News Release

Assateague Island National Seashore - Online OSV Sales

Krystina Carpenter

News Release Date: December 14, 2022

Contact: Deborah Webber

Superintendent Hugh Hawthorne announces that online purchasing of Over Sand Vehicle (OSV) permits will soon be operational at Assateague Island National Seashore. Online OSV permit sales will begin January 4, 2023. Visitors are invited to take an early tour of the www.recreation.gov website beginning December 15^th to get familiar with this new procedure. This online option will help streamline the OSV sales process for visitors to the island as permits may be purchased in advance online and then picked up at the park office within 10 days of purchase. OSV permit sales will continue to be possible in person via online computer stations located at the North Beach Ranger Station in the Maryland District and the Toms Cove Visitor Center in the Virginia District.

Obtaining an OSV permit will be an easy process that takes only minutes and can be accomplished one of two ways:

1) Beginning January 4, 2023, you may purchase an OSV permit online by visiting www.recreation.gov. You will need to choose which office you would like to pick up your permit, either the North Beach Ranger Station in the Maryland District or the Toms Cove Visitor Center in the Virginia District.

2) By visiting one of two National Park Service OSV permit sales locations:

• North Beach Ranger Station in the Maryland District
  7206 National Seashore Lane, Berlin, MD 21811
  410-641-3030
  9:00 am to 5:00 pm, 7 days/week
• Toms Cove Visitor Center in the Virginia District
  8586 Beach Road, Chincoteague, VA 23336
  757-336-6577
  9:00 am to 4:00 pm, Friday-Monday from December - February
  9:00 am to 4:00 pm, 7 days/week from March - November.

Both annual OSV permits are available:  

• OSV Permit ($110): allows 24-hr access to the Maryland OSV area.  Permittee must be actively fishing from midnight to 5 am--no camping or sleeping. Allows access during Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge hours to the Virginia OSV area. 

• Bullpen Permit ($200): allows 24-hr access to the Maryland OSV area.  Permittee must have a hard-shelled, slide-in camper with attached and enclosed toilet with a permanently installed waste storage tank that can hold 2-days’ worth of waste- water. Permitted vehicles may park overnight in the Bullpen area. 

For more information on Over Sand Vehicle permits at Assateague Island National Seashore: https://www.nps.gov/asis/planyourvisit/osv.htm  

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