Bayonne
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Bayonne is a city of 72,000 people (2020) in New Jersey. It is home to Cape Liberty Cruise Port. The city is not a usual tourist destination for daytrippers from New York City, but it does have the authenticity of a suburban town with a relatively low-density, often tree-lined urban feel that harkens back to the times before gentrification. And like some of the lower-density neighborhoods in Brooklyn, Bayonne has many churches.
Understand
Bayonne is a largely working-class city, with a mix of private houses and small apartment buildings, just south of the larger, more built-up Jersey City and right across the Bayonne Bridge from the North Shore of Staten Island.
Get in
By car
There are only three ways to get in and out of the city by car: the Bayonne Bridge from Staten Island, Route 440 from Jersey City, and the New Jersey Turnpike (I-78) from Newark/New York City. During rush hour this results in traffic jams when exiting the city via New Jersey Turnpike.
By bus
Bus transportation is provided on three main north-south streets of the city: Broadway, Kennedy Boulevard, and Avenue C, both by the state-operated New Jersey Transit and several private bus lines. The Broadway line runs solely inside Bayonne city limits, while bus lines on Avenue C and Kennedy Boulevard run to various end points in Jersey City. One Kennedy Boulevard service (the Coach USA 99S) runs to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in midtown Manhattan, New York City, and rush hours peak direction the NJ Transit 120 runs between Avenue C in Bayonne and Battery Park in downtown Manhattan.
By train
New Jersey Transit's Hudson-Bergen Light Rail system provides service throughout Bayonne, Jersey City, Hoboken, Weehawken, Union City and North Bergen.
Stations in Bayonne are:
- 1 45th St, Ave E @ E 45th St.
- 2 34th St, Ave E @ E 34th St.
- 3 22nd St, Ave E @ E 22nd St.
- 4 8th St, Ave C @ 8th St.
Service within Bayonne is available between these four stations. Northbound service from Bayonne runs through Jersey City, mostly near the waterfront, to Hoboken Terminal. Other parts of the system can be accessed via transfers. The Liberty State Park station is the nearest transfer station for those traveling between Bayonne and stations on the West Side Avenue line. PATH trains for Midtown Manhattan and New Jersey Transit commuter train service throughout the state are available at Hoboken Terminal. PATH trains for Newark, Harrison, and Downtown Manhattan are available at Exchange Place.
Get around
Bayonne doesn't have much public transportation other than bus (NJ Transit, A&C Bus) and the train (Light Rail). Most visitors come to Bayonne for either the two shopping centers along Hwy 440 or to walk around the only county-owned park, which is also the largest in the city. NJ Transit offers buses at Kennedy Blvd (10-Journal Square, 119-New York), Ave C (81-Exchange Pl, 120-Lower Manhattan NY) and Broadway which has their own bus that you can transfer to the Journal Square Transportation Center in Jersey City (33). New York's MTA offers the S89 bus to Staten Island from the 34th St Light Rail Station
See
- 1 9/11 Tear Drop Memorial ("To the Struggle Against World Terrorism" and "Tear of Grief,"), 51 Port Terminal Boulevard (take the New Jersey Turnpike to Exit 14A-Bayonne; after paying toll bear to right; follow signs for Route 440 formerly Route 169; go up ramp and then follow signs to Route 440 south at traffic light, make a left onto Route 440 South; follow signs for the Bayonne Ocean Terminal; at the first traffic light at Port Terminal Boulevard, make a left; proceed to gatehouse). Open daily from dawn to dusk. Bayonne's Tear Drop Memorial is a 10-story sculpture by Russian artist Zurab Tsereteli that was dedicated by Bill Clinton and Vladimir Putin in 2006. It's a dedication to both the 9/11 and 1993 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. Located at the end of the former military Ocean Terminal Dock past the Cruiser Terminal. No pedestrian or bus access so if you take the HBLR to 34th Street you will have to take a 3-mile taxi ride using a local taxi service or Uber.
- 2 Stephen R Gregg Park (Bayonne Park), Kennedy Blvd between 37th and 48th St (take Exit 15E on the NJ Turnpike to Jersey City and follow signs to NJ 440 South/Bayonne; take the exit to 63rd St/DMV and make a right at the second traffic light (Kennedy Blvd); follow that road until you approach a park to your right), ☏ +1 201 217-5484. Established in 1916 as Bayonne Park. It was designed by Charles N. Lowrie. The park was renamed in honor of life-long Bayonne resident, Stephen R. Gregg, who was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in World War II for his courageous charge on a German outpost in France enabling the rescue of seven severely wounded American soldiers. Gregg was also a member of the Hudson County Sheriff’s Department for 51 years and retired as chief of court officers. The park offers several sports facilities, a historic monuments area, fishing pier, an ornamental garden, two century-old sun houses, and a panoramic view of Port Elizabeth and Newark.
