nohogal

Which are the best airports to fly into to get to Myrtle Beach, SC, from the Los Angeles area?

My family will be attending a Cal Ripken baseball tournament in Myrtle Beach in August (with my 12-year-old son's baseball team) and I'm trying to determine which airport to fly into. I need four tickets and can fly out of LAX, Burbank or Long Beach, CA.

While it would be nice to land in Myrtle Beach, the flights seem limited with two stops and the airfares high. (Whatever happened to nonstop?)

Some of the other families on my son's team are flying into Charleston (about 86 miles) or Raleigh or Charlotte (which are each 150 miles away). Not sure if it's worth the drive. Also, not sure which would be the more scenic drive if we decided to drive.

I need four tickets so I originally was hoping to use my mileage points for three free Frontier (AirTrans) tickets (then we'd only need to buy one ticket). I also have mileage for one American Airlines ticket.

Any other travel advice about SC, as it'll be my first time there, would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Gretchen

Myrtle Beach will be the airport for you, and you won't get a non-stop. That happens in a lot of towns, believe it or not. Air fares high--really, you think. MB is a prime destination any time of the year, and especially in the summer.
The drive from Charlotte is 4 hours (maybe a little less) and not scenic. The drive from Charleston is as you say--about 2 hours, and not particularly scenic. I would be surprised if you got much of a lower fare. As for uisng FF miles, good luck. I don't think American flies into MB, and I'm not sure about AirTran. I think our kids flew it once, but can't quite remember.
You can also check Wilmington (an hour about), but at this pretty late date you are looking at crowded schedules.
Do you have a hotel?

DancingBearMD

The most scenic drive would probably be from Charleston as it would be up the coast (although the road is inland enough you don't see the water most of the way). Along the way you'll pass Gullah women selling their baskets on the roadside, you can stop in the old port town of Georgetown. You'll also pass Huntington Beach State Park, where you can often see alligators sunning in the water along the causeway, and walk on fairly uncrowded beaches.

We used to live in Charlotte and made that drive many, many times. Our "secret" route went past peach orchards (unfortunately you'll be past peach season), Carolina pine forests, NASCAR's Darlington Raceway, cotton and tobacco fields (some folks in Carolina really do say "we're in high cotton"), southern plantations and the old harbor town of Conway, SC.

Dukey

From Los Angeles you could certainly fly N/S to Charlotte and onward to Myrtle Beach and Myrtle Beach IS "the best" airport to fly into when that is where you are going.

yes, you could drive from Charlotte, or Charleston, or Wilmington but why would you?

GoTravel

Fly into Myrtle Beach.

It is a bigger airport than Wilmington, Charleston, and Columbia and the drive from Charlotte is a big PIA.

Check out Spirit Airlines, United, US Airways, Delta, for the best flights and connections.

United's connection will be through Chicago if you fly on Saturday, USAir through Charlotte, Delta through Atlanta and Spirit through Detroit.

Gretchen

does Spirit still fly to MB?. And August will not be too late for peaches at McLeod's orchard. Continental does also.