A Do-Nothing Vacation at Rehoboth Beach, DE

I’m sitting on the beach doing nothing. I did the same thing yesterday. I also did nothing sitting on my hotel balcony. Okay, I was listening to the waves but certain do-nothing things are allowed. Reading, for instance. I have a couple of days left to my vacation and I plan to do nothing in them also. It’s not that easy to do nothing.

Lying on a beach in Rehoboth Beach, DE is a great way to while away time. Photo by Victor Block

Things I am not doing: I am not calling home for messages. I am not reading texts or emails on my phone. I am not scrolling for news. My phone, in fact, is in my bedside drawer at the hotel. The hardest part for me: not doing Wordle.

Relaxing and reading on a Rehoboth Beach, DE hotel balcony.
Photo by Victor Block

Going for walks is an allowable do-nothing activity so strolling (as distinguished from scrolling) around the cute beach-side town of Rehoboth, Delaware a couple of hours
east of Washington, DC is allowed. Shopping, not so much.

Reading t-shirts in a shop, okay. “If a man says he will fix it, he will. There’s no need to remind him every six months.” Now that’s worth an appreciative look. “I’m going to go stand outside, so if anyone asks, tell them I’m outstanding.” ”Exercise? I thought you said extra fries.” That could be a Thrasher’s reference but more on that later.

The Things You Don’t Do On a Do-Nothing Vacation Are as Important as the Things You Do

Maybe I’d better explain. I travel a lot. It’s my work and most trips are filled with story-
gathering activities round-the-clock. Have to do all the must-sees and track down those
unknowns off the beaten track.

Lots of planning, organizing and researching – even the restaurants have to be studied. So the idea of a do-nothing vacation had a lot of appeal. Relaxing. Stress-free. Laid-back. I just didn’t know how much work it was going to be.

Vegging out in a comfy chair is a great way to do nothing.
Photo by Victor Block

Restaurants are tricky. Rather than seeking out the umbrella-clad cocktail du jour, I was
much happier hanging out at a local bar mid-day with my go-to Fireball over light ice. I’m
an exercise fiend at home but here, raising a glass from the top of Whisky Jack’s bar (could any name be more perfect for what I was seeking out?) was about as much exertion as I could muster.

The resultant smile on my face almost pushed me over the top. I think I was getting the hang of this do-nothing concept.

A mid-day alcoholic indulgence because there was no reason not to… Photo by Victor Block

Rather than research the de rigueur restaurants of Rehoboth, I opted instead to stop for
ice cream and the area’s famous Thrasher’s French Fries.

Reading the weird ice cream flavors in the street-front parlor that boasts 100 different flavors was almost as much fun as reading t-shirts: “I Don’t Give a Fork,” “May the 4 th be With You,” and “Better than Sex.” Reading a hundred ice cream flavors is time-consuming. How fortunate there was nothing I actually needed to DO.

Rehoboth Beach, DE Offers Many Diversions Even if You Plan on Doing Nothing There

100 different ice cream flavors in Rehoboth Beach, DE are very enticing. Photo by Victor Block

Sitting on a boardwalk bench with my fries – somehow unlike any other (Thrasher’s refuse to provide ketchup because I assume, that would tarnish the original flavor) – and people watching. Does that count as an activity?

So many different humans going in so many different directions, all so intent on their own drummers – it was exhausting to watch. I was just happy to stay exactly where I was, watching the seagulls, busily squawking and hurtling toward a dropped French fry. Seagulls are actually more exhausting. I felt even more of a need to just unwind.

Thrasher's French Fries — Thrasher’s French Fries. Photo by Victor Block

Truth be told, at one beach bar it was so bright and noisy I found it very hard to chill out the way I’d envisioned. Next time – dark, quiet and low-key. So first night out, a big mistake.

Feeding – so to speak – my preference for down-and-dirty restaurants as opposed to
white-tablecloth, the comfortable and casual Gogg’s perfectly matched my mind-numbing mood on night out number two.

Alright, so there was a menu with 100 rums, rivaling the 100 ice cream flavors. It could get
testy. Resisting the threat of stressful decision-making angst, I simply opted for my favorites, thus enjoying the novelty of such variety while avoiding indulging in executive-
level anxiety. A win-win. I didn’t have to do anything but eat and drink.

Reading, Relaxing and Imbibing Kept Me Plenty Busy on My Do-Nothing Vacation

But, of course, any further activity-involved nightlife did not qualify. Back to my do-nothing balcony. Listening to waves never disappoints.

So yes, there are arcades in Rehoboth. I didn’t go to. I didn’t bike-ride on the Boardwalk.
I avoided mini-golf. Although I did at times find myself lusting after all the emails I wasn’t
reading. Again, hard work to do nothing.

The next day, on the beach again, I didn’t for one minute miss playing frisbee while relaxing on my chaise lounge. The one exception to my inactivity, however, was to indulge in one of my most fun undertakings: diving into waves.

I allowed myself that delightful diversion before returning to a renewed level of sloth-like behavior. And maybe one more relaxing drink at Whisky Jack’s. So is this all much ado about nothing? You bet!

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Rambling Writers

Fyllis Hockman and Victor Block are a husband-wife team of experienced travel journalists who have gallivanted throughout the United States, and to nearly 80 countries around the world, and written about what they have seen, done and learned.Their articles have appeared in newspapers across the country and on websites across the Internet, and they each have won numerous writing awards. They love to explore new destinations and cultures and uncover off-the-beaten-path attractions.

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