Things to do in Delray Beach, FL
4000 Morikami Park Road, Delray Beach, FL 561-495-0233
One of the highlights of the area is the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens located just west of Delray Beach. The campus includes two museum buildings, the Roji-en Japanese Gardens: Garden of the Drops of Dew, a bonsai garden, library, gift shop, and a Japanese restaurant which has been featured on the Food Network. Rotating exhibits are displayed in both buildings, and demonstrations, including tea ceremonies and classes, are held in the main building. Traditional Japanese festivals are celebrated several times a year. Enjoy a night of Japanese folk-dancing, drumming, the Ennichi street fair and iconic lantern floating ceremony in a fall festival, a summer homage to ancestors who return for a brief visit to the living. Experience an iconic lantern floating ceremony and firework display. See traditional folk dancing and taiko drumming performances. Enjoy the Ennichi Street Fair and taste Japanese street fair food and drink. .Karesansui or dry landscape gardening, is founded on Zen ideology using carefully composed rock arrangements and gravel or sand. A karesansui is carefully raked to represent characteristics of water such as currents and waves while boulder arrangements may be interpreted as islands. Learn about the Late Rock Garden and observe how the raking can be a practice in mindfulness and meditation. A day at Morikami is an immersion in Japanese heritage and culture and one not easily forgotten.
Downtown Delray Beach 350 SE 1st Street, Suite 100 · Delray Beach, FL (561) 243-1077
Downtown Delray Beach is located primarily on Atlantic Avenue, between Swinton Avenue and the drawbridge over the Intracoastal Waterway. Considered the main street of Delray Beach, this busy thoroughfare offers a wide array of antique shops, galleries, clothing boutiques, jewelry and gift selections, in addition to a number of fine restaurants and clubs. Brick-paved sidewalks lined with palm and oak trees create a charming ambiance which makes for a perfect day or evening walk. Explore stylish fashion boutiques, art galleries and dozens of gift shops to find one-of-a-kind treasures. Some businesses can be found on the side streets off Atlantic Avenue. Although a bit quieter, Pineapple Grove extends just north of Atlantic Avenue along NE Second Avenue. Another landmark of historic Delray Beach are the railroad tracks running through the heart of downtown across Atlantic Avenue. A part of Delray Beach's past, the Florida East Coast Railway line is currently used for hauling freight. But if plans to bring passenger traffic back to the line come to fruition, the tracks could also be a part of Delray Beach's future. Shop to your heart’s content before settling back for a few sundowners at one of the many trendy bars and restaurants.
Peacock Bass Fishing Tours 1455 Lake Ida Rd, Delray Beach, 954 771-5833
Peacock Bass Fishing Tours will take you out for a splendid day on the water fishing for species like peacock bass, largemouth bass, bluegill, and redear sunfish. Suitable for first-timers or experienced anglers, you’ll cruise the canals around Boca Raton as you cast your line into the perpetually-calm waters. Enjoy views of nature as well as extravagant real estate along the waterfront. All equipment is included and guests are welcome to bring food and drinks (no glass) on board. When you climb aboard our local experts fishing vessel, you will get the opportunity to get a fully-guided fishing charter equipped with all light-tackle spinning rods and reels, along with a cooler, ice and water. You can rest assured that when you go out fishing with these local experts, you will get on fish. Bring your friends, families, and loved ones aboard for a fishing adventure you will never forget.
Silverball Museum 19 NE 3rd Ave., Delray Beach, FL (561) 266-3294
If you have always thought of yourself as the pinball wizard, the arcade champion, then the Silverball Museum is definitely worth a visit. Featuring more than 150 video games and pinball machines dating as far back as the 1930s, this museum brings a bit of nostalgia to visitors of all ages. This two storey museum evokes childhood memories for adults while creating new memories for younger generations used to online multi-player games. The 9,000-square-foot museum offers classic video games such as Ms. Pac-Man, two floors of pinball machines, arcade games and even the original skeeball alleys from New York’s Coney Island – Eldorado Arcade. The best part? All the games are set to free play, which means unlimited plays are included in your admission.
Dada 52 N Swinton Ave, Delray Beach, FL (561) 330-3232
One of the best places to eat in the Delray area is at Dada. The restaurant opened in Delray in the year 2000 in one of the oldest historic homes, the Tarrimore house circa 1924 listed as an historic site in Delray Beach. The eclectic interior and revolving artwork compliment the creative cuisine, which is sustainably and locally sourced. Eat indoors or step out into the garden and sit around the huge Mangrove tree in the centre of the courtyard. Dada is non-conformist. It allows their food, atmosphere and staff artistic license, so to speak, to explore beyond the normal convention. It's hard to say what Dada is best known for, the arty interior or the menu, featuring such favorites as bacon-wrapped dates with goat cheese and chorizo, or the events calendar with some kind of live music or cultural happening pretty much every night of the week. Movies in the backyard every Saturday and a once a month craft market are turning Dada into a lifestyle rather than just a restaurant.
The New Vegan 528 NE 2nd Street, Delray Beach, FL 561-404-5301
The New Vegan is where the locals go for their plant-based fix. This restaurant prides itself on its motto of “you don’t need to be Vegan to eat Vegan”. I t's a light, simple, cafe-style place, serving up wholesome burgers, salads, wraps and melts. All 100% vegan. Chef Jones has created the easiest way to get the healthiest food on the planet to the people she cares about the most. If you are looking for meals that are easy to cook, healthy, and that fit your dietary restrictions at an affordable price, then The New Vegan has you covered!