Ocean City, N.J. Wins Best Beach in America Contest‏ via Coastal Living Magazine

Voters nationwide have chosen Ocean City, NJ as the Best Beach in America.

Coastal Living magazine announced the winner of its “Best Beach” contest on Monday morning. Ocean City received more than 100,000 votes in the final round to win the title.

The contest was set up like a March Madness grid with the top beaches in 30 coastal states competing in head-to-head matchups. Online voting determined the winner of each round. Ocean City beat Ogunquit Beach (Maine), Hammonasset State Park (Conn.), Crescent Beach (R.I.) and Tybee Island (Ga.) to reach the final against Huntington Beach (Calif.). The first round started on March 11 and the final voting closed on April 3.

Follow this link to see the completed bracket.

The winning beach will be featured in the June 2016 issue of Coastal Living and in a special online package.

“The contest included a lot of beautiful beaches, but the voters knew that Ocean City is much more than that,” Mayor Jay Gillian said. “It’s a tradition and a part of life for generations of residents and guests. Days on the beach and boardwalk nights in Ocean City are the fabric of many fond memories for people across the country. We all feel blessed to live in such a wonderful place and proud that so many visitors share our passion.”

The Ocean City Regional Chamber of Commerce is preparing a gift basket of some favorite local treats to share with representatives of Huntington Beach, the popular West Coast destination and contest runner-up.