Congo Falls (Ocean City)

Congo Falls (Ocean City)   1132 Boardwalk, Ocean City, NJ 08226

Congo Falls is consistently ranked as the best mini golf course in Ocean City by all the newspapers and magazines, and it’s not hard to see why! On the boardwalk, you are welcomed by a giant King Kong holding….well, honestly we aren’t sure, but it shoots mist and water at night. There are also two monkeys crashed in a helicopter on top of a sign, which immediately draws you in from the crowded Boardwalk.

This establishment is actually home to three courses: Congo Queen, which starts outside, going through multiple levels with a gorgeous view of Playland, the beach and the Boardwalk, before spending about 7 or 8 holes inside in the back of the structure, and then circling back out for the last 4 or 5 holes. If you want to spend most of your time outdoors, Congo Queen is where you want to play. Solomon’s mine is about 60% inside or covered in some way, but you will be exposed to some of the elements. Lost City is 100% indoors and air conditioned, and is technically rated “PG”. All this really means is they lean a bit more into the creepy pirate treasure/jungle themes, but it’s nothing crazy. The website and reviews rave about “Disney-quality entertainment”, and while we won’t go that far, it definitely is one of the more advanced on the Ocean City boardwalk.

We’ve played all three courses at some point, but our favorite is Congo Queen, so that is what we chose on this adventure. All three courses have very similar design and used the same muted brown/tan concrete barriers as Pirate Island (which is also owned by the same company). The course is a bit compressed, but there are almost no guaranteed aces. That being said, almost every hole should be a maximum of three for a decent mini golfer. As we mentioned, they all have some indoor portion, which is why you will see this is the only “outdoor” course open on rainy days.

Pricing for Congo Falls has shifted over the years, and they are being very coy about their current pricing. When we went this year in the early afternoon, it was $9.95/person, and we added a $1/person off coupon. This places it just above Pirate Island on our list, which is $3/person more expensive, but Congo is still the most expensive on the Boardwalk. We had one of our best rounds this year, with our winner notching two aces en-route to a 34, with second place getting a 36. Par for the course is 37, so it definitely wasn’t too much of a challenge, and that is where we would give a slight edge to Pirate Island.