Delaware has 17 state parks but sadly only two parks offer accommodations for big families. And, those options only sleep up to 6. Ranging from rustic to home-like, the cabins and cottages will give your family a place to crash after a full day of outdoor activities.
Cape Henlopen State Park
Cape Henlopen’s beaches attract thousands of visitors who enjoy everything from ocean swimming, boating, fishing, and kayaking to clamming, paddle-boarding, and windsurfing. But Cape Henlopen offers more than just the ocean and bays. The park’s premier trails offer hiking and biking exploration.
Visit Seaside Nature Center, featuring a 495-gallon two-level touch tank, complete with viewing windows that allow visitors to see stingrays, horseshoe crabs, and other species in the tank while they’re underwater. The nature center also features five 1,000-gallon tanks with local fish, exhibits that explain the different habitats within the park, a live Osprey cam (April through August), and a gift shop.
Free bikes are available at the Seaside Nature Center on a first-come, first-served basis, weather permitting, for 2 hours at a time, Bikes must remain within the park and stay on the paved bike trail.
Twelve rustic cabins will sleep families of six with a queen and two sets of bunk beds. All cabins have two bedrooms. Covered, screened-in porches offer a great place to relax or read. Each cabin also has a water spigot, a fire ring, and picnic tables. Cabins do not have their own restrooms; however, there is a communal bathhouse dedicated solely to the twelve cabins.
Indian River Inlet
Located on the north side of the Indian River Inlet at Delaware Seashore State Park, the park’s marina features many convenient services for boaters and fishermen. And it’s just minutes from the Atlantic Ocean and the Inland Bays – some of the finest fishing grounds on the east coast! The marina also hosts exciting annual events, including a Seafood and Art Festival, Fisherman’s Flea Market, and the Annual Kids’ Catch-All.
The cottages at Indian River Marina are located on the north shore of the Indian River Inlet inside Delaware Seashore State Park. The park is one of the Mid-Atlantic region’s most popular recreational destinations, with a wealth of natural settings and six miles of ocean and bay shoreline.
Visitors can enjoy swimming, surf- and deep-sea fishing, surfing, sailing, paddling, hiking, bird watching, and much more. The cottages are adjacent to the Indian River Marina and close to resorts, restaurants, tax-free shopping outlets, historic sites, and park amenities.
Twelve furnished cottages sleep six and have two bedrooms, one with a queen-sized bed, the other with two twin beds, and a loft with a queen-sized bed. Enjoy a well-equipped kitchen with dishes, flatware, cooking utensils, and glassware, cooktop, dishwasher, full-sized refrigerator, coffee maker, toaster oven, and 2400-watt counter-top convection oven in each cottage. Cabins have heat and air-conditioning, washer/dryer, and a furnished screen porch. Bring your own linens, towels, paper products, trash bags, dishwashing/dishwasher/laundry soaps, and cell phone/wifi.
