New Jersey has miles of shoreline starting from the state's southern most point of Cape May, known for its Victorian era architecture all the way to Keansburg, an up and coming gay friendly beach and boardwalk. However, the most gay friendly portions of the shoreline remain in the Central Jersey area, predominately in Monmouth County.
Located in Sandy Hook, this clothing optional beach is revered as one of the best established nude beaches on the East Coast of the United States. While the beach is also frequented by many straight nudists and families, the southernmost section of the beach, furthest from the parking lot, is a well known gay friendly portion of the beach popular with gay men. The actual beach provides great views of the New York City skyline. Located on federal property, there is no boardwalk and the only cost to get on the beach is to pay a fee to park your car. The parking lot is known to fill up quickly on the weekends before noon, so it is best to get there early.
Asbury Park has undergone extensive revitalization since 2000 with new restaurants and bars being built along the ocean front, largely accredited to the influx of economic development stemming from the gay community. While there is no official gay beach on Asbury's mile-long stretch of beach, the 5th Avenue Beach, located South of Convention Hall is a popular area for gay men and lesbians. In town, Paradise, at the Empress Hotel is a popular Gay club in the state, with a dance floor and a pool area with an outdoor tiki bar. There is a well established gay community in the city which hosts frequent gatherings and activities such as a rainbow bowling league and a gay and lesbian book club.
Although Belmar isn't in itself a gay beach, and does not have the large gay population that Asbury Park boasts, there is a small section of the beach at 2nd Avenue and Boardwalk that has been a historically well known gay hangout. Second Avenue is located at the boardwalks northern-most section and there are several retail establishments nearby. Belmar is much larger than Asbury and in the summer is popular with both families and at night a younger crowd who head to the local bars.
