Ultimate Guide to Night in Venice 2024

OCNJ Daily

When is Night in Venice? The parade starts at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 20, 2024. Where does the parade route begin and end? The boat parade begins near the Ocean City-Longport toll bridge and travels along the bayside to Tennessee Avenue, looping in and out of lagoons along the way. Where can I watch the parade? To view the Night in Venice boat parade, grandstands will be set up at street ends along the bay from Battersea Road to 16th Street and also at Tennessee Avenue. These are free and available on a first-come, first-served basis. Streets include: Battersea Rd., North Street, First Street, Sixth Street, Seventh Street, 11th Street, 13th Street, 15th Street, 16th Street and Tennessee Avenue. Spectators with their own seating can access the parade route from any other public street end and from the bayside park at Second Street. The Ninth Street Bridge also provides a good vantage point. All pedestrians and bicyclists should use the Shared Use Bike Path and stay to the south side shoulder for viewing. No persons will be allowed to bring chairs for seating onto the bridge. At no time will persons block the free movement of the Shared Use Bike Path. No open alcoholic beverages are permitted on the bridge at any time. Persons are not permitted to walk along the bridge with motor vehicle traffic. Ocean City Police will be present monitoring the bridge while the parade is in progress for assistance. Tickets for a special viewing area at the Bayside Center, 520 Bay Avenue, are sold out. This area includes a picnic area, snacks for sale and bleacher seating plus DJ entertainment. What does it cost? The parade is free to watch at all locations except the Bayside Center. Where can I park? Free parking and shuttle service will run starting at 4 p.m. Parking will be available at:

Ocean City Municipal Airport: 25th Street and Bay Avenue
Soccer Field at Tennessee Avenue: Off Shelter Road
Ocean City Community Center: 1735 Simpson Avenue

Shuttles will drop off spectators at street ends where they can watch the parade and return them to the parking lots afterward. The shuttle also drops off at the Bayside Center. The service is free and will be available until 10 p.m. Parking restrictions will be in effect for the entire day of Saturday (July 20) for the following locations:

West side of Bay Avenue between 14th Street and 24th Street
East side of Bay Avenue between 14th Street and 24th Street.
West 16th Street, West 17th Street and West 18th Street will have parking restrictions in place.

Parking regulations will be strictly enforced. Violators will be ticketed and in severe cases, the vehicles will be towed if public safety is affected. A one-way traffic pattern will be in effect for Spruce Road (eastbound toward the ocean) and Walnut Road (westbound toward the bay) in the Riviera neighborhood. This is to allow for safe passage of all pedestrian and vehicle traffic and emergency vehicle access to isolated areas of the bayfront. What is the Night in Venice theme? The event's theme is “Summertime Vibes: A Tribute to Jimmy Buffett,” a chance to celebrate the music and carefree persona of the songwriter, who passed away in September after more than five decades of writing, recording and performing timeless classics. This theme is optional. When and where are the fireworks? Night in Venice will include a fireworks display launched after the parade from a barge in the bay north of the Ninth Street Bridge, roughly off Third Street. The start time is estimated to be at some point between 9 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., depending on when the parade ends. The display should be best viewed from street ends or the bayfront between the Ocean City-Longport toll bridge and 16th Street. Who participates? Anyone with a boat or anyone with a house along the bayfront parade route can participate by decorating their boat or home. Judges pick winners among boats, homes and condominium complexes. How do I participate? You can register your boat or house online at ocnj.us/niv.

