Your dancer made the team. Somewhere in the excitement, somebody said the word "Nationals," and now there is a week in Ocean City, Maryland on your calendar that you have no idea how to plan for.
You are going to be fine. Every family on our team was exactly where you are, and most of them will tell you the first year was the one they overthought the most.
We are Dance Xtreme New York, a competition studio in Hauppauge on Long Island, and our teams travel to Ocean City for Nationals every summer.
So we asked the moms who have already done it, most of them four or more seasons in. Here is what a few of them had to say, in their own words. Their first names are on their answers because they chose that.
If you read nothing else, read this
- Stay within walking distance of the convention center. Every single mom said this without being asked.
- Book a condo or house, not a hotel. A kitchen and a couch change the whole week.
- Book next year's place before you drive home this year. The good ones go a full year out.
- Get to the dressing room early. Tables and chairs are first come, first served.
- Pack backups of everything. Especially turning shoes, tights, and bobby pins.
That is the short version. Here is what each one actually looks like once you are there.
Where to stay in Ocean City for dance Nationals
Every mom raised this on her own, without being asked. When that many families independently land on the same answer, it is worth planning your week around.
The reason we stay where we do is because we are walking distance from the convention center so we can come and go.
No need to ever really use the car aside from if we go to the boardwalk or dinner not within walking distance.
Walking back between routines turns a fourteen hour day into a few shorter ones. Families two or three blocks away describe a completely different week than families who drive and park.
Condo or house beats a hotel
Almost every family who answered stayed in a condo or a house rather than a hotel, and they were specific about why.
We like having the ability to get up and cook a big breakfast for our dancer before they hit the stage.
We also like to be able to have a nice spot to go back to and relax between dances or awards.
A kitchen matters more than it sounds like it should. Breakfast happens on your schedule, snacks stop being another restaurant stop, and the family up at five is not tiptoeing around one shared room.
The buildings that come up most are Makai and Thunder Island, both close enough to walk back between routines, along with Sunset Island on the bay side. One caution: every unit in a condo building has a different owner, so read the reviews for the listing itself, not the complex.
Book earlier than feels reasonable
Most of our families book next year's place before they drive home from this year's. That is why they are all within walking distance and a first-time family often is not.
What a Nationals day actually looks like
Not the schedule you get emailed. The real shape of it.
Some days are full, some are half days, and some days your dancer is not competing at all. Arriving a day or two before her first routine is the easiest way to give yourself margin.
What surprises most first-time parents is how much time dancers choose to spend there even when they are not dancing. They want to watch their teammates and see what the rest of the competition is doing.
Come to the audience to support our other dances, take a walk to get food or sit outside by the water.
Don't just sit in the dressing room!
What to do with a gap
The rest of the day is gaps, and the gaps are where the week actually happens. How you fill one comes down to how long it is.
- Twenty minutes: walk back to your place, snack, sit down, breathe
- An hour or so: ice cream, the candy store, mini golf, a walk to the water
- Half a day: the beach across from the convention center, ideally somewhere with food service and a bathroom
Get to the dressing room early
The dressing room gets crowded fast, and tables and chairs are first come, first served. On a long day with four costume changes, a home base is the difference between a manageable morning and doing hair on the floor.
Early call times sound brutal and are quietly the good ones. You claim your spot, and the rest of the day is calmer for it.
Where to eat in Ocean City
Everything below came from the moms. It is sorted by the shape of a day rather than by meal, because at Nationals you are never thinking "it is lunchtime," you are thinking "I have thirty minutes."
- Barn 34 · 34th, breakfast
- Shotti's Point · 35th, sit down
- Castle in the Sand · 37th, Coconuts, beach service
- On the Bay Seafood · 42th, steamed crabs
- Belly Busters · 45th, quick, delivers
- Taphouse · 45th, bayfront
- Dry 85 · 48th, sit down
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, tiles © CARTO
Before you leave in the morning Barn 34, or your own kitchen. If you are in a condo, bring breakfast food with you and skip the line entirely.
Twenty minutes between routines Belly Busters is the one name that came up in almost every single answer. Sandwiches, seafood, quick bites, close to the convention center, and they deliver. If you remember one restaurant from this article, make it that one. Anthony's does sandwiches too, and there is the convention center concession stand. Two moms flagged the same thing about the stand independently: the hours are odd and it does not stay open late, so do not count on it for dinner.
An hour or so, or you are done for the day Taphouse, Shotti's Point, Dry 85, Ropewalk, On the Bay Seafood for crabs, Coconuts Beach Bar, Bad Monkey, Blu Crabhouse, Sakura, and Touch of Italy, where a chicken parm feeds most of the table.
When the little ones are with you Dead Freddies has a playground and outdoor tables big enough for a whole group of teammates.
After dinner, every single night Rita's, Dumser's, Dough Roller, Sugar Planet. One family's tradition is a different dessert spot every night of the week.
