Sometimes you find a good deal, plan a nice trip, and everything goes according to plan. You soak in the sun at the beach, take refreshing dips in the pool, and enjoy rum runners. Then at night you peacefully drift off to sleep dreaming of doing it all over again.

Key Biscayne was not one of those trips.

After the fiasco from the previous night, we were left exhausted and in much need of sleep. What we needed was a vacation! Since we were able to cancel our remaining nights, Sarah scoped out possible deals in nearby cities.

Let’s try this again, but in Delray Beach! She booked an attractive hotel an hour north of us for only a bit more than what we had paid in Key Biscayne. After a quick drive on the highway in the pouring rain, we arrived in glorious Delray Beach at what can only be described as a tropical oasis.

Delray Beach to the Rescue!

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As we stepped through the charming entrance of Cranes Beach House in Delray Beach, it felt like we were teleported south to Key West. We were cheerfully checked in and immediately got to business. With two secluded pools, a thatched-roof pavilion stocked with endless coffee and tea, and a relaxing hammock (including a pillow that read “unwind”), we sighed serious relief.

Was this real?

We headed straight to the pavilion. As a peaceful rain fell onto the thatch canopy above, it dripped and trickled down the lush, vibrant foliage surrounding us. There wasn’t a single soul roaming this hidden gem in Delray. The first thirty minutes of our check-in was a dream to say the least. Or were we delirious from lack of sleep? Was this a mirage?

Our room was modern with a full-size kitchen and as we opened the door, we could hear jazz music welcoming us from the living room. A cute back patio could be seen through French doors with windows dressed in thick wood slats. Step through the double doors and there was a hidden path leading directly to the adult pool boasting a waterfall and an attached tiki bar!

We found paradise.

Time to move in! We unpacked the cars, filled the fridge, and parked our bicycles out back without even bothering to lock them up. We were drained and hungry after the quick rush to get to our hotel. A quick Yelp search scouted a few restaurants in the area and the winning selection was a local Indian buffet called Saffron & Curry. It’s hard to beat Indian cooking with its fragrant aromas!

Biking in Beautiful Delray Beach

One of the best ways we like to explore a city is by bike. Sure you can walk everywhere, which we often do, but to get to places farther and faster, a bicycle is hard to beat. Since our hotel was located a few blocks from the beach (about 1/3 mile) and about the same into Downtown Delray, a bicycle was convenient. Sure, there’s a cute trolley that stops every twenty minutes or so, but we’re not that patient!

We love the freedom to come and go as we please so we hopped on our bikes and headed to the beach! It felt so nice to be back in Delray Beach with all the memories of our previous trip replaying in our heads. After a quick ride with the wind in our faces, we crossed A1A and couldn’t wait to check out the beach. We locked up at one of the many bike racks and headed towards the shore.

The Sea Grape Forests of Delray

A few years back, we had visited Delray and fell in love with the curious forests of sea grapes that greet you as you get to the entrance to the beach. Instead of accessing the beach by a wooden walkway like on most beaches, you instead pass through a tunnel of sea grapes that hang overhead in what I can only describe as a mini-forest. The canopy closes in above creating a natural shade from the harsh sun and a kind of serene oasis.

On this trip we expected the massive sea grape forests to live up to our memories, but we were shocked that most of the sea grapes had been severely trimmed to the ground! There were still a couple of tunnels left in a few places, but the majority of the sea grapes on the dunes had been chopped down due to their competitive advantage over more native species. In any case, if you get to visit Delray, go a little north or south on A1A and you’ll still be able to walk through one of these forests that we so love.

Downtown Delray Beach and Sunset

After a nice visit to the beach, we headed back to enjoy some pool time, a bit of rum, and before it got too late, we planned to watch the sunset from the bridge in Downtown Delray.

I’d describe Downtown Delray Beach as an upscale, hip city with a lot of nice restaurants. Dress up a bit and step out of a fancy Mercedes, and you’ll fit in just fine. Dress down during the day in beach attire and have a beer at one of the local restaurants and you should still fit in.

