Beach-O-Matic: The Wildwoods, N.J. Sunday, May 17, 1997; Page E06

For active teens and the young-at-heart.

What's There?

Fabulous boardwalk, particularly for big-kid games of skill like Boat Tag, batting cages, Nascar Track and slot machines .... The National Marbles Hall of Fame ... surfing ... fishing expeditions.

Lodging

This is a motel town and rates start at about $100 a night. There's not much of a rental house market in Wildwood, although there are plenty of condos, which go for $500 to $1,700 a week. The Greater Wildwood Hotel and Motel Association (1-800-786-4546) maintains a list of vacancies that updates daily in season.

Bargains

Some motels offer special weekly rates at a slight savings over the daily price.

The Drive

205 miles, 4 hours

Quirk

Wildwood calls itself the "Doo Wop" capital of America because it has numerous 1950s-style motels, complete with amoebae-shaped sunshades and plastic palm trees.

Contact

1-800-786-4546, http://www.wildwoods.org and http://www.wildwoods.com