If I were to list out all of my “happy places”, Ocean City Maryland would be at the top of that list. We’ve been going there since I was a kid and the tradition hasn’t stopped. My Grandma grew up on the eastern shores of Maryland and when my Grandparents retired they decided to move to Ocean City and have a happy retirement on the bay. A ton of my family on my mom’s side lives out there and we love visiting. I’m not sure if Ocean City would have made our destination list if it weren’t for family, and that’s a real shame. It’s such a fun place to vacation, with so much to do and see.

I decided to create a post dedicated to my favorite things to do while we are visiting Ocean City. Like I said, we’ve been going there for years and we’ve really discovered what we truly enjoy doing while we are there. If you’re planning a trip to Ocean City Maryland, I hope this list helps you out when deciding what to do with your days there.

Let’s Chat BOARDWALK

This is an obvious one, but you can’t visit Ocean City without going to the boardwalk. That’s basically what Ocean City is, it’s a resort town that is lined with beach and boardwalk that has rides, games, shops, restaurants and hotels.

Entertainment on the boardwalk: make sure to stop by Tremper’s theme park. It has a ton of rides and games that are a blast, especially for teenage or young kids. If you have younger kids, a great spot is PLAYLAND, at the south end of the boardwalk, itt has such great arcade games.

Must see: Make sure to spend the 50 cents and head out to the end of the pier at the south end of the boardwalk. It’s the only pier in Ocean City and it has gorgeous views of the ocean and boardwalk. You’ll also see some fishermen out there, my mom recently saw one catch a baby shark and also a stingray (very rare)!

I’d also encourage you to head to the furthest south you can go on the boardwalk, past Tremper’s theme park. It has some history on Ocean City and has some amazing views on the inlet to the bay. The waves splashing onto the rocks here is so mesmerizing, I could watch it all day.

Must eat: There are three things I don’t leave Ocean City without having at least once, that’s Dolle’s Candyland, they’ve been making candy and salt water taffy since 1910 and they’re the very best. I love their chocolates and truffles, Nick could eat pounds of their taffy! So yummy.

Another thing we love eating is Thrasher’s French Fries. Too dang good, all they sell is french fries! They’ve been open since 1929. I would recommend eating them with a ton of the vinegar! Gosh now I’m craving them!

The last must have boardwalk food item is Dumser’s Dairyland, the best ice cream ever! They have multiple locations all up and down the boardwalk and around other parts of Ocean City.

As you can tell, we eat extremely unhealthy while we are on the boardwalk, but “boardwalk food” isn’t really the healthy type…

This is the south end of the boardwalk I was talking about, see it’s stunning!

One final thing I’d say about the boardwalk is if you’re a runner then I would totally recommend waking up early before the heat and the crowds and run up and down the boardwalk. I walked the entire boardwalk, about 4 miles there and back, when I was pregnant with Giulian, but this last trip was the first time I ran the boardwalk. It was such a great experience. My friend and I ran it twice, so about 8 miles. We should have started about 30 minutes earlier because the summer heat was killing us at the end, but it was so worth it!

BEACH DAYS

You can’t be in Ocean City without having days at the beach, that’d just be weird… after all it is a beach town. My favorite memories are made on the beach. Especially now that we are parents. Giulian loves the beach so much, he loves the sand, the waves, the water… everything. Bring some beach toys, sunscreen, an umbrella, pack a lunch and create some memories!

Take a peek at one of our beach days in this IGTV video:

I just want to give a quick thank you to Mitsubishi Motors for lending us their amazing 2019 Outlander PHEV GT on our last trip to Ocean City! The car was perfect for a beach day because we could store our umbrella, beach chairs, beach toys, stroller and still have so much space in the car to feel comfortable. Thank you Mitsubishi!

Blueberry Picking

This is something we did for the first time this last trip. I can’t believe I’ve been to Maryland so many times and haven’t done this. One of my favorite things about Maryland is the adorable fruit stands on the side of the road, I love getting fresh, local fruit from these families, but I had no clue you could actually do the picking yourself! We went to Kingsley Orchards Blueberry Farm which is actually in Delaware. Many things in Delaware are just a quick drive from Ocean City. Make sure to watch the video below to get an idea of what a fun experience this was!

Assateague Island

I mentioned Assateague Island in a past blog post about Maryland, so if you’d like more info on it and to see more pictures, click HERE.

In a nut shell, it’s a short drive from Ocean City and we love it for beach days. It’s much calmer than the beaches in Ocean City and Assateague has wild ponies!

Adventure Seeker?

If you like thrills and adventurous activities, I think there are enough great options for you in Ocean City. They have the speed boat, which we took Giulian on when he was one and he was terrified (maybe wait for them to be older). There is parasailing, jet skis, paddle boards and I’m sure more that I don’t know about. On the boardwalk there are a ton of rides that offer thrills, one that comes to mind is a huge metal ball you get in that gets launched into the air… nope I haven’t done it.

Eat Crab

Ya’ll Maryland is KNOWN for their crab!! So if you’re gonna eat it, this is the place. I love getting crab cakes at just about every restaurant in Maryland. We had some family members order the all you can eat crab and they were thinking they would receive a bunch of king crab legs. Maryland crab is different than Alaskan king crab, just to clarify. Maryland crab is a lot more work to crack and has less meat, but it is delicious! Get tips from a local on how to crack open the crabs, see below my Aunt Pam, she gave us a whole lesson on crab crackin’.

Like I said before, I hope this is helpful if you’re planning a trip to Ocean City! Feel free to send me a message or comment below with any questions!

Things To Do In and Around Ocean City Maryland