Unearth The Voyage
New Jersey gets a bad rap, and honestly, that just means more hidden gems for the rest of us. I packed a bag, filled up the tank, and spent a weekend zigzagging through small towns I had driven past a hundred times without stopping.
What I found was a string of charming spots, great food, and enough character to fill a travel magazine. This road trip proves you don’t need to leave the state to feel like you’ve actually gotten away.
Andover, New Jersey: Start Here, Thank Us Later
Rolling into Andover before 8 a.m. feels like cheating, because the town is yours before anyone else shows up. The Andover Diner is your first stop, and it earns every star it has never bothered asking for.
Coffee arrives fast, portions are generous, and the staff greet you like you owe them nothing except your order.
Grab a window seat and watch the town slowly wake up. There is something oddly satisfying about eating eggs in a place that has not changed its menu in decades.
After breakfast, do a quick loop around town on foot. Andover is small, which is exactly the point.
It sets the tone for the whole trip: slow down, look around, stop rushing. Once you have stretched your legs and finished that second cup of coffee, hit the road.
The best part of starting early is that the rest of the day feels like a bonus.
Sparta, New Jersey: Lake Views and Cold Beer
Sparta has a secret, and that secret is Lake Mohawk. Pull up to the water and you will immediately wonder why you have not been making this a regular stop.
The whole area has a relaxed, almost resort-town energy that sneaks up on you fast.
Krogh’s Restaurant and Brew Pub is where lunch happens, full stop. The rooftop bar alone is worth the detour.
Pub fare, house-brewed beers, and a view that makes every sip taste better than it probably deserves. I ordered a flight of beers and stayed longer than planned, which is basically the highest compliment you can pay a place.
Sparta is proof that Sussex County is wildly underrated by people who have never bothered to go north. Walk around after lunch, peek at the lake, and let yourself enjoy a town that clearly figured things out a long time ago.
Morristown, New Jersey: History Meets Really Good Burgers
Fun fact: George Washington wintered his troops in Morristown twice. The town has not rested on that story alone, though, because South Street is buzzing with restaurants, bars, and shops that have nothing to do with the Revolutionary War.
The Green is worth a slow walk before you eat. It is one of those classic town squares that makes you feel like you are in a movie where everything works out fine.
Then head to The Committed Pig, which serves burgers and brunch food that would make any historian forget they were supposed to be sightseeing.
Morristown rewards the wanderer. Every block around South Street has something worth pausing for, whether it is a coffee shop, a bookstore, or a bar with an interesting tap list.
I kept telling myself just one more block, which is exactly what the town wants you to think. It works every single time.
Chatham, New Jersey: Main Street Done Right
Chatham is the kind of town that makes you seriously reconsider your life choices, specifically the choice to live anywhere else. Main Street here is not just a street.
It is a whole mood, complete with great storefronts, leafy sidewalks, and a pace that refuses to be rushed.
Scalini Fedeli is the dinner anchor for this stop, and it absolutely delivers. Set inside a farmhouse, the upscale Italian menu is serious without being stuffy.
The pasta alone could make a grown adult emotional, and I say that from personal experience after a long day of driving.
Walk the length of Main Street before or after your meal. Chatham rewards slow movement.
Peek into the boutiques, grab a coffee somewhere cozy, and let the town do its thing. It has been perfecting this small-town charm act for years, and frankly, it has mastered the performance completely.
Westfield, New Jersey: Boutiques, Brunch, and Zero Pressure
Westfield looks like the town that other towns are trying to be. The streets are clean, the shops are interesting, and nobody is in a hurry, which is refreshing when you have been driving for hours and need to reset your brain.
Boutique browsing here is genuinely fun, not the kind of browsing where you feel guilty for touching things. The shops are approachable, the owners are friendly, and the whole strip has a polished-but-not-pretentious energy that keeps you moving at a comfortable pace.
Addams Tavern handles lunch or dinner duties with confidence. Solid food, reliable drinks, and a laid-back atmosphere that pairs perfectly with tired road-trip legs.
Named after the Addams Family, which has real Westfield roots, the place carries a bit of local lore along with its menu. Order something hearty, tip well, and enjoy the fact that you found one of Union County’s most underappreciated towns on a random weekday.
Red Bank, New Jersey: Weekend Energy, Any Day of the Week
Red Bank does not care what day of the week it is. The energy here stays dialed up regardless, and that is part of what makes it such a satisfying road trip stop.
Shops, galleries, restaurants, and bars line the main drag in a way that makes every block feel worth exploring.