- 3 Bayonne Community Museum, 229 Broadway (Across the street from the Broadway Bistro & Diner). It was built as a bank in 1912, and was preserved in the 1970s for its architecture. Since 2002, it has been owned by the city as a museum. In 2006, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
- 4 Cape Liberty Cruise Port (Cruise Port Bayonne), Port Terminal Blvd (next to Tear Drop Memorial), ☏ +1 201-436-2080. The Cape Liberty Cruise Port is one of the few trans-Atlantic passenger terminals in the New York Harbor. Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises base their ships at this port and sail mostly to the Caribbean and Canada.
- 5 First Reformed Church, 761 Ave C (take Rt 440 from Jersey City (Southbound) and take the exit to Ave C.; at the traffic light, make a right and stay on that road for about a mile). Bayonne's oldest church dating back to 1866. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.
- 6 Saint Henry Roman Catholic Church, West 29th St (take Exit 14A on the NJ Turnpike to Route 440 South; follow the exit to Prospect Ave and make a right turn at 32nd St; then make a left on Ave C (third traffic light following), and then a right after three additional traffic lights), ☏ +1 201 436-0857, toll-free: +1 201 823-4611, sthenryrc@optonline.net. More than 50 Bavarian families established the original church in 1889 a few blocks from the current one, which was dedicated in 1915. The church can serve more than 1,500 families per mass.
- 7 Richard Rutkowski Park, Adjacent to Bayonne Park (parking is available at the Bayonne Park entrance or on Route 440). Birdwatching park with a 2-mile nature path, and a monument to the ELCO Naval Division.
Do
- 1 Bike across the Bayonne Bridge.
- 2 Bayonne Golf Club, One Lefante Way (take the NJ Turnpike to Exit 14A Bayonne; after toll take 440 South approximately 1 mile; keep right and take the New Hook Road jug handle across 440; in 0.4 miles make a left onto Avenue J; at the stop sign make a right and you will arrive at the gatehouse), ☏ +1 201-823-4800, golfshop@bayonnegolfclub.com.
Buy
- 1 South Cove Commons, Lefante Way (take NJ 440 northbound and go to the exit to Lefante Way). Varies for stores. Shopping centre in Bayonne. Has a supermarket (Stop & Shop), clothing store (TJ Maxx), restaurants (Houlihans, Otaki Hibachi, Wendy's), movie theater (Frank Theaters), spa, GameStop, Subway, phone centers (AT&T, Verizon), laundromat, and a tanning parlor
- 2 Shop Rite, 583 Ave C (from the Bayonne Bridge, follow the signs to Kennedy Blvd and make a right turn at 25th St.; parking is on the right), ☏ +1 201 437-6000. Sa Su 9AM-10PM.
- 3 Bayonne Crossing, Bayonne Crossing Way/New Hook Rd (take the NJ Turnpike to Exit 14A and follow the signs to NJ 440 South; then take the exit to New Hook Rd). Offers Walmart (supermarket), New York's Sports Club (fitness), Lowes (home decor), VisionWorks (eye doctor), GNC (wellness center), places to eat (Popeye's, Longhorn, Five Guys, Qdoba, Sonic, WonderBagels, Panda Express, Subway,Jersey Mike's) and Michael's (art supply).
Eat
- 1 Cafe Talya, 218 Avenue B (corner of Ave B & W 49th St), ☏ +1 201 535 5333, cafetalyanj@gmail.com. Daily 8AM-1:30PM. Small diner with extensive breakfast options and regular lunch options and calm neighborhood vibe. Budget.
- 2 Buon Appetito, 906 Broadway, ☏ +1 201-436-0043. Daily 11AM-9PM. Italian
- 3 Da Noi, 1105 Avenue C, ☏ +1 201-437-5578. M-F noon–10PM, Sa 3–11PM, Su 1–9PM. Italian.
- 4 Broadway Bistro & Diner, 226 Broadway (a short walk from the 8th St LightRail station), ☏ +1 201-455-8239.
- 5 Hendrickson's Corner, 671 Broadway (At the corner of 31st), ☏ +1 201 437 4955, hendricksons671@gmail.com. S-Th 11AM-10PM, F Sa 11AM-11PM. Established in 1884, Hendrickson's is one of the oldest restaurants in Bayonne. It specializes in German cuisine.
Drink
- 1 Bake N Brew Cafe, 162 Broadway, ☏ +1 201-339-5500.
- 2 Hendrickson's Corner, 671 Broadway.
Sleep
- 1 Hudson Plaza Motel, 190 W 63rd St at NJ 440 (NJ Turnpike to Exit 14A (Bayonne Exit); right turn on 53rd Street; right turn on Broadway. Left turn onto 55th Street to end, right turn on Kennedy Blvd; left turn on West 63rd Street to Rt. 440 North Ramp and proceed through the traffic light; keep right at the fork. The Hudson Plaza Motel is on your left), ☏ +1 201-823-2000.
Go next
| Routes through Bayonne |
| END ← Jersey City ← | N  S |
→ becomes  → Staten Island, New York → Edison |
| Hoboken ← Jersey City ← | N  S |
→ END |