A Philadelphia man has been charged after authorities said he conducted a fraudulent cryptocurrency purchase for a valuable Pokémon card in Marlton.
After arranging the sale through Facebook Marketplace, Christian Elam, 26, allegedly met the seller at the Evesham Township Police Department Safe Exchange Zone, located in the lobby of police headquarters, Evesham police said in a statement posted to social media Monday.
Elam allegedly paid the seller for a Pokémon card worth $24,200 using cryptocurrency, which was later determined to be fraudulent, the department said.
Elam was charged with third-degree theft by deception and second-degree computer-related theft. He was being held at the Burlington County Jail awaiting a pre-indictment hearing scheduled for Aug. 26, according to the court docket.
The police department is encouraging residents to continue taking advantage of the 24-hour safe transaction zone but to remain diligent about potential scams.
“While the zone provides a well-lit, video-monitored location for in-person exchanges, residents are reminded to independently verify payment before transferring property, especially when cryptocurrency, electronic payments, or high-value items are involved,” the department said.
Cyber-enabled crimes are on the rise across the United States. The Internet Crime Complaint Center received more than 1 million complaints in 2025, a 17% increase from the previous year, with total reported losses of nearly $21 billion, according to an April report from the FBI.
Cryptocurrency crimes are often the costliest, with more than 181,565 complaints totaling more than $11 billion in losses in 2025 alone.
A 13-year-old boy in Franklin Township died after getting trapped underneath an overturned farm tractor Monday night, according to officials.
A statement released by Franklin Township police Tuesday morning said officers from Franklin and Elk Townships responded to the 1100 block of Swedesboro Road around 5:35 p.m. and found the teen unconscious and unresponsive beneath the tractor.
Officers began lifesaving measures once the tractor was lifted, and the teen was taken to Cooper University Hospital, where he died of his injuries, according to the police statement.
An initial investigation showed that the teen was helping a family member dig a hole with the tractor. While riding the equipment with an adult male, the tractor overturned, trapping the teen underneath and leaving the adult with minor injuries. The adult was treated at a local hospital.
The adult who rode the tractor is a family member of the teen, though Police Chief Matthew DeCesari declined to share more about their relationship.
“The incident remains under investigation by the Franklin Township Police Department and the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office,” the police statement said. “The investigation is ongoing, and any potential criminal charges will be determined upon its conclusion.”
The freeze in April destroyed crops across the Northeast, with New Jersey’s estimated losses hitting at least $300 million. It’s why the state secured a disaster declaration that allows farmers in every county to be eligible for emergency federal loans.
Even with the help, farmers are finding creative ways to survive until next year. Their tactics include:
🫐 The promotion of frozen fruit
🍒 Higher prices
🌺 More reliance on U-pick cut flowers
“Everybody is kind of in the same boat,” said a Sewell farm owner who planted pumpkins early to make up for wiped-out peaches. “Just support your local farm. We’ll recover.”
Since Camden city officials halted operations at EMR recycling facility in June after its latest fire, scrap metal has been piling up in the area scrapyards.
To reopen, EMR CEO Joseph W. Balzano agreed to pay the city $4.5 million upfront and an additional $2.2 million over the next five years in a proposed settlement. City Council is set to review the proposal this evening.
Scrap dealers are pointing the finger at lithium-ion batteries, which are often found in lawn movers, construction tools, and household appliances as the cause of the fires.
“It’s the biggest issue all recyclers face,” Balzano said. “Regulations need to be put in place that keep these batteries out of commerce.”
Meanwhile, New Jersey lawmakers are pushing bills to track such batteries and regulate scrapyards.
Heavy rainfall on Monday also caused the partial roof collapse of a BJ’s in South Jersey. There were 27 people inside the store and two people were temporarily trapped, according to NBC News.
Two women, Ayzia J. Toledo and Henrietta F. Carter, died in a late Sunday night crash on Route 55 in Deptford.
