Halloween in Ocean City
A costume parade down Asbury Avenue
Keep planning your Ocean City visit
Visiting for Halloween? Get our free Shore Insider Guide after confirming your email, plus event and trip-planning ideas for future visits.
Event and trip-planning ideas. Unsubscribe anytime.
Halloween Weekend at a Glance
Oct 29
Halloween Parade
7:15 PM
Parade Start
6th-11th
Asbury Ave Blocks
Dry town
No Alcohol Sales
Book Your Stay
Find hotels, vacation rentals, and B&Bs in Ocean City
Limited availability in Ocean City
Powered by Booking.com
Some links may earn us a commission. Learn more
Staying over? Ocean City rooms go first on event weekends.
While You're in Ocean City
Make the most of your visit with these local highlights and essential info.
🎯 Don't Miss
- Ocean City Boardwalk — 2.5-mile boardwalk with amusement pier, classic food stands, and ocean views. Family Night every Thursday in July/August with free magicians, music, face painting.
- Playland's Castaway Cove — 30+ rides including GaleForce roller coaster, Python looping coaster, and Double Shot rising 110 feet. Free entry, pay-per-ride. Tickets never expire—look for half-price spring sales.
- Congo Falls Adventure Golf — THREE mini golf courses at $9.50/person: Congo Queen and Solomon's Mine outdoors, plus 100% air-conditioned Lost City indoors for rainy days. Giant animatronic King Kong, waterfalls, caves.
🔗 Quick Links
🚗 Parking Tips
Staying overnight?
Find hotels and B&Bs in Ocean City
Why Ocean City for Halloween?
Ocean City runs the most straightforwardly family Halloween on the Shore, and that is a structural fact rather than a marketing line: the town has been dry since Methodist ministers founded it in 1879, and 145-plus years without alcohol sales has shaped what an October evening here looks like.
The centrepiece is the Ocean City Halloween Parade, organised by the Exchange Club, which runs down Asbury Avenue from 6th to 11th Street on the Thursday before Halloween — October 29 in 2026, stepping off at 7:15 PM. Costumed marchers, floats and string bands; free to watch from anywhere along the route.
The weekend before belongs to the dogs. Leashed dogs are allowed back onto the Boardwalk for Dog Days on October 24-25, with a costumed Howl-O-Ween parade on the Saturday afternoon benefiting the Humane Society of Ocean City. Between those two, October here is busier than most people expect.
💕 Sample Romantic Weekend
Morning: The Boardwalk
Two and a half miles of boardwalk, most of it open in October and far emptier than August. Johnson’s Popcorn has been hand-tossing caramel corn since 1940; Shriver’s has made salt water taffy since 1898.
Afternoon: Asbury Avenue
The downtown shopping blocks — and the parade route. Worth walking before the crowds so you know where you want to stand.
Early Dinner: BYOB
Ocean City is dry, so the sit-down scene is BYOB. Bring your own bottle and eat early — you want to be on Asbury Avenue before 7.
7:15 PM: The Parade
Asbury Avenue, 6th to 11th Street. Free. Arrive 30-45 minutes early for a spot near the middle of the route.
Romantic Restaurants
Reserve 2-3 weeks early for halloween weekend. Many offer special prix-fixe menus.
Manco & Manco Pizza
$Pizza
Sauce on top of the cheese — locals will correct you if you say it wrong
The Crab Trap
$$$Seafood
Long-running seafood house at the foot of the bridge
Oves Restaurant
$$American
Boardwalk-adjacent sit-down, open into the fall
Johnson's Popcorn
$Boardwalk Sweets
Hand-tossed caramel corn since 1940
Shriver's
$Boardwalk Sweets
Salt water taffy and fudge since 1898 — the oldest business on the Boardwalk
October Weekends Beyond Halloween
Ocean City stacks its autumn calendar. All four of these are free to attend.
Fall Block Party — October 10
Ten blocks of Asbury Avenue, 5th to 14th, closed to traffic for hundreds of crafters and food vendors. From 9 AM.
Fall Jeep Invasion — October 3
Jeeps fill the Boardwalk between 5th and 14th Streets, 12-5 PM.
Porsche Boardwalk Reunion — October 17
Boardwalk and Music Pier, 11 AM-4:30 PM, with tech sessions at the pier.
Dog Days & Howl-O-Ween Parade — October 24-25
Dogs permitted on the Boardwalk both days; costume parade Saturday at 3 PM for the Humane Society of Ocean City.
Dates verified against the City of Ocean City 2026 calendar and a second independent publisher for each event.
Romantic B&Bs & Hotels
Ocean City's accommodations offer the perfect romantic retreat. Many offer special packages.
The Flanders Hotel
1923 boardwalk landmark, walkable to the parade route
Historic building, oceanfront, suites
Port-O-Call Hotel
Oceanfront on the Boardwalk at 15th Street
Balconies, pool, on-boardwalk
Beach Club Hotel
Boardwalk at 14th Street, family-oriented
Pools, oceanfront rooms
Scarborough Inn B & B
Small inn a short walk from Asbury Avenue
Bed and breakfast, downtown location
Book Your Stay
Find hotels, vacation rentals, and B&Bs in Ocean City
Limited availability in Ocean City
Powered by Booking.com
Some links may earn us a commission. Learn more
Some links may earn us a commission. Learn more
Book Romantic Experiences
Romantic Activities
halloween Weekend Tips
Parade night
- • The parade is on Thursday October 29, not Halloween itself — a common mistake.
- • Asbury Avenue between 6th and 11th closes; park a few blocks off the route and walk in.
- • Arrive 30-45 minutes early for a spot mid-route.
- • Late October evenings on the island are cold and windy. Layer under the costume.
Ocean City is dry
- • No alcohol is sold anywhere in town — this has been true since 1879.
- • The sit-down restaurant scene is BYOB; buy your bottle off the island before you arrive.
- • It is the reason the town reads as family-first in a way its neighbours do not.
- • Nearest alcohol sales are off-island, over the bridges.
Book Your Ocean City Holiday Weekend
Book everything you need for your Ocean City trip in one place.
Nearest airport: Atlantic City International (ACY)
Some links may earn us a commission. Learn more
Other Romantic Shore Getaways
Frequently Asked Questions
Plan Your Ocean City Halloween
Parade night is October 29. Bring layers, and buy the wine before the bridge.