By no means heard of Ocean Springs, Mississippi? Neither had we! However it caught our eye on round-ups like Southern Residing’s 15 Most Cute Small Cities and USA Right now’s 10 Finest Coastal Small Cities the place it ranked #1. So just a few months in the past our household determined to test it out for ourselves. It did NOT disappoint! We truly thought-about detouring by way of Ocean Springs on our weekend journey to New Orleans two years in the past. However now we’re glad we didn’t shortchange it with a fast pitstop and gave it a full journey of its personal.
Ocean Springs lived as much as the hype of being an lovable, small, historic city with heaps to discover. In reality it reminded us A LOT of Cape Charles, the little Virginia seashore city the place we renovated two properties. Each locations are tremendous walkable, have a bunch of enjoyable retailers and eating places, and sit on a quiet bay with shallow water for youths to play in.
We visited Ocean Springs in late November throughout our children’ Thanksgiving break, so we didn’t spend time on the seashore (though it did get into the low 70s every day). However even with out having fun with the water, we discovered loads to do in Ocean Springs.
The place is Ocean Springs, Mississippi?
Ocean Springs is positioned on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, proper throughout the Biloxi Bay from, effectively, Biloxi. It’s about 3 hours west of our residence in Northwest Florida and nearly 90 minutes east of New Orleans.
We spent most of our Ocean Springs go to strolling round and exploring the historic downtown and beachfront. We actually didn’t get in our automotive as soon as because of renting an Airbnb in an excellent walkable space! We hit up parks, retailers, eating places, toy & sweet shops, and – after all – poked round some charming neighborhoods too. It was the right laid-back, slow-paced household getaway.
The place to Keep In Ocean Springs
Ocean Springs has numerous short-term leases in addition to boutique resorts and B&Bs, so there are lots of lodging choices – together with stylish ones like the fashionable cabins on the Beatnik Motel.
We stayed at a dog-friendly Airbnb proper off of one of many major downtown streets, which was clear and well-stocked, however after strolling round many areas there, we wouldn’t suggest that particular spot, so I’m not going to hyperlink it right here. It was a bit loud from some adjoining eating places, however there have been some very charming areas south of Authorities Road that we might decide to remain in subsequent time. This one known as Gaslamp Home is a bit expensive, nevertheless it at all times catches my eye!
However once more, there’s additionally no scarcity of cool resorts. We walked by The Roost Boutique Lodge, which regarded like an up to date previous farmhouse. The pool space seems superior on the web site too!
Barely nearer to downtown is The Springs Lodge, which additionally homes a cool floral and reward store known as Palmette (extra on that later). That’s why Sherry is marching so determinedly into the lodge under!
I stayed exterior with the canine, however Sherry obtained to sneak some peaks of the within of the lodge whereas buying. It was tremendous effectively designed!
I imply, simply have a look at the lavatory!
We had been positively pleasantly stunned by the extent of lodging choices in Ocean Springs.
The place To Eat in Ocean Springs
We wouldn’t name ourselves foodies (zero refined palates right here), however by some means our holidays at all times revolve round meals! Ocean Springs had tons of nice restaurant choices which might be each child & dog-friendly. In our 48 hours there, we had 2 breakfasts, 2 brunches, and a pair of dinners… plus some desserts! Right here’s an inventory of the place we went, with extra information and pics under:
- Shiny Eyed Brew Co
- The TatoNut Store (donuts)
- Fats Spoon Cafe
- Girl Might
- Glory Sure Gyro Co
- Pop Brothers (popsicles)
- Sweet Cottage
We additionally ate a fantastic brunch on the Fats Spoon Cafe, however didn’t take any images!
Girl Might
We beloved Girl Might a lot that we ate there twice – as soon as for dinner after which the subsequent morning for brunch. That they had a fantastic patio and the menu had crowdpleasers from flatbread pizzas and burgers to omelets and waffles.
Glory Sure Gyro Co
Our first dinner was at Glory Sure Gryo Co which, we later discovered, is a sister restaurant to Girl Might. It additionally had burgers, salads, and pizzas but additionally tons of gyros with completely different topping and sauce combos. It wasn’t fancy, nevertheless it was SO GOOD we nearly ate there the second night time (however ended up at Girl Might as an alternative).
Pop Brothers
After a protracted stroll, we handled ourselves to some gourmand popsicles at Pop Brothers. It’s positioned in “Money Alley” which is adorned with colourful umbrellas overhead and graphic sidewalk artwork under. There are dozens of artisan popsicle flavors to select from (I did Vietnamese Espresso and Sherry did chocolate peanut butter). We extremely suggest paying the additional greenback to have it dipped in chocolate!
Sadly we missed getting a New Orleans-style snow cone at close by Caboose Cones, which had closed for the winter season. However I think about it’s an iconic place to chill off in the summertime.
We additionally loved some novelty sweet on the Sweet Cottage, which is correct subsequent door to Girl Might. It had TONS of customized chocolate creations, plus the standard favs.
What To Do in Oceans Springs
The seashore is actually an enormous draw for Ocean Springs, however even in November we discovered loads to maintain us busy out of the water. Principally it concerned strolling round, exploring, dropping into retailers, and taking within the lovely neighborhoods.
A whole lot of Historic Downtown Ocean Springs seems just like the streets pictured above and under. Cozy sidewalks, large oak timber, and enjoyable little retailers, parks, and houses alongside the way in which.
Ocean Springs appears to have a vibrant artwork scene too, with one standard cease downtown being the Walter Anderson Museum of Artwork. Lots of people additionally discuss Shearwater Pottery, however we sadly didn’t make it there throughout open hours.
The following block down is the aforementioned Springs Lodge, which can also be residence to a floral and artwork store known as Palmette.
I stayed exterior with Penny whereas Sherry and the youngsters shopped. Primarily based on the period of time spent, I may inform it was considered one of their favourite stops!
Sherry purchased this brass tiger pendant there and loves it endlessly.
I don’t keep in mind the identify of each little retailer we stopped into, however that was form of the enjoyable of it. There was at all times one thing attention-grabbing to see.
My solely want is that Ocean Springs had an area bookshop (we love trying out unbiased bookstores on trip). We did come throughout a number of Little Free Libraries, so I suppose that was a detailed second!
It was additionally enjoyable being downtown as issues had been beginning to get decked out for the vacations. We even obtained to see the toy retailer actively hanging theirs!
Along with buying the downtown, we additionally loved strolling down a few of the neighborhood streets to admire the properties. I’ve by no means thought a lot about what a “quintessential coastal Mississippi” neighborhood may appear like, however by some means Ocean Springs is precisely that. It positively had lots of New Orleans vibes, with lovely previous properties, native retailers, and tree-lined streets.
There have been numerous sprawling porches, picket fences, and big mossy oaks.
Presumably the perfect half about our go to to Ocean Springs is that we left wanting to come back again. Whereas I believe we hit lots of highlights in our quick go to, it looks like we may use extra time to soak it in, totally calm down into its laid-back vibe, and perhaps bike round city or hang around on the seashore on a summer season day.
Oh, and I actually need a kind of snow cones from the practice caboose.
Ocean Springs, Mississippi: A Recap
If you happen to’re searching for all of the issues we talked about in a single spot, right here ya go!
The place to Keep:
The place to Eat
The place to Store & Browse
Extra Household Journeys We’ve Taken
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