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Get a bird's eye view of Atlantic City in the winter with a visit to Absecon Lighthouse. The lighthouse is the tallest lighthouse in New Jersey, as well as one of the oldest lighthouses in the United States - it was built in 1857.
The lighthouse is open all winter, making it a great place to take house-bound kids for a few hours of fun - and exercise.
A visit means climbing the 228 steps to the top of the lighthouse for a fantastic view of the Absecon Inlet and the Atlantic City Skyline. You can also anticipate learning a great deal of history, as the Absecon Lighthouse is a living monument to the proud history of southern New Jersey.
Absecon Lighthouse operators renovated the Lighthouse Museum a few years ago as well as adding a Frensel Lens Exhibit, available to all guests. The Frensel Lens Exhibit gives guests the opportunity to view Atlantic City in a way they never have before, and the museum exhibits contain photographs from the 1800s as well as information on the two contributors to the construction and development of the lighthouse - General George Meade and Dr. Jonathan Pitney.
INSIDER INFO: Be prepared to hear some ghost stories. The staff claims the lighthouse is haunted, and in 2009 the site was visited by a team of ghost hunters that couldn't reach any definitive conclusions.
WHERE: The lighthouse is located at 31 S. Rhode Island Ave. CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS.
HOURS AND COST: Admission is $7 for adults, $4 for children younger than 12, free for children 3 and younger. Dogs are welcome. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily July and August, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursdays through Mondays. Call 609-449-1360.
