Point Pleasant, NJ

Point Pleasant's shoreline is river and canal, not an Atlantic beach or boardwalk. The borough has no ocean frontage; Point Pleasant Beach and Bay Head are separate municipalities on its eastern boundary. To the north, the Manasquan River leads through Manasquan Inlet, while the roughly two-mile Point Pleasant Canal cuts across the borough to the head of Barnegat Bay. Together those waters form the northern reach of the New Jersey Intracoastal Waterway. The canal was completed in 1924, four years after Point Pleasant became independent from Brick Township, and its two local road crossings are the Route 88 and Lovelandtown bridges. In 2020, Point Pleasant had 18,941 residents across 3.49 square miles; the July 2024 population estimate was 19,565. Everyday access to the water is distributed among small municipal sites. Riverfront Park on the Manasquan has a walking pier, picnic pavilion, bocce court, and space for fishing and crabbing; swimming is prohibited there.

River Avenue Beach, one block west of Maxson Avenue, provides a guarded swimming area during its admission season, along with a playground and picnic space. Community Park on Bridge Avenue supplies two softball fields, a full-length soccer field, a playground, a one-third-mile perimeter path, and a wooded nature trail. Borough movie nights and seasonal events also use that central park. The recreation center adds indoor and outdoor basketball, tennis courts, play equipment, programs, and picnic facilities, while McKennan Lake Field pairs local ballfields with a skate park. The borough's routine community activity is tied to river access and neighborhood parks; its neighboring beach borough holds the oceanfront attractions.