Key takeaways
What this check tells you
Concentration
In Best Luxury Hotels, three properties account for 53.2% of AI mentions versus the 18.8% expected if recommendations were spread evenly, with The Bellmoor Inn and Spa, Hotel du Pont, and Boardwalk Plaza Hotel dominating the category.
Concentration
Best Romantic Hotels shows the same three names — The Bellmoor Inn and Spa, Hotel du Pont, and Boardwalk Plaza Hotel — capturing 43.1% of mentions against an expected 17.6%, echoing the luxury hotel pattern.
Movement
Best Local Experiences is the most volatile tracked category, with all 75 of 75 entities shifting position between the August 27 and September 3 checks.
Gap
Best Hidden Gems keeps concentration relatively low at 14.5% versus an expected 4.6%, but still saw 65 of 65 entities move, showing frequent reshuffling even in a less top-heavy category.
Lead finding
Delaware's AI presence scores just 10% distinctiveness versus a 25% network average, driven by a glaring blind spot around Wilmington.
AI assistants consistently paint Delaware through Family-Friendly, historic charm, Farm-to-Table, fine dining, and romantic themes, with beach getaways, comfort food, and history rounding out the picture. Sentiment is overwhelmingly positive at 98% across 388 rated mentions, showing AI genuinely likes what it knows about the state. Yet Delaware's distinctiveness score of 10% falls far below the 25% network average, and Wilmington stands out as a significantly underrepresented theme. This gap suggests AI models are missing a key piece of Delaware's identity, flattening its story into generic coastal-and-historic tropes rather than surfacing Wilmington's distinct character.
How AI sees Delaware
Across the prompts we've tracked, AI most consistently associates Delaware with:
- Family-Friendly
- Farm-to-Table
- historic charm
- fine dining
- historic
- historic sites
- history
- nature
- beach getaway
- Beach towns
- beaches
- beachfront
- budget-friendly
- casual dining
- Coastal dining
- colonial history
How Delaware benchmarks
Confirmed-open rate
Delaware
79%
Network average
81%
Distinctiveness
Delaware
0%
Network average
10%
Presence rate
Delaware
0%
Network average
11%
Delaware's AI benchmark numbers compared to the network average across all tracked destinations.
Each metric shows two bars: Delaware's rate and the network average for that metric, so you can see how it compares. See how these scores are calculated.
Presence beyond Delaware-specific questions
How often Delaware comes up in regional and national AI questions that aren't specifically about it (out of 12 tracked questions, as of Sep 29, 2026):
See all questions
Two-Week Must-See Itinerary in the United States — Direct
Not mentioned
Two-Week Must-See Itinerary in the United States — Conversational
Not mentioned
Two-Week Must-See Itinerary in the United States — Recommendation
Not mentioned
Best Winter Destinations in the United States — Direct
Not mentioned
Best Winter Destinations in the United States — Conversational
Not mentioned
Best Winter Destinations in the United States — Recommendation
Not mentioned
Best Foodie Cities in the United States — Direct
Not mentioned
Best Foodie Cities in the United States — Conversational
Not mentioned
Best Foodie Cities in the United States — Recommendation
Not mentioned
Best Romantic Weekend Destinations in the United States — Direct
Not mentioned
Best Romantic Weekend Destinations in the United States — Conversational
Not mentioned
Best Romantic Weekend Destinations in the United States — Recommendation
Not mentioned
Top picks by traveler intent
House of William & Merry
17 of 34
rank #1–#12
Bardea Food & Drink
16 of 34
rank #1–#2
