In the summer months of July and August, the quaint seaside resort town of Cape May, New Jersey sees its peak tourism season, with the population growing as high as 40,000 from its year-round population of about 4,700. Unlike many of the other shore towns, Cape May has a lot going on throughout the rest of the year, and the shoulder seasons are often more enjoyable than peak season. Here are a few reasons to wait for the quiet season.
The beaches are dead quiet.
My favorite time of year to go on the beach in Cape May is actually September. I love being in the sun, but I’m not a huge fan of sitting on the beach in stifling melt-your-face-off heat. September is usually still warm, but not as stifling. And September means kids are back to school so most of the people on the beaches are locals or weekenders. The beaches get so quiet that even the seagulls settle in for a nap.
You can actually eat in your favorite restaurants.
The off-season is also the best time to eat in some of the restaurants (or drink in some of the bars) in central Cape May. There are restaurants in Cape May that I completely avoid in the summer months because there will be an hour wait time to be seated or the bar will be too crowded. So sometimes the best time to dine around and try new restaurants is the off-season.
Cape May autumns are spooky.
Cape May is one of America’s most haunted towns, so there’s no question that the Halloween season in Cape May is awesome. Sure, there are ghost tours offered throughout the summer. But wouldn’t it be cooler to do when town is quiet and the crisp autumn air is blowing eerily through the trees? You’ll even see some houses decked out for Halloween – Elaine’s Dinner Theater has some of the best decorations in town.
Decorations at Elaine’s 
You’ll see lots of monarch butterflies.
Cape May is known to be a birdwatcher’s mecca because of its location on the migration path of many species of flying critters. In late summer and early fall when the weather starts to cool, the birds and butterflies are starting to head south and make their stopover in Cape May. Starting in September you’ll see tons of black skimmers on the beaches in town, and around Cape May Point you can find dozens of monarch butterflies.
The Lima Bean Festival!
Fall brings some of the best festivals of the year. The one that I hands-down will not miss is the Lima Bean Festival. Yes, it’s an entire festival dedicated to lima beans. It has its roots (no pun intended) in the farming heritage of West Cape May, as the lima bean has always been a key crop for the area. At the festival you can buy some cute lima bean swag and feast on lima bean specialties (try the lima bean chili!). If you’re not a lima bean fan, there are plenty of other craft and food vendors to check out.
And the Harvest Brew Festival!
Another great festival is the Harvest Brew Fest at the Emlen Physick Estate. You can find all of your favorite Cape May County breweries in one place, and at least one of them is bound to have a tasty pumpkin ale for you to get in the fall spirit. Additionally you can browse booths full of crafts by local artists or hang out beside the beautiful Physick House and listen to some live music.
Cape May is a picture-perfect Christmas town.
If you’ve ever thought to yourself that the streets of Cape May look like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting, you should see it around Christmastime. The quaint Victorian houses are all decked out with garlands, wreaths, lights, and occasionally the white stuff.
There are self-guided Christmas Candlelight Tours throughout the holiday season that let you tour multiple historic homes and buildings to see their interiors decorated for Christmas. There’s plenty else to do around town to get in the Christmas spirit – Congress Hall hosts an outdoor Christmas market where you can find the perfect gifts for anyone on your list (or just yourself). And on the first weekend in December, the town has its Christmas parade featuring Mummers, local marching bands, decorated fire engines from all the surrounding towns, and the big jolly man himself.
A fire truck decked out for the Cape May Christmas Parade 
Congress Hall with its Christmas Market 
A beautiful snowy day in Cape May! 
The snowy Washington Street Mall
The sales are spectacular.
Cape May is home to so many great souvenir shops and boutique stores. They’re fun to browse in the summer months, but some of the best shopping is in the off-season. Come September you’ll start seeing end-of-season sales, and the holiday season brings Black Friday and Christmas sales.
Spring in Cape May is charming.
It’s hard to pick a favorite season in Cape May, because when spring comes around and the town starts to wake out of its winter slumber, it gets all the more charming. The colorful houses get even more colorful with all of their flowers starting to bloom, and you’ll see tulips everywhere. You can get out and start to enjoy the sun again with festivals like Sip Into Spring at the Emlen Physick Estate.
While Cape May is a great town to visit in the off-season, it’s important to note one time of year that is maybe not the best time to go. Usually in January right after the holidays, there are a few weeks when a lot of the business owners will take their holiday and head out of town for some much deserved R&R. Not everything is closed, but if you want to truly take advantage of all that Cape May has to offer it may be best to avoid January.
C to Shining C 
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