Virginia Beach Oceanfront (Resort Beach)
Virginia Beach Oceanfront (Resort Beach) is a beach in Oceanfront, Virginia Beach, best for first-time visitors, families who want amenities close, boardwalk biking, people-watching.
The Resort Beach is the Virginia Beach most visitors picture: three miles of wide Atlantic sand fronting the concrete Boardwalk, with hotels, restaurants, amusement rides, and the King Neptune statue at 31st Street a few steps from the water. It is the busiest stretch of shoreline in the city — lifeguarded in season, lined with amenities, and loudest between Memorial Day and Labor Day. The separate bike path paralleling the Boardwalk keeps cyclists and surrey riders out of the pedestrian flow. If you want restaurants, restrooms, and rental chairs within a two-minute walk of your towel, this is the beach; if you want quiet, head to the North End or Sandbridge instead.
Amenities
- 3-mile Boardwalk with separate bike path
- Seasonal lifeguards
- Public restrooms along the Boardwalk
- Beach equipment rentals in season
- Oceanfront parks and playgrounds (Neptune's Park, Grommet Island)
Know Before You Go
- Best for: first-time visitors, families who want amenities close, boardwalk biking, people-watching
- Parking: Paid parking throughout the Resort Area — municipal garages at 9th and 31st Streets, surface lots, and metered street spaces. Fills on summer weekends; arrive early or expect a walk.
- Accessibility: Boardwalk is flat and wheelchair accessible along its full length, with ramps at street ends. The city provides beach access matting at some blocks; JT's Grommet Island Park at 2nd Street is a fully accessible beach park.
- Dogs: not allowed — Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend, dogs are prohibited on the sand and in the water between Rudee Loop and 42nd Street at all times; leashed dogs are allowed on the Boardwalk 6 a.m.–7 p.m. Off-season (after Labor Day, before Memorial Day) dogs are welcome on the beach and may be off leash on the sand.
- Location: Atlantic Ocean beach along the Boardwalk, roughly Rudee Loop to 42nd Street, Virginia Beach, VA
Last verified 2026-07-10.
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While You're in the Area
17th Street Surf Shop
Virginia Beach's original surf shop since 1970 — a Pacific Avenue retail store plus Seth Broudy School of Surf camp sessions from 1 to 4 days.
Abbey Road Pub & Restaurant
Beatles-themed pub a block off the beach at 22nd Street — 42 taps, live music, a dog-friendly patio, and a Monday military discount.
- Dog Friendly
- Live Music
- Outdoor Seating
- Military Discount
Adventure Parasail & Rudee Inlet Jet Ski
Virginia Beach's original watersports operator since 1985 — parasailing, jet ski and kayak/SUP rentals, and banana boat rides at Rudee Inlet.
Afishinado Fishing Charters
Capt. Kevin Perry's 31-foot Ocean Master out of Inlet Station Marina — inshore speckled trout and cobia trips, offshore game-fish runs, and seasonal dolphin/whale watching.
Angie's Guest Cottage Bed & BreakfastHidden Gem
An early-1900s former Coast Guard surfmen's boarding house two blocks from the Boardwalk, run under the same family lore that gave it its name.
AquaMan Sportfishing Charters
Two-boat Rudee Inlet charter operation — The Flat Line and The Game On — running inshore, nearshore, and offshore deep-sea trips around the clock.
Upcoming Events Nearby
Neptune Festival Boardwalk Weekend
September 25, 2026 – September 27, 2026 · annual
Virginia Beach's signature festival closes out September with its 52nd Boardwalk Weekend, spreading across the Oceanfront between 1st and 35th Streets. The headline draw is Neptune's International Sandsculpting Championship — 22 large-scale works by sculptors from around the world — alongside an art and craft show with more than 200 artisans, twenty-plus musical acts across festival stages, the Grand Parade, Neptune's 8K, and a surfing competition at the jetty. Most of it is free to attend, and it reliably fills the resort area for one last big weekend of the season.
Virginia MOCA Boardwalk Art Show
October 9, 2026 – October 11, 2026 · annual
One of the longest-running outdoor art shows on the East Coast marks its 70th year along the Virginia Beach Boardwalk. Produced by the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, the juried show brings artists from across the country to sell painting, sculpture, photography, glass, and fine craft directly to visitors with the Atlantic as the backdrop. Hours run 10am–6pm Friday, 10am–5pm Saturday, and 10am–4pm Sunday, and October's thinner crowds make it an easy, walkable browse.
Wicked 10K Weekend
October 30, 2026 – October 31, 2026 · annual
Coastal Virginia's largest Halloween race weekend starts at the Convention Center on 19th Street and finishes on the Boardwalk near 20th, with runners in costume covering the flat, fast oceanfront course for the 10K, a Wicked 5K, or the shorter Monster Mile. A costume contest and a post-race beach party with food and drink follow the finish line. Presented by Sentara and run by J&A Racing — the same organizer behind the Yuengling Shamrock Marathon Weekend — it's the Halloween counterpart to that spring race on the same stretch of Boardwalk.