“Be warned, at the end you’ll hear bird sounds, and cool water will rain down,” said Stephanie Vanwold, a Salt Spa staffer, as she prepared to leave me to the shimmering, private Turkish bath. I was visiting the Salt Spa at The Reeds at Shelter Haven in Stone Harbor, curious to try something new.
Step one of the 45-minute experience was to exfoliate my arms and legs with spoonfuls of Himalayan salt, then rinse with warm water from one of the handheld showerheads that dot the room.
Next: mud, beautifully displayed in chunky smudges alongside flowers on a tray, with golden cursive instructions indicating where to put each mud type—face, chest, stomach, back, and arms and legs.
Once finished, I likely looked like an earth-toned zebra wandering the mist-filled room to the sound of soft piano music. As the medicinal muds worked their magic to purportedly boost my immune system, relieve muscle tension and remove toxins from my body, I grabbed a towel and laid back on a bench to watch the twinkling Swarovski crystal night “sky” dance with color. I’ll admit that after about 30 minutes of relaxed listening and light-gazing, I multitasked with a few Pilates stretches.
And then the birds sounded as cool water rained from the ceiling to rinse me of the muds. By the time I reached the locker room to get dressed, I realized: one, my skin felt smooth as butter, and two, this is not your average mid-Atlantic beach vacation experience. Then again, this 7-mile barrier island off New Jersey’s southern coast is full of unique experiences.
Quieter and smaller than Ocean City, New Jersey, to the north, and Cape May, their famous neighbor to the south, the bike-friendly towns of Avalon and Stone Harbor are known for surfable waves and well-groomed sand, ball fields, court-filled recreation areas and high-end real estate. (Home values here average $2.3 million or more, according to Zillow.)
The island also boasts a stretch of maritime forest teeming with migrating butterflies and rare shorebirds (such as the American oystercatcher and piping plover), and the 21½-acre Stone Harbor Bird Sanctuary, a popular spot for herons and a National Park Service national landmark.
Of the two towns, Avalon’s architecture is a bit more modern, with a nice selection of shops and restaurants occupying a blocks-long swath of Dune Drive. Stone Harbor’s vibe is more “quintessential shore town,” with brick buildings, storefronts tucked in alleyways, and several unique shops and cafes. A very young Taylor Swift occasionally played the guitar at Coffee Talk when her family summered in Stone Harbor (photos on its wall offer proof).
In recent years, a trio of boutique hotels—two oceanfront, one bayside—debuted in a lodging landscape once dominated by lovely rental homes (many quite large), condos and a smattering of mom-and-pop motels. The new properties have broadened the vacation options here, from shorter stays to a beach week that begins and ends on a Tuesday, for example, to avoid heavy traffic on busy turnover days for rental homes.
When there’s no traffic, the towns are an easy drive, about four hours from Arlington. In traffic? All bets are off. (The Cape May-Lewes Ferry can be the better option during peak travel times.)
Beachside Sunrise
Sipping coffee on a balcony at daybreak and then taking a decadent midday nap while a salty beach breeze wafts through the room is my definition of a dream beach getaway. You can have that and more at the oceanfront Icona Avalon, a 159-room hotel that opened in 2016 as a partial rebuild. The decor feels like a cross between a Cape Cod inn and a high-end Nantucket beach home done up in sea blues and white with nautical touches throughout.
The hotel offers more than a dozen room types, from small studios to suites that can accommodate up to eight guests. Every room features custom furniture, Carrara marble in the bathroom, pillowtop mattresses, a flat-screen television, compact fridge, microwave, Keurig coffeemaker and a balcony or a terrace. Depending on the room type, you might also find custom headboards, sofa sleepers, glass showers, a galley kitchen with natural stone countertops, and various balcony and terrace configurations. Some East Wing rooms and suites have balconies close to the ocean and dunes but visible to one another, while the West Wing’s ocean-facing rooms are set farther back with angled balconies that are a bit more private.
Outdoor perks include umbrellas and lounge chairs set up on the beach, a large heated pool and spa pool, and a sundeck with luxury cabana rentals, plus an alfresco bar that is often the site of live music. Complimentary Starbucks coffee and a selection of teas are set out each morning at Shimmers Bistro near a cozy sitting area. The on-site Avalon Brew Pub serves up craft beers, including their namesake IPAs, Belgian-style beers and a pale lager, all brewed in-house to go along with the pub-style menu.
Sister-property Icona Windrift, which Icona bought and renovated in 2021, also features crisp nautical decor, with a dozen more room types, plus three- and four-bedroom condos.
Behind Windrift’s all-glass, ocean-facing facade are many ways to dine with an ocean view. Avalon Prime, a high-end steak house, is a Wine Spectator Award winner. A signature lounge with piano bar-inspired ambience stages live music. Other on-site eateries offer brick oven pizza, fresh sushi, a wide selection of beers, live sports on flat-screen TVs, and sweeping ocean views on levels two and three. Outdoors, enjoy a drink on a poolside lounge near the Tiki Bar.
The two Icona properties are Avalon’s only beachfront hotels. Situated at the town’s southern end, they are about a mile’s stroll to Stone Harbor’s town center. Leave the car and take the complimentary shuttle, which runs throughout the island between 9 a.m. and 10 p.m.
Bayside Sunset
On the bay side, The Reeds at Shelter Haven in Stone Harbor manages to cater to both serenity seekers and families, thanks to fun activities that keep kids occupied and the decision not to book weddings in the summer months. Voted New Jersey’s Best Hotel in 2019 by Condé Nast Traveler readers, the 58-room boutique hotel opened in 2013 with 37 rooms, then added the two-story Salt Spa wellness center and 21 additional coastal chic rooms in 2019.