The Fellowship Alliance Chapel in Medford is planning repairs after a Friday night fire. Although leaders believe a lightning strike sparked the fire, the local fire marshal had not determined an official cause by Monday afternoon.
Camden, Cherry Hill, and Runnemede are set to have the most roadway projects this week in Camden County. Be mindful of road closures.
🗣️ Quote of the week
Sally Hopkinson learned she was a descendant of Francis Hopkinson, a signer of the Declaration of Independence from New Jersey, when she was in the fifth grade.
🧠Trivia time
Which New Jersey-based retailer opened its first store on Route 130 in 1972?
The Cherry Hill Mall is soon set to welcome five new stores that have committed to more than 25,000 square feet of retail space at the South Jersey mall.
The additions include Aritzia, the viral women’s clothing brand, which is set to open a store at the 1.3 million-square-foot Camden County mall by spring 2027. The complex is also adding legacy brands such as Timberland and True Religion, according to executives with PREIT, which owns the mall.
“Retailers at this level are choosing their next locations very carefully right now, and the fact that six of them chose Cherry Hill Mall in the same leasing period speaks volumes,” Paula Charles, PREIT’s senior vice president of leasing, said in a statement.
“For shoppers, it means more of the brands they want in one place and an experience that keeps getting better every time they visit,” Charles added.
One of dozens of Dick’s House of Sport outposts, it will be represent “the largest single-tenant addition to Cherry Hill Mall in more than a decade,” PREIT executives said.
The new retailers will also join Crocs, which last month opened a 2,000-square-foot store near the future Dick’s House of Sport, and DoneRight Doner Kebab, a fast-casual Mediterranean food spot that mall executives said will open later this summerin the food court.
People walk by a new store, Pop Mart, at Cherry Hill Mall on Black Friday 2025.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
But higher-end complexes like Cherry Hill and King of Prussia seem to be thriving. King of Prussia Mall, in Montgomery County, also just announced a slate of new openings.
Here’s what to know about the new shops coming soon to the Cherry Hill Mall:
Timberland: The boots and outdoor-wear company is set to open an 1,800-square-foot store later this summer. It will be near Dick’s House of Sport.
Indochino: The custom-suit-maker is set to open a 1,200-square-foot store before the 2026 holiday season. It will be off the Grand Court, near American Eagle and Pop Mart.
Aritzia: Set to occupy more than 20,000 square feet in the central Grand Court, its space will include not only a clothing store but also an A-OK Cafe, the brand’s in-house coffee shop. It is on track to open in spring 2027.
True Religion: The denim company is set to open a 2,230-square-foot store sometime early next year near Dick’s House of Sport.
Also at the mall, Pandora and Spencer’s recently moved into larger storefronts, and Lululemon is set to relocate into an expanded space in the Grand Court before the 2026 holiday season.
Cynthia Martini of Mantua Township visits Mood’s Farm Market every year to pick blueberries. During a typical summer, she collects 40 pounds of them. She used to bring her kids, but now that they’re older, she goes solo.
Her routine on June 30 didn’t look much different from the last 25 years. On a hot morning, she picked two Tupperware containers of blueberries in paint-streaked shorts.
“In an hour I picked 10 pounds,” Martini said. “So not bad.”
But rather than harvesting in the farm’s designated pick-your-own area, Martini kept to to an area typically reserved for staff.
Mood’s, a 180-acre fruit farm in Elk Township, Gloucester County, opened the off-limits fields as one strategy to survive the summer after a spring crop freeze destroyed about two-thirds of its blueberries and all its cherries, plums, nectarines, pears, and peaches. The farm will likely have only a handful of healthy apples come fall. That means no apple hayrides, even though pick-your-own operations are one of its primary revenue streams. A skeleton crew is working the land rather than a full staff, and it’s taking workers longer to pick fruit since there’s less on the bush.
