My wife and I stayed at the Bay to attend a weekend event. Having grown up in Florida, I was wary of staying in a non-chain beach motel. However, we were pleasantly surprised. To be truthful, it is not a resort. It is a very clean and convenient hotel on the bay side of Dewey Beach. Our room had a beautiful view of the bay and we were within walking distance of the Coastal Highway and the beach. The upper floors of the hotel are accessed by external stairs, so if you have a problem hauling luggage get a street level room. The parking is limited and tight; so larger SUVs will have challenges. They have free WiFi, but the signal is weak. Worth staying at again.

The name is a bit confusing (it's *not* a resort) but the place has a lot of charm. It's basically a 3 story hotel ("motel" makes me think one-story) with an excellent location. The strip of Dewey Beach (one block away) is noisy, but once we shut the door to our 3rd floor, bay-view room, we heard nothing. There's a security guard roaming outside at night to keep an eye on things and quiet any rowdies. At first I found this a little off-putting, but on Saturday night I could see the value. I was told that the "resort" gets a fair number of families but also gets a fair number of college kids looking to blow off steam, so having someone on premises to defuse is good. Loved the bay view (laughing gulls are raucous and made a ton of noise, but we didn't hear them once we shut the glass door leading to the balcony). Loved the blackout drapes. Good wifi connection (no problems). The kitchenette is OK, but kind of weirdly outfitted. For instance, in our room, there were 4 plates and glasses, but only two bowls (of different sizes). There were dishcloths, but no dish soap. There's a nice stove and small fridge with lots of pots and pans, with a good cutting knife and bottle opener, plus microwave and toaster. But there's almost no storage space for any groceries you might bring that don't need refrigeration.

So the room itself is fine (extremely clean, freshly painted, well maintained), the walk up (no elevator) to the 3rd floor is fine, the staff are friendly, and for the most part, they've clearly tried to keep everything looking spotless. That doesn't yet get me to 4 stars, but here's what else: There's a long pier out back leading out into the bay (guests only, with nets for kids to try catching crabs or whatnot), a nice cabana with outdoor seating, and a smallish pool. The parking is good and the beach is two blocks away. The location, plus all the place offers, gets us to 4 stars.

The neighborhood is a tad cramped in all directions, but once inside the resort, it seems less so. Almost everything around is 3 stories or fewer, so when you're on the 3rd floor, you have a commanding view.

The beach is very long (all directions from here) and softer sand than most places -- and pretty clean. As a bonus, Dewey Beach allows dogs during parts of the day. Next time I'll have to find a place to stay where I can bring ours! If the dogs stay home, we'll likely be back at The Bay Resort.

This motel is perfectly situated - far enough away from the bars and restaurants but so close to the beach. The staff was super friendly and accommodated our every need. The rates were excellent. The only reason I gave it a 4 is because all of our sheets had hair. The front desk changed them right away but the fresh ones also had hair. We just pulled them off and went on with our lives. We thought maybe the detergent used and/or the washers and dryers created static so that hair stuck to the sheets. Either way, it was annoying but not really their fault, though a solution would be nice. Last of all, don't book this expecting a 5 star hotel. This is a motel and like all motels, only the basics are provided. No fancy rooms or appliances - just the basics. You come here for the location after all and who wants to spend a lot of time inside the rooms when the beach is a five minute walk?

If you decide to visit Dewey Beach, DE...I strongly recommend The Bay Resort. It is a great motel, the staff is friendly and more than helpful. The room was immaculate and most rooms have a small kitchenette, there is also coffee available in the office all day long. I stayed on the poolside, which was fine but I'm sorry I didn't spend the few extra dollars to be on the bay side which appeared to be much more quieter. The motel is off the main road and much quieter at night. This is a hidden treasure in Dewey Beach as you have to look a little bit to find it...you won't see it from the main road driving through Dewey Beach but its well worth the easy search to find it.