“We have many guests who book a week here instead of their former rental home,” says Diane Wade, The Reeds’ guest services manager. “They like the ease of all the activities and not having to pack linens.”
Here, the lineup of things to do includes complimentary yoga in the roof garden, paddleboarding and kayaking on the bay, live music, and trivia nights in the nautical-themed Crew Room. The hotel’s beach concierge service drives guests the couple-blocks walk it would be to the beach, then sets up chairs, towels and umbrellas. Beach butlers serve a complimentary sweet treat (such as frozen pops or ice cream) in the afternoon, and deliver other sustenance ordered from The Reeds’ beach menu.
Get out on the water in The Reeds at Sea boat, which is available to rent by the hour and comes complete with a captain to navigate around the back bays while passengers nibble on snacks. Or play at Island Water Sports, an aqua park next door to The Reeds with floating inflatables ready for climbing, WaveRunner rentals and tubing parties for kids.
Indoors, the Salt Spa, with its treatment rooms, Turkish bath and “brine lounge” (a light-therapy room with a waterfall), makes for a peaceful escape.
A partnership with Stone Harbor Recreation offers kids the opportunity to play baseball, soccer, T-ball, flag football and peewee soccer, or go crabbing and fishing. Willow Creek Winery and Avalon Golf Club packages round out The Reeds’ offerings.
After an active (or not) day, catch the sunset with a cocktail at The Reeds’ open-air Water Star Grille, then have a date night at the elegant SAX restaurant and its convivial lounge. Order a mezze plate to start, then try the pan-roasted Scottish salmon filet with beluga black lentils, white asparagus, and sauteed kale and spinach. Leave room for the delicious chocolate brownie bites left on the nightstand during turndown service.
Rooms and suites feature white oak floors, Egyptian cotton linens, wonderfully smooshy pillows (plus firmer options) and Frette bathrobes. The two-bedroom, two-bathroom Salt Suite, located in the newer building’s third-floor turret, has a living room with a fireplace.
Where to Eat
Fred’s Tavern & Liquor Store, a favorite with locals and regular visitors, is prized for its friendly bartenders and an eclectic menu with options ranging from Asian lettuce wraps to a great selection of salads and burgers, including a delicious patty melt with sweet potato fries. The liquor store is next door to the tavern. Date night haunts include seafood-focused The Diving Horse and Spiaggetta for Roman-inspired cuisine.
For a light breakfast, grab coffee, tea and a bagel at Café Noir, or pop in to Pure Juice + Kitchen for an all organic and mostly locally sourced menu of teas, superfood lattes and smoothies, handcrafted toasts and breakfast bowls. Try the Apple Spice Oatmeal Bowl, made with oats, almond butter, apples, maple syrup, and pumpkin and hemp seeds. Browse the Sunday morning Stone Harbor Farmers Market at Water Tower Plaza for fresh seafood, flowers, produce, baked goods and specialty spices.
A trip to Stone Harbor is incomplete without a sweet treat from Springer’s Homemade Ice Cream. Its abundant list of flavors includes chocolate- and vanilla-based choices along with a few twists, like butter almond. Also worth a taste: banana peanut butter and, when available, the Christmas in July “Buddy’s Breakfast,” which blends cookie dough ice cream with marshmallows, rainbow jimmies, fudge swirl and mini Pop-Tarts pieces (maple syrup optional).
Where to Shop
While there are a handful of popular brand stores—Vineyard Vines in Avalon, Anthropologie and Life Is Good in Stone Harbor—many shops are independently owned and reflective of the proprietors’ talents and tastes. At Blue Eden’s side-by-side Sea Foam Soap Co. and Just BE Candle Co. stores find intoxicatingly scented soy candles, and soaps and lotions made from goat milk and honey, all crafted in Stone Harbor. This summer you can make a candle in Blue Eden workshops at The Reeds at Shelter Haven hotel.
Move on from olfactory shopping to taste-testing premium imported extra virgin olive oils and aged balsamic vinegars at The Well Dressed Olive. Then “think outside the pot,” as Wayward Gardener describes its wares—plants plus eclectic Zen-themed gifts, multicolored capiz shell strands and more. Head to Hoys 5 & 10 for beach gear, toys, surf apparel and souvenirs. Pick up a good beach read at Avalon’s indie bookstore Beach Bound Books or Stone Harbor’s Barrier Island Books & Art.
Where to Connect with Nature
Pick your pleasure from the many offerings at The Wetlands Institute, whether it’s one of their Salt Marsh Safari tours led by a naturalist, attending a “creature feature” to learn about turtles and horseshoe crabs up close, or donning waders and helping drag a seine through the water to find shrimp, fish and other aquatic life. Chat up one of the warm and welcoming staff members to learn about the osprey nests, and don’t miss the walking bridge over the marsh, rooftop tower overlook, or the gift shop full of clever nature-themed items.
Before European settlement and development, mid-Atlantic barrier islands were largely covered with maritime forests that gradually gave way to shrub forests, then meadows, grasses, dunes and finally the beach. Walk the Avalon Dune and Beach Trail to explore one of the few remaining forests of this kind.
Where to Stay
Icona Avalon, 7849 Dune Drive, Avalon, New Jersey, 609-551-0101. Rates begin at $529.
Icona Windrift, 105 80th St., Avalon, New Jersey, 609-368-5175. Rates begin at $529.
The Reeds at Shelter Haven, 9601 Third Ave., Stone Harbor, New Jersey, 609-368-0100. Rates begin at $524.
Christine Koubek Flynn reports on what is new and notable in mid-Atlantic travel in our Get Away column. Her stories have also appeared in The Washington Post and Coastal Living among others, and she teaches writing workshops at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda.