Beaches - I’m sort of lost

[Anonymous]

I think you need to think about what you want and how you spend your time and how much driving you do. Essentially,there are lots of different types of options.

For example, I love Ocean City MD because it's where I grew up going to beaches. It is a fairly large area where for accommodations you can rent a townhome or condo bayside with a short-is walk to the beach (crossing a 4 lane each way road). We like staying around 120th street. You could rent a condo beach side. There are lots of restaurants and small shops to walk. Or you can rent a place closer to the boardwalk, which is 3 miles long and full of rides and games and shops and amusements. Condos usually include pool access.

Lewes is more like a small town, with a beach you can walk to depending on where you stay (though technically the beach is bay facing, not ocean, but it's close), but then you can also drive to other beaches (unspoiled state parks, crowded boardwalk beaches, etc).

Outer banks are very different, and Hilton Head is even more different.

I like a hidden gem like Chincoteague - 4 hours away, you stay on an island that is tucked behind the island that has the beach and is National Seashore and Fish and Wildlife land - so you have to drive to the actual ocean. but you're staying a small town right next to ocean access.

Etc etc. Almost anything you want, you can find, but it's all different.

[Anonymous]

I just want to say the national seashore at Assateague is absolutely wonderful if you just want an empty beautiful beach, but you need to drive in each morning (or camp). That said Berlin is a cute little town nearby, or you can stay in/near Ocean City and split your time between the busy boardwalk/minigolf etc of Ocean City and the quieter options of Berlin and Assateague.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We go to Rehoboth/Bethany, but it gets crowded and anything near the beach is already booked.

No, many options open still. Make sure to remove filters for example airbnb defaulted my search to "pool" or "hot tub", I learned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP here. Agree on the Caribbean. Nothing compares to those beaches.

That is hurricane/swelter season

It’s also nasty sargassum/seaweed season at a lot of the islands.

[Anonymous]

If you're willing to drive 6ish hours, the Rhode island beaches are worth it

[Anonymous]

How old are your kids? Bethany is very much a family beach town, and it's an easy drive to Funland in Rehoboth Beach.

[Anonymous]

^ In Bethany, try Crowley Real Estate for rentals or VRBO. Sea Colony has townhomes with pools near each community and a regular trolley to the beach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you're willing to drive 6ish hours, the Rhode island beaches are worth it

Not if you like to be warm in the summer!

[Anonymous]

We have a house in Rehoboth and go there often. With 2 small kids, here are our preferences:

1. Lewes. Charming little town. Nice restaurants all clustered around a small and walkable downtown area. Beach on the Delaware Bay, shallow and easy for little kids. Cape Henlopen Park is nearby and we go there all the time for hiking, fishing, biking, relaxing on the bay, you name it. It's a gem.

2. Dewey Beach. Has a reputation for being a party town, but easy access to the ocean beach and Rehoboth Bay, which has the gentlest water in the area. Restaurants line the main road, all walkable from rental properties.

3. Rehoboth Beach. Lots of restaurants, shops, Funland, arcades, etc. Gets really crowded on the boardwalk, especially the July 4th week. Beach is wide with great waves.

4. Bethany Beach. More relaxed than Rehoboth, but beach is much narrower and people tend to be more tightly packed together.

5. Ocean City. Overdeveloped, crowded, can be trashy. Lots of condo and hotel high rises. Has a carnival atmosphere in summer.

Once you figure out the general area you'd like to be in, search VRBO. Chances are, you won't find anything close to the water that's not exorbitantly expensive, but there should still be rentals available. Expect to drive to a beach and park. My recommendation is to rent somewhere near Lewes or Rehoboth beach, then drive to Cape Henlopen Park. The park has bay beaches and ocean beaches (2 separate car access points, though you can bike throughout the park), and the best part is you pay one reasonable entrance fee and don't have to worry about feeding the parking meter for the rest of the day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Try middle to end of August OP. Like the week of August 15 or later, availability tends to open up more then. We often go that week when we book later and other weeks are taken.

Yes, but you're also going to get tons of jellyfish at that time, especially with the bay beaches.

Hilton Head is great for families but it's a haul to get there. When my kids were young, I felt better at Bay beaches. Lewes is a great option. There are townhomes near the Cape May Ferry, on the Bay, and close to the state park. Maybe check there? The park is really great - you can ride bikes, they have nature programs, and the beach itself is fun with life guards and a small place to buy food (hot dogs, etc).

My favorite beach with waves near here is Top Sail, NC.

[Anonymous]

If you’re from SoCal you will find many of the beaches around here subpar. The only nice beach in MD/VA is Assateague. However it has biting flies and mosquitoes in the summer.

In Delaware, North Bethany has some private beaches that are ok. The sand is coarse though.

In NJ, parts of LBI are pretty nice.

I personally like Cape Cod a lot better than all of the above but YMMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where are you from? What is your idea of a good beach? Have you looked at these places on a map? A couple of them are not "the beach". The outer banks is almost 200 miles of beach whereas Lewes is a small town.

+1

Exactly this.

[Anonymous]

I haven’t read all the pages but if you are used to Southern CA beaches, you will not like the beaches around here. They are short, often rough with jellyfish. It’s not at all like the long beaches in CA or other places I have been. Find a different vacation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven’t read all the pages but if you are used to Southern CA beaches, you will not like the beaches around here. They are short, often rough with jellyfish. It’s not at all like the long beaches in CA or other places I have been. Find a different vacation.

But we can actually get in the water without a wetsuit without freezing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I haven’t read all the pages but if you are used to Southern CA beaches, you will not like the beaches around here. They are short, often rough with jellyfish. It’s not at all like the long beaches in CA or other places I have been. Find a different vacation.

Kiawah, isle of palm, Sullivan’s island- all super wide and long beaches in SC. Beautiful and warm.