Corson's Inlet State Park
Managed by New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry
155 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Dough4872 · CC BY-SA 4.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Ocean City
15% of Ocean City’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 1,843 acres are parks and preserves, 164 per 1,000 residents. 15% of Ocean City’s land is conserved, about 660 acres.
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns · #110 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Conserved land
15%
660 acres · of 6.8 sq mi of land
Trails
2.9 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,843 ac
164 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
17 mi
9.2 mi lanes · 3.1 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Ocean City?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Ocean City have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ocean City is ahead of 95% of U.S. towns, #110 of 468 in New Jersey. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, trail miles lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Ocean City’s overall grade.
Conserved land15% of the land · typical NJ town 11% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · NJ 0.7 · U.S. 0.4BPark land164 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,843 acres) · NJ 25 · U.S. 13AParks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · NJ 98% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 95%
LessMore
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 77%
New Jersey towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 11%; the U.S., 4%), so Ocean City’s 15% is ahead of 60% of New Jersey towns, while its trails per square mile lead 36% of them.
Water is 42% of Ocean City’s area (5 of 12 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 9%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Corson's Inlet State Park, with 0.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Cape May Coastal Wetlands Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
273 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
52nd Street Park
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Corson's Inlet State Park155 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry
DirectionsVeterans Memorial Park4 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsCape May Coastal Wetlands Wildlife Management Area273 acres
Directions52nd Street Park2 acres
Sand Castle Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
660 conserved acres
15% of Ocean City’s land. Water is left out: Ocean City has 6.8 square miles of land and 4.8 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Ocean City’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife272 ac
Town or city266 ac
State natural resources132 ac
Other state land4 ac
County2 ac
Not recorded135 ac
State Conservation Area · 410 acLocal Recreation Area · 232 acState Park · 132 acLocal Park · 31 acLocal Conservation Area · 4 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cape May Coastal Wetlands Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 404 | Open |
| Beachfront Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 204 | Open |
| Corsons Inlet State Park State Park | State natural resources | 132 | Open |
| Ocean City Beach or Boardwalk Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| Sports And Civic Centre Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Memorial Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Stacherski Preserve State Conservation Area | Other state land | 6 | Open |
| Ocean City Conservation Area Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Veteran's Memorial Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| 35th Street Little League Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
9 places to go in Ocean City
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Ocean City
Peck Beach
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Ocean City
Reese-Hopson PlaygroundIn 52nd Street Park
DirectionsPlus 3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Ocean City
45th Street Dog Park
DirectionsBoat launches in Ocean City
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Scenic views in Ocean City
Binoculars
DirectionsPicnic areas in Ocean City
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Biking & sports
17 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
9.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
3.1 mi
off-road bike paths
4.6 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
22Tennis
10Basketball
5Baseball
4Beach volleyball
3Soccer
1Pickleball
1Skate park
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →6 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Ocean City 34th Street StationBuilding · listed 1984
About itOcean City Tenth Street StationBuilding · listed 1984
About itOcean City City HallBuilding · listed 1997
About itOcean City Residential Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2003
About itFlanders, Hotel, TheBuilding · listed 2009
About itOcean City, NJ Life-Saving StationBuilding · listed 2013
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Ocean City: April to June
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 43 | 44 | 51 | 60 | 69 | 78 | 84 | 82 | 77 | 67 | 56 | 47 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 3.1 | 4.5 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (3.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.6 inches fall in August, the wettest month. The climate in Ocean City →
Next door
Ocean City and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Egg Harbor Township67 miUpper Township20 miSomers Point5.3 miOcean City2.9 miStrathmere0.6 miLongport0.2 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ocean City | 15% | 0.4 | 164 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Upper Township | 56% | 0.3 | 924 | 95% | A |
| Egg Harbor Township | 14% | 1.0 | 122 | 76% | A |
| Strathmere | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Somers Point | 5% | 1.3 | 12 | 93% | A− |
| Longport | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ocean City
Where can I hike in Ocean City?
The longest trail networks: Corson's Inlet State Park, 0.8 miles; Veterans Memorial Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ocean City is conserved land?
15% of its land, against a typical 11% for a New Jersey town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Ocean City’s trails?
Corson's Inlet State Park and Cape May Coastal Wetlands Wildlife Management Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Ocean City?
17 miles of bike routes are on the map: 9.2 of painted or protected lanes, 3.1 of off-road paths and 4.6 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Ocean City?
55,070 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ocean City or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,843 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Ocean City have?
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #110 of 468 in New Jersey. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Ocean City neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →