Planning Your Time
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Trip Ideas
- Grand Strand Weekend
- South Carolina for Kids
- South Carolina Bar-B-Que
- A Midlands Weekend
- Civil War Adventures
- South Carolina Waterways
- Three Days in Horse Country
- South Carolina for Seafoodies
- South Carolina Kitsch
- Gullah and African American History
- Upstate Weekend
- South Carolina’s Top Ten for Golfers
- South Carolina’s Offbeat Festivals
- Southern Comforts
- Lowcountry Romance
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Explore Further
The most important thing to remember is that the Grand Strand is long—60 miles from one end to the other. This has real-world effects that need to be taken into account. For example, while the separate municipality of North Myrtle Beach may sound like it’s right next door to Myrtle Beach proper, getting from one to the other can take a half-hour even in light traffic.
Due to this geographical stretching, as well as to all the attractions here, it is impossible to cover this area in a single day, and even two days is a ridiculously short amount of time. That’s probably the main reason many folks indulge in a weekly rental here. Not only does that give you enough time to see everything here, it enables you to relax, slow down, and enjoy the beaches and the general laid-back attitude.
In May, Memorial Day weekend and Bike Week have traditionally signaled the beginning of the tourist season in Myrtle Beach. The busy season here exactly corresponds with the hottest months of the year, July and August. This is when crowds are at their peak, restaurants are most crowded, and the two spurs of U.S. 17 are at their most gridlocked.
Springtime in Myrtle Beach is quite nice, but keep in mind that water temperatures are still chilly through April. There is almost always one last cold snap in March that augurs the spring.
Personally I recommend hitting Myrtle Beach just as the busy season wanes, right after Labor Day. Rooms are significantly cheaper, but most everything is still fully open and adequately staffed, with the added benefit of the biggest crush of tourists being absent.
Winter on the Grand Strand is very slow, as befitting this very seasonal locale. Many restaurants, especially down the Strand near Murrells Inlet, close entirely through February.
Orientation
Don’t get too hung up on place names around here. Though this part of the Strand comprises several different municipalities—from Surfside Beach to the south up to Little River near the North Carolina border—for all intents and purposes it’s one big place all its own. As a general rule, development (read: money) is moving quicker to the North Myrtle Beach area rather than the older, sometimes seedy Myrtle Beach proper to the south.
North Myrtle is actually a recent aggregation of several historic beachfront communities: Windy Hill, Crescent Beach, Cherry Grove, and Ocean Drive. You’ll see numerous signs announcing the entrance or exit into or out of these communities, but keep in mind you’re still technically in North Myrtle Beach.
The Grand Strand grid is based on a system of east-west avenues beginning just north of Myrtle Beach State Park. Confusingly, these are separated into “North” and “South” avenues. Perhaps even more confusing, North Myrtle Beach also uses its own, distinct north/south avenue system (also for roads running east-west). Got it?
It goes like this: Myrtle Beach starts with 29th Avenue South at the Myrtle Beach International Airport and goes up to First Avenue South just past Family Kingdom Amusement Park. From there the avenues are labeled as “North” from 1st Avenue North up to 82nd Avenue North, which concludes Myrtle Beach proper.
North Myrtle Beach begins at 48th Avenue South near Barefoot Landing and goes up to Main Street (the center of the shag culture). It continues with 1st Avenue North, goes up to 24th Avenue North (Cherry Grove Beach), and finally concludes at 61st Avenue North, near the North Carolina state line.
© Jim Morekis from Moon South Carolina, 4th Edition
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