ESPN reporter Marty Smith will be the grand marshal for the Night in Venice parade. (Courtesy of Allen Kee/ESPN Image) Do participants get anything? Acme Markets and OCNJ Watersports return as presenting sponsors, and they made cash and in-kind contributions to help enhance the 69th annual event this year. “Best in Show” prizes (for boats over and under 24 feet) will include a $1,000 gift card to OCNJ Watersports (Beachy Tiki boat tours, Totally Tubular Watersports or Totally Tubular Aqua Park). The prize is good for one private tiki boat charter for up to 32 guests, but it also could be broken down and used for any of the OCNJ Watersports activities. Prizes for the other boat parade categories (“Best Decorated,” “Best Comic,” “Best Original” and “Best Musical” for boats over and under 24 feet) will include a $300 gift card to OCNJ Watersports for first place, $200 gift card for second place, and $100 gift card for third place. Prizes for the 14 zones in the house-decorating contest will include a $100 gift card to OCNJ Watersports for first place, $75 gift card for second place, and $50 gift card for third place. The Ocean City Regional Chamber of Commerce will donate a one-year membership and two marketing email blasts (combined $600 value) to the “Best Commercial Entry” and “Best Community Organization/Non-Profit Entry” categories in the boat parade. Acme Markets – with locations at Eighth Street and 34th Street in Ocean City – provides catered food trays to the lead entries in the boat parade, and they are a great resource for anybody planning a party along the parade route. How can I see results of the contest? Results will be announced on ocnj.us and oceancityvacation.com by noon Sunday, July 21, and awards can be picked up starting at 1 p.m. July 21 from the City Hall Welcome Center. Are paddleboards and kayaks part of the parade? For safety reasons, paddleboards and kayaks are not part of the Night in Venice parade. Who sponsors Night in Venice? Acme Markets and OCNJ Watersports are the presenting sponsors and will have stands at the Bayside Center. Will there be a grand marshal? ESPN reporter and host Marty Smith will be grand marshal and be joined by family members. Smith is one of the most recognizable personalities in sports media. For nearly 20 years at ESPN, Smith has produced in-depth interviews, vulnerable storytelling, game broadcasting and breaking news across every ESPN platform, and in almost every major sport, including college football and basketball, the NFL, NBA, NASCAR and IndyCar, Formula 1, the horse racing Triple Crown, including the Kentucky Derby, the Masters Tournament and the PGA Tour. He co-hosts “Marty & Mcgee” weekly on the SEC Network, during which he and co-host Ryan McGee meld sports with Southern culture, pop culture, news and nostalgia. Smith's 2019 memoir, “Never Settle: Sports, Family and the American Soul,” is a New York Times bestseller. His latest book, “Sideline CEO: Leadership Principles from Championship Coaches,” has become a standard of the leadership and motivational speaking circuit nationwide. Smith's wife of 24 years, Lainie (Cocozza), is an Ocean City native, a 1995 graduate of Ocean City High School, and Miss Night in Venice 1995. The Smiths reside in Lake Norman, North Carolina, and have three children, Cambron, 18, Mia, 15, and 12-year-old Vivian. Every June, the Smith family makes the trek north to come back to Ocean City, where they spend the entire summer vacation season in “America's Greatest Family Resort.” Who else will be in the parade? Philadelphia Eagles veteran Brandon Graham and his family will be special guests. Graham will return for his 15th season with the Eagles this year. He is a former first-round draft pick and All-Pro defensive end. He helped the Eagles reach the Super Bowl in 2018 and provided a strip sack of Tom Brady that helped seal the victory in the closing minutes. His work ethic, talent and loyalty to the team have made him a fan favorite, and the Graham family has made Philadelphia their home. How can I stay safe during the parade? Do not swim or allow your guests to swim during the parade. Make sure nobody throws water balloons or other objects at or from boats or houses during the parade. Standup paddleboarders must wear life jackets and carry whistles. Do not enter or cross the parade route in any boat or craft during the parade. The final boat in the parade will have a flashing yellow light. The start of the parade will be signaled by the flyover of a Coast Guard helicopter. Do not anchor in any channel during the fireworks. See video. Are there keepsakes available? A limited number of event posters featuring artwork by local artist Aaron “Bogy” Bogushefsky will be available for free at the City Hall Welcome Center (Ninth Street entrance at 861 Asbury Avenue) starting on July 13 and while supplies last. What else is happening on Night in Venice Weekend? The Night in Venice weekend festivities this year will include the return of a five-kilometer run and one-mile walk sponsored by the Ocean City High School Cross Country/Track and Field Booster Club. This event will take place at 8 a.m. Saturday, July 20, at the Ocean City Intermediate School on the morning of the annual Night in Venice boat parade. The race will follow a flat, out-and-back course along Haven Avenue and the adjacent bike path. Prizes will be awarded for all age groups. Online registration is available at: www.runsignup.com/NIV5k. Race-day registration begins at 6:30 a.m. behind the Intermediate School (near 18th Street and Haven Avenue). Tickets are available online at Tickets for a July 19 concert featuring the Jimmy Buffett tribute band The Landsharks are on sale now. The show will start at 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 19, at the Ocean City Music Pier and will be a perfect warmup for Night in Venice. Tickets are available online at oceancityvacation.com/boxoffice, by calling 609-399-6111 or in-person at the Music Pier Box Office, City Hall, the Welcome Center on the Ninth Street causeway, and the 46th Street Information Center.