Regional Guide · 17 beaches
Delaware Bay Beaches
The Delaware Bay shoreline is a different animal from Delaware's Atlantic coast — calmer, quieter, and dotted with tiny bayside villages that live around horseshoe crab spawning, bird migration, and the slow rhythm of the tide. Communities like Slaughter Beach, Broadkill, Bowers, Pickering, and Kitts Hummock are on the MDE/DNREC monitoring map even when they're not on most travel guides. Lewes is the grandest; Prime Hook NWR the wildest. Water is generally calmer than the Atlantic, shallower, and warms earlier.
Current Conditions
Average water temperature: 63°F
Across 17 monitored stations on the Delaware Bay.
When to Go
May through September for wading, crabbing, and bird watching. Peak horseshoe crab spawning runs late May through June on a full-moon tide — one of the biggest natural events on the East Coast.
Watch Out For
Several Bay beaches turn to mud toward low tide (Pickering, Kitts Hummock notably) — arrive at mid-tide or rising for a proper swim. Greenheads (biting flies) can be fierce on still summer afternoons. Respect posted piping-plover and least-tern nesting closures at Prime Hook.
Delaware · 12
All Delaware beaches →Prime Hook NWR — Fowler Beach
Decent day for photography.
Broadkill Beach
Decent day for photography.
Slaughter Beach
Decent day for photography.
South Bowers Beach
Decent day for photography.
Woodland Beach Wildlife Area
Decent day for photography.
Big Stone Beach
Decent day for photography.
Bowers Beach
Decent day for photography.
Augustine Beach
Decent day for photography.
Port Mahon
Decent day for photography.
Pickering Beach
Decent day for photography.
Kitts Hummock Beach
Decent day for photography.
Lewes Beach
Decent day for photography.
New Jersey · 5
All New Jersey beaches →Reeds Beach
Great day for a beach walk.
Gandy's Beach
Decent day for photography.
Cape May Point State Park
Decent day for photography.
Villas
Decent day for photography.
Fortescue
Great day for photography.