Registration Open for 2021 Night in Venice

Night in Venice will return to Ocean City for the 66th time at 6 p.m. Saturday, July 24. Registration is now open to all boat and bayfront home owners who want to participate in this year’s celebration. The optional theme will be “Honoring Our Heroes,” a salute to all those who helped us get through the first year of the pandemic. Participants are also encouraged to use last year’s planned “Olympics” theme. A fireworks display will light up the bay and cap off the festivities. The boat parade and decorated bayfront home contest provide a chance to be part of the highlight of the summer season in Ocean City. Night in Venice was canceled last year because of the pandemic. Traditionally, thousands of spectators line the bayfront, and thousands more attend private parties at homes along the route from the Ocean City-Longport Bridge to Tennessee Avenue. To register, please visit www.ocnj.us/niv. When is Night in Venice? The parade starts at 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 24. 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. Sponge Bob Square Boat was one of the winners of Night In Venice in 2019. 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 Road., North Street, First Street, Second Street Marina, Fourth Street, Sixth Street, 11th  Street, 13th  Street, 15th Street, 16th Street and Tennessee Avenue. The Bayside Center, 520 Bay Avenue, will be open with a picnic area, food for sale and bleacher seating plus live entertainment. What does it cost? The parade is free to watch at all locations except the Bayside Center (ticket information will be available soon). 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 11 p.m. 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 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. How do I participate? You can register your boat or house online at www.ocnj.us/niv. For more information, stop by any of the city’s Welcome Centers, call 609-399-6111 or visit www.oceancityvacation.com or www.ocnj.us/niv. Fireworks will be the grand finale of the festive night. (Photo courtesy of Ocean City)