Atlantic City, of course, with its casinos and high-end resorts, is the area’s adult playground, but come summer there are plenty of activities for families. Most of the outdoor fun, of course, revolves around the Boardwalk. Our recommendation: the nightly entertainment series at historic Chicken Bone Beach in front of Boardwalk Hall. From karaoke to big bands, it’s all free, 7 p.m.-9 p.m. Monday through Friday. If you want to wear out the kids, go to world-famous Steel Pier for amusements like the Crazy Mouse Coaster, Double Decker Carousel and Flip-n-Fly Trampolines.

Margate is chiefly renowned for its pulchritudinous pachyderm, Lucy the Elephant, a favorite of kids who marvel at the fact that they can walk through this architectural oddity and peek out the window in her rear end! Lucy tours begin every 30 minutes ($6 adults, $3 kids, free for kids under 2). Margate is also known for the stretch of clubs and restaurants along the water on Amherst Avenue, including Memories Lounge with Philadelphia’s famous “Geator with the Heater,” Jerry Blavat, who spins all the old tunes (on vinyl, no less!) for fans who have followed him for decades. Go here to learn to line dance.

Ocean City. With its Boardwalk, blue laws and old-fashioned Music Pier, Ocean City prides itself on its reputation as a family resort. Experience the essential OC at this island’s annual Night in Venice, Saturday, July 19, one of the world’s largest boat parades with extravagantly decorated cabin cruisers going up and down the bay (to an appreciative audience ashore). On Saturday, August 6, check out one of Ocean City’s more whimsical events, the Miss Crustacean Hermit Crab Beauty Pageant (winner receives the coveted Cucumber Rind Cup) followed by hermit crab races.

Wildwood, as the name suggests, is a walk on the wild side, with plenty of fun for the teens, and corner clubs and bars by the score for the Saturday night party crowd. With 38 blocks of action-packed Boardwalk (and some of the biggest rollercoasters around), along with a famous broad white beach, Wildwood celebrates its pink flamingo origins with plenty of tributes to the artists of the ’50s and ’60s, a new Doo Wop Museum, and an almost non-stop schedule of summer fun, on and off the boards. Each Friday all summer long, there are fireworks on the beach, and the huge Wildwoods Convention Center welcomes entertainment from Ashlee Simpson (June 28) to the WWE (August 8).

Cape May is a must to visit for its tree-lined streets, horse-drawn carriages and fabulous 18th century architecture. This hub of Victoriana is American’s oldest seaside resort, frequented in the past by luminaries including John Philip Sousa, Diamond Jim Brady and (supposedly) Abraham Lincoln. It’s even been said that Henry Ford and Louis Chevrolet once raced their new-fangled horseless carriages on the beaches here. Today, Cape May is a beautifully restored and lovingly maintained paean to America’s Gilded Age, with pastel-colored Victorian homes on almost every street. For your visit here, start at the Physick Estate on Washington Street, where most of the island’s tours originate.

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