28 Best Hotels in New Jersey Shore, New Jersey

A sprawling 1850s mansion designed for the Philadelphia chemist who invented quinine dominates Cape May's tranquil northern shore. Angel of the Sea is Disneylike in its gingerbread perfection: flowered wallpaper, beds with ornate headboards, and a flurry of white wicker add to the fairy-tale aura. Some guest rooms have working fireplaces. Curvaceous period antiques, covered in lace doilies, outfit the common areas.

Rooms come in a variety of styles at this beachfront property: the main building, the 1860 Dennis Hotel, incorporates traditional and contemporary interior schemes; Claridge Tower rooms are bright and airy; Garden Tower rooms are spacious and embrace environmentally friendly practices; and Bally's Tower rooms go art deco. That's to say nothing of the boutique hotel aesthetic in their newly renovated Ruby Rooms, with their sleek and modern red, white, brown—and zebra print—furnishings. The spa facilities, with a multitiered complex of mosaic-tile whirlpools and an atrium pool with water-aerobics classes, are exceptional.

The Borgata has raised the bar in Atlantic City. Floor-to-ceiling windows and oh-so-tasteful furnishings grace the spacious standard rooms, where even the shower has room for two. Suites all have entertainment centers, wet bars, and bathrooms with deep tubs and his-and-her vanity sets. The spa here is the biggest in Atlantic City at 54,000 square feet, and the restaurants include Bobby Flay Steak, Wolfgang Puck American Grille, and an outpost of New York City's Old Homestead steak house. As the fresh face in town for nearly a decade, this has been the place for the whales to max out the betting limits, and aspiring scenesters to max out their credit cards.

Worthy of an emperor? The numbers at this beachfront property are certainly imperial: 1,144 rooms; 145,000 square feet of gaming floors; more than 2,300 slot machines; a theater seating 1,500 that has hosted Tony Bennett, Smokey Robinson, Ringo Starr and many others; and on and on. Book a room here and you will have to embrace the kitsch. The pillars, fountains, statues, and faux classical style of the entrance and lobby are anything but suble. The rooms, however, only hint at such gaudiness. They are luxurious and modern with dark wood furniture, wall scones, and expansive mirrors. Many have breathtaking ocean views, and there are often deals to be had.

Vintage corsets and hoop skirts hang on a hat rack in the dining room of this Victorian B&B, a great conversation starter for the T-shirts and shorts crowd. The 1890 Colonial Revival house, named for the Dutch discoverer of Cape May, draws you, book and iced tea in hand, to the veranda to sit a spell. Half canopies and dominant, print wallpapers add to the period aesthetic. Walk to the beach (two blocks) from here, or the Washington Mall (half a block).

Not only do you spend a night in a mansion (Italian villa–style, circa 1882), but the price also buys breakfast downstairs at the Mad Batter, Cape May's wildly popular breakfast spot. Floral prints hang on the walls of the functionally compact guest rooms; headboards are made of carved wood. The family-owned hotel is a half block from the ocean, beach, and promenade.

This is the real thing, a Victorian summer hotel (1876) on the boardwalk with striped green awnings and crisp white paint. The Chalfonte keeps it simple and friendly. Room are pleasantly spartan with wood floors and white curtains and bedspreads; some share bathrooms. Children are more than welcome—a supervised kid's dining room has its own menu. Parents dine in the Magnolia Room or on the boardwalk-long veranda. Southern-style fried chicken, smothered pork chops, corn pudding, and flaky biscuits are made by sisters Lucille and Dot, as their mother, Chalfonte's former beloved cook, taught them. A renovation in 2010 added air-conditioning, heat, and private baths to many of the rooms.

From its inception in 1816, Congress Hall has had star power: President Benjamin Harrison made it his summer White House, and John Philip Sousa conducted the Congress Hall March on the lawn. Today the white-colonnade, Tuscan-yellow hotel is all breezy chic—sky-high ceilings, titan-size Victorian mirrors, glossy black wicker, and potted palms with attitude. Carpets have vibrant stripes, beds are dressed in white linens, and baths are sybaritic—some with 1920s, big-enough-for-two tubs—stocked with Aveda soaps and lotions. A C. H.-crest terry-cloth robe awaits so you can open the door and retrieve the New York Times without incident. Morning also brings breakfast in the spacious garden of the hotel's Blue Pig Tavern, while later in the day the staff will kindly set up cabanas for you at the beach and host evening activities for the little ones. Cocktails and music at the on-site Boiler Room bar close out the night.

Reliable and affordable, this centrally located hotel from Marriot provides easy access to the Boardwalk and its attractions. A beach motif is evoked in the rooms, where framed whimsical prints hang on the walls and sandy beiges and oranges highlight the linens and furnishings. Rates are available with or without breakfast.

