OCEAN CITY, Md. - Oceans Calling Festival has now canceled the entirety of its weekend schedule as a coastal storm continues to lash Delmarva’s shores.
On Friday, Sept. 25, festival officials said the weather has prevented them from safely continuing the build of the event. Organizers pointed to an updated westward track of the nor’easter, along with high tides, flooding and strong winds.
“Following the advice of the National Weather Service and in cooperation with local public officials, we must make the difficult decision to cancel Oceans Calling 2026,” the announcement reads.
Friday’s scheduled lineup was previously canceled due to the rough weather, including beach erosion, creating unsafe conditions for crews.
WBOC Chief Meteorologist Mike Lichniak says winds Friday night into Saturday could gust over 55 mph at the beach, pushing water ashore through several high tide cycles.
Parts of St. Louis Avenue and Baltimore Avenue also saw flooding Friday as the coastal storm continued to impact Ocean City.
The cancellation left thousands of festivalgoers who had already traveled to Ocean City looking for new plans for the weekend.
Lucy Newbold traveled from Scotland with friends specifically for Oceans Calling and to see Twenty One Pilots. She said the trip took about 24 hours after travel delays.
“We came for Twenty One Pilots. They’re like our favorite band,” Newbold said.
Newbold said the group was devastated when the cancellation announcement came through.
“It was so sad. We were crying,” Newbold said.
Other festivalgoers said the ticket refund helps, but does not account for money already spent traveling to Ocean City.
Skye Prince and Jessica French traveled from Tennessee and said they had been planning the trip since last year, booking their hotel before festival tickets even went on sale.
“Plane tickets, hotel, food, rental car, for five people, it adds up,” they said. “So we’ve lost quite a bit.”
“All ticket types purchased directly through Front Gate Tickets will be fully and automatically refunded in as little as 30 days to the original method of payment,” the festival said in a social media post on Friday.
The cancellation is also being felt by Boardwalk businesses that had expected large crowds throughout the weekend.
Marquis Waters, head chef at The Dough Roller, said the restaurant had been anticipating a significant boost from festival traffic.
“We planned for this weekend or expected to be a busy weekend,” Waters said. “The whole Boardwalk expects that business to give us the bump that we are looking for.”
Waters said he still expects people already staying in Ocean City to visit restaurants and other businesses despite the cancellation.
“Everybody still needs a place to eat, enjoy time with their family,” Waters said.
Saturday’s Oceans Calling lineup included acts such as Twenty One Pilots, Gwen Stefani, Third Eye Blind, All Time Low and Violent Femmes. Sunday’s included OK Go, Mumford & Sons, Matchbox Twenty and The Head and the Heart.
Festival officials encouraged people already staying in Ocean City through the weekend to enjoy the town while remaining safe during the storm.
