9 Storybook Towns In New Jersey
New Jersey has mill towns like Clinton, where a 200-year-old gristmill sits above a waterfall on the Raritan River. It also has Victorian shore towns like Cape May and Spring Lake, both better preserved than almost anywhere else on the East Coast. And it has quieter spots like Cranbury, where a lake, a historic main street, and a good restaurant are all you really need for a weekend away. These nine towns ahead are the best the state has to offer, each one easy to reach, easy to explore, and worth coming back to.
Lambertville
Connected by the New Hope-Lambertville Bridge over the Delaware River to New Hope, Pennsylvania, the Hunterdon County town of Lambertville is full of narrow streets and 19th-century architecture. Many buildings are on the National Register of Historic Places, including the James W. Marshall House, childhood home of the man whose 1848 gold discovery at Sutter's Mill on the American River touched off the California Gold Rush.
The older buildings along Main Street house art galleries like Jim's of Lambertville, which specializes in Pennsylvania Modernist and Impressionist paintings. Bridge Street Antiques is worth a stop for collectors, and Revolution Woodfire Grille handles dinner with pastas, small plates, and craft cocktails. For outdoor exercise, the Delaware & Raritan Canal Towpath runs right through town for walkers, runners, and cyclists, with views of the canal and river.
Allentown
Allentown, like most colonial-era hamlets, grew up around a mill, which founder Nathan Allen built in the early 1700s. Today, this quiet Monmouth County borough sits roughly equidistant from the Big Apple and Philly, with a well-kept collection of 18th- and 19th-century buildings in the Allentown Historic District. Standouts include the Greek Revival Allentown Presbyterian Church (1837), the Georgian-style John Imlay House (1790), and the Ephraim Robbins House, now used as Borough Hall.
For a meal, La Piazza Ristorante turns out Italian fare, pasta, and wood-fired pizza. Conines Millpond Park, right in the center of town, is a good spot for a walk or a quiet hour outdoors.
Clinton
This Hunterdon County town is best known for its historic riverfront along the South Branch Raritan River. The focal point is the Red Mill Museum Village, a four-story gristmill built around 1810 with weathered clapboard siding, perched above a broad waterfall. Across the river, a restored 19th-century stone mill now houses the Hunterdon Art Museum, which shows contemporary work and carries as much character as the art it displays.
Main Street's family-owned shops include Beyond Bijoux, the Riverside Coffee & Tea coffee shop, and The River Mill View for a longer meal. Nearby, the Spruce Run Recreation Area opens up boating, picnicking, camping, and fishing on the Spruce Run Reservoir.
Haddonfield
Founded by Elizabeth Haddon in 1701, Haddonfield is a historic Camden County borough where the colonial past is still visible on the walk from one block to the next. 18th-century properties and small public buildings fill a compact downtown core. The restored Indian King Tavern Museum offers free tours that highlight the building's role in state history: the New Jersey State Legislature met here in 1777 and adopted the Great Seal of New Jersey.
While walking Kings Highway, Haddonfield's main street, stop for a photo with the bronze statue of the Hadrosaurus. From there, head to Pennypacker Park to find the Hadrosaurus foulkii Leidy site, where William Parker Foulke uncovered the specimen in 1858. It was the first nearly complete dinosaur skeleton ever found in North America and a landmark find in early paleontology.
Frenchtown
Less than two hours from Philadelphia and New York City, Frenchtown is a quiet Hunterdon County community on the Delaware River. The riverfront is the natural first stop, with the Uhlerstown-Frenchtown Bridge lining up views along the river and Frenchtown Park offering hiking, biking, running, and birdwatching.
The roughly 100-acre Frenchtown Historic District runs guided tours covering Greek Revival, Italianate, and Romanesque Revival buildings, including the Nathaniel Shurtz House from 1865. Bridge Street, the main commercial street, lines up gift shops like Modern Love, galleries like Gabriele Art Gallery, and casual French bistros like Chez Daniel.
Spring Lake
Known as the "Jewel of the Jersey Shore," Spring Lake is a welcoming Monmouth County borough about 60 miles south of New York City. The town's draw is its two-mile boardwalk and non-commercial beach along the Atlantic Ocean. Spring Lake's Gilded Age past as a summer escape for wealthy New Yorkers and Philadelphians shows up in period properties like the Queen Anne-style summer house of Philadelphia businessman Martin Maloney and the 1909 Audenried Cottage.
A short walk from the beach, Divine Park centers on a spring-fed lake with footbridges, shaded paths, and well-kept lawns. Nearby, the Spring Lake Historical Society Museum covers the borough's Gilded Age history and hosts regular events, including an annual June "House Tour" that opens up older homes around town.
Cape May
Cape May, one of America's oldest seaside resort towns, sits at the southern tip of the Cape May Peninsula and draws heavy summer crowds. The beaches and the rows of Late Victorian-style architecture in the Cape May Historic District together earned the community a National Historic Landmark designation. Built in 1879 for Dr. Emlen Physick Jr. and his family, the Emlen Physick Estate is an 18-room Victorian mansion turned house museum, with MAC-guided tours covering the Victorian-era details.
At Cape May Point State Park, a climb up the Cape May Lighthouse's 199 steps to the top rewards with long views over Delaware Bay and the Atlantic. Sunset Beach, close to the lighthouse, is where visitors collect Cape May diamonds (polished quartz pebbles), and seasonal watchers spot whales from spring into early winter, migratory birds in spring and fall, and Monarch butterflies passing through on their way to Mexico.
Cranbury
One of New Jersey's older towns, Cranbury sits about halfway between Philly and New York City in Middlesex County in central New Jersey. Outdoor space is not in short supply. Village Park, on the north shore of Brainerd Lake, has bike and walking trails, picnic tables with charcoal grills, a playground, and a small dock for lake access.
The Cranbury Brook Preserve follows both sides of Cranbury Brook and works for walking, fishing, jogging, and birdwatching. The Cranbury Museum, in a well-kept 1834 house, runs period rooms and local history exhibits. For dinner, the long-running Cranbury Inn Restaurant is the best-known sit-down.
Red Bank
On the south bank of the Navesink River, the Monmouth County borough of Red Bank is a regional center of arts and economic activity. Downtown Red Bank, mostly along Broad, Front, and Monmouth Streets, is built for an afternoon of walking between galleries like Beacon Fine Arts Gallery, boutiques like Giselle Boutique, and cafes like Café Pari Wine & Bar.
A short walk away, the Count Basie Center for the Arts anchors the town's cultural scene and programs theater, concerts, and community events year-round. Riverside Gardens Park is a popular waterfront spot for picnics, boat-watching, and open-air performances in warmer months. For dinner, Tino's Mexican Kitchen on Shrewsbury Avenue is a local favorite.
Plan A New Jersey Weekend
New Jersey's small towns, between the coastline and the cities, deliver variety that is easy to underrate. Frenchtown's creative streak, Cape May's oceanfront, Clinton's river mill, Cranbury's quiet lake, and Haddonfield's paleontological landmark together make a strong case that the state deserves more than a pass-through. Any one of these nine makes a weekend; several of them, strung together, make a proper tour.
