A Guide to the Delaware Beaches

As a lifelong Delawarean, I have spent many happy times at the Delaware Beaches. This post explores each of the beaches with their associated towns that make up this lovely bit of coastline.

When to Visit the Delaware Beaches

Peek season in Delaware is mid-June to mid to Labor Day. Shoulder season is a great time to visit the Delaware beaches. Early October is my personal favorite time at the beach. Crowds are very minimal and prices trend down. There are often still warm days to enjoy the ocean, and water tends to be warmer in the early fall. Here are a few wonderful places to enjoy at the Delaware Beaches.

Cape Henlopen State Park and Lewes

Cape Henlopen State Park includes about 6 miles of coastline at the mouth of the Delaware Bay. The park includes “The Point,” where the Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. There are two lighthouses that can be seen from Cape Henlopen – the Delaware Breakwater East End Lighthouse (1885) and the Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse (1926). Both can be seen from the Point area.

You can find barrier dunes, coastal beaches, and maritime forests throughout the park. These ecosystems are all highlighted in the Seaside Nature Center that also offers interactive educational programs. If it’s chilly for swimming, there are many lovely hiking trails to be explored. Fort Miles was built in the park during World War II. The towers can be viewed on the drive, along with some interesting WWII history if you are exploring on foot. Or you can just enjoy a day at the beach at this lovely section of Delaware’s coast.

Other Delaware Beaches include Lewes Beach. Lewes is a charming little town filled with boutiques and waterfront cafes and restaurants. It has a classy but friendly feel. The Bay is great for little ones or others who want to swim without a lot of surf. It is known for the Lewes-Cape May Ferry, if you’re looking for the most pleasant way to get to New Jersey.

A fun place to get ice cream near Lewes is at Hopkins Farm. It does get crowded during peak season. But, there is a little playground where the kids can play while you wait in line. They can also visit the cows!

Rehoboth Beach

Rehoboth Beach is also charming. Many come for the tax-free shopping at the outlets, but the beach itself at Rehoboth is clean, wide, and lovely. There is a nice playground near Lake Gerard with street parking. It is only a block or two to walk to the sea from here. The Silver Lake Tot Lot is another great playground in Rehoboth. The playground itself is small, but families can walk across the river on a bridge. Make sure to look down and see dozens of turtles in the water below. On the other side is a huge elementary school playground that is open to the public during the summer months.

The Rehoboth Boardwalk is about a mile long, and has many fun stores. Our favorite is the Rehoboth Toy and Kite Company at the very end near Lake Gerard. Make sure to get some Thrasher fries, Grottos Pizza, fudge from the Candy Kitchen, or funnel cake from just about anywhere. “Funland” is the small amusement park at the other end of the boardwalk. It has dozens of small rides, mostly geared toward younger children. It is quite affordable and also includes various games and arcades.

Delaware Seashore State Park and Dewey

Delaware Seashore State Park takes up a long span of beach and bay (about 20 miles of bay shoreline, in fact). It has lots of amenities including campgrounds, cottages, playgrounds, areas for fishing, angling, and hiking. It even has a museum – the Indian River Life-Saving Station. We like to go to the beach at Towers Beach in the park. Here you can visit one of the eleven observation towers that were used for observation and defense during World War II (the same series that can be viewed at Cape Henlopen).

There are also trails to walk including the Burton Island trail. It can be accessed by driving out to the Marina at the very end of the Indian River Outlet where there is a small parking lot for the trail. (Our GPS took us right to it).  It is especially pleasant when the weather begins to cool down (and bugs are not as plentiful). The trail is fairy short and very flat, made up of boardwalk and sand.  You will find lots of scrubby beach vegetation, tall pines, cactus, crabs and shore birds.  It is quiet and peaceful, with a view of the marina and the bay. 

The park is just down the street from the little beach town of Dewey, where you can stop and eat dinner at the Starboard (or one of its subsidiaries, like the Starboard Claw), or ride the trolley around town.

Fenwick Island and Bethany

Finally, Fenwick Island is the Southern-most beach in Delaware, falling alongside Ocean City, Maryland. To get there, you can pass through Bethany Beach where you’ll notice pretty pastel buildings. You may want to stop at the Boathouse restaurant, one of the most well-known features in the town.

Fenwick has a few points of interest, including a lighthouse and accompanying marker from 1751. The lighthouse is open limited hours, and you’ll want to check their website. You may want to email prior to visiting if you really want to go in. There is also an interesting little museum called the DiscoverSea Shipwreck Museum that houses over 10,000 artifacts from shipwrecks in the region (and around the world.) It also has limited hours, but is co-located with a charming souvenir shop called Sea Shell City. The shop has all kinds of pretty crafts and creations made from seashells.

Fenwick also has it’s own state park with about three miles of beaches. Here you can find bathhouses and a pleasant place to swim or walk along the beach and look for ghosts crabs, which are plentiful along the shore.

Find more to do in all of Delaware’s counties at this post.