Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My wife, daughter and I (daughter will be 5) are considering renting a beach house next summer (July 2016) and I saw that Cape May is a very family friendly area. We love the beach, but we also want to spend our afternoons and evenings walking around.
We are fortunate in that we aren't locked to one area. We will be spending about a month 'somewhere' in the U.S. next summer and just want to get the most bang for our buck(beach+walkable neighborhhod). I spent a week in Clearwater Beach, Florida in June back in 2013 and we loved it. A bit too humid for my taste but the beach was great, and it was fairly walkable. As difficult as it may be, if anyone has been to Cape May Beach and Clearwater beach and can compare that would be great. I'm also assuming that July will be a great time to be at Cape May.
I'm open to other suggestions, and while I know this is the New Jersey area of City Data, if anyone has any other suggestions for a month-long beach town stay feel free to let us know(Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head, Virginia Beach, etc). I'm trying to stay on the east coast. thanks in advance!
Cape May is nice, but I think of Ocean City (northern part of Cape May County) as more family friendly, as it considers itself "America's Greatest Family Resort". Unfortunately, it's a dry town and there aren't even any BYOB restaurants. You can easily make day trips to Cape May and Atlantic City from there. Also, there is a nice, free zoo near Cape May. In the beginning of July, the water will still be a bit cold (not for a kid, of course), but by the end of July, the water warms up to what I consider to be comfortable.
The other places you mention are also good choices, and honestly, you might get more for your money there.
I was in Clearwater Beach in July 2012 and grew up going to Cape May every year. They're difficult to compare. I felt Clearwater had more of a party scene. Seriously, we watched someone get arrested every night from our hotel (the Hilton on the beach). Cape May is much quieter and more family friendly. There's less of a party scene, that's more in nearby Wildwood. Cape May is an old historic town (America's oldest seaside resort town, over 400 years old with a history of presidents and other prominent politicians vacationing there - check out Congress Hall), Clearwater feels newer. Clearwater is very humid, Cape May tends to not be. The water in Clearwater in the summer is very warm - low to high 80s, it may even hit 90 here and there. Cape May water is low to mid 70s, often feels more refreshing. The beaches in NJ are less hot than FL, you rarely sit on the beach and sweat. There's more of a breeze and usually lower temps.
Cape May is definitely walkable. There's a promenade (like a boardwalk but classier ) with some shops and arcades towards the southern end. No rides, but little arcades that kids will enjoy. There's a great downtown and plenty of businesses, restaurants, ice cream places along Beach Drive. There are ghost tours if you're into that (Cape May is said to be extremely haunted if you believe in that), you can rent jet skis or take a whale watching boat tour (you tend to see more dolphins than anything), rent bikes, take a bike ride or drive to the lighthouse and climb up for the views. There are a lot of miniature golf courses in Cape May, some not so great and some worth the money. You can take a ride in horse drawn carriages, there's a trolley to help you get around town. Some bed and breakfasts will let you come inside for a tour of the old Victorian homes they're set in, if you show a great interest.
I can't think of anything else right now. I loved Clearwater, too, I thought it was a great place. It's just very different from Cape May. I also love Cape May, seriously one of my favorite places to go. It's quiet, relaxing, family friendly, there are other nearby attractions like the boardwalks, amusement and water parks in Wildwood, nearby Ocean City and Atlantic City. It's hard to not enjoy Cape May IMO.
Also I forgot - from Cape May you can go to Delaware via the Cape May-Lewes Ferry.
Ocean City IS America's Greatest Family (Beach) Resort!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kassad
Hello everyone, My wife, daughter and I (daughter will be 5) are considering renting a beach house next summer (July 2016) and I saw that Cape May is a very family friendly area. We love the beach, but we also want to spend our afternoons and evenings walking around. ... -Harry
Quote:
Originally Posted by JerseyStrong1
Cape May is nice, but I think of Ocean City (northern part of Cape May County) as more family friendly, as it considers itself "America's Greatest Family Resort"...
With a five-year-old, Ocean City is the best choice. Everything a family with small children could want — the beach, amusement parks, a water park, eateries, accessible clean public toilets... free of the influence of drunken rowdies and gaming addicts. I'd book it in a heartbeat!
You can't go wrong with Cape May. It's a lovely town.
I'll suggest having a look at Beach Haven on Long Beach Island. Your target area is between 10th and Coral Street to the south. It's very walkable. That doesn't mean that you won't have to get in the car, but you won't have to use it every day. There's a small supermarket, a pharmacy, shops, restaurants and amusements for children. There are some lovely Victorian homes, now B&Bs, in the Veterans Memorial Park area and two small museums. I'll elaborate if you'd like.
I also think Rehoboth, DE is worth consideration. It, too, is very walkable, has shops, plenty of reasaurants and an amusement are for children. You can also take the ferry to Cape May.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
) with some shops and arcades towards the southern end. No rides, but little arcades that kids will enjoy. There's a great downtown and plenty of businesses, restaurants, ice cream places along Beach Drive. There are ghost tours if you're into that (Cape May is said to be extremely haunted if you believe in that), you can rent jet skis or take a whale watching boat tour (you tend to see more dolphins than anything), rent bikes, take a bike ride or drive to the lighthouse and climb up for the views. There are a lot of miniature golf courses in Cape May, some not so great and some worth the money. You can take a ride in horse drawn carriages, there's a trolley to help you get around town. Some bed and breakfasts will let you come inside for a tour of the old Victorian homes they're set in, if you show a great interest. 
Ocean City IS America's Greatest Family (Beach) Resort!