Heirloom
14 of 34
rank #1–#11
Henlopen City Oyster House
13 of 34
rank #2–#9
Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats
12 of 34
rank #4–#10
La Fia
11 of 34
rank #1–#10
Big Fish Grill
9 of 34
rank #2–#14
Bluecoast Seafood Grill & Raw Bar
8 of 34
rank #2–#10
The Bellmoor Inn and Spa
27 of 30
rank #1–#5
Hotel du Pont
25 of 30
rank #1–#5
Boardwalk Plaza Hotel
23 of 30
rank #1–#6
Inn at Montchanin Village
16 of 30
rank #2–#6
Hotel Rehoboth
10 of 30
rank #2–#6
Avenue Inn & Spa
9 of 30
rank #3–#7
The Quoin Hotel
8 of 30
rank #1–#6
Wilmington
5 of 30
rank #2–#5
Nemours Estate
28 of 31
rank #1–#9
Rehoboth Beach
28 of 31
rank #1–#14
Cape Henlopen State Park
25 of 31
rank #1–#13
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library
25 of 31
rank #1–#5
Hagley Museum & Library
24 of 31
rank #2–#14
Lewes
22 of 31
rank #2–#17
Delaware Art Museum
14 of 31
rank #4–#11
Brandywine Creek State Park
12 of 31
rank #5–#11
Boardwalk Plaza Hotel
24 of 30
rank #1–#5
The Bellmoor Inn and Spa
24 of 30
rank #1–#7
Hotel du Pont
22 of 30
rank #1–#6
Inn at Montchanin Village
19 of 30
rank #1–#6
Hotel Rehoboth
9 of 30
rank #2–#4
Avenue Inn & Spa
7 of 30
rank #1–#5
Inn at Canal Square
7 of 30
rank #4–#8
Bethany Beach Ocean Suites Residence Inn
6 of 30
rank #4–#6
Brandywine Zoo
28 of 30
rank #1–#10
Delaware Children's Museum
26 of 30
rank #1–#6
Cape Henlopen State Park
24 of 30
rank #2–#11
Rehoboth Beach
23 of 30
rank #1–#5
Delaware Museum of Nature & Science
18 of 30
rank #2–#8
Funland
17 of 30
rank #1–#12
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library
17 of 30
rank #5–#13
Air Mobility Command Museum
14 of 30
rank #4–#12
El Diablo Burritos
17 of 31
rank #1–#8
Grotto Pizza
12 of 31
rank #1–#16
Thrasher's French Fries
11 of 31
rank #8–#19
Capriotti's
8 of 31
rank #1–#13
Charcoal Pit
8 of 31
rank #1–#5
Home Grown Café
8 of 31
rank #1–#6
Grain Craft Bar + Kitchen
7 of 31
rank #4–#8
Nicola Pizza
7 of 31
rank #9–#17
See more categories
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge
30 of 39
rank #1–#20
Trap Pond State Park
28 of 39
rank #1–#13
Bowers Beach
14 of 39
rank #4–#15
Fort Delaware State Park
14 of 39
rank #3–#13
Historic Odessa
14 of 39
rank #2–#14
Ashland Nature Center
11 of 39
rank #1–#21
Marian Coffin Gardens at Gibraltar
11 of 39
rank #1–#8
Blackbird Creek Reserve / Blackbird State Forest
10 of 39
rank #2–#10
Thrasher's French Fries
20 of 38
rank #1–#16
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
19 of 38
rank #3–#14
Grotto Pizza
16 of 38
rank #2–#13
Sambo's Tavern
15 of 38
rank #1–#12
Henlopen City Oyster House
13 of 38
rank #2–#11
Capriotti's
12 of 38
rank #1–#11
Bardea Food & Drink
11 of 38
rank #1–#13
Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats
11 of 38
rank #2–#14
Lewes
23 of 37
rank #1–#25
New Castle Historic District
23 of 37
rank #1–#15
Cape Henlopen State Park
22 of 37
rank #1–#16
Sambo's Tavern
16 of 37
rank #1–#11
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge
15 of 37
rank #3–#13
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
15 of 37
rank #1–#15
Trap Pond State Park
14 of 37
rank #1–#16
Hagley Museum & Library
12 of 37
rank #2–#27
Hagley Museum & Library
31 of 34
rank #1–#10
Fort Delaware State Park
28 of 34
rank #2–#14
John Dickinson Plantation
28 of 34
rank #3–#10
Zwaanendael Museum
21 of 34
rank #4–#12
New Castle Historic District
19 of 34
rank #1–#9
Old Swedes Church
19 of 34
rank #1–#11
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library
17 of 34
rank #2–#16
Nemours Estate
14 of 34
rank #3–#14
Sambo's Tavern
17 of 32
rank #1–#7
Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats
10 of 32
rank #3–#14
Big Fish Grill
9 of 32
rank #1–#7
Helen's Sausage House
