Doo Dah Parade, Egg Hunt This Weekend In Ocean City

OCEAN CITY, NJ — Enjoy two of Ocean City's most popular spring events, the Doo Dah Parade and the first of two Great Egg Hunts, this weekend. Both events are set for April 12.

The Doo Dah Parade opens the season by celebrating all things humorous. The procession features marching bands, floats and a brigade of hundreds of basset hounds. The parade begins at 12 p.m. Saturday and the route starts at Sixth Street and travels downtown Asbury Avenue to 12th Street, then turns to the Boardwalk at 12th Street and finishes on the boardwalk at Sixth Street, according to the Ocean City Chamber of Commerce.

The First Ocean City Doo Dah Parade was held on April 19, 1986. It was based on the original Doo Dah Parade, a spoof of the Rose Bowl Parade, held in Pasadena, California. Ocean City’s event is always scheduled close to Tax Day, and it serves as a way to blow off steam during income tax filing season.

Philadelphia Phillies great Tommy Greene will be the grand marshal of the parade.

Greene pitched for the Phillies from 1990 to 1995, and he posted a 16-4 record during the team’s memorable run to the World Series in 1993. He also played for the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros during his career. He has served as a post-game analyst for Phillies broadcasts.

Greene will be available for free autographs and pictures at the Ocean City Music Pier for an hour after the parade.

Some highlights will include the Hobo Band, the Jersey String Band, the Woodland String Band, Crescent Shriner’s Mini Cars, the Fred Hall Orchestra and the Atlantic City Fire Department Sandpipers Band.

Also this weekend is the first of two Great Egg Hunts, held on the Boardwalk on Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Participating merchants will invite children up to age 7 to visit stores with their families to collect eggs filled with toys, treats and prizes.

The free event will run for two hours or while supplies last. Flyers will direct families to 50 participating stores to collect eggs trick-or-treat-style. Rain date is April 13. A second Great Egg Hunt is scheduled for 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. April 19 with a rain date of April 20. More information is available on Facebook (@ocnjboardwalk) or Instagram (@oc_njboardwalk).

The Easter Bunny will be in town to visit with children 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on April 12, 13 and 19 at Mark Soifer Park at the corner of Ninth Street and Asbury Avenue. Families will be able to take photos with the Easter Bunny in an Ocean City Beach Patrol lifeguard boat at the park.