After picking her own blueberries, Cynthia Martini (right) of Mantua talks with owners Richard Mood and daughter Patti Mood at Mood’s Farm in Gloucester County on June 30. Tom Gralish / Staff Photographer
But South Jersey farms like Mood’s are getting creative to survive a summer with depleted income and damaged crops. From promoting frozen fruit to temporary closures to raising prices, here’s how farms are keeping on.
Spend less and plant more
Rowand’s Farm, a 20-acre sweet and sour cherry orchard in Glassboro, Gloucester County, is going through unprecedented circumstances.
Stephen Rowand, the farm’s third-generation owner, said he’s usually excited when a spring frost arrives, since the cold weather thins out the fruit and produces larger cherries.
“This season is unique for us as a first with NO CROP at all,” Rowand said via Facebook Messenger. “No income.”
Rowand decided to close the farm, but that hasn’t meant time off. To ensure the orchard blooms next season, the farm still needs mowing, irrigation, fertilizer, and trimming, and without the ability to hire farmworkers. Rowand, 60, is doing all that work himself through extreme heat. He said he’s currently living off his retirement savings and might have to get a job in the offseason next fall. He’s trying to stay frugal by avoiding vacations and eating out.
But Rowand has managed to find some solutions to survive.
To make sure they stay fed, his family planted a bigger garden of tomatoes, string beans, eggplants, cucumbers, greens, and herbs for their personal diets after figuring out the freeze had eliminated their income. He said he will likely apply for a loan from the USDA’s Farm Service Agency to pay bills, and a GoFundMe, which has raised $25,000 so far, has helped pay for some of Rowand’s farm expenses.
“It’s really helping keep the farm from going into debt,” Rowand said, “which is usually what puts a farm out of business in the end.”
Duffield’s Farm Market in Sewell, Gloucester County, like Mood’s, won’t have peach picking this summer and is still considering whether it’ll apply for loans. Since the freeze halved their apple crop, the farm won’t offer apple picking trips for local schools this fall, either. To ensure people have enough to pick in the fall, owner Tracy Duffield said, farmers planted a field of pumpkins early.
As for labor, without peaches to pit, Duffield said there’s less to do, which means reducing hours for the farm’s migrant workers from Puerto Rico.
“It’s not just us. Everybody is kind of in the same boat,” Duffield said. “Just support your local farm. We’ll recover.”
‘A silver lining’
South Jersey farmers say the natural laws of supply and demand mean fruit prices will rise this year. Mood said their farm’s blueberry prices have doubled, while Duffield’s increased the cost about 50 cents per pound.
“We still have a business to run, and we have to support the families involved with the business,” Duffield said. “They just have to understand for this year, anyway, that things are going to be a bit higher.”
Blueberries for sale at the farm stand at Mood’s Farm in Gloucester County.Tom Gralish / Staff Photographer
Anthony DiMeo owns DiMeo Farms and Blueberry Plants Nursery, which has a large pick-your-own blueberry operation in Hammonton, Atlantic County. With significant damage to his crop, DiMeo said, he anticipates the season to end a couple of weeks early.
“But there’s a silver lining to this, and that is the price is very high,” DiMeo said. “Even for blueberries that might not be the biggest or might not be the best, the price is exceptional.”
DiMeo, though, said he decided not to significantly raise prices this year, keeping blueberries at $2.50 per pint, a cheaper price than most grocery stores and farm markets. The choice to eat the losses was influenced by the price consumers are already paying to get through life right now.
“They’re spending enough as it is with gas and tolls and everything else,” DiMeo said.
‘Just luck’
Bob Fralinger of Fralinger Orchards, a fifth-generation peach and nectarine farm in Bridgeton, Cumberland County, said it was “just luck” that some of his peaches survived the freeze.
His farm sits along the Cohansey River, and the heat emitting from the water kept the temperature a couple of degrees warmer for the crops. Fralinger said he still lost about half his peaches, but since nearby South Jersey farmers weren’t quite as lucky, nearly 100 farm markets, some hours away, have come to him for fruit. Duffield’s and Mood’s are on that list.
