Vacation Rentals in Ocean Shores
Ocean Shores is the busiest stretch of the North Beach, and our biggest market on the coast. The beach here is wide enough to drive on, the canals thread through the neighborhoods, and razor clam season fills the town when the tides line up.
About our Ocean Shores rentals
Most of what we manage here is condos. Beachfront and oceanview units in buildings like Ocean Surf, Maris Stella and Pacific Surf, generally one or two bedrooms sleeping four to six, most of them within walking distance of the Chance a La Mer beach approach and the shops and restaurants along the main drag. A few are houses, including a three-bedroom with a hot tub and fire pit that sleeps ten. The great majority take dogs.
The town sits on a six-mile sand spit between the Pacific and Grays Harbor, which is why it feels flat and open and why the weather moves through fast. Summer is the peak, but the coast does not really have an off season any more. Clam digs draw crowds into winter, and storm watching has become its own reason to come.
See What’s Available
Beachfront and ocean view condos, most of them dog-friendly, booked direct with no guest service fee.
Things to do in Ocean Shores
The Beach
Six miles of hard-packed sand, wide enough to drive on. The main vehicle and foot approach from town is at Chance a La Mer. Washington’s ocean beaches are legally state highways, so ordinary road rules apply out there — see the questions below before you drive onto the sand.
The canals and freshwater lakes
A network of interconnected canals and lakes runs through the middle of the spit, used for small boats, paddling and freshwater fishing. It is the thing that makes the town’s layout unusual, and most visitors never see it because they stop at the beach.
Coastal Interpretive Center
Local natural and cultural history, and the reliable option when the weather turns. Check current opening days before you go.
Oyhut Wildlife Recreation Area
Tidal flats and dunes at the south end of the spit, on the Pacific flyway. Serious birding, and quiet even in August.
Ocean Shores Marina
On the Grays Harbor side, away from the surf.
Quinault Beach Resort & Casino
Just north of town, and the sponsor of the annual Razor Clam and Seafood Festival.
Before you go: three current closures
Damon Point is closed
Damon Point has been closed to public access since 27 January 2025, because shifting sand has left parts of it underwater at high tide. The City confirmed in March 2026 that the barricades have been removed but the closure still stands — so there is nothing at the entrance to stop you, and it is still shut. People are regularly caught out there; two were evacuated by Coast Guard helicopter in August 2026. Several travel guides, Airbnb’s Ocean Shores page among them, still list it as a top local sight.
The North Jetty is a construction site
The Army Corps of Engineers began repair work on the North Jetty in 2026. Rock is trucked in along Ocean Shores Boulevard — around ten trucks on an average day, up to thirty at peak. If you are staying on the boulevard, expect traffic on weekdays.
Ocean City State Park day-use area is closed
As of 12 August 2026 the day-use area is closed for construction, and there is no beach access from the park. A Level 3 burn ban is also in force there: gas and propane camping stoves and fire pits are allowed, charcoal and wood fires are not.
Razor clamming in Ocean Shores
Ocean Shores sits in the Copalis management area, which runs from the Grays Harbor north jetty up to the Copalis River and takes in Ocean Shores, Oyhut, Ocean City and Copalis. That matters because digs are announced by beach name rather than by town: when the Department of Fish and Wildlife opens Copalis, that is the dig here. First-time diggers routinely turn up on the wrong day because they were watching a different beach.
There is no single season. Digs are approved in batches tied to evening low tides, generally running autumn through spring, and each one only goes ahead if marine toxin testing clears first. Dates are confirmed a few weeks out — check WDFW before you travel, not before you book.
The rules, which don’t change
- The daily limit is 15 clams per person.
- Every digger keeps their clams in a separate container, and must keep the first 15 they dig — whatever the size or condition. No throwing the small ones back, and no digging someone else’s limit.
- Everyone 16 or older needs a fishing licence.
FAQs
Yes, but not everywhere and not all year. Washington’s ocean beaches are classified as state highways, so ordinary road law applies: the speed limit on the sand is 25 mph, and your vehicle must be registered and insured with a licensed driver at the wheel. Stay on the hard-packed sand, keep off the clam beds and the soft sand, and do not drive in the dunes. Four-wheel drive is strongly recommended, and ATVs are not allowed on the beach or the approaches at all.
From 15 April to Labor Day, the beach south of the Chance a La Mer entrance and north of the Pacific Avenue entrance is closed to vehicles. In high summer, in other words, the drivable stretch is the middle.
Copalis. The Copalis management area runs from the Grays Harbor north jetty to the Copalis River and explicitly includes Ocean Shores and Oyhut. If an announcement says Copalis is open, it means here.
