Car-Free at the Beach Will Show You Where to Find These Beaches
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CCaarr FFrreeee AAtt TThhee BBeeaacchh 22001100 EEddiittiioonn 2200 UU..SS.. BBeeaacchheess YYoouu CCaann EEnnjjooyy WWiitthhoouutt aa CCaarr TTTaaabbbllleee ooofff CCCooonnnttteeennntttsss Update for 2010 Edition .........................................................................................................3 Foreword......................................................................................................................................5 Acknowledgments.....................................................................................................................7 Introduction ................................................................................................................................8 Part 1: Getting Started Chapter 1: Four reasons to leave your car at the hotel or at home.....................................10 Chapter 2: Finding the right beach for your vacation........................................................15 Part 2: The Atlantic Coast Chapter 3: York County, Maine.........................................................................................18 Chapter 4: Provincetown, Massachusetts ..........................................................................23 Chapter 5: South County Beaches, Rhode Island ..............................................................26 Chapter 6: Block Island, Rhode Island ..............................................................................29 Chapter 7: Long Beach, New York....................................................................................32 Chapter 8: Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey ...................................................................35 Chapter 9: Rehoboth Beach, Delaware..............................................................................38 Chapter 10: Ocean City, Maryland ....................................................................................43 Chapter 11: Virginia Beach, Virginia ................................................................................47 Chapter 12: Isle of Palms, South Carolina.........................................................................51 Chapter 13: Jacksonville Beach, Florida ...........................................................................54 Part 3: The Great Lakes Chapter 14: Rochester, New York.....................................................................................59 Chapter 15: Manitowoc, Wisconsin...................................................................................64 Chapter 16: Ludington, Michigan......................................................................................67 Page 1 www.CarFreeAmerica.com CCaarr FFrreeee AAtt TThhee BBeeaacchh 22001100 EEddiittiioonn 2200 UU..SS.. BBeeaacchheess YYoouu CCaann EEnnjjooyy WWiitthhoouutt aa CCaarr Part 4: The Gulf of Mexico Chapter 17: Mississippi Gulf Coast ...................................................................................71 Chapter 18: Corpus Christi, Texas.....................................................................................76 Part 5: The Pacific Coast Chapter 19: San Diego, California.....................................................................................80 Chapter 20: Oceanside, California.....................................................................................85 Chapter 21: Northern Oregon Coast ..................................................................................91 Part 6: Puget Sound Chapter 22: Seattle, Washington........................................................................................98 A Final Word..........................................................................................................................104 About the Author..................................................................................................................105 Where to Go From Here.....................................................................................................108 Page 2 www.CarFreeAmerica.com CCaarr FFrreeee AAtt TThhee BBeeaacchh 22001100 EEddiittiioonn 2200 UU..SS.. BBeeaacchheess YYoouu CCaann EEnnjjooyy WWiitthhoouutt aa CCaarr UUUpppdddaaattteee fffooorrr 222000111000 EEEdddiiitttiiiooonnn Since our first edition, we have found three more beaches you can enjoy without needing to drive. We have added a new chapter (Chapter 17) spotlighting the Mississippi Gulf Coast. (This replaces the chapter about Cleveland and its Lake Erie beaches.) Most of us have heard about the Mississippi Gulf Coast communities of Biloxi and Gulfport, and their casinos. But few people know that these communities + the quaint community of Ocean Springs have a regional airport in Biloxi (served by Air Tran), great Gulf beaches, and Coast Transit that serves all 3 communities, the beaches, casinos, and key attractions and shopping in the area. For more information about visiting the Mississippi Gulf Coast by public transit, read Chapter 17 in this e-book. Here is some information about the other two beaches we found that you can enjoy without driving. New Jersey is well known for its beautiful beaches. Many are easily reached by commuter train or bus. However, most New Jersey beaches charge daily parking and admission fees. Wildwood, in southern New Jersey is unusual because its beaches are free to the public. Parking fees however can be costly—and parking can be hard to find on busy summer weekends. Instead, New Jersey Transit buses (www.njtransit.com) offer direct service from Philadelphia, Cape May, and Atlantic City to Wildwood. Once you arrive, the beach and many hotels are just a short walk away. For more information about Wildwood, visit www.wildwoods.com, or call the Greater Wildwood Chamber of Commerce at (609) 729-4000. Erie, PA is another option for a beach vacation where you don't need to drive. Greyhound has daily bus service to Erie. The bus stop at the multi-modal terminal, in downtown Erie, is near hotels and shopping. The terminal is also served by local public transit buses. Amtrak also stops in Erie once a day. Summer beach visitors should take the summer Water Taxi from downtown Erie to Presque Isle State Park and choose from several convenient beaches on Lake Erie. The park also offers walking tours and a variety of other activities. You can also rent bicycles at the park. Back in downtown Erie, many attractions are within walking distance. In addition, the Green Trolley operates every half hour to most downtown locations. For more details about Page 3 www.CarFreeAmerica.com CCaarr FFrreeee AAtt TThhee BBeeaacchh 22001100 EEddiittiioonn 2200 UU..SS.. BBeeaacchheess YYoouu CCaann EEnnjjooyy WWiitthhoouutt aa CCaarr visiting Erie and Presque Isle State Park, visit www.visiterie.com, or call toll-free (800) 524- Erie. Here are a few more changes in this year's edition: • We had to drop Cleveland and its Lake Erie beaches, because there are now no area beaches served by public transportation on weekends. • Our chapter about Southern York County in Maine now includes several free parking areas in Wells. (The other towns in that chapter do not have any free parking during the summer.). If you need to drive, but want to avoid traffic jams, and high gas prices, consider parking at one of those areas and using the Shoreline Express. • Corpus Christi, Texas has stopped its Harbor Ferry. However, local beaches are still served by public transportation—local buses. • The San Diego chapter has been updated. • The Northern Oregon Coast now has two daily buses from Portland's Amtrak station. (There was only one last year.) For more information about those buses, as well as local and regional public transportation along the Northern Oregon Coast, visit the following website: http://www.oregon-point.com/nw_point.html. Remember, enjoying the beach without driving does not mean you have to give up your car. It simply means that you now have the choice of leaving your car at home or at your hotel, and walking, biking, or using public transportation to enjoy the beach and the local area. Of course, if you don't own a car or don't want to drive at all, you can also use this e-book to find beaches you can reach without every driving. Now, I invite you to relax and enjoy planning your car-free beach vacation. Page 4 www.CarFreeAmerica.com CCaarr FFrreeee AAtt TThhee BBeeaacchh 22001100 EEddiittiioonn 2200 UU..SS.. BBeeaacchheess YYoouu CCaann EEnnjjooyy WWiitthhoouutt aa CCaarr FFFooorrreeewwwooorrrddd The origins of this project are in two of the best beach vacations my wife and I ever took, and neither required me to drive at all. Let me explain…About 10 years ago, my wife and I visited Virginia Beach (showcased in Chapter 11) in December, because the beach was less crowded and far less expensive than during the summer. After parking our car at our oceanfront hotel, we never used it during our two days there. We walked to restaurants, strolled along the beach, and didn't worry about traffic or crowds. The same thing happened again…In December 2006, we spent a few days in Cape May, New Jersey. We were delighted when we stayed in the historic area. The ocean, shopping, and attractions were nearly all within walking distance. One reason we had such a great time was our ability to stop driving when we were at the beach. We wondered if there were other summer beaches you could enjoy without needing to drive. We found that several beach communities make it possible to walk to the beach and at least some restaurants when you are there. However,