<p>Does anybody have a hotel recommendation for Ocean City, Maryland? My sister-in-law has been to the Clarion Fountainbleu and liked it, but it doesn’t have an outdoor pool. I’m looking for a hotel (not a motel) on the ocean. I don’t want to book something without a recommendation because I don’t want something too rowdy. Thanks for your help</p>
<p>When do you want to go and what area of of the beach do you want to be on?</p>
<p>In June I would avoid the Carousel because they allow kids for Senior Week. In fact I would avoid the whole town in June.</p>
<p>I am going from Monday August 11th to Saturday August 16th. My younger son plays varsity football and that’s the week they have off from practice. I thought driving there on a Monday would be easier. We may leave on Friday instead of Saturday.</p>
<p>The Carousel has outdoor pools but I have not stayed there in years. Friends stayed at the Hilton last year and liked it very much, it also has an outdoor pool.</p>
<p>As we say in Balto, “Have fun downy ocean, hon.”</p>
<p>According to tripadvisor, the Hilton Suites followed by Park Place are the top rated hotels. My parents have a time share at Sea Watch and coincidentally, that’s rated the #1 Specialty housing at OC. I’m sure you can rent there too. The Carousel is #66 on ta’s list and the recent reviews are pretty bad. Back when I lived in Lower Delaware it was a nice place, but sounds like it’s best days are gone.</p>
<p>I looked into the Hilton. It was booked for the time we wanted to go. Thanks for your help. Do you know any hotels other than in Ocean City that are on the beach?</p>
<p>Did you pick OC because your sister is going that week or are you just looking for any beach on the East coast for that week?</p>
<p>I visited OC for probably 30 summers and there are many nicer beaches in the Carolinas in my opinion.</p>
<p>If you really want to stay in the OC area, check out Bethany Beach, Fenwick Island and even Rehobeth.</p>
<p>And as kathiep suggested, Tripadvisor.com is a wonderful site for vacation planning.</p>
<p>Keep driving not too much further north to our fair state. Rehoboth Beach is (slightly) less crowded and (much) less rowdy. But stay clear of Dewey Beach if you don’t want the rowdy scene.</p>
<p>Agree with Iderochi and cmbmom, If you’re not set on OC, Sea Colony in Bethany Beach, DE is a really nice condo set-up. Not a bad drive to OC but a bit less crowded, big beach and choice of pools.</p>
<p>Ocean City is way more fun than Rehoboth if you’re a teenager.</p>
<p>Why do you want an outdoor pool? The ocean is fine if it’s not raining, and if it is, an indoor pool might be better.</p>
<p>Dewey Beach isn’t really that rowdy. There are a couple of popular bars. Our in-laws usually rented a condo for a week in August. Perhaps the hotel scene is less pleasant? During the day the beach is dominated by families. OC has the best mini golf IMO.</p>
<p>“If you really want to stay in the OC area, check out Bethany Beach …”</p>
<p>What ARE you people doing??? Now EVERYONE will know about Bethany Beach.</p>
<p>OP - Stay in OC. The Delaware beaches are awful – AWFUL I say!</p>
<p>I’m with NewHope, lol. </p>
<p>I could be off on this, but if you decide on condo rental, not hotel, I think you will find that weeks begin on Saturday… you can’t just opt for Monday. Hotels might be less rigid, if available.</p>
<p>I actually know Bethany Beach very well. We vacationed there many times when my children were younger. I looked into Sea Colony. I don’t want to go for an entire week and they only have a few partial week units availabe that seem far from the beach. Does anybody know about the units on the other side of Route 1 in Sea Colony?</p>
<p>We’ve been going to Ocean City for years. My favorite hotel is the Princess Royale. It’s uptown - away from the boardwalk and traffic. However, it only has a large indoor pool (which is nice in bad weather). Make sure you get an ocean front or oceanview room, though. Many of the interior rooms have balconies that overlook the indoor pool and are part of the enclosed atrium. The beach in front of the hotel is nice and not too crowded. The rooms are all small suites - with a kitchen area, living room and separate bedroom. It’s very clean and well maintained.</p>
<p>We took our kids to OC a couple years ago … they were 13 & 17 then. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Oceanfront (67th Street). We had some Priority Club points & got a couple free nights. Our room was oceanfront, and we had a fantastic view. The sound of the waves through the screened sliding door was awesome at night! The beach was incredible!!! The hotel rooms were not exactly Ritz Carleton, but we had a kitchen, a table, a sofa, 2 beds, a sofabed, and a bathroom. The room was clean. The property could not have been better for teens to enjoy a great time … the oceanfront is wonderful there! Our kids LOVE the Atlantic, and we have been to the Outer Banks, Cape Cod, Hilton Head, and Fort Lauderdale. The kids thought the beach at OC was just great. We enjoyed the Boardwalk at night, and there were some great seafood restaurants in the area. I recommend the HI property.</p>
<p>The things that I remember of when we lived on the Eastern Shore and Atlantic coast linein the mid 70’s:</p>
<ol>
<li>A land apart.</li>
<li>Beach smell of sea and ski</li>
<li>The Boardwalk was endless. </li>
<li>There could be that many people in the world enjoying the beach. </li>
<li>Stay off the roads on Friday and Sunday. </li>
<li>Miles and miles of condo Buildings were in bankrupcy. Oceanfront Condos could be had for 20K.</li>
</ol>
<p>Big, big difference compared to Pacific beaches. Unbelievable differences.</p>
<p>Princess Royale and Holiday Inn are good recommendations. I believe there is also a Holiday Inn further south, in the neighborhood of 16th to 20th streets. Don’t know anything about it lately.</p>
<p>In OC, there are a lot of good condo buildings with pools, but most of those units rent for a full week, not partial as you seem to need.</p>
<p>Regarding Bethany…we prefer Bethany to anything along that stretch of beaches, but it is not very appealing for teenagers or college students. Sea Colony (west) has nice amenities, but getting to the beach, via shuttle or car, can be a hassle. The state parks can fill up early, and the public beaches that the shuttles drive to can get crowded. We still like the amenities of the west side places though - pools, tennis, and more space than east of rt 1.</p>
<p>All of these beaches are appealing depending on what you need for your specific vacation.</p>
<p>My husband and I swear we usually like the way the waves break on the MD and Delaware beaches best. Most of these beaches are also very well guarded. The Outer Banks is wonderful also, with fabulous beach homes, almost all with private pools, but the guards are few and far between. A guy sitting 20 feet from us drowned on a beautiful day last summer. I had to wonder if a quicker rescue could have saved him.</p>
<p>I also second the motion for the Princess Royale and agree with the poster who said to try to get the ocean view/ocean front rooms (suites). We have also stayed in the 2-bedroom ocean front condos which were also very nice.<br>
I</p>
<p>Castle in the Sand</p>