Rehoboth Beach,
Delaware:
The Real One.
“We’ve been going to Rehoboth since we were four or five years old. Two weeks every summer, a station wagon packed with five kids and enough peanut butter to last a month. No seatbelts. Our father never stopped for anything — not traffic, not bathroom breaks, nothing. One time he made my mother’s friend pee in a cup rather than pull over. We still went back every year. That’s how good Rehoboth is.”
In this guide
01 — Why Rehoboth
The DC beach that has held
a generation’s entire childhood.
There is a specific kind of loyalty that only a certain type of place earns — the kind where people don’t just go back every summer, they go back at every stage of their lives and find it waiting. Rehoboth Beach, Delaware is that place for an enormous number of people who grew up in the Washington DC suburbs. It is two hours from Bethesda and a world away from everything, and it has been doing its job without apology for generations.
We have been going to Rehoboth since we were four years old. Two weeks every summer, every year, without exception. Five kids in the back of a station wagon — no seatbelts, this was a different era — a cooler full of drinks, and a mother who had made enough peanut butter sandwiches to feed the beach. Our father drove the whole way without stopping. Not for bathroom breaks. Not for anything. We still talk about the time he made my mother’s friend pee in a cup rather than lose five minutes to a rest stop. We asked “are we there yet” every ten minutes for what felt like ten hours. The drive is two hours.
“You learn early that the drive is part of it. The anticipation in that station wagon — the smell of sunscreen before you even arrived, the argument about who got which side of the back seat — that was Rehoboth too.”
We went as little kids. We went as teenagers — sometimes with our parents, sometimes telling our parents we were going with friends when we were really going with someone else entirely. We went for Senior Week, when every high school in Bethesda and Montgomery County descended on the boardwalk at once. We went as adults with our own kids, in the water all day the same way we were in the water all day as children. We go now.
Rehoboth hasn’t needed to reinvent itself because it never stopped being what it is: a genuine, unpretentious beach town with a one-mile boardwalk, cold Atlantic water, Grotto’s Pizza, Funland, and the specific joy of a place that doesn’t ask anything of you except that you show up and get in the ocean.
Rehoboth vs. Ocean City — let’s settle this
Ocean City, Maryland is an hour up the coast. A lot of DC-area families debate which one to choose. We have been to both. Here is the honest answer.
Rehoboth Beach
One-mile boardwalk. Walkable downtown. Tax-free Delaware shopping. Charming side streets. A town with a real personality beyond its beach. Families, couples, and the LGBTQ+ community have all claimed it and it holds everyone comfortably.
The kind of place where families rent the same house for twenty years in a row. Where the town knows what it is without needing to explain it.
Ocean City, MD
Ten miles of boardwalk, high-rise hotels, and a coastal highway that runs the length of the island. Louder, bigger, more commercial. An hour up the coast and a world apart in character.
We’ll say it plainly: Ocean City is one big drag race compared to Rehoboth. If that energy is what you’re after, go. But if you want a beach town that actually feels like a place — Rehoboth is your answer.
02 — Getting there
Two hours from DC.
Felt like ten when we were kids.
Rehoboth Beach is 120 miles from Washington DC — about two hours in normal traffic, considerably more on a Friday afternoon in July when it seems like everyone in the DMV had the same idea at the same time. Plan accordingly.
The DC-area drive — honest advice
Take Route 50 East to the Bay Bridge, then south on Route 404 to Route 1. This is the standard route. Alternatively, I-95 South to the Delaware Memorial Bridge adds mileage but avoids the Bay Bridge backup, which on a summer Friday afternoon is a Delaware Shore tradition nobody wants to participate in.
Leave before noon on Fridays or after 8pm. The 3–7pm window is a parking lot. This has been true for thirty years and it will be true for thirty more.
From Philadelphia: about 1.5 hours via Route 1. From New York: about 4 hours. From Baltimore: about 2 hours. Driving is the right answer for this destination — there is no practical public transit option to Rehoboth.
Parking in Rehoboth
Parking in town fills fast in summer. The most convenient lots are along Rehoboth Avenue and on the side streets near the boardwalk. Arrive before 9am to get a spot close to the beach. The town runs a park-and-ride during peak season — check rehoboth.com for current locations. Many VRBO properties include parking, which is worth factoring in when you book.
03 — When to go
Summer is the answer.
We’ll be honest about the rest.
Unlike some destinations where we make the case for the off season, Rehoboth is a summer beach. That’s what it is and what it has always been. We went in the winter once as teenagers and found it melancholy in the specific way that small beach towns in winter can be — the closed storefronts, the empty boardwalk, the Atlantic grey and indifferent. Not for us. Not for most people.
Memorial Day — Labor Day
This is Rehoboth. Come now.