Delray has a lot going for it with a free trolley system that shuttles people from downtown to the beach and back, usually running about every 20 minutes. A few years back, to us Delray felt like a hidden secret as there were only fancy restaurants and bars without even a hint of gift shops to be found. Since then, a handful of gift shops have popped up, but it still hasn’t lost that special upscale appeal.

Things to Do in Delray Beach

While we’re on the topic, there’s a lot to do in Delray. Normally when we get to a city, we like to let serendipity take its course by setting out with a very loose plan and letting things happen. We end up with some of the best memories by stumbling across unique places instead of planning out every second of our day. With that said, we also look up what are the popular things to do in the city so we don’t miss out on something we might have wanted to see.

Here’s a list of popular things to do in Delray Beach:

• Visit the beach and Atlantic Avenue (A1A)
• Enjoy delicious restaurants and unique bars
• Get takeout and people watch – we enjoyed Mellow Mushroom pizza on a bench
• Walk or bike along the canal
• Watch the sunset on the draw bridge
• Ride the free trolley
• Ride bicycles – from downtown to the beach and local neighborhoods
• Green Market – Downtown Delray Beach Farmers Market on Saturdays (9am-2pm)
• Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens
• Saltwater Brewery
• Silverball Museum – An actual pinball museum

We’re always ambitious while on trips when it comes to checking off bucket list items, but never seem to get to the whole list. We’ve done at least six of the above.

Glorious Sleep and a New Day

When we don’t get enough sleep, it’s tough to recover the next day, but fortunately we woke up the next morning fully rested and ready to explore! After a quick bite and some coffee under the pavilion, we set out to explore what Delray is all about.

Since we hadn’t been in any tourist shops on the previous trip, we hit the sidewalks and walked as far as the beach, occasionally making our way into the cool A/C of the gift shops. It’s a lot hotter walking around than with the cool breeze of a bike ride.

After a long walk checking out the shopping in the area, we were hot and in need of some refreshments so we headed back for what Sarah considers to be the best drink in the world: Watermelon Punch.

What’s the recipe you ask?

In a blender:

Watermelon + Mint + Rum = HEAVEN

The rum put us in pool mood, so we relaxed by the pool with some books for a bit and then it was back out for some more adventure by bike! We tend to flip-flop between pushing our limits of adventure and relaxation. A nice combination.

We made our way through downtown’s restaurant district, crossed the bridge, and criss-crossed south into more neighborhoods. The scenery changed a bit into a business district, and we stumbled across a fitness gym called Slash Fitness that had a huge colorful graffiti wall on the back that we couldn’t pass up. It was painted a tropical Miami Vice style and simply read “Delray Beach.” Gorgeous artwork by Fringe Concepts of Delray.

Since it was our last night in this oasis, we cooked a homemade pasta with onions, peppers, mushrooms, and a delicious sauce from Italian tomatoes. We walked off the meal and hustled to the bridge to see another beautiful sunset.

One funny story. On the way to the bridge there are restaurants and bars on both sides of the road. We look across the street to our left and see a couple girls on the rooftops in what looked like a nude photo shoot with the sunset. Sorry! No photos of that. 😉

A final cheers and it was off to bed.

One Last Ride

The next morning we repeated breakfast and it felt so nice to get out on the previous days that we had to hit the A1A strip again by bike. This time we wanted to see how the upper-class locals lived. With real estate pricing into the millions on beach side, a simple bike ride had us passing mansion upon mansion. Some of them even had their own basketball and tennis courts! Insane!

Take a ride down A1A and you’ll see grand estates walled-off to the public surrounded by massive hedges hiding themselves from view. You might catch a glimpse of a magnificent fountain or a sports car that peaks through, but you can only imagine what the view on the ocean side is like.

We headed back to Cranes Beach House to take a dip in the pool and relax by the waterfall one last time before it was time to go home. A little bit of paradise.

After our trip started off so bad in Key Biscayne, we couldn’t believe we were in such a dreamy place for almost the same price. It’s what I’ve come to know as our dreamy Delray do-over. It makes me wonder though. After discovering such a charming tropical oasis that was never on our radar, what else could be out there for us to discover?

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