Rehoboth - what’s the appeal?

[Anonymous]

Just got back from a week in downtown rehoboth. First time in about 5 years. I gotta say, what’s the appeal? What am I missing?

The beaches are overcrowded. No space. The boardwalk at night? Same crowd as ocean city. The hotels? Old and in major need of renovations. The houses? So many crap houses with no pools. Dining? Incredibly limited options.

I just don’t get it. Is it that much better than Bethany, Fenwick, North OC? Maybe it was at one point, but I’m not sure it still is.

[Anonymous]

Nostalgia.

[Anonymous]

It’s a 2.5 hour drive from DC and there is a nice mix of beach, restaurants, boardwalk, biking/walking, and shopping. I’m biased because I’ve had a family home here my whole life, but there aren’t so many places where you can come for a week and not have to use your car for more than the occasional grocery run.

With older kids there are some really good places to eat and the kids can bike anywhere, so can go to Funland, get dinner, etc. for little ones, the short loop of early morning beach, lunch, nap, browsabout, and early Funland or ice cream makes for a more interesting day than just sitting on the beach.

It’s not the Caribbean, but it’s easier to get to!

[Anonymous]

It’s for folks who want a walkable downtown.

[Anonymous]

What i've liked about it in the past when we would go: the shops downtown, variety of restaurants, close drive.

We just tried Bethany though and although it has less of the first two items I liked the lower key vibe better. Still decently crowded though.

DE's beaches main attraction is being a relatively short driving distance to huge population centers.

[Anonymous]

It’s close. It’s an ocean beach. That’s the draw.

[Anonymous]

We used to go there regularly when the kids were younger - it was an easy vacation with young kids. But we got tired of all the things you said - its also not like the beaches are amazingly beautiful. But they do fill a niche and its nice to have a travel destination that doesn't require much work. With that said the moment the kids got older we stopped going and haven't been back.

[Anonymous]

Rehoboth is a town where people can actually live year round (not sure how many do), as opposed to Bethany/Fenwick, which are more seasonal. It has a more established downtown. We go to Bethany, but I will say that this year it was just too much. So many of the cottages have been replaced by massive rentals and it has led to an incredible overcrowding. Really felt it this year.

However, NOT sure what Nicola’s was thinking leaving downtown Rehoboth. Major loss.

[Anonymous]

I’ll never get it either, OP. All I want from a beach vacation is to be as close to as uncrowded a beach as possible. A crowded beach is as appealing to me as a cruise ship. I hate it. I don’t care about the town at all. I’m happy staying in eating chips, salsa and shrimp the whole time if I have a deck overlooking the water.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rehoboth is a town where people can actually live year round (not sure how many do), as opposed to Bethany/Fenwick, which are more seasonal. It has a more established downtown. We go to Bethany, but I will say that this year it was just too much. So many of the cottages have been replaced by massive rentals and it has led to an incredible overcrowding. Really felt it this year.

However, NOT sure what Nicola’s was thinking leaving downtown Rehoboth. Major loss.

Rehoboth and Bethany/Fenwick have nearly identical year old populations of about 1000 each. So you’re wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just got back from a week in downtown rehoboth. First time in about 5 years. I gotta say, what’s the appeal? What am I missing?

The beaches are overcrowded. No space. The boardwalk at night? Same crowd as ocean city. The hotels? Old and in major need of renovations. The houses? So many crap houses with no pools. Dining? Incredibly limited options.

I just don’t get it. Is it that much better than Bethany, Fenwick, North OC? Maybe it was at one point, but I’m not sure it still is.

The beaches close to any major metro are so ridiculously overpriced at this point. Same with Disney. It’s all about supply and demand. Our family has really started to look at the price tag associated with a local brand trip and plan out a much nicer trip elsewhere. We take the same budget and I price out a few options that are more in line with bucket list trips like, Colorado mountains in the summer, Amazon rainforest or London/Paris staying at nicer hotels.

[Anonymous]

Agree that it’s nostalgia, and the beach is too overcrowded for my taste. Disagree on limited dining options, though.

(Re:Nicola’s, we were there in the off season to pick up some half bakes for a friend and it was hopping on a random weekday for lunch. I think it’s gotten so built up outside of town that they have more business there.)

[Anonymous]

A lot of the older homes in Rehoboth are owned by well to do families in Wilmington, Philadelphia, and also Dover.

The families like to name drop that they have the family second home in Rehoboth.

I've lived and worked year round in Rehoboth and also in Ocean City. I think the beach is far superior in Ocean City and less crowded. There are better restaurants in Ocean City than there used to be. Now when I go to Ocean City I eat at https://www.onecoastal.com/. You need reservations.

The Ocean City boardwalk can have a rougher crowd at night but that can also be found at the Rehoboth boardwalk at night.

[Anonymous]

You have to drive a long time to get what you are looking for. We drive 8 hrs to get to Pawleys Island, SC. Not crowded but also not much else to do if you have kids. You could drive 45 minutes north to Myrtle Beach for fun kid's stuff though. It's also much cheaper. We used to go to OCMD as kids but now that I'm old, I want quiet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ll never get it either, OP. All I want from a beach vacation is to be as close to as uncrowded a beach as possible. A crowded beach is as appealing to me as a cruise ship. I hate it. I don’t care about the town at all. I’m happy staying in eating chips, salsa and shrimp the whole time if I have a deck overlooking the water.

You can always go to a state park beach. They’re less crowded.