9 of 32
rank #1–#9
Woody’s Dewey Beach Bar & Grill
9 of 32
rank #3–#10
Jessop's Tavern
8 of 32
rank #1–#9
Henlopen City Oyster House
7 of 32
rank #1–#7
Jimmy's Grille
6 of 32
rank #3–#8
Rehoboth Beach
19 of 31
rank #1–#8
New Castle Historic District
8 of 31
rank #2–#6
Wilmington
8 of 31
rank #1–#9
Cape Henlopen State Park
7 of 31
rank #1–#7
Philadelphia
7 of 31
rank #1–#6
Baltimore or Annapolis
5 of 31
rank #2–#6
Cape May
5 of 31
rank #2–#8
The Bellmoor Inn and Spa
25 of 30
rank #1–#7
Boardwalk Plaza Hotel
17 of 30
rank #1–#5
Hotel du Pont
16 of 30
rank #1–#7
Inn at Montchanin Village
15 of 30
rank #1–#5
Canalside Inn
12 of 30
rank #3–#6
The Quoin Hotel
9 of 30
rank #1–#2
The Hotel Rodney
8 of 30
rank #2–#6
Hotel Blue
7 of 30
rank #2–#5
Wilmington
18 of 30
rank #1–#9
Rehoboth Beach
15 of 30
rank #1–#9
Days Inn Dover
11 of 30
rank #3–#10
Sleep Inn
10 of 30
rank #1–#9
Red Roof Inn & Suites Newark - University
8 of 30
rank #1–#6
Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham Dover
7 of 30
rank #2–#6
Super 8 by Wyndham Dover
7 of 30
rank #2–#5
Baymont by Wyndham Newark at University of Delaware
6 of 30
rank #2–#7
Wilmington
19 of 30
rank #4–#16
Boardwalk Plaza Hotel
18 of 30
rank #1–#7
Atlantic Sands Hotel & Conference Center
17 of 30
rank #1–#7
Rehoboth Beach
17 of 30
rank #1–#17
Hyatt Place Dewey Beach
15 of 30
rank #1–#6
Bethany Beach Ocean Suites Residence Inn
14 of 30
rank #1–#5
Hotel du Pont
11 of 30
rank #1–#11
The Bellmoor Inn and Spa
11 of 30
rank #2–#6
Harry’s Savoy Grill
24 of 30
rank #1–#10
Le Cavalier at the Green Room
13 of 30
rank #1–#5
Krazy Kat’s
11 of 30
rank #3–#9
Espuma
9 of 30
rank #4–#7
House of William & Merry
9 of 30
rank #1–#7
The Blue Moon
9 of 30
rank #4–#8
Bardea Food & Drink
8 of 30
rank #1–#5
Delaware Art Museum
27 of 30
rank #1–#9
Christiana Mall
22 of 30
rank #4–#14
Delaware Museum of Nature & Science
20 of 30
rank #2–#10
Delaware Children's Museum
18 of 30
rank #1–#12
Hagley Museum & Library
17 of 30
rank #2–#3
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library
16 of 30
rank #1–#4
Biggs Museum of American Art
15 of 30
rank #4–#9
Tanger Outlets
13 of 30
rank #4–#17
The Blue Moon
12 of 30
rank #2–#13
Harry’s Savoy Grill
10 of 30
rank #1–#6
Heirloom
9 of 30
rank #3–#9
La Fia
9 of 30
rank #2–#7
Le Cavalier at the Green Room
9 of 30
rank #1–#9
The Green Room at Hotel DuPont
9 of 30
rank #1–#4
Cultured Pearl
8 of 30
rank #3–#8
Cape Henlopen State Park
25 of 30
rank #1–#8
Rehoboth Beach
21 of 30
rank #2–#12
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge
20 of 30
rank #3–#11
Brandywine Creek State Park
20 of 30
rank #2–#12
Rockford Tower
13 of 30
rank #1–#11
Delaware Seashore State Park
11 of 30
rank #2–#10
Trap Pond State Park
10 of 30
rank #4–#10
Wilmington
9 of 30
rank #4–#11
Cape Henlopen State Park
19 of 30
rank #1–#19
Rehoboth Beach
18 of 30
rank #1–#20
Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge
16 of 30
rank #1–#16
Delaware Art Museum
16 of 30
rank #5–#27
Lewes
15 of 30
rank #1–#22
Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library
14 of 30
rank #1–#17
Nemours Estate
13 of 30
rank #2–#11
Hagley Museum & Library
12 of 30
rank #2–#18
Where Perplexity's answers about Delaware come from
Perplexity cited visitdelaware.com,
Delaware's official tourism site, in
31 of 60 answers about Delaware
(52%, last 90 days).
The web domains Perplexity's live search pulled most while answering tracked travel questions about
Delaware (last 90 days). ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini aren't grounded in our tracking yet.
See the network-wide ranking.
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Other U.S. destinations TakeScout tracks