The Delaware Beaches are located along the Atlantic Ocean in the eastern part of Sussex County, Delaware, which is in the southern part of the state. [1] In addition to beaches along the ocean, the area offers many amenities, including restaurants, nightlife, fishing, golf courses, boardwalk areas, and tax-free shopping. [1] [2] The beaches are popular tourist destinations for residents from the nearby areas of Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Wilmington, Philadelphia, South Jersey, and Hampton Roads. [2] Out of the 30 states with coastline, the Delaware Beaches ranked number 1 in water quality in 2011 [3] and again in 2014. [4]
Major beaches in Delaware from north to south:
In 2003, the Delaware Senate passed a bill for the coastal area of Delaware to be referred to as the "Delaware Beaches", as Delaware residents refer to their coastline as the "beach" and not the "shore" like the Jersey Shore in New Jersey. The bill called for DelDOT to change signage directing motorists to the beaches from "Shore Points" to "Beaches". [5]
The Delaware Beaches area, particularly the Cape Region, tend to be more affluent and populous than western portions of Sussex County. The combined population of all of the ZIP codes in the Delaware Beaches area is about 43,851 (2009). The median household income in 2009 was $77,030.
According to SeaGrant Delaware, the Delaware Beaches generate $6.9 billion annually and over $711 million in tax revenue. [6]
Sussex County is located in the southern part of the U.S. state of Delaware, on the Delmarva Peninsula. As of the 2020 census, the population was 237,378. The county seat is Georgetown.
Lewes is an incorporated city on the Delaware Bay in eastern Sussex County, Delaware, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population is 2,747. Along with neighboring Rehoboth Beach, Lewes is one of the principal cities of Delaware's rapidly growing Cape Region. The city lies within the Salisbury, Maryland–Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area. Lewes proudly claims to be "The First Town in The First State."
Bethany Beach is an incorporated town in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. According to the 2010 Census Bureau figures, the population of the town is 1,060; however, during the summer months some 15,000 more populate the town as vacationers. It is part of the Salisbury, MD-DE Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Dewey Beach is an incorporated coastal town in eastern Sussex County, Delaware, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the town is 341, an increase of 13.3% over the previous decade. It is part of the rapidly growing Cape Region and lies within the Salisbury, Maryland-Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area. In 2011, the NRDC awarded Dewey Beach with a 5-Star rating in water quality. This award was given only to 12 other locations, one being neighboring Rehoboth Beach. Out of the 30 states with coastline, the Delaware Beaches ranked number 1 in water quality in 2011.
Fenwick Island is a coastal resort town in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. According to 2020 census figures, the population of the town is 355, a 2.6% decrease over the last decade. It is part of the Salisbury, Maryland-Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town is located on Fenwick Island, a barrier spit.
Henlopen Acres is a municipality north of Rehoboth Beach in Sussex County, Delaware, United States, and is the third smallest incorporated town in Delaware. According to 2010 census figures, the population of the town is 122, a 12.2% decrease from the 2000 census. It is part of the Salisbury, Maryland-Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Rehoboth Beach is a city on the Atlantic Ocean along the Delaware Beaches in eastern Sussex County, Delaware. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the population was 1,327, reflecting a decline of 161 (11.2%) from the 1,488 counted in the 2000 census. Along with the neighboring coastal town of Lewes, Rehoboth Beach is one of the principal cities of Delaware's rapidly growing Cape Region. Rehoboth Beach lies within the Salisbury metropolitan area.
South Bethany is an incorporated town in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the town is 449, a decrease of 8.7% over the previous decade. It is part of the Salisbury, Maryland-Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Cape Henlopen State Park is a Delaware state park on 5,193 acres (2,102 ha) on Cape Henlopen in Sussex County, Delaware, in the United States. William Penn made the beaches of Cape Henlopen one of the first public lands established in what has become the United States in 1682 with the declaration that Cape Henlopen would be for "the usage of the citizens of Lewes and Sussex County." Cape Henlopen State Park has a 24-hour and year-round fishing pier as well as campgrounds. The remainder of the park is only open from sunrise to sunset, and includes a bathhouse on the Atlantic Ocean, an area for surf-fishing, a disc golf course, and bicycle and walking paths. The beach at Herring Point is a popular surfing spot. The park is a stop on Delaware's Coastal Heritage Greenway.
