OCEAN CITY, Md. -- Large crowds continue to hit Ocean City as the town hosts events later on in the year. Businesses said the last month and a half has been the bow on top of a fairly successful summer.
If you walked by Thrasher's on Friday, it would have been difficult to miss the line extending far beyond the businesses cash registers. It meant the cooks were busy, and so were the workers responsible for getting fries into the hands of hungry customers.
Those customers in town, most likely for the last hurrah of the shoulder season: Sunfest.
It caps off a month and a half long span that also saw Bikefest, Oceans Calling and Endless Summer Cruisin'.
Thrasher's General Manager, Les Morris, said he loves to see the lines as long as the one on Friday, especially as the weather begins to cool down.
"It's been sensational, these shoulder seasons are so full," said Morris.
Bobby Taylor, owner of the Purple Moose Saloon, said his bar has also seen it's fair share of guests this fall.
"This past September and October, well we're halfway through October now, have been big one for us it's been great," said Taylor.
These fall shoulder season events are helping cap off a good, but not great summer season. Amy Thompson, Executive Director of the Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, said the town still isn't quite seeing pre-pandemic crowds.
"I would drive up Coastal Highway and somedays I'd get uptown much faster than I thought I should, so to me that's kind of some data to indicate it wasn't a completely rockstar summer," said Thompson.
Which is why events after the summer tourists have taken their last vacations are so important.
"It gives businesses this extension, this ability to bring in tourism, be it for Cruisin', for Sunfest, for Oceans Calling," said Thompson. "Obviously just bringing new faces, bringing different eyeballs into town and honestly just extending the ability to keep making money."
Morris also noted the different crowds late-season events draw.
"We depend on these events because the season, once the kids go back to school, this brings like a different client," said Morris. "We have some older people here for this, so it just really helps us keep these guys working."
The one difficulty has been staffing, but both Thrasher's and Purple Moose Saloon have made it work.
"It's a little tough but we're fortunate we have three stores on the boardwalk, we close 8th street and 2nd street and bring the help down to the inlet," said Morris.
"Staffing is a little difficult this time of year as you get towards the end of the season, we lose some of the J1's and other seasonal employees but we got by," said Taylor.
Boardwalk businesses, thriving well beyond the end of summer.