This five-story building, sitting off a busy highway and set around a parking lot, has a time-warp motel vibe. The small lobby has a seating area around a fireplace and a flat-screen TV, with coffee from a carafe and juice from a machine available most of the day. The pool, shielded from the highway by a white iron fence, is surrounded by Adirondack chairs and loungers. The attached straw-roof CrabCake Factory restaurant serves bacon- and crab-topped Bloody Marys and crab cakes (of course) -- among other items -- and is a lively spot for hanging out.

Coastal Palms sits on the busy Coastal Highway, and is a block from the beach, with other hotels, convenience stores, drugstores, a supermarket, and restaurants all around. The Carousel Hotel and its ice skating rink (admission included with some packages) is a four-minute walk away. The Ocean City boardwalk is a 15-minute drive from the hotel. The Ocean City Convention Center is a 10-minute drive away, and the Jolly Roger Amusement Park is just two minutes farther by car.

The hotel’s 95 rooms include Deluxe Standard Rooms and Two-Room Suites with two queen beds in the main room and a pull-out sofa in a separate room. All rooms have balconies overlooking the ocean or parking lot. They’re no-frills but clean, with sky-blue walls and blue-and-gold patterned bedspreads and carpeting, and cream-colored furniture -- there are dressers but no closets. Some of the bathrooms have older fixtures, while others have dark-wood vanities and small, curtained shower/tub combos. All rooms include flat-screen TVs, microwaves, mini-fridges, coffeemakers, irons, and hairdryers in the bathrooms. The hotel also rents a two-bedroom, two-bath Beach House with a full kitchen, and washing machine and dryer -- the house can accommodate up to eight people. 

The hotel has an outdoor pool -- while it's not huge, it's long enough for laps. Beach chair rental is free. The on-site Crabcake Factory is casual and family-friendly, and will ship crab cakes anywhere in the world. Guests can purchase packages that include passes to the indoor ice-skating rink at the Carousel Hotel, discounts at the Carousel's restaurant, a family photo, and gift certificates. Pets are allowed at the Coastal Palms in designated rooms, for an additional fee. On-site parking is free but limited. Wi-Fi is free throughout the property.