Love visiting Rutgers Gardens through the seasons! If you come in fall, don't expect much in bloom,…read morebut this place is wonderful to hike and stroll through with its various paths. If you visit in spring or summer, get ready for stunning flora and fauna that is cared for by Rutgers staff and students. I adore the lilacs that's smell delicious and envelope a walkway like a natural ceiling. So amazing! Also, I adore the wide open fields and spaces that lend themselves perfectly for a picnic or spot to lay down a blanket and enjoy a nap out in the open. PS. Very romantic spot- if you're coming here for a date, you will not be disappointed!

Really this should be a 4.5 but I rounded up to five to encourage people to come. Really worth it!…read more So let me tell you the negatives first, some of which were covered by some other reviewers. First, there are ticks and you should spray before you start. Second, the directions to get off Route 1 to the gardens is confusing, even for someone from New Jersey who is used to jug handles, but you'll get there eventually. Third, you can hear the traffic from route 1 as you walk through various parts of the gardens and the adjacent woods. And fourth, some toilets are in sad shape. To me, no showstoppers but more you should be aware. Best thing is to print out a map of Rutgers Gardens and Helyar Woods first. It's good to have with you as you walk about although signs are about. This is a really a beautiful garden set out in a very approachable way. Well documented and you can use those maps so you can find and explore the Asian Hill garden, Holly Collection, the Succulent Gardens and, my favorite, the Bamboo Grove. All in all there are 23 gardens and 8 structures, most of which are research sites. The gardens are adjacent to the Helyar Woods. The woods has 7 viewpoint spots and 5 marked trails ranging in length from 0.4 MI to 1.6 MI. Within the forest is a forested wetland, a meadows, a pine grove and just plain old Forest. Most of the trees are old-growth beech, birch, maple and oak trees. It's really wonderful. Note the gardens are closed on Mondays.

As someone who has lived in New Jersey my whole life and visited many parks and gardens, I can…read morehonestly say Deep Cut Gardens was one of the most beautiful places I've experienced in the state. We visited on a sunny day in early May around 11:30 AM. Not everything was fully in bloom yet, but the greenery, trees, shrubs, and gardens were absolutely beautiful and created such a peaceful, serene atmosphere. Parking is a bit limited, but we were able to find a spot fairly quickly. The grounds were easy to walk, beautifully maintained, and full of great photo spots. I also loved the maze garden area and the small reading/sunroom space, which added such a charming touch. I even saw people having picnics, and it immediately made me want to come back and do the same. Only small thing to note: we did notice some poison ivy in certain areas, so just be mindful. Overall, easy to get to, peaceful, and absolutely worth visiting. Already looking forward to coming back in June when everything is in full bloom.

You'll like this spot whether you're a plant expert or a casual observer like me who may need to…read moreuse "Shazam for plants" to identify garden croton. There's plenty to see outdoors, including a twisty tree and a koi pond, but when open, the showstopper is the greenhouse, with cacti and much more. And it's free!

Very nice and well informed staff. A little boring for older kids/preteens but still a nice space…read morethat could use a little updating.

This planetarium was nice. The kids enjoyed the presentations in the dome the best. They also…read moreenjoyed the cafeteria! They could use some updating to the museum/information area to make it more engaging to visitors.

Museum always a has interesting things on exhibit. Exhibits change throughout the year so it's…read morealways nice to come back and see what's on exhibit. Right now it's Treasures of Middlesex County. Very interesting to see all the objects

After passing the Cornelius Lowe House virtually every day for the past 6 years, I finally made a…read moreconscious decision to try and visit. About 6 months later, based on my gf's suggestion we finally visited. I expected that this historical house would be full of historical furniture or reenactors or something old timey. However, this was not the case. The house actually serves as a small rotating museum exhibition space. During our visit, they had an exhibit on NJ Diners. There are only two floors of the house so it isn't a huge museum by any means. The exhibit took about an hour for me to read through everything and I though it was pretty interesting. I'm not sure how often they rotate the exhibits out but I'd certainly come back when they do. The house was unexpectedly air conditioned. The self guided tour was totally free. Also, the workers seemed really friendly. The only hitch is parking is confusing. The main driveway is a super narrow and scary road right off of River Road. Don't go in here. Parking is actually plentiful behind the house, which is in the lot of the visitor center on Rutgers Busch Campus. Some signs showing where to park would have been helpful.

