RV Parks in New Jersey

New Jersey's camping reputation begins and ends at the beach for most people, which leaves a lot of state unaccounted for. The Appalachian foothills climb across the northwest corner. The Pine Barrens sprawl over the middle in a forest big enough to swallow whole counties. And yes, the Shore is there too, doing what the Shore does. RV parks thread through all of it, close to state parks, Revolutionary-era history, and towns worth an evening walk, good for a quick weekend or a stay that stretches into weeks.

The Shore earns its billing. From Cape May up to Sandy Hook, campgrounds and resorts line the coast, and in Wildwood, Ocean City, and Atlantic City some put you close enough to walk to the boardwalk with sandy feet. But the coast has a second personality: swing over to the Delaware Bay side and the pace drops entirely: birders with scopes, quiet fishing spots, and bayfront sunsets with nobody selling funnel cake anywhere in sight.

Head inland and the state turns green and quiet. The Pine Barrens, a National Reserve, hide state parks and private campgrounds under miles of pitch pine, with cedar-stained rivers that were made for a slow canoe. Northwest, the Skylands deliver actual mountains, lakes like Hopatcong, and sections of the Appalachian Trail, plus summer temperatures a few welcome degrees cooler than the coast.

Then there's the location card, which no other camping state plays quite like this one. Plenty of New Jersey RV parks sit within a reasonable drive of New York City or Philadelphia, meaning you can spend the afternoon in a world-class museum and grill dinner at your campsite the same night. Big-city day trips with a campground to come home to, that's the New Jersey trade, and it's a good one.