Dreaming Of The Sunny Beach? Towns Are Selling Beach Badges

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By Liz Sheehan
SEA BRIGHT – A recent spate of surprisingly warm weather may have some local residents looking for ward to summertime, and the local beach.
For those who head to Sea Bright for sun and surf, the town is offering discounted season passes until March 31. The price is $50 for patrons 12 through 64 years old, half off the in-season rate of $100.
Sea Bright beachgoers also have a new way to pay for passes. They can order seasonal passes using the Viply app on their mobile device, pay with a credit card, and pick up the passes at Borough Hall. The Borough Hall, at 1167 Ocean Ave., is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 18.
Viply co-founder and CEO John Masterson, a resident of Manasquan, said Sea Bright now joins other beach towns using the app, first offered in 2016. They include Manasquan, Ocean Grove, Asbury Park and soon Bradley Beach.
Users can download the app to their devices at no charge, he said, but there is a user fee when a purchase is made, usually a percentage of the purchase price. For the $50 season beach pass at Sea Bright, Masterson said the fee is $2.84.
The app can also help beachgoers with directions and offers other information about the beach.
In addition to the half-price passes, Sea Bright always charges seniors and those disabled $35 a season, with no fee for children under 12 or for active military personnel and their families.
Locker rentals are $250 a season.
According to Masterson, Sea Bright daily passes can also be bought ahead of time on the Viply app. The device could then be scanned at the beach booth, shortening the time for admission to the beach.
The daily passes at Sea Bright are $8, with children 11 and under free, as are active military personnel and family.
Sea Bright has paid parking lots at the beachfront with a $1 an hour fee, which can be paid by cash, credit cards, or on a mobile device.
MONMOUTH BEACH
Next door at Monmouth Beach, a borough official said there are no beach and pool memberships available at the Monmouth Beach Bathing Pavilion, but for $75 a season, memberships can be obtained for the beach, including the boardwalk, for those 12 and older. Those younger than 12 are free. The daily fee is $7.
Parking at the beach club, and a lot across Ocean Avenue on Seaview Avenue, is $40 a season, but no parking space is guaranteed.
LONG BRANCH
In Long Branch, beach passes are now on sale for the city’s beaches. They can be purchased, with cash only at two locations until May 26: the city recreation center, 231 Wilbur Ray Ave., or at the tax office at City Hall, 344 Broadway. After that, the passes may be obtained at the beach office on the boardwalk.
Fees are $45 for adults 18 to 61; $30 for students 14 to 17. Active military members and their families pay no beach fees, nor do active and retired members of the National Guard.
The daily beach fees are $5 Mondays through Fridays, $7 on weekends, for 18-61 year olds, and $3 for 14-17 year olds.
Seven Presidents Park, a Monmouth County Ocean-front park in Long Branch, opens on weekends with lifeguards on May 27 through June 11, and with daily lifeguards on June 17 through Sept. 4, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The seasonal passes are $70 for adults 18 to 64, $45 for those 13 to 17 and $25 for adults 65 and older.
Daily passes on weekdays are $8 for those 18 and older, with those 17 and under free. On weekends and holidays those 13 and older pay $8, those 12 and under are free. Active militar y members and their families are free, including national guard members, and retired military.
There is a daily parking fee of $8.