The modern, 32-story, all-suites condo hotel across from the Boardwalk offers respite from the casino action and faces the island of Brigantine and the Absecon Inlet. There's an indoor pool, a small movie theater on site, and an arcade and "FunZone" for cold or rainy days. Each suite has a kitchenette with refrigerator, sink, microwave, stovetop, dishes, and cutlery, as well as a private balcony (some with Boardwalk and water views).

Formerly the Trump Marina, the completely renovated, refurbished, and rebranded casino has the state's largest marina at its disposal and a brand-new salon and spa. The changes become obvious as soon as you pull up. The entrance now shimmers with gold. Standard rooms are tastefully appointed with maroon, black, beige, and brown furnishings. Gold Tower suites up the ante with Sobel Westex linens, dining areas, and panoramic windows. Spa Tower suites go all in with marble baths, murals, columns, and cocktail bars.

In the marina district, this five-tower property has rooms with high ceilings, elegant wood furniture, and tasteful fabric flourishes. As parents relax at the acclaimed Elizabeth Arden Red Door Spa, younger guests can go a little wild at the family fun center with its mini-golf course, arcade, and family pool. Hotel staff can also book tee times for golfers at the Atlantic City Country Club and enroll amateur cooks in classes at the on-site Viking Cooking School, where instructors and celebrity chefs teach classes for all abilities.

Fourteen-foot ceilings, tall windows, a thirteen-foot hallway mirror, and black walnut dining-room furniture show a pedigree of money and manners. The two wealthy gamblers who constructed the building in 1872, as a gambling clubhouse for their friends (men only), obviously meant to impress. In 1971, the Mainstay became Cape May's first B&B, and since then has been the archetype for those that followed. You can also stay at the adjoining Cottage, or across the street in a duplex apartment. Guest rooms and suites have Victorian antiques, while the apartment has some traditional flourishes, but is mostly contemporary with a full kitchen, gas fireplace, and a small dining area.

This modern, family-oriented, oceanfront hotel has patrons who have been coming for more than 40 years; reservations are taken over a year in advance. There's a heated pool, an outdoor whirlpool, and an exercise room with sauna—amenities that are a bit scarce in this land of B&Bs. An on-premises liquor store and evening music at the hotel's recently updated restaurant Harry's Ocean Bar & Grill encourage evening celebrations. Every one of the motel-style rooms has a refrigerator and coffeemaker, and efficiency suites have kitchens. Don't feel like cooking? Sit back and have room service delivered, even if you're on the beach.

Birders love the Mt. Vernon's location, far from crowds on the western end of Cape May, across from the ocean, and within walking distance to Cape May Point Lighthouse, the Nature Conservancy Bird Refuge, and the historic district. All rooms have queen-size beds, wall-to-wall carpeting, free wi-fi, and open onto sundecks. Efficiency units have kitchens. There are two pools, including a smaller, protected one for young children.

This multicolor painted lady, circa 1889, has red rooftops and a central, square tower. The interior is filled with period antiques, including stain-glass lamps throughout, ladies' handiwork from the 1800s in the dining room, and intricate carved-wood furniture. Floral wallpapers and area rugs complement the Victorian pieces. The largest rooms are the most comfortable; on the other end of the spectrum, the tiny tower room (Room 200) feels a bit like the crows nest of an old schooner, looking out at the ocean a half block away.

Salmon outer walls, striped window awnings, and a wrap-around porch characterize the bright and breezy resort hotel built in 1878. Brightly colored guest rooms—blue-green, dusky blue, daffodil yellow, powder pink, magenta—coordinate with floral bedspreads on white iron, four-poster, and brass beds. Antiques fill the attractive common rooms—look for the original switchboard in the main lobby and try to imagine what this inn was like when first opened. The Ocean House is one block from Spring Lake and one block from the ocean.

White columns rise skyward to the large portico at the entrance of this 1907 Georgian Revival mansion on Cape May's peaceful northern shore. Inside, the wide double staircase in the lobby continues the grandeur. Victorian-era rooms are decorated with massive carved headboards, stuffed chairs, and working fireplaces. Some baths have claw-foot tubs. The restaurant encompasses several different rooms: choose to dine by a large fireplace or on the west sunporch.

The 16-story art-deco hotel, connected to the convention center by an enclosed walkway, showcases Miss America Pageant memorabilia in display windows. A grand circular staircase leads to the Miss America–themed Shoe Bar as well as restaurants and meeting rooms. Step outside and you're on The Walk, a group of outlet stores connected by a brick path. Standard rooms are understated and bathed in earth-tones. Club rooms and suites are available with both city and bay views.

