The 36th annual Sea Witch Festival runs Friday through Sunday, October 23 to 25. For anyone who lives here, the weekend is organized around one closed street and a few places along its edges. According to the city's closure notice, Rehoboth Avenue is fenced and closed to traffic from 2 AM Saturday until about 4 PM. The only exception is dropping off costumed walkers before 10 AM. Lake Avenue, beside the Henlopen Hotel at the north end of the Boardwalk, is where the DART bus drops riders off on Saturday. It is also where the dog parade lines up on Sunday.
The festival is produced by the Rehoboth Beach-Dewey Beach Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center, not by the city. The City of Rehoboth Beach calendar sends questions to the Chamber. The Chamber's printed program warns that details may change, and the Chamber's Sea Witch Festival page was last updated October 16, so check SeaWitchFestival.com before you head out. Weather can move a lot of these events.
Friday Has Its Own Reason to Show Up This Year
For years, Friday was mostly the run-up to Saturday. In 2026 the Chamber added the 1st Annual Sea Witch Community Fair, from 12 PM to 5 PM at the Rehoboth Beach Bandstand. It is open to local nonprofits, community organizations and service providers. It gives the Bandstand a calm weekday afternoon of local groups before the weekend crowds arrive.
The rest of Friday spreads north and south of downtown:
- Sea Witch 5K packet pickup runs 4 PM to 6 PM at Irish Eyes in Lewes.
- Trick or Treat with Dewey Beach Businesses runs 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM, rain or moonlight.
- The Rusty Rudder, at 113 Dickinson Street in Dewey Beach, has Laura Lea Duo at 5 PM and Laura Lea & Tripp Fabulous at 9 PM.
The one Friday rule that matters for anyone who parks downtown starts the night before. You can't park overnight in any Rehoboth Avenue space from 1 AM to 6 AM Friday, October 23. In other words, a car left on the avenue Thursday night is at risk. Towed cars go to Coastal Towing at 33012 Cedar Grove Road in Lewes.
Saturday, Hour by Hour
On Saturday the downtown street grid changes for most of the day, and the timing of each closure decides what you can reach. Here is how it goes, using the city's closure notice and the Chamber's program:
- 1 AM. No parking in the Rehoboth Avenue median until the parade is over.
- 2 AM. Rehoboth Avenue closes to traffic, except for costumed walker drop-off, and fencing goes up on both sides. State Road, Sussex Street and 4th Street close for parade line-up. Most of Christian Street closes for fence staging, and parking is restricted on Scarborough Avenue.
- 9 AM. Individual costumed walkers start registering at the JAM Bistro/Loves Liquors lot, 305 Rehoboth Avenue. Drop-off there is allowed until 10 AM, but there is no parking out front.
- 9:30 AM. Last chance to cross Rehoboth Avenue by car at 1st and 2nd streets.
- 11 AM. The costume parade starts from 4th Street. Walkers head west on Rehoboth Avenue to State Road, join the balloons, then come back east toward the Bandstand and finish at 4th Street. This year's Grand Marshal is Dewey Beer Co., the Chamber's 2025 Business of the Year, followed by the Sea Witch Clipper Ship.
- 2 PM. The Old Fashioned Kids' Beach Games and Broom Toss start on the beach at Baltimore Avenue. The games are for children 12 and under, and Sweet Frog Frozen Yogurt sponsors the Broom Tossing Contest. Beach and tide conditions can shift the time or the spot.
- 3 PM to 5 PM. Packet pickup for Sunday's 5K at Grove Park. The Chamber lists this Saturday session as new for 2026.
- Around 4 PM. Rehoboth Avenue reopens once the parade fencing is removed.
- 6 PM to 7:30 PM. Check-in for the children's costume contest at Zelky's Beach Arcade South, 115 S. Boardwalk.
- 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM. Trick or Treat with Downtown Rehoboth Beach Merchants, with contest awards at Zelky's at 8 PM.
Pony rides from the Little Farm run all day Saturday and Sunday, 10 AM to 4 PM, on the beach at Wilmington Avenue. If beach conditions are poor, they move to the park beside the Henlopen Hotel. That puts the backup plan at the same north end of the Boardwalk again.