Peak season, full energy, everything open. The water is cold in May and June and perfect by July. Book accommodations 3–6 months out for summer weekends. This is what the town was built for.
Late May & September
The insider’s window.
The week after Labor Day the town exhales. Restaurants still open, beach still beautiful, crowds thin. September water is warm and the light is excellent. Highly recommended for adults who want the beach without the peak-summer energy.
Fall (Oct–Nov)
For a specific kind of visitor.
The Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival in November draws a completely different crowd. Some restaurants stay open. But the beach in October is a different proposition — manage expectations accordingly.
Winter
Honest answer: not for most people.
We went once. The boardwalk was empty, most things were closed, and the Atlantic in January is exactly what you’d expect. Rehoboth is a summer beach and it knows it. Come back in June.
One specific note: Senior Week — the week after graduation when every high school in the DC and Maryland suburbs descends on Rehoboth — typically falls in early to mid-June. If you have teenagers, this is their week and it has been for decades. If you don’t, plan around it.
04 — The boardwalk
One mile of everything
a beach town should be.
The Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk is one mile long. That is exactly right. Long enough to walk twice before breakfast. Short enough that you run into the same people all week. The boardwalk connects the beach to the town, the town to the evening, and it does it without pretending to be anything other than a good, honest beach boardwalk that has been doing its job since 1873.
In the mornings it belongs to the walkers and runners. Bikes are allowed before 10am in season. By midday it’s full — families, teenagers, ice cream, the smell of sunscreen and salt water and pizza. In the evenings it’s where everyone ends up, walking off dinner, watching the ocean go dark.
Funland
Funland has been on the Rehoboth boardwalk since 1962. Family-owned, genuinely unchanged in spirit, with rides that cost less than anything at a theme park and a Skee-Ball alley that has absorbed approximately ten thousand summer afternoons. This is not a nostalgia trip — it is a functioning amusement park that still works, still charges reasonable prices, and still draws lines of kids whose parents rode the same rides thirty years ago. If you grew up going to Rehoboth, you know Funland. If you didn’t, you will now.
Funland practical notes
Open daily in summer, typically noon to midnight on weekdays and 11am to midnight on weekends. Rides are priced individually — bring cash. The Haunted Mansion and the Superflip are the classics. Lines are longest in the evenings; go right when it opens for a more relaxed experience with younger kids.
Candy Kitchen
The Candy Kitchen has been on the boardwalk since 1937. Salt water taffy pulled in the window, fudge cut fresh, cherry ices, and enough candy to keep five kids occupied for a week. Watch them make the taffy. Buy more than you think you need. This is non-negotiable.
The beach itself
Wide, clean, well-lifeguarded, with soft sand and the Atlantic doing exactly what the Atlantic does. Cold in June, perfect in July and August, still swimmable through September. We have never once gone to Rehoboth and not spent the majority of the day in the water. In our forties and fifties we were still in the water all day, the same way we were as children. That is the correct approach to this beach.
05 — Where to stay
On the boardwalk, close to town,
or rent a house and live here.
Rehoboth’s lodging ranges from Victorian oceanfront hotels right on the boardwalk to boutique inns on quiet side streets to vacation rentals that DC families have been booking for the same two weeks every July for twenty years running. The right choice depends entirely on what kind of trip you’re taking.
Hotels and inns
Oceanfront — Boardwalk
Boardwalk Plaza Hotel
Victorian-style oceanfront hotel sitting directly on the Rehoboth Beach boardwalk. The location is as good as it gets — wake up to the Atlantic, walk to everything, rooftop views at sunset. Spa on site. The place to stay if you want to be at the center of the Rehoboth experience without leaving anything to chance.
Best for: couples, special occasions, anyone who wants to be right on the water
Boutique Spa Inn
Bellmoor Inn & Spa
An elegant full-service inn two blocks from the beach with beautiful gardens, a full spa, and one of the better breakfasts in town. Lush and serene — slightly removed from boardwalk energy, which is either exactly what you want or exactly what you don’t.
Best for: couples, spa-seekers, anyone wanting quiet near the action
Classic Beach Hotel
Atlantic Sands Hotel
Oceanfront hotel steps from the boardwalk, family-friendly, with the kind of straightforward beach hotel experience that Rehoboth does well. Balcony rooms looking directly out to the Atlantic. Good value relative to its location.
Best for: families, no-fuss beach stays, people who want ocean views without the boutique price
Rent a house — the real Rehoboth
The most authentic Rehoboth experience has always been renting a house. A beach house in North Shores, a cottage close to town, a place right on the water with an outdoor shower and bikes in the yard. Our family stayed in an upside-down house — living spaces on top, bedrooms below, the whole layout backwards from what you’d expect — and it was one of the most memorable places we ever slept. DC families have been doing this for generations, booking the same property year after year.
