Assateague Island National Seashore

Permit Information

NPS Special Use Permit required for all weddings and ceremonies. Wedding events happen at a designated Special Events area at North Beach in the Maryland district. The park does not grant exclusive use of the area, so other visitors keep full access, and signage, banners, vehicle access, and commercial services (wedding planners, caterers) are not permitted. All setup must be hand carried in and removed by sunset. Submit NPS Form 10 930 and pay the $50 non refundable application fee through Pay…

Planning Your Day at Assateague Island National Seashore

One-Spot Day

Assateague's NPS wedding rules funnel ceremonies to the Special Events area at North Beach in the Maryland district, that is the default ceremony location. Life of the Marsh Trail on the bayside works for intimate ceremonies up to 10 guests with a different palette, golden cordgrass and wading birds instead of ocean. The park does not grant exclusive use, other visitors keep full access during your ceremony, plan for it. All setup must be hand carried in and out the same day.

Ceremony + Portraits Split

Splits between beach and marsh run as one day and show up dramatically different in the edit. Ceremony at North Beach at sunrise over the Atlantic, drive five minutes to the bayside picnic area, portraits on the Life of the Marsh boardwalk at mid morning before heat and bugs pick up. One NPS Special Use Permit covers both locations if named. No vendors or banners are allowed, no exceptions. Every guest pays the $25 per vehicle park entrance fee on top of the permit.

A Note on Light

Sunrise over the Atlantic from North Beach is the signature shot. Golden hour on the dune grass is warm and soft. The marsh on the bayside glows luminous at sunset across the cordgrass. Summer crowds are intense and mosquitoes are brutal, target September through October for warm weather, smaller crowds, and active ponies, or May through June for the spring shoulder. The ocean side of the island is windy year round, plan for fabric and sand.

Ceremony Spots at Assateague Island National Seashore

• North Beach (Maryland District) — Wide, wild Atlantic beach with wild ponies roaming freely, the quintessential Assateague experience
• Life of the Marsh Trail — Intimate boardwalk ceremony in a salt marsh with bay views, wading birds, and golden marsh grass