After leaving New York City eight months earlier, we were finally back! Well, NYC-adjacent at least. Our next destination was Liberty Harbor RV Park in Jersey City, New Jersey. This RV Park is located literally on the Hudson River across from Manhattan. We could see the Statue of Liberty from the campground!
There is also a ferry that leaves for Manhattan steps away from the campground, and the Grove Street Station for the PATH Train (New Jersey’s version of a subway) was only about a 10-minute walk from the campground; you can take it to the World Trade Center Station in the Oculus in Manhattan.
Tim was very nervous about driving to the Liberty Harbor RV Park. Google maps was telling us to drive down the west side of Manhattan and through the Holland Tunnel to New Jersey, but RVs with propane tanks can’t drive through the Holland Tunnel, and we were not about to drive through Manhattan. Our RV GPS app (CoPilot GPS) was telling us to cross the George Washington Bridge into New Jersey, but we had crossed the GW Bridge many times when we lived in NYC, and we knew what a nightmare it could be because there is always a lot of traffic. Folks on the RV forums recommended instead that we cross the Hudson River on the Governor Mario M.Cuomo Bridge (formerly the Tappan Zee Bridge), which is what we did. From there, we drove south on U.S. Highway 9W, which runs adjacent to the Hudson River, to Tonnele Avenue (which we called “toenail avenue”), took a left on Route 139, and then south on Marin Street in Jersey City to the Liberty Harbor RV Park. Although we had to drive through the heart of Jersey City, it wasn’t terrible (buses must go down these streets too after all).
When we arrived at the RV Park, we found our designated RV spot a little difficult to maneuver into because the RV Park packs the RVs in like sardines. We finally made it into our spot, which was gravel. We didn’t have any of the usual RV site amenities, like a picnic table, fire pit, or grill. We had electric and water hookups, but no sewer hookups. Those who follow our blog regularly know that that means we must shower in the RV park’s shower facilities so as not to fill up our gray tank. The RV Park was a little surreal being surrounded by skyscrapers, but actually pretty nice and such a great spot to be able to get into Manhattan quickly.
On our first full day at Liberty Harbor RV Park, Tim took the PATH Train into Manhattan for an appointment with his old dentist, Dr. Yan. Afterward, Tim had lunch with some of his former co-workers (Rachel, John, Nadja, Emily, and Jocelyn). Tim had a great time catching up on the lives of these cherished co-workers and was so glad to be retired when he heard some of the current work war stories. After lunch, Tim took the subway from Wall Street into Brooklyn for an appointment with his old barber, Matthew. Tim was pleased to finally get a great haircut (although an expensive one). Tim then tried to pick up a prescription from his old Walgreens in Brooklyn, but it wasn’t ready. By this time, Pat had taken the PATH Train and then the subway into Brooklyn and was doing some reminiscing. Pat got a little home sick wandering around our old neighborhood to our old apartment.
Pat also got a haircut (from his much cheaper old barbershop) and a mani/pedi from his old nail salon. Pat was able to pick up his prescription from Walgreens and he also mailed some gifts to the grandkids. Tim caught up with Pat outside our old apartment building, and we decided to have drinks at the bar across the street called The Brooklyn Inn (we always planned to visit there often when we first moved into that apartment because it was like our Cheers bar, but we rarely did).
After a few drinks, we walked a few blocks to our favorite pizza place in Brooklyn, called Layla Jones (we used to order delivery from them at least twice a month). After pizza, we headed back to the RV Park, where Tim took the opportunity to do some laundry. That evening, there was some loud music coming from the pier parking lot adjacent to Liberty Harbor, which we were not happy about because the parking lot is supposed to be attended to by a security guard. It stopped around midnight though and we were able to get a good night’s sleep.
The next day, we took the PATH Train to Manhattan and then the subway to meet our friends Kevin and Chuck for lunch at a restaurant called Rosemary’s in the West Village. Tim had Tagliatelle Bolognese, while Pat had Branzino. After lunch, we were late meeting our friends Kenneth and Alessandro for coffee and dessert at a place called Harbs in Chelsea (the Chelsea location is now permanently closed but the SoHo location is open). After an hour we had to rush off to meet our friend Dorian for dinner at a restaurant named Joe Allen. Tim had the chicken Caesar salad, while Pat had steak frites.
Then, we were off to see the first Broadway musical on our schedule, "Some Like it Hot"! This was a musical of the famous movie by the same name, but the story took a twist from the movie. J. Harrison Ghee won the Tony for the Best Leading Actor in a Musical and was inspiring to watch. We love musicals with big dance numbers and this one had several!
On our last full day at Liberty Harbor RV Park, Tim took the PATH Train into Manhattan for an appointment with his old dermatologist, Dr. Leo. After his appointment, Tim got a passport photo made because he needed to get his name changed on his passport. Tim then went to a UPS Store to print out some paperwork and had lunch at his favorite Chinese Restaurant in Times Square called China River (Tim had his usual wonton soup and cashew chicken). Meanwhile, Pat tried taking the PATH Train into Manhattan in the early afternoon because we had tickets to see the matinee of a Broadway musical called "Shucked". Frustratingly, the PATH Train stopped running because of an incident near the destination station in Manhattan and it looked as if Pat was not going to make it into Manhattan for the matinee. Tim went on ahead to the theatre and by some miracle, Pat was able to take a ferry into Manhattan instead and make it to the theatre on time.
We enjoyed seeing "Shucked", which was a super corny (pun intended) newer musical on Broadway about a small town that is surrounded by the corn that they grow. When the corn stops growing, hilarity ensues as they try to find a solution. Alex Newell won the Tony for Best Featured Actor in a Musical but sadly was not at this performance, but the understudy did a fantastic job. It was a fun show to experience, and we are glad we both got the opportunity to see it.
After the show, we met friends at a bar called Boxer’s in Hell’s Kitchen. We had sent out a Facebook invitation to about a dozen people to meet us there, and were thrilled to see Dorian, Michael, David, Derek, Jacob, Jim, Ben, Bill, Allen, and Matty there. Sadly, we were having so much fun we forgot to take pictures! We spent several hours catching up with these friends and then headed back to Liberty Harbor RV Park just before the PATH Train stopped running for the night.
We had a very nostalgic trip to NYC via New Jersey. There are many people and things we miss about living in NYC. We decided then that we would have to return every year (RV or not) because it is a place we called home for so long.
Review of Liberty Harbor RV Park
Located in Jersey City, New Jersey, adjacent to the Hudson River across from downtown Manhattan, Liberty Harbor RV Park is the only RV park located this close to Manhattan. You can see the Statue of Liberty from the RV park. Surrounded by high rise buildings in Jersey City, the RV Park is also only a few blocks away from the Grove Street PATH Train Station, where you can catch a train into Manhattan.
There are approximately 84 RV sites that accommodate RVs up to 45 feet long. RV sites have electrical and water hookups, but no sewer hookups (a dump station is provided). The RV sites have no other amenities such as picnic tables, fire pits, or grills (there isn’t room for these as the RVs are packed in close to each other). There are also 12 sites available for tent camping, with no hookups.
Other amenities include a laundry facility and restroom/shower facility. We found these facilities to be fairly clean and convenient. There are also restaurants next to the RV park, or easy access to restaurants and bars in Jersey City. Of course, the biggest plus about Liberty Harbor RV Park is that it is easy to get into Manhattan on either the ferry or PATH Train. There you will find all that New York City has to offer!
Liberty Harbor RV Park is a bit expensive, but you would pay much more staying in a hotel in Manhattan (or Jersey City for that matter). We were pleased that it was so convenient to New York City, and we would definitely consider staying here again.
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