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Lewes Travel Guide: Reviews, photos, & videos
A 120-mile drive east from Washington DC, Delaware’s flat farm country gives way to curvaceous sand dunes. From the mouth of the Delaware Bay to the Maryland state line, resort towns form an almost continuous chain of beach shops, restaurants and bars. And despite the invasion of summer visitors, tiny Lewes – which lies just north of Rehoboth, with a population of 3000 - has managed to maintain the feel of a small Williamsburg by the beach. The first European settlement in Delaware, the town was originally named Zwaanendael and flourished as a whaling and trading post. Lewes’ history is chronicled at the Zwaanendael Museum, built in 1931 to commemorate the settlement’s 300-year anniversary. With a weaker current undertow than that of Dewey Beach, Lewes is ideal for families with children, and the bevy of Lewes vacation rentals provide a perfect base camp for the family who doesn’t want to put up with the impersonal nature of a hotel. Stroll along one of the Lewes public beaches where prehistoric horseshoe crabs crawl up to mate in late spring every year and admire the Lewes vacation homes. Visit Fisherman’s Wharf and sign up for a whale watching tour. Explore nearby Cape Henlopen State Park by bike along a three-mile-long paved trail that loops the park.
