Myrtle Beach
The seaside capital of the two Carolinas lines up hotel towers facing the Atlantic, a big wheel, a boardwalk and dozens of golf courses along the Grand Strand, 97 km of unbroken sand. Head south and you find another Carolina: salt marshes, sculpture gardens under the oaks and old rice ports.
By PierrickLocal Guide ★8 · 14M+ views on Google MapsBy PierrickLocal Guide ★8 · 14M+ Maps views
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Myrtle Beach · Photo Jacob Hurd / Pexels
Things to do in Myrtle Beach in 6 days
Day 1
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A 57-metre big wheel on the boardwalk, opened in 2011 as the tallest in the eastern United States, whose air-conditioned gondolas make four turns with views along the Grand Strand.
💡 Go up at sunset or after dark, when the wheel lights up, and buy online, which is cheaper than at the ticket office. The LandShark restaurant, at the foot of the wheel, offers a meal and ride package. Price: $20.99, about €18, per adult online.
Claire P. from Northern Virginia, USA / CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)Learn moreMore
A 2 km seafront promenade rebuilt in 2010 to replace the 1930s original lost to Hurricane Hazel, passing The Bowery, the 1944 bar where Alabama played, and the Gay Dolphin souvenir shop.
💡 Walk it at the end of the day, when the heat eases and the signs light up, from south to north, then come back along the beach. Alcohol is banned on the beach and the boardwalk, so drinks stay in the bars. Price: free.
Curtis Adams / Pexels
Day 2
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A 140-hectare complex around a lake, with some hundred shops, restaurants, bars, three theatres and Ripley's Aquarium with its tunnel beneath a shark tank, drawing more than 14 million visitors a year.
💡 Come in the late afternoon for the aquarium, then stay for dinner by the lake, as the terraces fill up after 7pm in summer. The big themed restaurant chains dominate here: for a real seafood meal, head down to Murrells Inlet instead. Price: free access; Ripley's Aquarium about $40, about €34, per adult.
w:User:Isipeoria / CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Day 3
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South Carolina's first state park opened to the public, in 1936, protecting one of the Grand Strand's last maritime forests, with a fishing pier, a nature centre and a calm beach for children.
💡 Parking is limited and the park closes its entrance when full, especially on summer weekends: arrive before 10am or after 2pm. Price: $8, about €7, per adult; $4, about €3, for ages 6 to 15; free up to age 5.
formulanone / CC BY-SA 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)Learn moreMore
An 800-metre wooden boardwalk along the salt marsh of an old fishing village, lined with eight restaurant terraces with live music every night and docks for fishing, kayak and dolphin trips.
💡 Come for the sunset over the marsh, book where possible on Fridays and Saturdays, and ask for the catch of the day from the inlet. Price: free to stroll.
Day 4
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5 km of undeveloped beach, a freshwater lagoon where alligators bask and salt marshes prized by birdwatchers, beside Atalaya, the Huntingtons' Moorish-style winter home built from 1931 to 1933.
💡 Walk towards the north jetty for the shorebirds, and keep a safe distance from the alligators. The park also closes when the car park is full: avoid 10am-2pm at weekends. Price: $8, about €7, per adult, plus $2, about €2, for Atalaya.
User:Doug Coldwell / CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Day 5
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A sculpture garden founded in 1931 on four former rice plantations, with avenues of moss-draped live oaks framing a major collection of American figurative sculpture, a small wildlife zoo and marsh boat rides.
💡 The ticket is valid for seven consecutive days: do the gardens one morning and come back another day for the boat trip through the marshes, at extra cost. Price: $25, about €22, for ages 13 to 64; $14, about €12, for ages 4 to 12.
DiscoA340 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
Day 6
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South Carolina's third-oldest town, founded in 1729 on Winyah Bay and once the great port for slave-grown rice, with colonial houses, the Harborwalk and a rice museum in the old clock-towered market.
💡 The rice museum is open Tuesday to Saturday, from 10.30am to 4.30pm. Combine it with a cruise on the bay or a visit to a former plantation nearby, such as Hopsewee. Price: free to stroll, museum charged.
Thomson200 / CC0 (Wikimedia Commons)"Book" (hotels) and "via GetYourGuide" (activities) are affiliate links (Booking, GetYourGuide). Prices, times and distances are approximate.
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Good to know before you go
🍽️ Must-try food
Burgers and barbecue
brisket and ribs cooked low and slow, done differently in every state.
Clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl
the classic lunch on the San Francisco waterfront.
Mexican food
tacos from a truck in Los Angeles, a Mission burrito in San Francisco.
Pancakes and weekend brunch
a national habit, generous to the point of excess.
Craft beer, and California wine from Napa and Sonoma.
Dishes to look for in the good places: Myrtle Beach.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Tipping is not optional: add 15 to 20% in restaurants and bars.
- Prices on menus and in shops exclude sales tax, which is added at the till.
- Do not plan more than four or five hours of driving a day: the distances are larger than they look on the map.
- Never travel without health insurance. A night in hospital can cost thousands of dollars.
- In summer, do not hike down into the Grand Canyon in the heat of the day: the climb back out is where people get into trouble.
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The little details that make all the difference once you're there.
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