Boat Clubs in Ocean City, NJ

Late June through September is generally the best time to boat on Great Egg Harbor Bay and Ocean City’s back bays. Nearby Atlantic City coastal averages rise from the mid-60s in June to the upper 60s in July and low 70s in August and September. The city lists its Tennessee Avenue ramp as open daily “in season,” but its page does not give opening and closing dates.

Choose the day carefully if your route approaches Great Egg Harbor Inlet. NOAA says severe shoaling continually changes the inlet, marker buoys are moved frequently, and breakers can be hazardous to small boats even in moderate weather.

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (ncei.noaa.gov)

The practical choices from Ocean City are Great Egg Harbor Bay, the Intracoastal route through Beach Thorofare and Peck Bay, the Great Egg Harbor River, and the Atlantic Ocean through Great Egg Harbor Inlet. Launch trailered boats at the city’s Tennessee Avenue ramp, which has concrete ramps with adequate depth at low tide.

Great Egg Harbor Bay is open estuary water with salt marsh, islands, sandflats and mudflats. Beach Thorofare leads into shallow Peck Bay, where mudflats border the marked channel. The Great Egg Harbor River continues inland from the bay with shallow controlling depths. Great Egg Harbor Inlet reaches open ocean water, but severe shoaling, frequently shifted buoys and breakers make it hazardous for small boats.

Source: City of Ocean City (ocnj.us)

Day-trip choices from Ocean City include Corson’s Inlet State Park, Strathmere, Sea Isle City and Somers Point. Corson’s is the nature stop, with undeveloped dunes, estuary habitat, boating and fishing. NOAA traces the Intracoastal Waterway from Ocean City through the back-bay channels to Strathmere, where small-craft facilities offer transient berths, and Sea Isle City, where several basins serve visiting boats. Somers Point sits on Great Egg Harbor Bay and draws boaters to its bayfront marinas, restaurants and views from the Bay Village area.

Source: New Jersey State Park Service (dep.nj.gov)

Yes. New Jersey requires operators 16 or older of power vessels, including personal watercraft, to hold a boating safety certificate. The requirement goes by age, not by birth year. Ages 13 to 15 may operate only an electric powered vessel, or one at least 12 feet long with under 10 horsepower, and still need a certificate; children under 13 may not operate power vessels at all.

Operating on non-tidal waters also requires a New Jersey boat license, an endorsement the Motor Vehicle Commission adds to a driver's license or ID card. It is an additional required document, not a replacement for the safety certificate. Out of state proof is accepted for visits under 90 days, as are Coast Guard operator licenses. The New Jersey State Police Marine Services Bureau administers certification.

Source: New Jersey State Police Marine Services Bureau (nj.gov)

New Jersey boaters should know five core rules enforced by the New Jersey State Police Marine Services Bureau. Children 12 or younger must wear a properly fitted Coast Guard approved life jacket while underway; from November 1 through May 1, everyone aboard a recreational vessel under 26 feet must wear one while underway, except inside a cabin. Operating with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent or more is prohibited. All power vessels and all titled boats must be registered. Personal watercraft operators must be at least 16 and have a boating safety certificate, may not operate between sunset and sunrise, and must obey no wake restrictions.

Source: New Jersey State Police Marine Services Bureau (nj.gov)

New Jersey does not use an adult supervision exception: the minimum age is 13 for limited power vessels and 16 for any power vessel, including personal watercraft. Operators ages 13 through 15 need a boating safety certificate and may operate only an electric powered vessel or a vessel at least 12 feet long with less than 10 horsepower. Anyone under 13 cannot operate a power vessel, and the State Police manual says there are no exemptions to the age requirements.

The rental operator sets its own minimum, so confirm it when booking.

Source: New Jersey State Police Marine Services Bureau (nj.gov)

Alongside the boat clubs on this page, Ocean City has 6 boat rentals, 2 marinas and 2 boat dealers.