Between New York City And Allentown Is New Jersey's Charming, Fairytale Community With A Highly-Praised Winery

New Jersey's Skylands Region feels incredibly remote. It has peaceful state parks, historic villages, and picturesque landscapes instead of the towering skyscrapers and crowded beaches for which the state is infamous. If you don't believe it, then it's time to plan a trip to Oldwick. The tiny community, located about halfway between New York City and Allentown, is a quaint spot with an adorable downtown. It even has an award-winning winery on the outskirts of town.

The Skylands are the five counties that sit in the northwest corner of New Jersey. They are among the least populated spots in the Garden State. One of them, Hunterdon County, is gaining a reputation as a destination for year-round outdoor activities. That's where you'll find the village of Oldwick. Despite being just 50 miles from two big cities (New York City and Allentown, a thriving, artsy Pennsylvania city with world-class bites), the small town still feels like you're taking a journey back in time due to its charming Main Street lined with trees, landmark buildings, and locally owned restaurants.

Oldwick is less than 40 miles west of New Jersey's largest airport. Though Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) is a US East Coast hub known for cancellations, it conveniently receives nonstop flights from all over the world. You can also ride a commuter train on NJ Transit's Gladstone Branch out to Peapack. The Peapack Station is then less than 10 miles from Oldwick.

Oldwick is part of Tewksbury Township, a collection of small villages. English farmers, who first settled here in the 1730s, named their new village Smithfield. By the 1750s, it had switched to New Germantown due to the influx of German and Dutch immigrants arriving. Yet that didn't stick either. The village's name was changed, for the final time, in 1918 as anti-German sentiment spread during World War I. The new name, Oldwick, meaning "Old Village," perfectly captured the historic roots of the community.

Today, Oldwick looks much like it did centuries ago. The center of the still-small village, where fewer than 500 people live, is now the Oldwick Historic District. The area's 127 18th- and 19th-century buildings, which spread out from Main Street, are now on the National Register of Historic Places. They include the 1749 stone Zion Lutheran Church, the 1760 Oldwick General Store, and the 1800 Tewksbury Inn. Mixed in with these prominent buildings, you'll find everything from stone structures predating the American Revolution and Georgian-style farmhouses to Queen Anne cottages and Victorian homes. The one thing you won't find here is a stoplight. The lack of one helps keep Oldwick charming and quiet.

You can eat at either the general store or the inn when you walk down Main Street. The Oldwick General Store now makes breakfast, lunch, and freshly baked bread, while the Tewksbury Inn serves lunch and dinner in its elegant dining room and on the summer terrace.

After strolling through the Oldwick Historic District and dining in a time-honored building, you should check out a modern spot in the village. Meadowbrook Winery is a new, sustainable winery that sits on rolling farmland just half a mile from the center of Oldwick. The winery planted its first grapes — pinot noir, pinot meunier, chardonnay, cabernet franc, and albariño — in 2019. They're used to produce traditional method sparkling wines, such as blanc de blancs and pétillant naturels, which are made with the same process as Champagne.

You can try Meadowbrook Winery's still and sparkling wines in its 2,000-square-foot tasting room that opened in 2025. The winery offers two types of tastings. The seasonal tasting acts as an introduction to the winery through five sips, while the premium tasting expands to include seven small-batch and reserve wine pours that are paired with locally sourced small bites. One Google reviewer raves, "The views are breathtaking, the tasting room is beautiful, and the outdoor seating overlooking the vineyard makes for a perfect afternoon." Just be sure to make a reservation in advance, especially since the winery is starting to be recognized for its high-quality wines.

Between its captivating historic center and modern winery, Oldwick feels like a fantasy destination. But it's real, and it's not that far away. It's also not the only delightful spot out in the Skylands. Flemington, which is brimming with local shops, parks, and tasty eats, is less than 15 miles away.