For families and groups, a vacation rental almost always makes more sense than a hotel. More space, a kitchen for the peanut butter sandwiches, a porch for the evenings. VRBO has an excellent Rehoboth inventory and it books fast — especially for July weeks and holiday weekends.
Booking reality
July 4th week and the surrounding weekends book out months — sometimes a year — in advance for the best VRBO properties. The same DC families have been reserving the same houses since before online booking existed. If you want peak summer, start looking in January. September has dramatically better availability and the beach is still excellent.
06 — Where to eat
Grotto’s first.
Then everything else.
There is a correct order of operations for eating in Rehoboth and it begins with Grotto’s Pizza on the boardwalk. This is not negotiable. Grotto’s has been on that boardwalk since 1963 — the same swirled sauce, the same slices, the same line of people who have been eating it since childhood. Is it the best pizza you’ll ever have? Maybe not. Is it the pizza that tastes most like summer? Absolutely yes.
Grotto Pizza
The boardwalk institution since 1963. The signature swirled sauce. Slices eaten standing up, folded in half, with the ocean behind you. Multiple boardwalk locations plus Rehoboth Avenue. We have been eating this pizza since we were four years old and we will eat it until we cannot anymore. It is part of what Rehoboth means. Get the pizza.
$
Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats
The original Dogfish Head brewpub right on Rehoboth Avenue. Wood-fired pizzas, serious burgers, fish and chips that locals rave about, and an experimental tap list you won’t find anywhere else. The outdoor courtyard is one of the better places to spend a Rehoboth evening. Even if craft beer isn’t your thing, the food alone earns the stop.
$$
Bluecoast Seafood Grill & Raw Bar
The consistently excellent local seafood house just off Route 1. Fresh mid-Atlantic fish prepared simply and well, an outstanding raw bar with local oysters, live music on the patio in summer, and a happy hour that has become a Rehoboth tradition in its own right. The kind of place that earns year-after-year loyalty from people who know it.
$$$
Henlopen City Oyster House
The upscale raw bar on Baltimore Avenue that has elevated Rehoboth’s seafood credentials considerably. Local oysters, serious cocktails, a wine list that takes itself appropriately seriously. This is dinner, properly done. Make a reservation.
$$$
Big Fish Grill
Generous portions, fair prices, consistently fresh seafood, and the kind of friendly service that makes it a first-stop tradition for families who return every summer. The daily specials follow what’s being caught. It’s loud and lively and completely without pretense — which is exactly right for Rehoboth.
$$
Candy Kitchen
Since 1937. Salt water taffy made in the window, fudge cut fresh, cherry ices, and every candy you ate as a kid at this beach. Stand and watch them pull the taffy. Buy some to take home. This is part of the Rehoboth experience in the same way Grotto’s is — not optional.
$
Fins Ale House & Raw Bar
Solid raw bar, attractive patio, the relaxed energy of a place that knows its audience. Good for the evening wind-down after a full beach day — the kind of spot where you order another round without really deciding to. Consistently reliable over many years.
$$
07 — Things to do
Get in the water.
Everything else is secondary.
The primary activity at Rehoboth Beach is being at Rehoboth Beach. In the water, on the sand, on the boardwalk, in the town. We have never once gone to Rehoboth and wished there was more to do. We have gone and wished the week was longer — which is a completely different problem.
Get in the ocean and stay there
This sounds obvious and it is obvious and it is also the most important instruction in this guide. We have been in the water at Rehoboth from the time we were old enough to stand in the surf. In our forties and fifties we were still in the water all day — the same way we were as kids, in there from morning until the lifeguards blew the whistle. The Atlantic at Rehoboth in July is cold enough to be invigorating and warm enough to stay in for hours. Do not spend your Rehoboth beach day sitting under an umbrella. Get in the water.
Walk the boardwalk — early and late
Walk it in the morning before it fills up, and walk it again in the evening when the lights come on and everyone is out. Two completely different experiences, both worth having. The mile goes fast; you’ll walk it multiple times without thinking about it. That’s the sign of a good boardwalk.
Funland
Family-owned since 1962. Bring cash, bring kids, bring the adults who haven’t been in thirty years and watch their faces. The Skee-Ball, the Haunted Mansion, the rides that cost what rides should cost. One of the last genuine boardwalk amusement parks on the East Coast that hasn’t been absorbed by a corporation. Go while it’s still exactly what it is.
Kayak Rehoboth Bay
The bay side of Rehoboth is a completely different experience from the ocean side — calm, quiet, full of wildlife, and accessible by kayak in a way that gives you a perspective on the Delaware coast that most visitors never see. Two-hour tandem rentals are available and manageable for most people, no prior experience needed.