The Easiest Way Downtown Starts in Lewes
With the main avenue closed, the most straightforward route to the parade comes from outside the city. On Saturday, DART Route 201 runs from 6 AM to 11 PM, and the last trip out of downtown leaves at 10:30 PM. Parking is free at the Rehoboth Park & Ride, at Coastal Highway and Shuttle Road, and at the Lewes Park & Ride, 17616 Coastal Highway. Regular bus fares apply.
Buses pick up and drop off on Lake Avenue by the Henlopen Hotel. From there it's about a half-mile walk down the Boardwalk to the Bandstand. DART buses have wheelchair lifts, and only service animals may ride.
If you would rather drive in, the parking rules are already different from summer. The city ended paid parking after September 15. Since Wednesday, September 16, parking has been free across the city, with no meters, ParkMobile or permits needed. Free parking also means every open space on a side street is up for grabs. The city's advice for Saturday matches the Chamber's Sea Witch parking page. Skip Rehoboth Avenue, park on the side streets nearby, and follow the posted signs, because police can ticket or tow.
Sunday Moves to the Boardwalk
Sunday starts with the Sea Witch 5K Classic at 9 AM. After that, most of the day takes place on the Boardwalk. The Costumed Dog Parade starts at the corner where Saturday's buses dropped riders off. Registration and judging begin at 12 PM on Lake Avenue by the Henlopen Hotel. The parade steps off at 1 PM and heads south on the Boardwalk to Laurel Street, and winners are announced at the Bandstand at 2:30 PM. Entry is $5 per dog, and Rehoboth Beach Animal Hospital is one of the co-sponsors. The Chamber says to plan on walking about a mile and a half once you count line-up and the walk back. That is good to know if your dog tires out before you do.
Before and after the parade, these Sunday listings cost little or nothing:
| What | Where | When | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lollipop tree, prize at the reservation desk | Boardwalk Plaza Hotel, 2 Olive Ave. | 9 AM to 12 PM | No fee |
| Unlimited skee-ball | All Zelky's Beach Arcades: 113 and 115 S. Boardwalk, 36706 Bayside Outlet Dr. | 10 AM to close | Free |
| Mini golf in full costume | Sea Shell Shop/Shell We Golf, 19366 Coastal Hwy. | 10 AM to close | Free round |
| Golf n' Ghouls Halloween mini golf | Zelky's Rooftop Terrace, 113 S. Boardwalk | 11 AM to close | No price listed |
| Carriage rides with Tanglao Carriage Driving | Board beside the Grove Park bathrooms | 12 PM to 4 PM | $2 under 12, $5 adults |
Shell We Golf is strict about the costume. The program says a full costume is required, so a head piece or mask alone won't count. It also says the course stays open in sprinkles, fog and light rain. Over at Downtown Blues, 8 N 1st Street, you can guess how many toy pigs are in the "Piggy Bank" from 11:30 AM to 2 PM. The winner takes the bank and a $50 gift card, and you don't have to be there when it's announced at 4 PM. The Children's Fantasy Trail runs from 6 PM to 7:30 PM. Kleptoradio closes out the weekend at the Rusty Rudder in Dewey at 9 PM.
If you want to get away from downtown, the Delaware Botanic Gardens in Dagsboro has forest creatures and sculptures on display Sunday from 9 AM to 4 PM. Admission is $15 for non-members and free for members and visitors 16 and under.
If You Left a Chair on the Avenue
Right after Saturday's parade, the city's Streets Department collects blankets, coolers, chairs and anything else left unattended on Rehoboth Avenue. Those items can be claimed outside the Streets Department office at 20476 Lincoln Street until 4 PM on Monday, October 26. Hold onto that address if you set out a chair early to save a spot.
Plenty of us on the Sharon Daugherty Group team will be somewhere along the parade route or the Boardwalk during Sea Witch weekend, October 23 to 25. If you're hosting friends from out of town and want to know which nearby side streets usually have space, or how far your place is from the Lake Avenue stop, contact us. We're glad to help you plan your Sea Witch weekend.