The increased interest has meant Fralinger has to make sure he has enough peaches for everyone, including his typical wholesalers. And even though Fralinger is having no problem selling, the reduced harvest means he worries that the revenue won’t be enough to pay next year’s bills.
“Your margins are so close that you can’t survive from one year to the next unless you do things just right, and that’s the problem,” Fralinger said.
Like Fralinger, Robson’s Farm in Wrightstown, Burlington County, also managed to salvage some peaches from the harvest this year, but not nearly enough to meet the summer demand.
Customers travel from out of state for Robson’s peaches, fourth-generation farmer Rose Robson said, and many will be disappointed to arrive to find no peaches in sight.
But once she overcame her initial grief over the lost crops, Robson said, she quickly hatched a plan to adapt to a potentially peachless summer on the farm.
“Just because the farm is really sad and not great in one way doesn’t mean the whole summer has to be,” Robson said. “This could be a really fun opportunity to be creative and to bring some new people to the farm and still have a really great summer.”
Robson had already started developing ways to boost business during the farm’s offseason in the fall, like a walking club on the farm, she said. The spring freeze just forced her to consider starting sooner and making it active year-round.
Plus, Robson’s is focusing on what they can still offer customers.
“We doubled up on our U-pick cut flowers,” Robson said, “which has been growing over the years anyway, so that’s kind of fun.”
But more than anything, Robson said her priority has remained the same: “making the farm as grand an experience as we can possibly make it,” she said.
Sandy Trifiletti (front) of Glassboro and her daughter Hope Welch and granddaughter Rosie, 6, of Pitman, pick their own blueberries June 30 at Mood’s Farm in Gloucester County.Tom Gralish / Staff Photographer
As farms scramble to adapt, South Jersey residents, whether they’re in the market for fresh fruit or flowers, continue to support their local markets.
Back at Mood’s Farm, Hope Welch of Pitman picked blueberries with her two children and her mother, Sandy Trifiletti. The Welches have visited Mood’s for years.
Hope Welch, whose son spoke some of his first words during an annual Apple Festival, asked Mood about the fate of this year’s event. Mood said one would still happen, but it probably wouldn’t revolve around apples, since they won’t have very many.
“That hurts my heart,” Welch said. “We’ll be back for the fall festival. Whatever it’s called.”
Mayor Victor Carstarphen said no fatalities or injuries have been reported, but by Monday afternoon, Camden City had received about 90 service calls reporting damages following more than 4 inches of rainfall, and he expected Camden to get more calls as people return home from work to potential flooding.
“Today, the rainfall exceeded what our stormwater system is designed to handle in such a short period of time,” Carstarphen said.
Countywide, Camden received about 1,000 911 calls just in the stretch of the morning storm, said Dan Keashen, Camden County’s public affairs director.
It will take a while for the county to determine how many homes were impacted and the estimated cost of damages. Public assistance teams from the state will work with the city and county to assess damages home by home in affected areas, said Morgan Callan, external communications manager for Camden County.
Dave Balog of Mullica Hill makes his way to his truck in the flooded parking lot at the Ferry Avenue PATCO station in Camden Monday, July 6, 2026, as a flash flood threat continues for the region. Balog said there were no warnings about a storm when he parked there four hours earlier for an appointment in Center City Philadelphia. His truck did start as it was not in the deepest area of the lot.Tom Gralish / Staff Photographer
Flooding left vehicles stranded on roadways throughout the county, including two police vehicles and a fire department apparatus in Camden City, Keashen said. But most of the water has receded, according to a press release Monday afternoon.
Both city pools in Camden will be closed this week, Carstarphen said.
Camden City residents with damage to their properties can call the city emergency operations center at (856) 757-7132 or (856) 757-7139. Calling in those damages will allow city officials to report them to the state, which then could unlock regional and state disaster aid for residents.
Residents of other Camden County municipalities can report property damages to their respective offices of emergency management.
