Union Beach
Union Beach, NJ
Union Beach sits on Raritan Bay in this small Monmouth County borough, a modest strip of sand without a big paved lot or a boardwalk scene. Hurricane Sandy hit this town harder than almost anywhere on the bayshore in 2012, and the rebuilt beachfront still carries that history. On a clear day the Manhattan skyline is visible across the water.
A real, well used community beach with genuine Sandy recovery pride behind it, though the lack of any real parking lot and bare bones facilities keep it from being a draw beyond the immediate area.
How we score beachesThere's no real off street lot, so plan to find street parking nearby and walk in. Arrive before mid morning on summer weekends or the closest spots will already be gone.
There's no dedicated beach lot, just limited street parking in the surrounding blocks. It's free, but tightens up fast on warm weekends.
A short walk from street parking leads directly onto a flat, sandy shoreline. There's no boardwalk or paved path, so wheels of any kind will need to cross soft sand for the last stretch.
Leashed dogs are allowed on the beach only in the off season, roughly mid September through mid March; the bay side stays open to leashed dogs year round.
Bay water here warms into the mid to upper 70s by August, milder and calmer than the ocean side beaches a few miles east. Hurricane season runs June through November, worth watching given this shoreline's history with Sandy.
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