Delray Beach: Walkable town with award-winning beach is a great weekend getaway

Last updated on April 23rd, 2025 at 07:42 pm

I visit Delray Beach frequently on day trips, but I always recommend it to my northern friends as a great beach-weekend destination.

Its beach is so special that in April 2025, it was one of only three in the United States to win a Blue Flag Beach Award for meeting stringent environmental, educational and safety criteria.

Delray Beach also has a charming walkable downtown full of restaurants, bars and artsy shops and other wonderful and unusual attractions, including an easy-to-access birding boardwalk and a large, serene Japanese garden.

Part of the secret to Delray Beach’s appeal is that it didn’t “go big” in its redevelopment, instead maintaining a low-rise downtown where people are clustered around a main street with historic buildings.

Delray’s renaissance started in the 1980s, when downtown storefronts were empty and older buildings neglected. The Community Redevelopment Agency began to address blight and crime and brought visible improvements such as trees and paving stones for downtown. Meanwhile, citizens led historic preservation efforts.

Little by little, the changing scene attracted artists and restaurants. Today, Delray is the envy of neighboring communities for its downtown full of people day and night.

Delray Beach is 15 square miles and has a population of 67,000, but it packs in a lot of things to do.

Delray Beach’s Atlantic Avenue

One of the most popular things to do in Delray Beach is to just meander Atlantic Avenue and dine or drink at a sidewalk café. Atlantic — or just “The Avenue” — has galleries and boutiques as well as traditional downtown merchants.

At night, crowds of well-dressed people of all ages spill onto the sidewalk from bars and restaurants offering live music.

You won’t have any trouble finding a place to eat. Atlantic Avenue and its environs has so many restaurants the city briefly considered steps to discourage more.

It’s not that Delray was always a mecca for foodies, but one successful spot attracted another, and today you’ll find many cuisines plus examples of most dining trends.

At the east end of Atlantic Avenue is Delray’s two-mile-long beach. Delray is fortunate — an early property owner deeded one mile of beach to the public and thus the view from State Road A1A is of native vegetation and sand rather than a wall of high-rise condos. Unlike many seaside cities, you can walk from the cafes downtown right to the beach.

Historic buildings and museums in Delray Beach

While you’re downtown, there are several historic buildings worth visiting, even if you just admire them from the outside. These are all on the National Register of Historic Places:

Old School Square. This complex was once the elementary and high school. It was saved and handsomely restored through a community effort in the 1980s, spurring the downtown renaissance.

Today, it is a cultural complex, home to the Cornell Museum of Art and American Culture and the Crest Theatre. The former high school auditorium was transformed into an impressive 323-seat theater.

The Cornell Museum is open Wednesday to Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. (Noon to 7 on Fridays.) Admission is free. 51 N. Swinton Ave.; 561-654-2220

Sandoway House Nature Center. This 1936 beachfront home is a good stop for families, with its turtle pond, seashell gallery and especially its shark tank. Shark feedings are held Tuesday to Sunday. Admission is $10. The gardens around Sandoway feature native plants and an observation deck over the ocean.

Gardens and birds in Delray

Two of the most popular attractions in Delray Beach are west of I-95. They will appeal to families and lovers of nature.

While seemingly out of place in Florida, the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens is actually another way Delray Beach has preserved its history. The site was donated to the public by George Morikami, one of the Japanese settlers who carved a pineapple farming colony out of the pine forests of west Delray starting in 1904.

There are two museums on the grounds: The original building is a model of a Japanese villa; the newer and larger building has extensive exhibition space, an excellent gift shop of Japanese merchandise and a well-regarded Japanese restaurant.

The star of the complex, though, is the garden, which is actually six distinct gardens representing different styles. Don’t miss the bonsai collection; some specimens are 400 years old!

The Morikami has a specially built tearoom where tea ceremonies are held once a month.

Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens are located off Jog Road at 4000 Morikami Park Rd.; 561-495-0233. Admission: $16 adults, $14 ages 65+, $12 age 6-17, free for children 5 and younger; tea ceremonies are $5.

Along the same road as the Morikami is Wakodahatchee Wetlands, a local treasure that is free. The manmade marsh filters water from the nearby treatment plant. But it has been engineered to host wildlife, and, boy, has it ever succeeded.

Wakodahatchee is considered a birding hotspot and the birds are often easy to see, fearlessly feeding right next to the boardwalk. The place is a favorite with nature photographers, who wait patiently with their long lenses. Kids are always happy to spot one of the alligators.

Wakodahatchee Wetlands, located behind the Palm Beach County Water Utility Department’s building at 13026 Jog Road, is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day; free.  FloridaRambler.com wrote about Wakodahatchee and nearby Green Cay in a story about birding hotspots.

Tips for visiting Delray Beach

Getting there: Delray Beach is 50 miles north of Miami. Atlantic Avenue, the main street through downtown, is an exit on I-95. Head east for shopping and historic district, west for the attractions on Jog Road, such as the Morikami.

Where to stay in Delray Beach

There are many good options in Delray. Here are a few we’ve visited:

The Seagate Hotel and Spa immediately became THE place to stay and a symbol that Delray had become a hot destination when it opened on Atlantic Avenue a decade ago. The hotel has a Zen-like ambiance: clean, uncluttered, serene.  1000 E. Atlantic Ave., 877-577-3242;

The Colony Hotel is a grand 1926 hotel on Atlantic Avenue, with a lobby painted vivid tropical colors. It’s still owned by the family that bought it in 1935. Guests rave about the beach club. 525 E. Atlantic Ave.; 561-276-4123.

Festivals and events in Delray Beach

One way Delray keeps people coming to its downtown is through a variety of popular festivals and events. The include a well-attended St. Patrick’s Day parade, a holiday tree-lighting event and a family-friendly News Year’s Eve First Night celebration.

Other major events during the year include Delray Affair celebrated 60 years in 2022 with more than 600 booths and nonstop entertainment stretched over 10 blocks of Atlantic Avenue. It’s a free street festival in April, and one of the most popular art fairs in the region. Details: www.delrayaffair.com

More things to do in Delray Beach

The Girls Strawberry U-Pick: This farm-themed attraction is improbably found behind a storefront on busy Military Trail just north of Atlantic Avenue.  The gardens are a special delight for families because of the caged exotic birds and a farmyard area with goats and other animals.

Spady Cultural Heritage Museum:  If you get interested in Delray’s rich history, you will learn about the black settlers who were among the city’s earliest residents. The Spady museum is located in the former home of a prominent African American educator and community leader from 1922 to 1957 and tells the community’s story through photos, documents, handmade quilts and historic objects.

More about Palm Beach County from Florida Rambler

• West Palm Beach: Old city, modern vibe with awesome variety of things to do
• A guide to things to do in Delray Beach
• Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens: Feel harmony in nature
• Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge for birding, hiking, kayaking and beautiful cypress-swamp boardwalk
• A great beach at MacArthur State Park
• Kayak to Munyon Island in MacArthur State Park
• Lake Trail, a bike trail on the elite island of Palm Beach
• Palm Beach Island: Full of history and manicured beauty
• Peanut Island for snorkeling and camping
• Hiking and bike trails at Grassy Waters Preserve, West Palm Beach