Cape Henlopen State Park
Five minutes north of Rehoboth — 5,000 acres of protected coastal land with dunes, forests, bird habitat, and some of the least-crowded beaches on the Delaware shore. The Gordon’s Pond trail is a 5-mile loop through a wildlife refuge with overlooks above the Atlantic. The fishing pier is excellent. The antidote to the boardwalk energy if you need a quieter day.
Shop Rehoboth Avenue — tax free
Delaware has no sales tax. This fact alone turns Rehoboth Avenue into a worthwhile shopping strip — boutiques, surf shops, local brands — and the Tanger Outlets on Route 1 draw their own dedicated audience. DC-area families have been combining the beach trip with the outlet trip for decades. We’re not judging. It’s a good system.
08 — Beyond Rehoboth
Dewey Beach, Lewes,
and the rest of the Delaware shore.
Rehoboth sits at the center of a 30-mile stretch of Delaware coastline that includes several other distinct communities. Worth knowing about.
Dewey Beach
Immediately south of Rehoboth, Dewey is where the nightlife lives. Smaller, louder, younger — a strip of bars and restaurants between the ocean and Rehoboth Bay with live music and a summer energy that runs later than Rehoboth proper. The sunsets over the bay from Dewey are exceptional. If Rehoboth is where you sleep, Dewey is where some people end the evening.
Lewes
Eight miles north of Rehoboth, Lewes is the quieter, older, more historically rooted Delaware beach town that serious regulars know about. The historic district dates to 1631. Matt’s Fish Camp is worth the drive for dinner. The Cape May–Lewes Ferry runs to New Jersey if you want a water crossing without flying anywhere. A solid half-day from Rehoboth that gives the trip a different dimension.
Bethany Beach
Further south, quieter, more residential — the “Quiet Resorts” of the Delaware shore. Families who want the beach without the boardwalk scene have been going to Bethany for generations. Significantly less crowded than Rehoboth, with a wide, clean beach and a small, walkable town center.
09 — Practical tips
What fifty years of summers
has taught us.
Leave DC before noon on Fridays
The Route 50 corridor to the Bay Bridge becomes a parking lot by 3pm on summer Fridays. Leave early, or leave after 8pm. There is no middle option that works. This has been true for thirty years.
Book summer early
July 4th week and the surrounding weekends are booked by January by people who have been going to the same house for years. If you want peak summer, start planning in winter. September has dramatically better availability.
Sunscreen is not optional
The Atlantic coast sun is relentless and the breeze off the water makes it feel cooler than it is. SPF 50 minimum, reapply after swimming, put it on the kids before they argue about it. Non-negotiable advice from people with the sun damage to prove it.
No sales tax
Delaware has no sales tax. Factor this into your shopping plans — it adds up over a week’s worth of groceries, meals, and the inevitable souvenir run. The Tanger Outlets on Route 1 are genuinely worth a morning if that’s your thing.
Bikes on the boardwalk
Bikes are allowed on the boardwalk only before 10am in summer season. Early morning boardwalk rides are excellent — the town is quiet, the ocean is loud, and you have the whole mile to yourself. Bike rentals are available throughout town.
Rip current awareness
Rehoboth’s lifeguards are excellent and the beach is well-supervised. Pay attention to flag conditions. If you get caught in a rip current, swim parallel to shore rather than fighting it directly. Listen to the lifeguards — they know their beach.
AA meetings
For those in recovery, Rehoboth has an active AA community year-round with meetings within easy reach of the boardwalk. The beach is a place for everyone and recovery doesn’t take a summer off. Find meetings at aa.org by location and time.
Beach chairs & umbrellas
Rental stands operate on the beach throughout summer. Rates are reasonable and the sand is firm enough for standard beach chairs and umbrellas without special gear. A beach cart for your daily haul is one of the better investments a regular Rehoboth visitor makes.
The beach that holds your whole life.
We were four years old the first time we saw Rehoboth. We were in the back of a station wagon with no seatbelts, asking “are we there yet” every ten minutes for a drive that felt endless and was actually two hours. We ran down the beach with our brothers and got in trouble for it. We ate peanut butter sandwiches our mother had packed in a cooler big enough to feed an army. We came back the next summer and the one after that.
We came as teenagers, sometimes with our parents and sometimes not. We came for Senior Week. We came as adults with our own kids and got in the water all day the way we always had. We go now. The boardwalk is the same boardwalk. Funland is still there. Grotto’s is still on the corner. The Atlantic is still cold and loud and completely indifferent to how many summers you’ve already given it.
That’s Rehoboth. It doesn’t need your approval to know what it is. It’s been doing this since before you arrived and it will keep doing it long after. All it asks is that you show up, get in the water, and come back next year.
We always do.