A big front porch and unusual, angular-shape guest rooms make staying here a memorable experience. Most rooms are painted in bold, solid hues, tempered by light floral bedspreads and lace curtains. Some rooms have queen-sized sleigh beds, and all have gas fireplaces. Homemade baked goods are a specialty, with breads and jam served with breakfast and fresh cookies for afternoon snacks. At breakfast, ask for the inn's version of bananas Foster—thick French toast stuffed with cream cheese, flavored with rum extract, and topped with bananas. The inn is a block from the boardwalk's south beach house and two blocks from Spring Lake.

Painted sunflower gold and edged in red, the 1867 Italianate-style inn seems to smile as you enter the gate and approach its veranda ringed by floppy-headed hydrangeas. In every Victorian-dressed hallway, a bowl of candy sits on a table. The rooms are all plastered with designer floral wallpaper, but each has a different color scheme and theme. There's grand opulence in dark green and pink for the Renaissance Room and a sedate airiness of lace and turquoise for the Turn of the Century Room. It's an upbeat place, and close to town and beach.

The only elevators in town whisk you to upper stories and spectacular views of the ocean. Ask for a room with a direct view and an extra-large whirlpool tub, or, as a second choice, a side-view room with a jet tub. Vast outdoor porches and a large freshwater pool make this hotel feel like a mansion. Both restaurants have fabulous water views.

Originally a 19th-century Victorian hotel, the Hewitt Wellington has been renovated into a more modern lakefront boutique inn. Furnishings throughout are elegant and understated—there are Victorian flourishes, but you won't find rooms plastered with jarring wallpaper. The best of the standard rooms have private porches overlooking the heated outdoor pool. Staying here puts you next to Spring Lake and three blocks from the ocean. Off the wraparound porch is Whispers restaurant, which preserves the Victorian aesthetic while serving contemporary cuisine.

The stunning Italianate mansion, one of the few large estates to survive Cape May's Great Fire of 1879, now serves as a boutique hotel. Its brightly painted rooms—robin's-egg blue, mustard yellow, deep red—are filled with Victorian antiques, such as ornate fireplace mantels and four-poster beds, as well as modern amenities like phones with data ports. Stroll along the garden path and admire the flowers, especially abundant in May, or visit in December to see the parlors decked out with Christmas trees and garlands appropriate to the Victorian era.

A modern, but warm, alternative to the typical Victorian fare, this new boutique inn and motel from the owners of Congress Hall is an understated jewel. In the motel section, ten efficiencies with kitchenettes and backyards are a boon for small families who would prefer to avoid renting a house for a week. The two carriage suites have their own decks and two bedrooms and bathrooms, ideal for couples traveling together. There's an on-site Starbucks, but guests need only hop across the street to Congress Hall for a bite to eat and even a swim. Booking a room at The Star Inn grants you pool and beach access with Congress Hall.

This modern, boutique-style hotel dotted with pools, fountains, and flowers will especially appeal to swimmers and spa aficionados, rather than gambling buffs. Adjacent to the Borgata, The Water Club is an innovative, non-gaming destination offering sweeping views of the marina and ocean. Immersion spa on the 32nd floor is a high-tech jewel, with an infinity-edge pool; deluge showers as forceful as deep-tissue massages; milk and honey cocoon floats and soaks in bourbon; and blossom and bark-filled tubs. Chef Geoffrey Zakarian (of Manhattan's Town and Country restaurants) reinvents Philly cheese steak, french fries (with truffles) and shrimp cocktail (with fresh wasabi), serving summery food and cocktails in the Sunroom lounge and poolside. Indoor pools and Jacuzzis next to the luxurious lobby are surrounded by pineapple plants, palm trees and bamboo that transport guests from the Jersey shore to the tropics.

Potted palm trees line the corridors, fountains bubble, soft beiges and yellows bathe the walls. You've traveled back to pre-Castro Cuba, or perhaps Miami, anywhere with a Caribbean breeze. That's the idea at least. With the addition of "The Quarter" entertainment complex, the Tropicana has fully embraced its tropical theme. Rooms are spread throughout four towers. In the West Tower, they're more modern and wear blue and white stripes, while in the Havana and North towers they're clothed in wallpaper and plaids. Suites feature a more subdued palette and expansive ocean views. The atmosphere here is slightly frantic and sometimes chaotic, but the hotel offers plenty of escapes from the busy casino scene, including skincare treatments, oxygen facials, and therapeutic couples massages at the Bluemercury Spa.

Open year-round, this family oriented motel has practical accommodations, an outdoor pool, a barbecue available for guest use, and a sun deck. It neighbors Congress Hall and couldn't be more different in style and attitude, but efficiency rooms (with three beds, kitchenette, and balcony) sleep up to six people. Off-season rates are an absolute steal.