09/08/2026
Not all is lost in the upcoming closing of the summer season we have to look at the positives. ๐ฃ๏ฟผ
And we are still open๐งโโ๏ธ๐ฆ๐ป๐งโโ๏ธ๐ฅโ๏ธ๐๐ณ๏ธโ๐๐บ๐ธ๐ฆ
The Friday/Monday traffic on Route 1 might begin to ease, but the First State's summer does not end on Labor Day. Local Delawareans return to the boardwalk and beaches for the first time in months.
Here is some of what remains in 2026:
Funland reopens September 10โ13 for one last post-Labor Day weekend. This is also the final chance to ride the current Haunted Mansion: it will be closed in 2027 and reimagined for 2028.
Bethany Beach Events & Entertainment keeps free bandstand concerts going Friday and Saturday evenings through September. Its Boardwalk Arts Festival brings more than 100 juried artists downtown September 12. On September 19, Delawareans can join Delaware DNREC's Coastal Cleanup at more than 45 sites from 9 a.m. to noonโregistration closes September 8โthen make a day of the Delaware Seafood Festival in Rehoboth.
In Lewes, the Lewes Chamber of Commerce's Boast the Coast offers free canal boat rides, childrenโs activities, music, and free Cannonball House admission October 3. The next day, the University of Delaware College of Earth, Ocean and Environment's 50th Coast Day 2026 fills the Lewes campus for hands-on science, demonstrations, lab and ship tours. Rehoboth Beach Jazz Festival follows October 15โ18, and Rehoboth Beach-Dewey Beach Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center's Sea Witch Festival takes over Rehoboth and Dewey October 23โ25.
Rehobothโs paid-parking season ends September 15; limited lifeguard coverage continues through September 20. Leashed dogs may return to its beach and boardwalk September 16. Friends of Cape Henlopen State Park's volunteer-run Bike Barn lends bicycles free for two hours, weather permitting. Trails, fishing, birding, state parks, and the Delaware Seashore State Park's Indian River Life-Saving Station museum carry on beyond summer.
The crowds may thin, but Delawareโs coast is not closing, its locals season!