It's a nice little storefront satellite site of the Monmouth museum. It's very small they had a…read morespace for the main exhibition which when I was there was the Cardboard Show I'm assuming it will change every couple of months. Then they have a second space for kids activities. It's not bad for a quick stop in and look at the main exhibition if you are a adult it literally will take 5 minutes for that. There's more to do if you have kids here as they have a activity center for them. It's worth a visit if you are the area

This New Jersey Historic Site sits amid a very residential area. It's scenic and dare I say,…read moreromantic. The views of the water and Manhattan in the distance, it's a great place to sit on a nice day. The grounds and buildings are beautifully kept. Not run down at all. The information placards, however, are weathered and some are hard to read.

Beautiful place to visit. Took me about 2 hrs each way. It was a beautiful day to climb the towers…read moreand look at the beautiful views. The museum was small but cute. Grounds were nice as well. They have a cute little store to visit and purchase some souvenirs. Cost $5 to climb the towers. If you're in the area and looking for something to do, this is definitely a place to check out.

FLEMINGTON/RINGOES: the Black River & Western Railroad is a dog friendly historic train ride that…read moretravels between Flemington and Ringoes. You can board at either station and travel to the next with peaceful views of the Hunterdon County countryside. Dogs are allowed on the "Black River Limited" rides. The roundtrip ride is about 30 minutes one-way with a 20 minute stop where you can disembark and take a look around, then 30 minutes back. The train runs rain or shine and it was a bit rainy during our excursion and didn't impact the enjoyment. There is no air conditioning and the windows are open to get air in the summer. The Ringoes station has a cute gift shop and some photo opportunities with an old caboose. (There is also a museum, but it is temporarily closed for renovations.). Thank you to their employee, Diana, for inviting us to participate in this unique experience. And, thank you to Maddielyne, a member of the train crew for chatting with us about Brie and sharing the history of the train and the area. If your dog is sensitive to noise, the train is loud riding over the tracks and the train horn blares frequently for safety precautions. Official pet friendly rules: "Are pets allowed? Well-behaved, leashed dogs are invited to ride the Black River Limited train at the conductor's discretion. We do ask that pet parents please make every effort to clean up after their pet for the convenience of our train crew. We recommend bringing a towel for your pet to sit on and other necessary supplies. Service animals are not considered pets and are permitted in all areas where customers are allowed."

We started our journey at Ringoes station wherein there's a museum, gift shop, restrooms, ticketing…read moreoffice and parking lot. Be sure to come early because they have limited parking space and also have time to explore the station. Here you can learn about the history of the Black River and Western Railroad on how they came to be. For me, it's really worth starting your journey in this station. You won't regret it plus more information about the railroad. Experience the view of scenic Hunterdon County by rail from the historic Black River and Western Railroad. Staffs are nice and special mention to the following people who really made our memorable historical trip: Terry, ticket agent of Ringoes Bill, conductor Joseph, train man who gave wonderful history of the railway Thanks a lot to all ,the wonderful staffs of BRW.

This place was amazing. Nice size, free, staff are officers and they're friendly. Everything is…read moredisplayed in an organized way and descriptive. They even have a crime scene simulator

When I was a child I went to the New Jersey State Police Museum, and a recent Monday I decided to…read morecheck it out again. The museum is located on the NJ State Police Headquarters campus (base?) so to get to the museum you need to stop at the guard house, show your ID and get a visitor's pass. Then it is just a short ride up the road and a right and you are looking at the parking lot. There is ton of parking (for buses too). Walk directly across the lot and there is the museum. There is no cost for the museum. When I arrived around 11 I was the first visitor of the day, so the Trooper in the museum chatted with me a bit and turned on some of the videos for me. They do require you to sign into their guest book that you came. I spent about 2 hours walking around the museum reading all the exhibits. I didn't watch all the videos and I didn't play with some of the interactive ones. And that was just me alone. If you are a history buff, love NJ or law enforcement, or like the off-the-beaten path places you should check this place out. There are two parts of the museum there is the new part which has most of the exhibits. But the older museum is a replicate of the log cabins that were used by the NJSP for many years. I believe they do lectures in there for groups, but they also have a number of vehicles that have been used over the years. I did spend a lot of time reading about the officers who lost their lives in the line of duty and paying my respects at the memorial garden right outside the museum. While there is no gift shop inside the museum, in the parking lot there is a trailer with a shop in it. There was a LOT of NJSP sweatshirts, t-shirts, and other apparel. They accept credit card. Proceeds go to the Former Troopers Family Foundation.