If you’re longing for warm sand, crashing waves, and sunny skies but prefer to skip the throngs, here are three under-the-radar beaches that offer seclusion with no shortage of vacation comforts.
Sandbridge Beach
This quaint, quiet beach community is sandwiched between Back Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, about 35 minutes south of downtown Virginia Beach. Twelve miles of barrier islands separate the beach from the Outer Banks, and five-mile-long Sandbridge feels more like a remote getaway than a resort town.
Stay: What Sandbridge lacks in hotels and inns it makes up for in rentable condos and cottages. Many are situated in areas brimming with dwarf palmettos, beach grass, and live oaks. The local vacation-rental company Siebert Realty offers sprawling beachfront beauties such as the 12-bedroom “Regency North,” which features an outdoor pool, theater room, and bar equipped with a margarita machine.
Play: Little Island Park (3820 Sandpiper Rd., Virginia Beach) is a 122-acre public beach on Sandbridge’s southernmost tip, abutting the massive Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The park features vast stretches of beautiful beaches, plus ample oceanfront parking, pickleball courts, restrooms, picnic shelters, a 400-foot wooden fishing pier, and a restored 1924 Coast Guard lifesaving station. For an even more isolated beach, take a three-mile hike or bike ride along a mostly gravel trail from the Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center (4005 Sandpiper Rd., Virginia Beach) to False Cape State Park. The trek carries you through a complex of marshes visited by upward of 300 species of birds. From there, walk half a mile through a fairy-tale forest of mature, moss-draped live oaks to emerge onto six miles of pristine, rarely visited beach, with opportunities to collect oyster, horseshoe-crab, and marine-snail shells.
Eat: Housed in a converted historic tackle shop and general store, Margie & Ray’s Crab House & Restaurant (1240 Sandbridge Rd., Virginia Beach) is a local favorite for bivalves, steamer-centric seafood dinners, and weekend bloody-Mary brunches. Expect Southern grandma-style greasy-spoon cooking in a beachy dive-bar setting. A 15-minute drive from Sandbridge brings you to Back Bay Gourmet (2277 Upton Dr.,Virginia Beach), where chef Alex Fore dishes up locally sourced surf and turf, including North Carolina pan-seared shrimp and andouille sausage served over housemade pappardelle pasta.
Fenwick Island
This tiny, 350-person resort community is wedged between family-focused Bethany Beach and North Ocean City. Limited access points make the coastal town one of the Delaware shore’s most tranquil beach destinations.
Stay: Find posh yet affordable digs two blocks from the beach at Fenwick Shores (1501 Coastal Hwy.), a 65-room Hilton Tapestry Collection hotel. Upscale beach-inspired decor, a rooftop bar with a fire pit and pool area, and a patio with comfy seats lend the property a boutique feel. Book a junior suite and you’ll get an airy room with a private balcony, microwave-equipped kitchenette, and living-room-style sitting area.
Play: Wide, gently sloping beaches abound in Fenwick Island State Park, a long, narrow strip of sandy public land. A large parking area with a bathhouse, concession complex, and ocean access is less than a mile north of town. Or drive another two miles and then hike in from the quieter York Beach Crossing access. Want to get out on the water? Coastal Kayak (36840 Coastal Hwy.), across the street from the main parking lot at Fenwick Island State Park, offers guided paddling tours. Trips last about two hours and range from sunset excursions on Little Assawoman Bay to explorations of rare bald-cypress forests in the 10,800-acre Great Cypress Swamp wilderness area.
Eat: Two years ago, chef Matthew Kern launched his debut eatery, One Coastal (101 Coastal Hwy.) in a former 50-seat strip-mall diner. He’s now a finalist for a 2024 James Beard Foundation Best Chef award, thanks to dishes such as wild-foraged hen-of-the-woods mushrooms fried Korean style with a spicy house-made gochujang-honey barbecue sauce.
Delaware Seashore State Park
A ten-minute drive from downtown Rehoboth Beach, this 2,825-acre state park is home to more than six miles of protected coastline, including four nature areas on Rehoboth Bay and Indian River Bay. Take a break from the more populated beaches to soak up rays on placid sand and explore coastal hiking trails.
Stay: Maximalism reigns at the oceanfront, Victorian-style Boardwalk Plaza Hotel (2 Olive Ave. and the Boardwalk, Rehoboth Beach). The lobby and bar areas feature ornate woodwork, moody wallpaper, and lavish flower arrangements. Spacious rooms pair old-fashioned touches such as carved four-poster beds, colorful quilts, and fainting couches with modern bathrooms and ocean views from private balconies.
Play: Drive south through the neighboring town of Dewey Beach to reach the northern entrance of Delaware Seashore State Park (25039 Coastal Hwy., Rehoboth Beach). Beach access points are found throughout the narrow stretch of land, but Lily Beach (39184 Keybox Rd., Rehoboth Beach) and the area next to the Conquest Road parking area (Conquest Rd., Rehoboth Beach) are your best bets for seclusion. For a classic day of sand and swimming, head to Towers Beach (Tower Rd., Rehoboth Beach) or the South Inlet Day Use Area (27099 Coastal Hwy., Bethany Beach). Both offer lifeguards, concessions, and umbrella rentals. For an active beach day, scan the QR code at the Burton Island Nature Preserve trailhead (39445 Inlet Rd., Rehoboth Beach) and embark on a 1.5-mile, self-guided hike through protected marshes and maritime forests along a cove and river inlet.
Eat: Take a break from the dunes to grab lunch at Big Chill Beach Club (27099 Coastal Hwy., Bethany Beach) in the South Inlet Day Use Area. The beachfront spot has a menu of seafood-leaning pub fare and lunch bowls, served on the second-story deck of a covered outdoor bar. After a day in the sun, head to the charming Back Porch Café (59 Rehoboth Ave., Rehoboth Beach), which turns 50 this year. Bought out by longtime staffers in 2020, it continues to shine. Expect quirky Key West vibes and a smart-casual atmosphere in a revamped historic inn about a block from the beach. Seasonal four-course menus feature French-leaning multicultural gems such as grilled octopus topped with harissa aïoli and scallops paired with French trout caviar.
This article appears in the June 2024 issue of Washingtonian.
