It's still the offseason here, with a few seagulls spotting the gray, drizzly skies. Some boardwalk shops are shuttered tight against the wind and rain.

The beaches will soon come alive with the sun as thousands of vacationers descend, spending freely and countering the gloom and doom, forgetting for a short time about high gas prices and food costs, layoffs and mortgage payments.

At least, that's the hope of beach business owners, who rely on the summer for the bulk of their income.

Some are positive. All are crossing their fingers.

"The way things are now with the weather, with the economy, I'm really skeptical, I am," said Marie Kilpatrick, manager at Dolle's Candyland on the Rehoboth boardwalk. "I have been here for 10 years and I've never seen it this dead."

Bill Burckhardt, co-owner of Partners Bistro & Piano Bar on Rehoboth Avenue, agrees.

"God only knows what's going to happen this summer," Burckhardt said. "We ain't seen nothing yet -- things are going to tighten up."

From hotels to restaurants, business owners say they're concerned about the economy. But most say despite the worries, this summer will still turn out fine -- not great, just good. And for consumers, it's a great time to find a bargain on meals and rooms.

The experts have a similar take. Adam Sacks, founder and managing director of Tourism Economics, a Wayne, Pa.-based consulting firm, said the picture is clouded.

"There's so many questions right now," he said. "Somewhere out there, there's a place where the U.S. consumer just gets tired and can't keep it up any more."

Some tourism cheerleaders say Delaware's location -- within a few hours' drive of many millions of people in the Baltimore-Philadelphia-D.C. metro areas -- means the beaches may actually see a boom this summer as people forgo more expensive trips to farther-flung locales.

"The peninsula here is well-positioned to have a good season," said Karen McGrath, executive director of the Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce.

Marketing efforts are focusing on bringing in those vacationers within the regional radius, said Scott Thomas, executive director of Southern Delaware Tourism.

"We're viewing this as an opportunity to entice car travelers who might drive further, might pass us and go to the Outer Banks or points south," he said.
Summer is big business

Along the coast, the summer is do-or-die time for mom-and-pop shops and big retailers. And with prices rising, the biggest fear is that vacationers may come to the beaches but spend less in shops and restaurants, said Carol Everhart, head of the Rehoboth Beach-Dewey Beach Chamber of Commerce.

Chad Moore, manager of Rehoboth's Bellmoor Inn, a luxury hotel and spa, echoed that sentiment.

"They might not do two high-end dinners -- they may do one high-end dinner and one pizza dinner," he said.

Those choices add up for businesses, said Betsy Reamer, executive director of the Lewes Chamber of Commerce.

"We're a summer destination, and that's when most of the merchants make the majority of the money," she said.

Business owners are taking steps to accommodate smaller wallets and purses. Burckhardt, the Rehoboth restaurateur, is introducing a "value menu" to cater to cost-conscious visitors.

"They're going to be looking for bargains," he said.

In July and August alone, stores at the Tanger Outlets along Del. 1 will do more than a third of the year's business, said outlets manager Amy Norgate.

"None of these retailers are just taking anything for granted," she said.

Outlet retailers are adjusting their store sizes -- either shrinking or expanding to make sure they're operating efficiently, Norgate said.

For example, Rehoboth's Liz Claiborne store is shrinking, but the parent company is bringing in two other outlets to share space -- Lucky jeans and Kate Spade handbags.

Norgate said it's important for an outlet center to have a diverse range of solid brand names. "People still have money to spend, but they're spending it ever more wisely than before," she said.

Price hikes are squeezing businesses from both sides: Dolle's, perhaps Rehoboth's best-known landmark, has had to raise its prices, said Kilpatrick, the manager. In the restaurant business, beef and seafood costs are going up as well, Burckhardt said.

For other companies, such as beach chair or bicycle rentals, a good season depends much more on the weather.

That's the case for Mitch Mitchell, owner of Coastal Kayak, on the bayside at Fenwick Island State Park. He rents sailboats and kayaks, runs instructional classes and guides kayak eco-tours.

"We have a fairly short season" from the Fourth of July to the end of August, Mitchell said. "If we get a week of rain or something like that, it can have a pretty big effect on us."

Still, he said, outdoor recreation and ecotourism are relatively cheap compared with other activities at the beach. His company hasn't raised its rates in the 15 years it's been open.

"We're one of the least-expensive things a family can do," he said.
Hopeful hoteliers

The area's lodging industry is more optimistic, though business owners note there has been an increase in extended weekend stays as time-starved families eschew long holidays.

Moore, whose family also owns the Oceanus Motel in Rehoboth and the Bay Resort Motel in Dewey Beach, said 10 years ago, people might have stayed for five, six or seven nights. Now it's down to three or four nights at a time.

But he said a lot of those extended-weekend visitors come down several times during the summer, making up for the lack of a weeklong stay.

While occupancy rates have largely declined around the country, Delaware's beach resorts should be in good shape, Sacks said. He said the national drop largely reflects a drop in business travel as companies look to cut costs, Sacks said.

"Hoteliers are responding very quickly to this type of softening," Sacks said.

Locally, the industry is trying to combat the shorter-stay trend with a campaign of special deals and vacation packages, Everhart said. The chamber of commerce this year began an online effort advertising such deals on its own Web site that business owners can update on their own.

Jim Powers, general manager at Rehoboth's Avenue Inn, said in April and May, the hotel is offering one-night-free specials or dinner gift certificates at local restaurants.

"We're definitely trying to draw people in with some specials," he said.

He said summer bookings are looking OK for the time being.

"It's coming slow, but signs look like they're starting to pick up a little bit," Powers said.

McGrath said the condos and cottages that make up much of the Bethany-Fenwick lodging industry are seeing a very positive season.

"Our rental agents are happy right now," she said.

Reamer, of the Lewes chamber, said the town's mix of condo complexes, homes to rent, motels and hotels and B&Bs are reporting positive news this summer.

"We're anticipating a good season," she said.

Tim Fisher, marketing manager at ResortQuest, which handles more than 600 vacation properties at Sea Colony in Bethany Beach, echoed Powers, saying online bookings are helping drive a strong start to the season.

He said most guests come from the Washington-Baltimore-Philadelphia nexus, within reach for cost-conscious consumers.

"Gas prices for our area are really not a critical factor in the vacation-making process," Fisher said. "People can get here on less than a tank of gas."

The overall tourism marketing effort also involves a little psychology, with businesses and tourism agencies trying to convince people to stick with their summer plans.

"Everyone needs a summer vacation, in good times and bad," said Thomas, of the Sussex County tourism agency. "Everyone's trying to offset these gas prices and say, 'Just because the economy's getting stagnant and more constrictive by the day, don't let it affect your summer vacation.' "

Even with all the uncertainty and pessimism, some business owners are still sounding more than cheery.

"It's still the beach, it's still summer vacation," said Moore. "They're not going to give that up."

source: delawareonline.com