One of my family’s favorite destinations is the Ocean City, Maryland beach. Before the pandemic, our annual summer vacation included the ferris wheel, the haunted house, and the fun house mirrors on the boardwalk, and they swam in the Atlantic Ocean. Now, after 2.5 years of staying home, I decided to dip my toe into the water of travel once again. Visiting Ocean City, Maryland in the off-season was a different experience, but it had many advantages. One of my daughters even said this was one of the best trips we’ve ever taken!

Serene Views at the Ocean City Beach

In the off-season, the views of the deserted beach and the turquoise ocean are majestic. We had never seen Ocean City so calm before.

Especially after being home for so long, visiting the quiet waters of the empty beach brought us some much-needed serenity.

Although swimming in the chilly waves of the ocean was out of the question, my children spent hours building sand castles, and they splashed in the water a bit. In the off-season, the beach is also dog-friendly, so our family dog could enjoy the trip with us.

Dog-Friendly Ocean City Boardwalk

In the off-season, dogs are also welcome on the Ocean City boardwalk. Having a get-away that includes the family pet is very memorable! Restaurants offer outdoor dining to accommodate dining with pets too, and there are benches where you can sit.

Although many of the restaurants are closed in the off-season, we were able to get some Thrasher’s Fries, pizza, and seafood.

Even though the ferris wheel and other rides were closed, the arcade was open on a Friday afternoon. My family had fun playing games and winning prizes. They also enjoyed looking in souvenir shops on the boardwalk to find items to bring home for their friends.

There are also bigger places to pick out souvenirs at Sunsations shops along the Coastal Highway, which is where my daughters found a couple hermit crabs to bring home.

Ocean City Film Festival

One reason we decided to visit during the off-season was that my daughter made a movie that was selected in the Ocean City Film Festival. Ocean City has a flourishing art community with an Art League that offers classes for children and adults.

At the Ocean City Film Festival, there are over 100 films screened at movie theaters in the area. Some of the movies included are created by filmmakers from the mid-Atlantic/Delmarva area, but many are from around the world! The event begins with a red carpet Q&A with filmmakers, and there are after-parties that adults can attend after each day of screenings.

Since my daughter is a director whose film was selected, she received two all-access passes to visit the screenings throughout the weekend. However, since the films aren’t rated, it’s not really a festival meant for children to attend. Maybe they could consider expanding the youth part of it in the future to get some children out for the events too.

My daughter’s film played at the Fox Gold Theater in the Youth Shorts section. She was one of the youngest filmmakers selected with a movie filmed on an old cell phone and created using a free editing program. She even won the People’s Choice Award! It was nice to see her dream realized of bringing joy with a comedy dog movie during these difficult times.

Accommodations with an Ocean-Front View and an Indoor Pool

When visiting Ocean City during the off-season, it’s the perfect time to book a boardwalk hotel, which are usually over twice the price in the summer. The best part of these hotels during the off-season is that the view is completely unobstructed by beach-goers.

Looking out the window of our hotel room felt like complete solitude, as though we were on the edge of the earth looking off into nothing. It was a nice reminder of how happy family time is when we don’t have the typical stress and pressures of daily life on our minds.

Having an indoor pool at the hotel was nice. We couldn’t swim in the cold ocean, but it’s not a real beach vacation without some swimming.

Since the mask mandate was only recently lifted in our area, we hoped for a secluded swimming experience. On Saturday, we were able to get that at 7 am, but by 8:30 am, other families were joining us. It was also empty on Thursday evening, so you might plan on visiting during the week if solitude is a goal for your getaway.

We stayed at the Hyatt Place Ocean City / Oceanfront, and we made sure to ask for an oceanfront view, which was epic. However, the hotel had its pros and cons. One issue was that in a completely empty hotel, we were placed directly next to another group. Not only were there some sound issues with the dogs barking back and forth, but in these times of health precautions, I would have wanted to be more spaced out.

Additional Travel Tips

If you get the chance to see the boardwalk at night, the ferris wheel lights up beautifully.

For a meal that tastes delicious, visit Trattoria Lombardi’s Restaurant on 94th Street. Their pizzas are fantastic, and they have good cannolis too.

Whether visiting during the summer or in the off-season, it could always rain. Make sure to have a back-up plan of activities you can do if you can’t visit the beach. Take art classes, or go see a movie.

We went to Old Pro Golf, and we got an unlimited pass to golf indoors and outdoors as much as we wanted. It was a fun way to make the Ocean City trip feel more eventful.

Visiting Ocean City in the off-season offered space and solitude along with fun and entertainment. The combination of serene views, an empty pool, and a deserted beach along with the excitement of arcade games, golf, movies and more made it one of our family’s favorite vacations.

Travel is back, and it’s better than ever. Now that we haven’t traveled in so long, we know to do it our own way and to make it memorable.

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