By Danielle Davies
This is it. For those who celebrate Christmas, the next few weekends are made for you, with a never-ending surplus of holiday activities including everything from ugly-sweater and tree-trimming parties to shopping, baking and craft extravaganzas. And in family friendly Ocean City, there’s no shortage of holiday happenings that range from the sweetly old-fashioned to the fun and festive. Between their garland-decorated downtown and their Santa-infused activities, Ocean City is home to all things holly jolly. Here are five ways to celebrate the holidays in Ocean City this weekend.
- Ocean City Free Public Library Holiday Festival
Join the Ocean City Free Public Library for a free holiday celebration featuring visits with both Mr. and Mrs. Claus, live music and refreshments, balloon sculptor, shopping (wares include hand-made pottery, jewelry, paintings and other unique gifts) and a reading from a local children’s author. Bring your letters and lists for Santa, and head over to this fun and free festival from 1 to 3:30 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 3. The Ocean City Free Public Library Is located at 1735 Simpson Ave., Ocean City. See OceanCityLibrary.org.
Photo by Donald B Kravitz
- Christmas Parade
There’s nothing better than a small-town parade. Sure, there are the biggies — the Macy’s Day Thanksgiving Parade and the Philadelphia Mummers Parade to name a few — but nothing beats a parade where your friends and family are the participants as well as the audience. Scheduled for 6 p.m., Friday, Dec. 1, the Ocean City Christmas Parade heads straight down Asbury Avenue beginning at 6th Street and is a good time for one and all. See OCNJ.us/Christmas-Parade.
- Visits (and photos) with Santa
Santa and his elves are everywhere this season, and no place is that truer than in Ocean City, where he appears at multiple spots throughout weekends in December. Catch him Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Soifer Park, where he’s in for a visit; or from noon to 3 p.m. at the Ocean City Music Pier, where Santa will be available for photos aboard an Ocean City lifeguard boat.
- Horse and carriage rides
Want an opportunity to truly feel like you’re part of a Dickens village? Ditch the car and enjoy transportation the old-fashioned way — via horse and carriage. Boarding at 6th and Asbury Avenue, guests are invited to experience a warming ride around Ocean City to enjoy the holidays from a whole new perspective. Rides are noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3, and continuing weekends through Christmas.
- Train Show
“The Polar Express” isn’t the only celebration of trains and Christmas. While not everyone associates trains with the holiday, the Ocean City Train Show is a longstanding December tradition at the Music Pier. And it’s no wonder. It can’t be just this writer who has memories of a train set displayed during the Christmas season. The Train Show in Ocean City celebrates all of that, with loads of displays as well as items for sale for train aficionados and holiday fans alike. The free event is held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 3 and 4.
Danielle’s been a writer and storyteller for the past fifteen years—her work has appeared everywhere from Philadelphia Style Magazine and The Press of Atlantic City to Cape May Magazine and The WC Press in West Chester. Nationally, her short stories have been published in Typehouse Magazine and Scary Mommy. She lives in South Jersey with her husband and two children.