Pop into a few stores, grab a coffee, and let the town set its own pace for you. Red Bank has a creative, slightly eclectic personality that separates it from the tidier towns earlier on this route.
It has grit and gloss at the same time, which is a hard combination to pull off.
The Dublin House is where you land for a pint and something hearty. Classic Irish pub energy, a solid beer list, and food that does not try to be fancy because it does not need to be.
Red Bank earns its reputation stop after stop, block after block, pint after pint.
Ocean Grove, New Jersey: The Quiet Shore Town You Overlooked
Ocean Grove is one of those places that stops you mid-step. Victorian cottages line the streets, porches are everywhere, and the whole town operates at a frequency that is noticeably calmer than the boardwalk chaos next door in Asbury Park.
Founded as a Methodist camp meeting ground in 1869, Ocean Grove still has a dry town status, which means no alcohol sales inside its borders. That sounds like a dealbreaker until you actually walk the streets and realize the vibe here does not need a bar to be special.
It just needs those incredible houses and that quiet.
Day’s Ice Cream is a long-running Shore favorite worth tracking down, though check the seasonal calendar before you go. A scoop after wandering those peaceful lanes is the right move.
Ocean Grove rewards visitors who appreciate subtlety, and it will absolutely make you want to come back with more time and fewer plans.
Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey: Quick Reset, Big Payoff
Sometimes a road trip needs a hard reset, and Point Pleasant Beach is exactly where that happens. The boardwalk snaps you back to the Shore basics: salt air, arcade sounds, and the particular joy of walking on wooden planks with nowhere specific to be.
Even a short stop here delivers. You do not need a full beach day to feel the benefit.
Twenty minutes on the boardwalk clears out whatever tension built up during the drive, and that is not a small thing when you are halfway through a multi-stop trip.
The Ark Pub and Eatery handles the food and drink portion with a big beer list and pub energy that fits the boardwalk mood perfectly. Grab a seat, order something cold, and remind yourself that New Jersey’s Shore towns are genuinely great when you stop taking them for granted.
Point Pleasant Beach never oversells itself, and that is exactly why it keeps delivering.
Beach Haven, New Jersey: Long Beach Island’s Best-Kept Pace
Long Beach Island has a personality all its own, and Beach Haven is where that personality is most concentrated. The town is small, the streets are easy to walk, and the whole place has that rare quality of feeling like a genuine shore community rather than a tourist production.
Buckalew’s Restaurant and Tavern is a classic LBI institution. It has been feeding and watering beachgoers for long enough that ordering there feels like participating in a tradition.
The food is reliable, the bar is lively, and the crowd is always a good mix of locals and people who discovered the island years ago and never fully left.
Beach Haven rewards wandering on foot. Rent a bike if you have time, or just walk the main stretch and duck into whatever looks interesting.
LBI moves slowly on purpose, and fighting that pace is the only mistake you can make here. Go slow, eat well, stay longer than planned.
Historic Smithville, New Jersey: The Charming Finale You Did Not Expect
Smithville is the road trip’s closing argument, and it makes a strong case. The village is built around cobblestone-style paths, a central pond, and clusters of small shops that sell everything from fudge to antiques.
It feels like a movie set, except it is completely real and has been here since the 1700s.
Fred and Ethel’s Lantern Light Tavern is the spot for a final meal or drink. The bar and grill vibe fits the village atmosphere without trying too hard, and after a full day of driving and wandering, a cold drink in a place this charming hits differently than it would anywhere else.
The village has multiple eateries on-site, so options are easy. Walk the paths after eating, browse a few shops, and let Smithville do what it does best: make you feel like you actually escaped.
This is the perfect final stop on a trip that proves New Jersey was always worth the detour.
Road Trip From Andover to Historic Smithville
Google Maps
This New Jersey road trip from Andover to Historic Smithville (Galloway) covers approximately 95–100 miles and takes about 2 hours to 2 hours 15 minutes of pure driving time, depending on traffic and route (typically via NJ-15, I-287, NJ-18, and the Garden State Parkway). Starting in the hills of Sussex County, you’ll pass through Sparta, known for Lake Mohawk, then head toward Morristown, home to Morristown National Historical Park.
Continuing south, stops like Chatham and Westfield offer charming downtown districts before the route bends toward the Shore. In Red Bank, a lively riverfront town on the Navesink River, the energy shifts toward coastal vibes.
From there, you travel through classic Jersey Shore communities like Ocean Grove and Point Pleasant Beach before heading inland toward Atlantic County. The journey ends at Historic Smithville, a restored village in Galloway with over 50 shops and eateries set around Lake Meone — a fitting finale to a scenic small-town escape.
