Coastal Delaware: Dogfish ... and so much more
This is our crazy time of year here in coastal Delaware. The beach towns are hopping, our pub is rocking and our brewery is moving and grooving. You're on your way, right?
We get questions from lots of folks asking about visiting our fair sliver of the world. They are coming through to hit Dogfish Head and want to know what else there is to do. The answer? Lots!
You've done the pub and the brewery ... now it's time to explore.
In addition to a visit to our downtown Rehoboth Beach brewpub for some beers, spirits and tasty eats, and our Milton brewery for tours, beers and bites, you'll find a million things to do here.
Getting here
Sadly, public transport options to our beach towns are few and far between.
Amtrak goes as far as Wilmington, Del., and there are some DART buses that come from the train station to the beach during the summer (the Beach Connection, Route 305), but they run only on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
If you are coming from D.C., you might be able to hop on DC2NY's Beach Bus to Rehoboth Beach.
From the Jersey side, a ride on the Cape May-Lewes Ferry is always fun. It is a 70-minute cruise across Delaware Bay, and you can pick up a Dogfish or two onboard.
If you're flying, we use Philly (PHL) or Baltimore (BWI). Both are about a 2-hour drive from us.
Once you're here, the Jolly Trolley can help you get around.
Where to sleep
We recommend that folks stay either in downtown Lewes or downtown Rehoboth Beach. There are options out on the highway (Del. 1), but staying there means you have to drive everywhere and really doesn't give you a good feel for the area.
For hotels/motels/B&Bs in downtown Rehoboth Beach, Check out the accommodations page at Rehoboth Beach Main Street. Rehoboth Beach is a great little beach town with ocean beaches, a boardwalk (Funland is ... well, fun!), lots of great restaurants, boutiques and a great brewpub!
If Rehoboth isn't your scene, check out downtown Lewes, a quaint, historic harbor town. Lewes is in between Rehoboth (where the brewpub is) and Milton (where the brewery is). For a list of accommodations in downtown Lewes, check out the accommodations page of the Lewes Chamber of Commerce.
Lastly, there are some great campgrounds in the area. Cape Henlopen State Park is the closest campground and is right near the beach! Trap Pond State Park is a bit farther out, but it is a great spot on a cypress swamp with cabins and yurts.
What to do
After your brewery/brewpub visits (or perhaps before might be a better idea if you'll be sampling a bit of beer!), you'll want to check out some of the other attractions.
The most obvious thing to do is get out on the water! Playing in the waves at one of our beaches, kayaking the bays, taking a Dolphin Watch cruise or just sitting on a deck enjoying a beer while watching the sunset all are great ideas! We have a Pints & Paddles tour with our friends at Quest Kayak that combines a paddle on the Broadkill River and a brewery tour.
Shoppers? We can scratch that itch! Both downtown Lewes and downtown Rehoboth Beach have tons of fab small shops and boutiques. There are also a slew of outlet malls out on the highway. And don't forget: Delaware shopping is tax-free!
There is an awesome 5-mile bike path called the Breakwater-Junction Trail connecting Lewes and Rehoboth Beach. We also have a few water parks, many mini-golf courses, a disc-golf course, great fishing, world-class birdwatching and quite a few small museums.
Finally, Delaware's breweries and wineries recently banded together to create the Delaware Wine & Ale Trail to help visitors make their way around the state.
If you know and love coastal Delaware and want to share some more ideas, please make a comment at the bottom of this post.
(By the way ... if you want to avoid the July/August summer crowds, our personal favorite time of year here is autumn. The weather is great, the water is still warm, and the crowds have thinned). Late spring is also pretty darn nice.)
Hope to see you soon!
More to explore