For adventure seekers and wanderers who intend to expand their travel portfolio in 2024, the Garden State offers a host of exciting new experiences from the shore to the mountains to bustling city centres. With milestone event anniversaries, and new and renovated accommodations, restaurants and attractions, travellers have every reason to visit the Garden State throughout the seasons.
2024 Milestones
The Stone Pony Turns 50
Asbury Park is the Jersey Shore’s heart of culture and music, and The Stone Pony is at the centre of it all. This iconic live-music venue opened its doors in 1974 and has played a key role in launching the careers of some of New Jersey’s greatest and most famous musicians, from Bruce Springsteen to Jon Bon Jovi. With 50 years of memories displayed on the walls, The Stone Pony has an exciting events calendar for their big anniversary year, including The Stone Pony Summer Stage.
The Sopranos Series Commemorates 25 Years on TV
Considered one of the most essential television dramas of all time, The Sopranos is a New-Jersey based TV show that aired from 1999 – 2007. With most of the scenes taking place in North Jersey, On Location Tours is offering a Sopranos sites tour leaving from New York City and traveling through New Jersey. The tour visits major sites that were used in filming the show, such as Cozzarelli’s, Car Wash, Searchlight Diner and St. Cecilia’s Church, all of which were locations for major scenes as seen in the series. Get off the bus for a fun stop at Holsten’s (where the final scene of the last episode was shot) and feel free to order some onion rings! Guests can even sit in Tony’s booth for a nostalgic photo.
New Accommodations
Pendry Natirar
Natirar, the former home of the late King of Morocco located in Somerset County, New Jersey, will be expanded to feature a luxury boutique hotel called Pendry Natirar. The grand, Tudor-style,33,000-square-foot estate hotel is set among scenic trails and pathways on 400 acres of protected land along the north branch of the Raritan River in Somerset County, New Jersey. The hotel will feature 66 guest rooms and suites; 24 contemporary countryside Pendry Residences, 13,000 square feet of indoor meeting and event space, Ninety Acres, a distinguished farm-to-table restaurant and cooking school; a full-service Spa Pendry including an extensive health and wellness curriculum, fitness centre, swimming pool and tennis courts; a private membership club, and a variety of classic and unique outdoor activities to be discovered throughout the property.
Madison Resort Wildwood Crest to Open as the Largest Resort Hotel in Cape May County
Available for bookings in July, the 196-room Madison Resort Wildwood Crest combines the 54-year-old Royal Hawaiian Motel, acquired by Madison Resorts in December 2023, and Oceanview Motel, acquired in 2022, to become the largest resort hotel in Cape May County. The Jersey Shore property now includes a myriad of amenities, including three restaurants, two pools, two hot tubs, two fitness centres, five conference rooms and two rooftop event spaces. Madison Resort Wildwood Crest’s renovations have preserved the history and appeal of the mid-century Doo Wop heritage in the Doo wop Motel District, officially recognized as the “Wildwoods Shore Resort Historic District.”
Graduate Princeton to Open in Mercer County
Graduate Princeton is set to open in Princeton in June 2024. Created for travellers who seek memory-making journeys. Graduate Princeton allows guests to be immersed in local history, legends and Tiger traditions, as creative interiors and college nostalgia come together for a stay that’s undeniably Princeton. Located in the city’s historic district, steps from the Princeton University campus, the hotel is a perfect base for exploring this Ivy League destination.
Savannah Sunset Resort and Spa Opening at Six Flags Great Adventure
Now accepting reservations for bookings beginning on June 14, Savannah Sunset Resort and Spa is an African glamping experience that sits within Six Flag’s Wild Safari, providing panoramic views of open land and over 1,200 animals originally from six continents. A stay at Savannah Sunset grants access to all three Six Flags Great Adventure theme parks with VIP packages available at additional costs. Each luxury glamping suite has a private bathroom and access to outdoor entertainment, fire pits, restaurant & bar service, spa services, event space and more.
Nobu Hotel Caesars Atlantic City Now Open
After much anticipation, Nobu Hotel Caesars Atlantic City opened in January and further positioned the city as a leading travel destination on the East Coast. Nobu Hotel Atlantic City is part of Caesars’ $400 million investment into the destination, including the Nobu restaurant which opened in Atlantic City in 2022. The 82 rooms and suites within Caesars Atlantic City sit on the Centurion Tower’s top three floors and are designed in neutral tones complimented by subtle Japanese nuances and sleek, modern touches. New & Renovated Attractions
New attractions
Edelman Fossil Park Museum to Open this Summer
Rising from a former marl quarry in Mantua Township, Rowan University’s Jean & Ric Edelman Fossil Park Museum will be a world-class destination inspired by the deep-time perspective that the fossil record offers. With an expected summer opening, the museum will attract an estimated 200,000+ guests per year. Set into a 65-acre landscape, the museum will perch above the quarry where a 66-million-year-old marine and terrestrial fossils record the last moments of the dinosaur world. The museum will feature immersive exhibits galleries, full-scale reconstructions of extinct creatures, hands-on learning experiences, live animal attractions, virtual reality and more. Featuring geothermal, water-source heat pump heating and cooling systems, as well as a photovoltaic solar field, the museum will be New Jersey’s largest public net-zero facility.
American Dream Welcomes New Entertainment Facilities
American Dream, the second-largest mall in North America, spans 3 million-square-feet in East Rutherford. Known for its indoor theme park, waterpark, ski slope, surf attraction, high-end luxury stores and dining, this year American Dream is welcoming several new entertainment facilities to the mix: New Jersey Hall of Fame, Skip Barker Karting Academy, Sesame Street Learn & Play Educational Play Centre and The Gameroom Powered by Hasbro.
New rides at Six Flags Great Adventure
Celebrating its 50th year, Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, launches new rides this year THE FLASH: Vertical Velocity coaster is the first super boomerang coaster to open in North America. This ride will rush you forward and backward at nearly 60 miles per hour through a 180-degree twisted drop and zero-G roll, then it will change direction and you will speed off backward. Saw Mill Log Flume is a family friendly flume ride which cruises down a winding water course through the trees before plunging 4 stories down into refreshing, free-flowing water.
New Arts & Culture Experiences
Walk Through History at Morven Museum & Garden in Princeton
A National Historic Landmark, Morven Museum & Garden is honouring their twentieth anniversary by showcasing rarely exhibited objects and newly discovered photographs with “Morven Revealed: Untold Stories from New Jersey’s Most Historic Home.” On view from April 28, 2024 – March 2, 2025, the exhibition will take a thematic look at what was once a home to George Washington and five New Jersey governors, explaining the role Morven has played in the history of New Jersey and the nation for more than 250 years.
Montclair Art Museum Opened “100 Years of Black Art” Exhibit
Running until July 7, the Montclair Museum of Art is showcasing Century: 100 Years of Black Art at MAM. The largest of its kind in the Museum’s history, this exhibition celebrates the dramatic growth of MAM’s collection of works by Black artists. Ranging from James Van Der Zee’s historic photograph Black Red Cross March, Harlem (1924), to Nanette Carter’s Destabilizing #2 (2022), the show features the depth, breadth and variety of art by African Americans during the past century.
For more information on New Jersey’s upcoming events, please visit www.visitnj.org.