What to pack for Nationals week
Every mom's packing answer, combined. The rest is what you only learn to bring after a week goes sideways.
Costume and hair emergencies
- A backup pair of turning shoes. They wear out exactly when you need them most
- Bobby pins and safety pins in several colors, so they blend
- Extra tights, shoes, undergarments, earrings, and lashes
- Black and white socks, more than you think
- Body adhesive to keep costumes put, plus wipes to get the residue off
- Wrinkle release spray, which beats hauling a steamer and freshens a costume that has had a long season
- A small screwdriver if your dancer taps, because tap screws loosen over time
- Hairspray, stain stick, bandaids, scissors
Comfort, because the convention center is cold
Three moms raised this separately. It is hot outside and freezing inside.
- A blanket. Dancers will find a corner and settle in
- A sweatshirt, and layers generally
- Your awards outfit: black leggings or sweats, a DXNY shirt, competition jacket
Food and cleanup
- A small cooler with drinks and snacks for the long days
- Snacks that will not make a mess: pretzels, fruit snacks, goldfish, granola bars, grapes, cut veggies
- Hand wipes and makeup wipes
Outside
- Sunscreen and aloe
- Beach things, because the downtime happens whether you packed for it or not
Two systems worth setting up before you leave
Check costumes and shoes twice before you pull out of the driveway, and write your grocery list at home so you can shop the day you arrive. Restock hair and makeup when regional season ends, and use organizers so you can find things in a crowded dressing room.
What nobody tells you until you are already there
One mom said the thing every first-time family needs to hear, better than we would have.
If all else fails, find the MacGyver mom on your team and ask for help.
Come prepared, pack thoughtfully, bring backups where you can, and know that the week is busy and genuinely fun in equal measure.
The second thing people underestimate is not about logistics at all.
Know your kid. Some kids thrive on the go go go, others do not.
Mine turns into a gremlin if she doesn't get enough sleep. As a teenager she has fomo but I know that getting into bed and resting is HUGE for the day we'll have tomorrow.
It's the difference between Linda Blair and Elmo.
You will be tempted to say yes to every late boardwalk trip. Some dancers can do that all week, some cannot, and the mom who knows which one she has is the one whose kid performs well on day five.
You are not doing this alone
This worries new families most, and it is what they worry about least by the end of the week.
Forgot a shoe, someone has one for you. Forgot an accessory, we just don't use it.
There is a whole studio full of people that will help you.
Teamwork backstage in the dressing room at all times.
Prepare the best that you can but stay calm if something goes wrong.
So pack the extra socks, book a year out, get to the dressing room early, and let the week be what it is going to be. When we asked which single moment a new mom should watch for, the answer was that there is not one.
It's the millions of small moments both on and off the stage that fill your heart.
Questions first-time Nationals families ask
How many nights should we stay? Most of our families stay the full week or six to seven nights. If you want any downtime at all, arrive one or two days before your dancer's first routine.
Do we need a car? Not if you stay within walking distance of the convention center, which is what almost every experienced family recommends. You will want it for the boardwalk or a dinner further out.
How far ahead should we book? Most of our families book before they leave Ocean City, a full year ahead. Six months out is the realistic minimum if you want to be close.
What is the one thing first-timers forget to pack? Layers. The convention center is cold no matter how hot it is outside, and a blanket or sweatshirt gets used every single day.
Is there food at the venue? Yes, and the fries have a following. The hours are unpredictable though, so do not plan dinner around the concession stand.
Will my dancer be on her own back there? No. Our dancers get each other ready, share what somebody forgot, and our staff are backstage all week.
Thank you to Jenn S., Justine R., Julie N., Dana M. and Erica H. for writing all of this down for the families coming after them.
And if you found this on your way to Ocean City with a different studio, take all of it. We wrote it for our own families, but nobody's first Nationals should be harder than it needs to be. If you are ever looking for a studio closer to home on Long Island, here is what we offer.
Hoping your dancer is on a team next season
This is the part first-time families miss most often, so we want to be direct about it.
There is no separate audition for our competition teams. The Summer Intensive is the evaluation. We watch dancers all summer, and Competition and Pre-Competition placement comes out of what we see there.
What it takes is hours, not a tryout, and the number depends on your dancer's age. The two bands are not the same.
Ages 9 and up
- The Rise Pass, 14 classes or 21 hours, meets the requirement for the fall team evaluation
- The Reign Pass, 27 classes or 40.5 hours, meets it for team placement along with a solo or small group
Ages 6 to 8, new for 2026 and one tier lower
- The Spark Pass, 7 classes or 10.5 hours, meets the requirement for the fall team evaluation
- The Rise Pass, 14 classes or 21 hours, meets it for team placement along with a solo or small group
Our 2026 Intensive runs Tuesdays through Thursdays, July 14 to August 27. Every pass and the full schedule for both age bands are on the Summer Intensive page.
If you are still working out whether competition is right for your dancer, our competition program page is the wider picture.