Meanwhile in Pennsylvania (MIP), a popular Facebook page that provides humor, nostalgia, and hometown pride for nearly 378,000 followers with Pennsylvania ties, has poked fun at our very own Ocean City, MD– referring to it as having “the perfect Walmart-meets-oceanfront vibe.”
According to the Town of Ocean City, the resort town welcomes up to eight million visitors annually, with the majority of those visits occurring during the summer months. The population of Ocean City, which is normally around 7,000 residents, can swell to between 320,000 and 345,000 vacationers on a typical summer weekend. This influx of tourists makes Ocean City the second-most populated municipality in Maryland during the summer, after Baltimore.
Many of those visitors come from Pennsylvania, which the Facebook page calls “a rite of passage for anyone from the Keystone state.” Meanwhile in Pennsylvania goes on to say, “Because nothing says luxury beach vacation like six-hour traffic, overpriced fries, and the soothing screams of boardwalk teens.”
MIP shares that Ocean City, Maryland (OCMD) rose from a quiet fishing village in the late 1800s to become the go-to beach destination for millions along the East Coast, especially Pennsylvanians craving sun, sand, and a boardwalk funnel cake. Its popularity exploded in the 20th century with the arrival of the railroad and later the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, making it a convenient and affordable vacation spot for middle-class families. The iconic wooden boardwalk, endless fried food, amusement rides, and salty breeze cemented its status as a nostalgic summer tradition. “Add in high-rise hotels, boozy nightlife, and a little East Coast chaos—and you’ve got the Walmart of beaches, and we mean that affectionately.” MIP writes.
The comments mostly agreed, with one commenter sharing, “not me reading this as a Pennsylvanian on the Beach in OCMD 😂😂😂😂.” While the jokes were made, many commenters from our neighbor to the north shared anecdotes of great times they had at our beloved beach town. Some highlights from a recent trip can be seen below:
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