost
15 years ago, a sort of sixth city borough, too. On weekends the bars and live-music ven-
ues come alive, but the town also has loads of restaurants lining commercial Washington
St, some lovely residential lanes and a leafy, revitalized waterfront - a far cry from when
the gritty
On the Waterfront
was filmed here.
High-rise buildings housing condominiums and the offices of financial firms seeking
lower rents have transformed
Jersey City
for better or worse from a primarily blue-col-
lar and immigrant neighborhood into a 'restored' area for the upwardly mobile. Its
biggest draw is the 1200-acre
Liberty State Park
( 201-915-3440;
www.libertystatepark.org
; 6am-10pm)
, which hosts outdoor concerts with the Manhattan
skyline as a backdrop and has a great bike trail, and also operates
ferries
(
201-604-2800, 877-523-9849;
www.statuecruises.com
;
adult/child $17/9; every 30min
9am-5pm, extended summer hr)
to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. Also in the park
and great for kids - virtually every exhibit is interactive - is the expansive and modern
Liberty Science Center
(
201-200-1000;
www.lsc.org
; adult/child $19.75/14.75, extra for
IMAX & special exhibits;
9am-4pm Mon-Fri, to 5:30pm Sat & Sun;
)
.
Delaware Water Gap
The Delaware River meanders in a tight S-curve through the ridge of NJ's Kittatinny
Mountains, and its beauteous image turned this region into a resort area, beginning in the
19th century. The
Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
( 570-426-2452;
www.nps.gov
)
, which comprises land in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania, was estab-
lished as a protected area in 1965, and today it's still an unspoiled place to swim, boat,
fish, camp, hike and see wildlife − just 70 miles east of New York City. The 30 mile
stretch of good paved road on the Pennsylvania side has several worthwhile stops includ-
ing
Raymondskill Falls
and the
Pocono Environmental Education Center
(
570-828-2319;
www.peec.org
;
538 Emery Rd, Dingman's Ferry;
)
; the very developed but