Carstarphen couldn’t confirm the timeline for how long it would take officials to visit properties to assess damages, but he said he encourages residents to file claims with their property insurance providers in the meantime.
On Sunday morning, the doors of Fellowship Alliance Chapel were open for prayer on schedule despite a fire in the Medford church’s worship center less than 48 hours earlier.
“Just the heartfelt praise, the worship, the prayer time that we had together — it was just wonderful praising God for all his goodness. So many things could have really been much worse than they were,” Fellowship Alliance vice chairman Dave Gutekunst said.
No one was in the building when church officials say lighting struck the building’s roof around 9 p.m. Friday and no one was injured.
The fire was contained between the roof and the ceiling of the worship center, limiting the scope of damage inside the church to smoke and water, Gutekunst said.
“We just felt really blessed and I think people have had a renewed sense of hope that this is just one in a long list of many chapters of the history of our church,” he said. “God sustained us through trials and tribulations before and he’ll continue to sustain us and carry us through this one.”
The roof of Fellowship Alliance Chapel was damaged by a fire on Friday, July 3, 2026.Courtesy Robert Dovi
Gutekunst also expressed his gratitude for the dozens of firefighters who responded to the scene during the peak of the weekend heat wave.
It’s still too early for a clear timeline for repairs, he said, but the church is forming a team of experts to spearhead recovery. In the meantime, services will continue to be held in the temporary worship space that was set up in another building on the church’s campus after the fire.
While church leaders believe the fire was sparked by a lightning strike, the Medford fire marshal has not determined an official cause of the fire and it is still under investigation, according to Medford manager Robert Dovi.
Per protocol, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has also been notified because the fire occurred at a house of worship, Dovi said.
But lightning-caused fires aren’t uncommon in this area, Dovi said.
“This is a common occurrence for our area due to the large trees and open space,” Dovi said. “This weekend due to the severe nature of the storms there were a number of fires potentially related to lightning strikes.”
A single-vehicle crash late Sunday night on southbound Route 55 in Deptford Township killed two women and injured another.
New Jersey State Police responded to the crash at 10:55 p.m., Trooper Christopher Postorino said via email. A preliminary investigation shows some of what happened, though the crash is still under investigation.
Ayzia J. Toledo, 22, of Bristol, Pennsylvania, was driving a BMW with Henrietta F. Carter, 22, of Darby, Pennsylvania, in the front passenger seat and another passenger in the rear when she lost control of the vehicle and ran off the roadway. The BMW overturned and struck a tree. Toledo and Carter died of their injuries, and the rear seat passenger was transported to an area hospital for minor injuries.
The families of Toledo and Carter have been notified, Postorino said. No traffic delays were reported after the accident. A GoFundMe has been established in Toledo’s honor.
Good morning, South Jersey. Welcome back from the holiday weekend. Be mindful of the regional flood watch in effect until this evening, which includes Camden and Gloucester Counties as well as Northwestern Burlington County.
To ease into the workweek, let’s start with something fun: eight local places that let you indulge in nostalgia and play a round of mini golf.
Bring on some wholesome summer fun and break out the colorful golfballs on a putt-putt course.
⛳If you’re into zany obstacles — like a fiberglass Liberty Bell or an oversized sombrero — then Pleasant Valley Miniature Golf in Voorhees could be for you.
⛳How about a more classic experience with a waterfall? The Big Swing Golf Center in Sewell might be the right fit.
⛳Want to avoid the heat? There are indoor options, including Monster Mini Golf in Cherry Hill and Turnersville.
This year, there were 376 high school students enrolled in New Jersey’s 21-county vocational-technical schools who graduated with associate’s degrees, a new record.
Vo-tech schools have become more competitive in recent years as they attract students who want an alternative path to careers or college. If students want the latter, these schools provide an affordable option to earn credit for college-level work, saving time and money.
🎓 The Camden County Technical Schools, which have campuses in Gloucester Township and Pennsauken, have 31 graduates.