There is no single season. WDFW approves digs in batches tied to evening low tides, usually from autumn through spring, and each one depends on marine toxin testing. Tentative dates for the coming season are published in early autumn.
Yes — everyone aged 16 or over needs a fishing licence.
Fifteen per person per day. Each digger keeps their clams in a separate container and must keep the first fifteen they dig, whatever the size or condition.
Yes. Digs only go ahead if marine toxin testing clears, and WDFW confirms each one shortly beforehand. Always check before you drive.
No. It has been closed to public access since 27 January 2025 because shifting sand leaves parts of it underwater at high tide. The barricades were removed in early 2026 but the closure still stands, so there may be nothing at the entrance to indicate it. Several travel guides still list it as a top local sight.
Not at the moment. The Army Corps of Engineers is carrying out repair work, with rock delivered by truck along Ocean Shores Boulevard — around ten trucks a day on average and up to thirty at peak.
The day-use area has been closed for construction since 12 August 2026, and there is no beach access from the park.
Normally yes, within limits. The City requires beach campfires to be under three feet on each side and under three feet high, and to be built at least 100 feet west of the dune line. No fires on shellfish beds or in dune grass. Drench and bury it before you leave.
Check the current burn ban first, though — restrictions change with conditions through the summer and can override all of the above. A Level 3 ban was in force at Ocean City State Park as of July 2026, allowing self-contained gas and propane stoves and fire pits but no charcoal or wood fires.
Most people wade rather than swim. The Pacific here is cold all year, the currents are strong, there are rip tides, and there are no lifeguards.
Yes — Quinault Beach Resort & Casino, just north of town.
Ocean Shores has over 20 miles of interconnected freshwater canals and lakes running through the middle of the spit, with Duck Lake the largest. The City maintains three public boat launches, including one at Chinook Park on Duck Lake Drive and one at North Bay Park on Albatross Avenue, both with a launch and a fishing dock. They are city parks, so visitors are as welcome as residents. Kayaks, canoes, paddleboards and small boats all work, and the water is flat and protected — which makes it the reliable option on a day when the surf is too rough to enjoy.
Very, but the beach has rules worth knowing before you arrive. City ordinance requires pets to be kept under physical control on a leash no longer than eight feet, and fines run to $500. There is a designated off-leash stretch of beach between Taurus Boulevard and Butterclam Street, and an off-leash area at Chinook Park. Washington’s wider Seashore Conservation Area rules are more relaxed about voice control, so you may read elsewhere that off-leash is fine on Washington beaches — inside Ocean Shores, the city leash rule is the one that applies.
About 134 miles, and roughly two and a half hours in ordinary traffic, via I-5 south then SR-8 and US-12 west, then SR-109 out to the coast. Allow longer on summer Fridays and on clam-dig weekends — the last stretch is two-lane and it backs up.
Mostly, but less than you would expect. There is no rail or scheduled air service, and the town spreads along a six-mile spit, so a car makes life much easier. But Grays Harbor Transit runs Route 60 between Aberdeen and Ocean Shores and on up to Pacific Beach, with a transit centre in town, and it also runs HarborFlex, an on-demand service within Ocean Shores itself. Both are free to ride — the agency has confirmed fares stay free on all fixed routes and HarborFlex through 2026.
Ocean Shores IGA, at 101 E Chance A La Mer, in the middle of town. It describes itself as the only full-service grocery store on the North Beach, which matches what is here. For a bigger shop, Aberdeen and Hoquiam are about half an hour south and have full-size supermarkets.
Mild and wet, with very little extreme in either direction. At Hoquiam, the nearest long-record weather station, average highs run from about 46°F in December to 68°F in August, and lows from about 37°F to 54°F. The wet season runs from early October to late April; November is the wettest month by a distance and July the driest. Ocean Shores sits on an exposed sand spit between the ocean and the harbour, so expect more wind than those inland figures suggest.
Nearby on the North Beach
If Ocean Shores is booked out, the same beach continues north. Copalis Beach is the next town up and sits in the same clam zone. Pacific Beach and Moclips are further north in the Mocrocks zone, which opens on different days. Westport and Grayland are across the harbour mouth in Twin Harbors, about an hour round by road.
Why Book Direct
- No guest service fee. Airbnb and Vrbo add roughly 20%.
- Best Price Guarantee — the best rate is the one on this site.
- Door-code check-in, normally from 4pm. Nobody to meet.
- Check-in instructions by email 24 hours before you arrive.
- Complimentary noon late check-out.