7 Cute Small Town Drives In New Jersey
New Jersey fits a great deal between the Delaware River and the Atlantic coast, with many small towns sitting within an easy drive of one another. The Delaware River strings antique shops and old mills across 20 miles. On the shore, the amusement piers at Point Pleasant Beach give way to the quiet oceanfront at Lavallette. Inland, a single drive through Hunterdon County takes in a reservoir, a rail-trail, and a restored mill. These seven routes each come in at 30 minutes or less without stops, perfect for a side trip or a scenic Sunday drive.
Delaware River Towns Drive
The Delaware River serves as New Jersey's western border with Pennsylvania, with numerous small towns popping up to take advantage of the river's commerce and scenery. Milford, Frenchtown, Stockton, and Lambertville sit along 20 miles of that border, about 30 minutes of driving end to end. Start in Milford, which offers a compact downtown district close to the river, lined with local shops and restaurants, including Descendants Brewing Company. Head south to Frenchtown, where it is convenient to grab a bite to eat and then hit the D&R Canal State Park, whose trails follow gorgeous river views.
Further on down the road in Stockton, explore the region's long history at Prallsville Mills, a historic mill complex that now serves as a hub for local events. Cap off your drive in Lambertville, where restaurants, coffee shops, galleries, and historic buildings fill the downtown. Visitors can also shop at the Antiques Center at the People's Store, a multi-story antiques mall with dozens of dealers.
Cape May Peninsula Drive
At New Jersey's southernmost tip, the Cape May area represents a unique corner of the Jersey Shore where history, nature, and modern fun meet. Cape May, West Cape May, and Cape May Point sit within about five miles of one another for roughly 15 minutes of driving. Start in Cape May itself, where distinctive Victorian architecture can be found throughout town, including at the Emlen Physick Estate. Then hop out of the car for a stroll along the Washington Street Mall, a pedestrian shopping district lined with local shops. Head just out of town to West Cape May, which showcases how, just a short drive from the bustling beachfronts, this part of South Jersey can become appealingly quiet and rural.
Grab a drink and some locally produced products at Willow Creek Winery & Farm before heading on to Cape May Point. Just beyond the borough line, in Cape May Point State Park, the 1859 Cape May Lighthouse offers panoramic views of the shore and the Delaware Bay from the top of its 199 steps. Sitting right on the beach, the park also offers an easy way to end the drive with a walk along the sand or a swim in the Atlantic.
Central Jersey Shore Drive
The central Jersey Shore mixes classic boardwalk attractions with quieter beach communities along a short stretch of the Atlantic coast and Barnegat Bay. Point Pleasant Beach, Bay Head, and Lavallette line up across 10 miles, or about 20 minutes of driving. Start in Point Pleasant Beach, where the mile-long oceanfront boardwalk is home to Jenkinson's Boardwalk, with amusement rides, arcades, miniature golf, games, and other entertainment. Continue south into Bay Head, a quieter seaside community known for its historic architecture, specialty shops, and restaurants.
Stop at the Bay Head Historical Society Museum, housed in the restored 1867 Loveland Homestead on the Point Pleasant border and open seasonally, for a closer look at the area's development into a top regional vacation destination. Finish in Lavallette, a narrow beach town squeezed between the Atlantic Ocean and Barnegat Bay, where the quieter Lavallette Boardwalk runs along the oceanfront and offers a simple place to walk or bike beside the beach.
Hunterdon County Backroads Drive
This 10-mile drive through northwestern New Jersey links Clinton, High Bridge, and Califon with reservoirs, trails, and wooded countryside in about 20 minutes. It begins in Clinton, a one-time mill town that has reinvented prominent historical sites such as the Red Mill Museum Village to complement a compact downtown of shops and restaurants. From here, head north, potentially with a stop at nearby Spruce Run Recreation Area to hike or take in views of the reservoir.
Arrive in High Bridge, which offers some of the area's best outdoor recreation, including a chance to check out the Columbia Trail, a former railroad route repurposed as a long-distance walking and biking trail through the region. Continue to Califon, which combines history with a walkable downtown district, including the historic Califon Bridge over the South Branch of the Raritan River.
New Jersey Skylands Drive
New Jersey's Skylands Region, in the northwestern corner of the state, is known for its scenery, outdoor activities, and historic but unique small towns. Blairstown, Hope, and Belvidere sit along 20 miles of it, about 30 minutes of driving. Blairstown took its present name in 1839 in honor of railroad financier John Insley Blair and filled out its Main Street after his Blairstown Railroad arrived in 1876. Popular attractions include Roy's Hall, a decades-old theater that hosts concerts, plays, movies, and more.
Head south through quieter rural areas to Hope, the site of Jenny Jump State Forest. Visitors can hike, paddle, or picnic here, or, if visiting with younger travelers, head over to the Land of Make Believe, a retro amusement and water park that has entertained generations of New Jerseyans. Finish in Belvidere, set along the Delaware River, where Victorian buildings and the 1904 Riverton-Belvidere Bridge reinforce the town's historic character.
Central Jersey Small Town Drive
Central New Jersey's diverse communities shine through on this 15-mile route, which links Allentown, Roosevelt, and Hightstown in about 25 minutes. The three cover a preserved historic village, an unusual New Deal-era planned community, and a more traditional downtown. Allentown grew up around the gristmill Nathan Allen built on Doctors Creek in 1706, and the Old Mill standing there today dates to 1855, at the head of a historic downtown that now backs onto Heritage Park.
Just northeast is the town of Roosevelt, established by the federal government as a cooperative community during the Great Depression, combining agricultural, industrial, commercial, and residential uses in a single area. The town has since developed a longstanding community of artists, whose work is supported and exhibited by the Roosevelt Arts Project. Just a short drive away, Hightstown represents another type of Central New Jersey community, with a walkable downtown filled with shops and restaurants, and the shores of Peddie Lake, an 18-acre lake popular for fishing and paddling.
Morris-Somerset County Drive
The rolling countryside of Morris and Somerset counties offers a scenic route between historic small towns, wooded preserves, and remnants of the grand estates that once populated the area. Chester, Mendham, and Bernardsville sit across 15 miles of it, about 30 minutes of driving. Start in Chester, where a historic downtown filled with shops and restaurants sits close to Cooper Gristmill, the only restored water-powered mill in the state. Nathan Cooper built the standing four-story mill in 1826, on a site that had been grinding grain since the 1760s.
Continue east through Mendham, where the historic Main Street area reflects the town's colonial-era origins and the Phoenix House Historic Garden offers brick paths, flowers, benches, and landscaped grounds beside an early-19th-century home. Finish in Bernardsville at the Cross Estate Gardens, part of Morristown National Historical Park, where gardens, native plantings, and surrounding woodland preserve the feel of the large country estates once built around the area.
A Little Time Behind the Wheel Reveals a Lot of New Jersey
New Jersey's short drives work because its small towns cluster, whether along the Delaware in the northwest or out at the peninsula's southern tip. Blairstown, Hope, and Belvidere fit a Victorian downtown, a state forest, and a river crossing inside 20 miles. Cape May, West Cape May, and Cape May Point cover a Victorian resort, a working farm winery, and an 1859 lighthouse in a quarter of that. The Chester-to-Bernardsville route trades all of it for gristmills and old estate gardens.