🎓 The Gloucester County Institute in Deptford has 17 graduates.
🎓 Meanwhile, Burlington County Institute of Technology has students who have earned credits, but none that have earned their full associate’s degrees yet.
A man from Browns Mills was caught in a child trafficking sting and has been charged in Bucks County, Pa., with criminal attempt to engage or perform a commercial sex act with a minor and other related crimes, prosecutors said Thursday.
More than 200 patients were evacuated from Echelon Care and Rehabilitation Care in Voorhees on Saturday morning because of an air-conditioning failure during a heat wave. They were temporarily moved to Eastern Regional High School where they continued to receive care, according to 6abc.
Bill Wine, the Emmy-award winning film and TV critic and longtime La Salle University professor, died at 81 last week. He grew up in West Oak Lane and Cherry Hill.Wine graduated from the old Cherry Hill High School.
A former Marine from Sewell pled guilty to sending fake military orders and United States District Court orders to various banks in order to get financial benefits under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. The scheme included forging court documents and impersonating a federal protective services inspector, announced U.S. Attorney Robert Frazer on Thursday.
PSE&G is expected to begin the installation of a new gas main today on Haddon Avenue in Haddonfield. The crews will be expected to work through the end of August.
Connolly Dermatology, the skin-care practice that had 30 locations in New Jersey and Pennsylvania at its peak, is facing a lawsuit filed by a former employee over unpaid wages. Back in May, the New Jersey Department of Labor said it was investigating complaints about three weeks of missed payrolls.
DiBartolo’s Cakery will open inside the new Del Buono’s Pastry shop, which is under development in Westmont. The move will bring the notable cake artist Al DiBartolo back to town, according to 42 Freeway.
Adele Altadonna, a Camden native, shared her 100th birthday with America’s Semiquincentennial on Saturday, CBS News Philadelphia reports.
🧠Trivia time
How much did Jason and Kylie Kelce’s events this year in South Jersey fundraise for the Eagles Autism Foundation?
I have been over the bridge many times over the years. I lived in downtown Camden during my first year in law school in 1975 and walked it out of boredom. My criminal law professor would run it and then have office hours with his knees wrapped in ice!
Many years later, my bride and I started a Fourth of July tradition. We would park at Rutgers, walk over the bridge, hang out on the mall, have a beer and lunch at the Independence Beer Garden, and then hop on the speed line back to Camden. Mobility issues and age put the kibosh on that.
The views and perspective were always great and you never knew who you might meet!
What does your community look like? What South Jersey memory would you like to share? Submit a photo and/or a brief description for a chance to be featured in the Monday edition of this newsletter.
Mini golf is an underrated nostalgic summer staple. The rainbow array of golf balls, the sun-bleached artificial turf, the tilting windmills, and fiberglass volcanoes will transport you right back to childhood, melting ice cream cones and all.
It’s easy to find Putt-Putt courses dotted up and down the boardwalks of the Jersey Shore, but South Jersey has its fair share of miniature fareways, too. Many offer more than just mini golf, with homemade ice cream, arcade games, amusement park rides, and driving ranges for adults. Two courses are indoors, for big fun even when the sun isn’t shining.
Big Swing boasts not one but two mini golf courses. (For the second, “Go left at the volcano,” the attendant tells me.) Both are light on props and heavy on banks, curves, hills, elevation gains, and drops, making for some genuinely tricky shots.
Best hole: No. 8 on the waterfall course starts at the top of a hill, with three options to get to the bottom, including two mystery chutes — one that could land a hole in one, and another that spits out on a separate landing.
Other amenities: Golf simulator, golf lessons, driving range
Price: $7 per adult for both courses, $6 for children 12 and under
Inside Monster Mini Golf in Cherry Hill, N.J.Courtesy Monster Mini Golf Cherry Hill NJ
Year-round
Don’t let a rainy day (or a brutally hot one) stop you from hitting the links. Monster Mini Golf offers 18 holes of spooky-themed, indoor, glow-in-the-dark golf, with locations in Cherry Hill and Turnersville. Black light illuminates the dark interior, which is decked out with weird Jersey scenes rendered in glowing paint, and monstrous animatronics that come to life as you move around the course.
