Ken Weinstein, tourist from Philly. Photo by Paul Goldfinger

By Yvette Blackman

Even with gasoline nearing $4 a gallon and unemployment still high, some indicators suggest that vacationers are finding Ocean Grove to be the perfect summer getaway.

“Every year we’ve been fortunate enough to do more than the year prior,” said Jim Angelotti, co-owner of Bath Avenue Guest House, which has operated in the Grove for 13 seasons. Its rooms range from $75 to $165 a night, including a full breakfast.

Angelotti hasn’t raised his rates since 2009 — a strategy that seems to work. He had all 19 of his rooms booked over the Memorial Day weekend. “We had our best year ever last year, and this year — although right now it’s trending a little lighter — the bookings for later in the season are far ahead of what they were last year,” he said.

“The Jersey Shore holds a strong emotional pull for generations of visitors,” Israel Posner of the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey wrote in a 2011 tourism report. “Despite record high gas prices and continued uncertainty about the general state of the economy, we are seeing signs the Jersey Shore is going to have some major bounce this spring and summer.”

Tourism remains New Jersey’s third-largest industry, earning $35.5 billion in 2010. Lodging, including seasonal rental homes, accounted for $11.6 billion of that figure, according to Vantage Strategy, a Maryland-based consulting firm. Vantage Strategy counted nearly 68 million visitors to the Garden State last year. It forecasts 72 million this year.

Twenty hotels, inns and bed-and-breakfasts call Ocean Grove home. And several factors could contribute to a strong tourist season for those proprietors. People with good jobs are likely to spend money on vacation, but the high price of gas is likely to keep many of them close to home.

Weather is another factor — and an unpredictable one. But if the weather is as good as it was for the past week, hotels in this seaside community could have a slam-dunk season.

During the busy Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial start of the summer season, many owners and managers said they saw little change in the number of bookings compared to last year.

Some proprietors are doing everything they can to attract business. Bill Reilly, owner of the Albatross Hotel, said he has increased the number of special discount offers, and he’s already seeing twice as many bookings this year as at the same time last year.

“They’re staying one weekend, because any longer than that it would be more feasible to have a kitchen,” Reilly said.

The Carriage House, a small bed-and-breakfast just south of Main Avenue, is a mature business that has benefited from being moderately priced. Its eight rooms range from $125 to $190 a night, and the inn was just about fully booked for Memorial Day weekend.

“We had our best season last year, probably because of the [good] weather,” said co-owner Phil Franco. He said the personal touch and an intimate atmosphere are popular with his guests. “We serve a full gourmet breakfast. We’re very intimate and we only have eight rooms so we cater to our guests,” he said.

Ocean Vista Hotel, a 21-room establishment that looks out on the ocean, started the Memorial Day weekend slowly, then quickly did a 180-degree turn, thanks to walk-ins.

“It’s been pretty productive so far, and we’ve only been open a week or two,” said assistant manager Kory McKeown.

McKeown offers her guests a little something extra. “We offer them the chance to come back — after they’ve gone to the beach and checked out,” she said, “to take a shower and use the bathroom, because who wants to go home with sand in their pants.”

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