I’m not sure how the nature of your disability limits you to under two hours so this might not work but I have found though it’s a little counterintuitive that a resort style beach is usually more accessible than things like a lake because of boardwalks, paths availability of staff with wheelchairs things like that. Something like Sea Colony in DE. I have cerebral Palsy FWIW

Weird question but can you drive an hour a day and could you make this more like a road trip where you stay in several locations along the way? If you could do that you could get to OC to have a real beach and real ocean swimming.

I think some of the lakes mentioned are good options for sand and some swimming but they aren’t really vacation destinations, they are more like day trips.

If you forego sand and just go for a nice pool you could do something like Lansdowne or the Hyatt in Cambridge that has sand and pools but you can’t swim in the river water.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op, did you consider Airbnb? There are some nice lake / bay houses that would be within your driving distance

A hotel is easier because of the disability but we could maybe consider an Airbnb if we had to. It has to be accessible etc etc, which is hard. What lake are you thinking of that’s less than 2 hours away?

Was thinking of the Chesapeake bay given the time restrictions. Airbnb allows to filter by “beachfront” or “lake house” and by accessibility feature, so thought it may be helpful to look within the radius where you are.

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What do you all like to do? Are there mobility limitations once you get there or just inability to sit in a car for a long period? How old are the kids?

Yes, mobility limitations once we get there. The child is 7. She REALLY wants to go to a beach, which is why I asked the question above. She won't know or care whether it's a beach on the Potomac or a river or lake. But we will need an umbrella for shade, if there's a place that rents those. I realize what I'm asking for might not exist.

What about Chesapeake Beach? Only a little over an hour away.

Was going to suggest this. If you don't need a huge beach, the Wylder Hotel in Tilghman Island (near St. Michael's) is super cute.

This is OP. This is exactly the kind of place I had in mind, except they don’t have a swimable beach at Wylder. I emailed and they said it’s just for launching kayaks.

Chesapeake beach by the pier. But go in June or July before the jellyfish come out.

Also maybe Lake Anna?

Anonymous wrote:Op, did you consider Airbnb? There are some nice lake / bay houses that would be within your driving distance

A hotel is easier because of the disability but we could maybe consider an Airbnb if we had to. It has to be accessible etc etc, which is hard. What lake are you thinking of that’s less than 2 hours away?

Anonymous wrote:There’s a Hyatt in Cambridge, MD that’s frequently recommended as a great place to stay with kids. I think they have a small beach and is probably just under 2 hours from Arlington.

Thank you! I called there last year when we were looking and the beach is apparently not swimable.

There’s a Hyatt in Cambridge, MD that’s frequently recommended as a great place to stay with kids. I think they have a small beach and is probably just under 2 hours from Arlington.

Op, did you consider Airbnb? There are some nice lake / bay houses that would be within your driving distance

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What do you all like to do? Are there mobility limitations once you get there or just inability to sit in a car for a long period? How old are the kids?

Yes, mobility limitations once we get there. The child is 7. She REALLY wants to go to a beach, which is why I asked the question above. She won't know or care whether it's a beach on the Potomac or a river or lake. But we will need an umbrella for shade, if there's a place that rents those. I realize what I'm asking for might not exist.

What about Chesapeake Beach? Only a little over an hour away.

This is OP. Chesapeake Beach would be great. I think that’s the same thing or same thing ish as North Beach, where we went last year? Does anyone have any hotel recommendations? We stayed at Herrington last year, which worked well for us, but it was very expensive for what it was, and the dining options were super limited. All that’s ok for my nuclear family but my parents, who are paying for this year’s trip, will not be super pleased with that, so I’m hoping to find something else.