The algorithm has been working overtime down the Shore, with influencers riding those waves of attention.
There was Philly mom influencer Cait Vogel, whose video of herself walking to the beach in Sea Isle complaining about her $10,000 rental — where she still had to bring sheets, toilet paper, and her own coffee — went viral on TikTok and landed her in the New York Post (while still on vacation with her parents, she noted in a later post). She also lamented that despite her usually carefully curated posts, the one that went viral featured her in an oversized faux-bikini T-shirt.
“Basically, we’re paying $10,000 to camp,” she said to what grew to more than 600,000 views. The post sparked debate on Jersey Shore rental prices and comparison vacations. (See our annual take on that discussion here.)
Besides Vogel, this summer’s breakout influencers included Indy Atlantic City, who chronicles life on the Atlantic City Boardwalk, with regular updates on A.C. Batman. There’s Destiny Benway, whose amusing day in the life of a Jersey Shore lifeguard features an awkward, blurred-out interview with her beach patrol standmate, also her ex.
And working hard with videos of himself standing in a clear and sparkling ocean in Lavallette is Jersey Shore Marcus.
Consider me influenced; be right back after a dip in the ocean.
Meanwhile, there’s a luau update. Last week, we talked about the Deauville Inn canceling its annual luau because of a complaint by a neighbor. The Deauville, which dates to 1881 but has been under new ownership since 2019, characterized it as a “premature noise complaint.”
However, Upper Township’s administrator, James Van Zlike, tells me the township planning board limited the Inn in 2021 to six outdoor live musical events a year, and those are restricted to Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day weekends. So the luau, as advertised, would have potentially been in violation of that resolution.
Van Zlike says there was a complaint made to the township, but that the Inn canceled last week’s event on its own. Neighbors, meanwhile, are furious about the Deauville’s widely shared Facebook post, which they say unfairly puts the spotlight on them, not the Deauville. (The Deauville’s promise to give refunds and “Karen Krush” drinks to ticket holders also didn’t help.)
📮 With time running out on Summer 2026 (but not until Sept. 7, practically Halloween), we’re pivoting from complaints and looking for solutions. What are some of the ways you would fix the Shore? Be specific! Let me know by replying to this email and I’ll include your most interesting responses in a future newsletter and possibly an Inquirer story.
Have ideas or news tips about the Shore or this newsletter? Send them to me here.
🌊 Forecasters like NorEaster Nick were side-eyeing Tropical Storm Cristobal way out in the central subtropical Atlantic.
— Amy S. Rosenberg (Follow me @amysrosenberg, on Instagram at @amysrosenberg. 📧 Email me here.)
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Shore talk
🐟 A dearth of Atlantic menhaden may be behind a decline in osprey offspring and some osprey deaths.
🏖️ Strathmere residents told council they oppose the proposed $10 beach tags. “We are not an elitist community.”
🦋 Planting native species is gaining popularity. Terri Akman explains how Jersey Shore gardeners do it.
🚰 Cape May, Woodbine water systems were targeted in a cyber attack.
🎡 Ocean City community groups have filed suit challenging the designation of the old Wonderland Pier as an area in need of rehabilitation.
🏀 New York Knicks star and Philly native Mikal Bridges is fighting with Avalon’s floodplain manager over whether he can store gym equipment in his Shore house garage.
💸 Bart Blatstein’s Showboat Hotel is under threat of foreclosure after a lender sued to recoup $13.4 million in debt.
📈 The African American Heritage Museum of Southern New Jersey received a $100,000 donation from the Mack family to hire an executive director and move into a larger space in the Tanger Outlets in Atlantic City.
What to eat/What to do
🍔 Michael Solomonov of Zahav and Federal Donuts fame got maybe a bit carried away by his cheeseburger and called the Margate Burger Bar “the best restaurant in America.” (The veggie burger is great, too.)
🍦 Richman’s Ice Cream is throwing a block party Saturday in Brigantine. Mojoz Gummicone, the first cone designed for water ice, will be there.
🛟 The South Jersey Lifeguard Championships are Friday in Avalon, featuring the debut of the newly renamed Murray Wolf Singles Row in memory of the legendary Beach Patrol chief.
🎸 Phish is returning to Atlantic City this fall.
🎹 Atlantic City’s events this weekend feature a lot of musical nostalgia, including the Marshall Tucker Band at Borgata; Howard Jones, Wang Chung, the English Beat, and Modern English, also at Borgata; Widespread Panic at Hard Rock; and the Stray Cats at Ovation Hall. Melvin Seals, who played organ in the Jerry Garcia Band, will be at Tropicana.
Shore snapshot
🧠 Trivia time
I stumped everyone last week with the shower question. The current price for a shower at Daytrippers in North Wildwood is $7 for an adult, $3 for kids (up from $5 a few years ago).
This week’s question: Avalon used to round up underaged drinkers in a white school bus until a judge ordered them not to. Was the bus nicknamed:
A. The Magic Bus
B. The Teen Tram
C. The Sober Van
D. The Call Your Parents Express
If you think you know the answer, email me here. If you ever rode on this vehicle, also email me. First one gets a shout-out in next week’s newsletter.
Ask Down the Shore
A reader asked what effect all the teardowns of smaller cottages were having on the Shore. We asked our Shore Line texters. Here’s a sampling of the replies, lightly edited.
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The classic old shore homes are disappearing. It is sad. Most of the new homes look alike. We should try to protect the old charm. It can’t be replicated.
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The shore is already overbuilt and has been for years. Adding ginormous sized houses only depletes the natural resources that make the shore unique. When my family drove to the shore when I was a kid in the ’60s you could smell the sea air before you could see anything that looked like the shore on the Expressway. I remember that smell fondly (mostly) and miss it greatly. I can’t pinpoint when it stopped. It gradually decreased in the ’90s and now it no longer exists.
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It is unrealistic to expect people not to tear down older homes. Yes there will be more traffic but maybe that will be self limiting.
Your Shore memory
Cathy Phillips sent us this memory awhile back. It’s just lovely, and sorry it took so long to publish it, Cathy!
I now live near Oak Island beach in N.C. but I was practically born on the beach in North Wildwood 77 years ago. Family lore has it that I picked up a sand crab and tried to stuff it in my mouth at about nine months old. My mom struggled with seven kids living in Kensington but got us to the shore as much as she could. I have a cherished photo of her with her Mom when she was about 10 years old, circa 1920, taken around 17th Street. Her mom is in an old fashioned bathing costume. We rented old rooming houses all over when I was a kid. We’re heading to the shore now in advance of a family wedding. Love reading the stories of others both old memories and new.
Thank you Cathy! Send us your Shore memory! In 200 words, tell us how the Shore taps into something deep for you, and we will publish them in this space during the summer.
By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirer’s Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10.