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If you want to get married in class, book a church. If you're a spur-of-the-moment person, head to Las Vegas. If neither of the above suits you, you always can get married in the bustling beach resort town of Ocean City, Md. That's what at least one couple did over Memorial Day weekend. As dozens of dining patrons looked on, this couple posed for photographs and were wed on the beach of The Shark restaurant, overlooking Isle of Wight Bay, as the sun set on a clear, cool evening on 48th Street in Ocean City. The sight barely distracted most of The Shark's outdoor diners. This is Ocean City - a place open to anyone and almost anything. On any given summer night, people dine, bar hop, stroll along the boardwalk, enjoy amusement parks and take in concerts without thinking much of it. A tidal wave may surprise them, but not a wedding. Ocean City has been called one of the East Coast's best family beach resorts. It has also been compared - I'll explain later - to Vegas. Sitting east of the Delmarva Peninsula (a 60-mile-long area bordering the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay that includes parts of Maryland, Delaware and Virginia), Ocean City is the hottest summer spot among a group of popular beaches in Maryland and Delaware. At their southern point, these beaches are 360 miles northeast of Roanoke - only 50 miles farther than Myrtle Beach - and could provide a welcome alternative to your usual summer beach plans. A beach for everyone Going from south to north, the madness starts in Ocean City, which stretches 10 miles along Coastal Highway from its southern inlet to 146th Street. Driving from there on U.S. 1, you'd pass through the Delaware beaches of Fenwick Island, Bethany, Dewey, Rehoboth and Lewes. Each of these beaches has its unique characteristics and crowd. Lewes is quaint and aesthetic. Rehoboth is a haven for families and gays. Dewey attracts a twenty- and thirtysomething crowd that sleeps off hangovers on the beach by day, then hops between bars and pizza joints by night. Bethany, one of the so-called "quiet resorts," isn't so quiet when half of Potomac, Md., invades every summer. They all are good destinations and offer enough activities - shopping, eating, nightlife, golf, video arcades, swimming, etc. - to keep anyone busy for a weekend or longer. Yet none of them is like Ocean City. The island first attracted tourists when the Atlantic Hotel opened in 1875. It began to boom after the Chesapeake Bay Bridge opened in 1952, easily connecting the Washington, D.C., and Baltimore areas in a drive of just over two hours. Visitors from Philadelphia, New Jersey, New York and Virginia have also made Ocean City a favorite destination. To anybody who's frequented the Jersey Shore and beaches of Long Island, it's understandable why: Ocean City is not pretentious and has a plethora of entertainment options. With 10,000 hotel rooms, 22,000 restaurant seats, numerous bars, stores and mini golf courses in Ocean City, Coastal Highway is often referred to as "The Strip" (hence the comparison to Vegas). The beach recently underwent a multimillion-dollar restoration, adding sand to impede its westward movement. The crowd that fills the beach is a mix of all sorts of people. When my friends and I relaxed on the beach by 48th Street on the sunny Saturday afternoon of Memorial Day weekend, we were surrounded by twentysomethings and teens, a few elderly people and families - some sporting Tommy Hilfiger, others mullets and handlebar mustaches, and still others in surfing gear. That scene didn't even compare to the blend of people who hit the town that night. Ocean City has two popular nightlife options. Most families and teens walk the three-mile boardwalk. Resting 10 feet above the beach, it starts at the southern end of town by the Pier Rides and features snacks, arcades, stores and much more. Then there's the bar scene. From June through August, thousands of people come to Ocean City for this; some even drive up in the afternoon for a night out, then head home the next morning. There are many reasons why they do it: They're called Seacrets, Macky's, Fager's Island, The Party Block and Scandals. Ocean City has many other bars, but the aforementioned are the most popular. Each has its own reputation: Mackey's is a beach bar, Fager's Island a beach bar/club, The Party Block a group of five indoor clubs clustered on the oceanside of 17th Street. Scandals attracts a younger crowd and the scantily clad. Clubs such as H2O and Nite Lite are for the under-21 crew. But Seacrets is king. Opened as just a beach bar, Seacrets has grown into the largest nightclub on the Delmarva shore. The Jamaican-themed club, which has charged as much as a $20 cover ($10 last month), features tables and torches scattered by its beach bars, a reggae band inside and a new, enclosed dance club (beware of the cheesy cover bands; one actually broke into a Bobby Brown medley last month). Over Memorial Day weekend, my friends and I were reminded of Seacrets' prowess by fireworks kicking off each night's festivities and by a line that wrapped around the club, past the parking lot and out onto the street - where a city bus dropped off another rowdy, alcohol-fueled crowd. You expect that in Ocean City, though. Its biggest drawback is the large crowds. About 200,000 made the island their home for Memorial Day weekend, and typical summer weekends also attract big crowds. To me, that's its only negative. In a town where you can ride go-karts and eat fresh crabs and seafood during the day, then party on the beach at night, though, the crowd just adds to the atmosphere. |
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