Cape Henlopen is the southern cape of the Delaware Bay along the Atlantic coast of the United States. It lies in the state of Delaware, near the town of Lewes, where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. Off the coast on the bay side are two lighthouses, called the Harbor of Refuge Light and the Delaware Breakwater East End Light.
The Indian River is a river and estuary, approximately 15 mi (24 km) long, in Sussex County in southern Delaware in the United States. The river is named after a Native American reservation that was located on its upper reaches.
The Junction and Breakwater Trail is a 6-mile (9.7 km) long rail trail located on the southwestern side of Cape Henlopen State Park connecting Lewes and Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, United States. It is the third rail trail built in Delaware and it is the longest in the state. It partially follows the former Pennsylvania Railroad Rehoboth Beach branch that once transported passengers to several Methodist resort camps along the Atlantic coast. The line was abandoned by the Penn Central in the early 1970s.
Delaware Seashore State Park is located near Dewey Beach, in Delaware, United States. It is bounded on the east by the Atlantic Ocean and on the west by Rehoboth Bay and Indian River Bay. The park covers 2,825 acres (1,143 ha). It is a major attraction for millions of visitors who come to the Delaware Beaches for water-related activities. Delaware Seashore State Park was created in 1965.
Delaware Route 1A (DE 1A) is a state highway in Sussex County, Delaware. The route runs 2.01 mi (3.23 km) from DE 1 in the town of Dewey Beach to another intersection with DE 1 west of the city of Rehoboth Beach. The route provides access to Rehoboth Beach from DE 1, heading north before turning to the west. DE 1A follows King Charles Avenue, Bayard Avenue, 2nd Street (southbound), Christian Street (northbound), and Rehoboth Avenue.
The geology of Delaware consists of two physiographic provinces located in the U.S. state of Delaware. They are the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the Piedmont.
The Coastal Heritage Greenway is a greenway in the U.S. state of Delaware linking many sites along the Delaware Bay and the Atlantic Ocean between Fox Point State Park in Edgemoor, New Castle County and the beach town of Fenwick Island in Sussex County. The greenway follows Delaware Route 9 from the Wilmington area to just south of Dover and Delaware Route 1 from Dover to Fenwick Island.
Fenwick Island State Park is a 344-acre (139 ha) Delaware state park between Ocean City, Maryland and South Bethany, Delaware in Sussex County, Delaware, US. Fenwick Island State Park is open for year-round recreation from 8:00 am until sunset. Originally part of Delaware Seashore State Park, it was established in 1966 and renamed in 1981. The park is located on Fenwick Island, a narrow strip of land between the Atlantic Ocean and Little Assawoman Bay. It is largely undeveloped in comparison to the beach communities that surround it.
The Salisbury, MD-DE Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau is a metropolitan area centered on the city of Salisbury, Maryland and consists of four counties: Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester in Maryland and Sussex in Delaware. The MSA had a total population of 423,481 residents as of the 2020 Census. The United States Census Bureau also defines the Salisbury-Cambridge, MD-DE Combined Statistical Area which combines the Salisbury metropolitan area with the Cambridge, Maryland Micropolitan Statistical Area.
The Cape Henlopen Region, or the Cape Region, is a region in Sussex County, in southern Delaware, on the Delmarva Peninsula. The region is part of the Salisbury, Maryland-Delaware Metropolitan Statistical Area. The region takes its name from Cape Henlopen, as does the Cape Henlopen School District and Cape Henlopen State Park. Much of the region's populated areas are found along the Delaware Bay, Rehoboth Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. Northern and western parts of the Cape Region are rural areas dominated by farmland and wetlands. The area is often referred to as the Delaware Beaches.
North Shores is an unincorporated community in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. North Shores is located along the Atlantic Ocean north of Henlopen Acres and Rehoboth Beach and south of Cape Henlopen State Park.