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Review | Jenness State Beach / Dunes Motor Inn, Rye, New Hampshire | Aug 2009 | MMcKennedy

Are you looking for summer vacation ideas?  Thinking about visiting one of the many beautiful Atlantic Ocean beaches that line the New England coast?  Jenness State Beach in Rye, New Hampshire offers a taste of summer relaxation in a classic beach town setting where flip-flops, sunglasses, sunscreen, and beach towel are all you need (well, maybe some money too) to detach from the hustle and bustle of daily nine-to-five living.

Situated in the middle of New Hampshire’s 17 miles of picturesque Atlantic coastline on Rt 1A (Ocean Blvd.) in Rye, NH is Jenness State Beach.  It’s a somewhat quiet beach (compared to the likes of Hampton Beach or Salisbury Beach) with excellent surfing, boogie boarding, skim boarding, sand-castle building, sun-bathing and all around summertime fun activities fit for the entire family.  The beach is perfect for swimming/playing in the ocean: it’s not rocky, there isn’t lots of seaweed and the water temperature at the end of July (when I visited) was completely bearable for extended dips in the refreshing, crashing surf.

Lodging:

If you are looking for a place to stay the Dunes Motor Inn is about as convenient as it gets.  Located directly across the street from Jenness Beach it’s literally a few hundred yards from the motel to the ocean.   My family and I stayed in one of the second floor rooms with a balcony  ($157 per/night in season) overlooking the mighty Atlantic.  The room was clean, had a small refrigerator, shower/bath, two double beds and a television and it about what you would expect when staying at a motor inn – nothing fancy, no special service just a room with an amazing view in an unbeatable location.

If you are one of those people that prefers a pool instead of the cold salt waters of the ocean then you are in luck.  The Dunes has a well maintained pool suitable for both adults and kids.

A few notables: When you check in expect to be overcome with the smell of cigarettes.  The person who checked me in had one hanging off her lip the three times I stopped in the office.  She was very pleasant but did not go ‘the extra mile’ when it came to service.

Eating:

Groceries (and every other beach type of item you can think of) can be purchased at the Sandpiper Store which is attached to the motor inn.

For dining there are two choices. There is the N.E Bounty Bar and Grill for dinner and the Jenness Beach Pizza and Grill serving breakfast and lunch.  The N.E Bounty Bar and Grill will never be awarded for their service (the servers were sitting down reading books in between taking orders and checking on guests the two times I ate there) but the food was decent.  Not many vegetarian options (they only had one  which was a mammoth portion of penne pasta with vegetables and olive oil) but then again this is the New England coast where fresh seafood is number one! The servers were friendly, the food was delivered hot and in a timely manner and I had a conversation with the chef who seemed really proud of where he worked and the area in general.

While I was there the Dunes was offering a free continental breakfast at the N.E Bounty per person for each night booked which included mini bagels, toast, English muffins, fruit, muffins, cereal, juice, coffee and make your own Belgian waffles.

Parking:

There is metered parking right at the state beach.  I believe that the rate was $1.50 per hour.  Warning: dropping nickles and dimes into the meter will NOT give you any additional time and it does not state this on the meter itself. I would get there early if you plan on using the meters on a beautiful weekend day. If you are not there by 9:00 am you might not get a spot. There is a change machine to convert paper money to quarter form.  But, while I was there a woman put a dollar in and only received 50 cents back, I was not about to test the machine with my 5 dollar bill.

If you are a guest at The Dunes then parking is free.  There is also additional parking for $10 per day across the street from Jenness Beach.

Surf Shop / Rentals:

If you are leaving the parking area for Jenness Beach take a left out of the metered parking lot and drive down Rt. 1 (which is an incredible coastal drive) for about 10 minutes until you come to North Hampton where you will see a surf shop on your right called Cinnamon Rainbows.  They rent surf boards, boogie boards, paddle boards, wet suits and probably much, much more.

Facilities:

There are rest rooms at Jenness Beach.  There is also a place to hose the sand off your body before you hop back into your car, which makes the drive home just that much more comfortable.

Getting There:

Route 1A
Rye, NH 03870
Phone: 603-436-1552

From I-93:
To Route 101 east to I-95 to exit 5 to 1 By-Pass south to Route 1 south to 1A south. You will see Jenness State Beach on the left.

From I-95:
Take exit 5 to 1 By-Pass south to Route 1 south to 1A south. You will see Jenness State Beach on the left.

Concord, NH (1 hour, 30 minutes)
Boston, MA (1 hour, 30 minutes)
Providence, RI (2 hours, 30 minutes)
Hartford, CT (3 hours)
New York, NY (5 hours)
Portland, ME (2 hours, 30 minutes)
Burlington, VT (4 hours)
Montreal, Canada (6 hours)