Best hole: Tie between hole No. 8, which is presided over by an enormous, glowing talking skull and No. 9, where players can spin a wheel to add a random, extra challenge to their turn, like playing with one arm behind their back or with their eyes closed.
Other amenities: Arcade, mini bowling alley, laser maze, laser tag (at Turnersville location only)
Players play rounds at Pleasant Valley Miniature Golf on Route 73 in Voorhees on June 30, 2026.Jose F. Moreno / Staff Photographer
April 1 to Halloween
Opened in 1972 and now run by the son of the original owner, Pleasant Valley is a throwback mini golf course with all the wacky obstacles you could dream of. The fiberglass Liberty Bell and giant sombrero, built by the owner, have been there since the 1970s. Guest-favorite hole No. 12 features three gophers driving classic cars in circles. Conveniently located on the way to Atlantic City, it’s got a classic charm you won’t find at every course.
Best hole: “The sombrero,” owner Brian Whelan says. “It’s very difficult, very easy to have the ball fly out of the sombrero. Big risk, big reward there.”
Other amenities: Ice cream and water ice
Price: Before 6 p.m., $10 for adults, $9 for kids 10 and under and seniors; after 6 p.m., $12.50 for adults, $10 for kids and seniors
Previously known as the Golf Farm, Voorhees Golf Land reopened last year under new ownership after a yearlong closure. In addition to 18 holes of mini golf, Golf Land sports the region’s only pitch-and-putt course. That’s 18 holes of golf that are just 20 to 50 yards long, “not quite the size of a par three,” owner Diana Hennefer says, so it’s a great option for people who don’t have the time or mobility to play a full round of golf, or who just want to practice their short game.
Best hole: No. 18 has a wishing well in the middle. “It’s probably the trickiest one,” Hennefer says. “It’s also the prettiest, most picturesque one.”
Other amenities: Pitch-and-putt course
Price: Mini golf: $8 for adults, $6 for kids; pitch and putt: $15 for adults, $10 for kids
A water feature at Serene Custard and Miniature Golf in Vineland, N.J.Courtesy Ari Dendrinos
Come for the challenging, hilly course, and stay for the vintage custard stand serving homemade ice cream. Built in 1959, Serene Custard still boasts its original mid-century signage and is celebrating its 67th season this year. The 18-hole mini golf course is a newer addition, featuring tough terrains and lush landscaping. “You sort of don’t even feel like you’re in South Jersey when you’re on the course,” owner Ari Dendrinos says.
Best hole: No. 9 takes place entirely within a huge man-made cave.
Other amenities: Custard stand serving ice cream, water ice, and some savory snacks
The Funplex at Mount Laurel has way more than just mini golf. There’s a waterpark, indoor and outdoor rides, a bowling alley, and more. But don’t sleep on the two mini golf courses, Adventure Cave and Lost Lagoon, both of which offer 18 holes of obstacles, including a few multilevel designs.
Best hole: At No. 19, if you get a hole in one, your next game is free.
Other amenities: Waterpark, indoor and outdoor rides, bowling, arcade games
Price: $42 on weekdays and $49 on weekends for access to all attractions; $46 and $54 when purchasing at the gate
The Jersey Devil wants to ensure you never have to miss a mini golf fix. Despite the posted hours, this course operates on the honor system, making putters and golf balls available every day, all year round, so you can play even when no one is working. Just drop $5 in the box at the first hole to enjoy putting on these long greens, which provide a challenge to kids and adults alike.
Best hole: Hole No. 12 features a sharp bend and splits in two before converging.
Other amenities: Driving range, picnic area with cornhole, and firepits
Price: $8 for adults, $7 for 6- to 16-year-olds, free for 5 and under
