Carolinas trip in May 2005
Sep 19th, 2004, 09:01 AM
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Carolinas trip in May 2005
Our proposed trip from UK, has reached an advanced stage and I would like your comments????
Fly into Charleston via DC, stay 2 nights in Andrew Pinckney Inn, hire a car,travel to Beaufort for 2 nights in Sea Island Inn,then 2 nights in Days Inn Historic District in Savannah.
The next 8 days touring the coast.
Any special places to see,stay,visit,eat???
Fly into Charleston via DC, stay 2 nights in Andrew Pinckney Inn, hire a car,travel to Beaufort for 2 nights in Sea Island Inn,then 2 nights in Days Inn Historic District in Savannah.
The next 8 days touring the coast.
Any special places to see,stay,visit,eat???
Sep 20th, 2004, 06:07 AM
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Georgec,
As I am sure you know, the places you have already decided on (Charleston, Beaufort, and Savannah) are not ocean-front. To add some oceanfront destinations to your trip, you've got lots of possibilities (as you mentioned).
Here are some suggestions. In Hilton Head, book a room in one of the hotels or condos in Palmetto Dunes (beautifully landscaped, very nice beach). For HH restaurants, do a search on this forum, but one that stands out for me is Redfish.
Georgetown, although a neat little port city, is not on the ocean. (I would do that as a side trip or while driving through from place to place.)
In the Myrtle Beach area, beginning from the south and traveling north, I would consider Litchfield Plantation. And for restaurants in that area, lots of great ones to choose from. I'd suggest Frank's, Louis's, and Cafe Lucia. (There are also very good seafood restaurants in Murrels Inlet, as you head north toward Myrtle Beach. You probably can't go wrong with any of them--Nances, Flo's Place, Divine Fish House come to mind.)
In Myrtle Beach, the best place to stay IMO is Kingston Plantation; it's somewhat like the plantations in Hilton Head. You can book an ocean front hotel or condo, or a condo a few rows back and walk to the beach. Very nice beach (I just ran along it this morning!) As to restaurants in MB, avoid the buffets. Instead, dine at some great places like: Thoroughbreds, Aspen Grille, Rossi's, Collectors Cafe, Bone-Fish Grill, Loyal Thai, Blue Water Bistro, Bummz (casual, oceanfront, great buffalo shrimp), Sea Captain's House, Latitude 22 (a little south of MB, in Surfside, third-floor ocean-front, great food & views)--I have to stop, I'm getting hungry.
I live in Myrtle Beach, so I know it pretty well. Other folks on this forum, like GoTravel know the areas south of Myrtle Beach very well (such as beautiful Pawleys Island--that would be a great place to stay).
One major caveat! There are two motorcycle festivals in Myrtle Beach in May--the first is May 16 through May 21; the second is May 27 through May 30. Unless you love extremely loud noise day and night, you do not want to be in Myrtle Beach those days. The areas south of Myrtle Beach are fine then.
Have a great time!
As I am sure you know, the places you have already decided on (Charleston, Beaufort, and Savannah) are not ocean-front. To add some oceanfront destinations to your trip, you've got lots of possibilities (as you mentioned).
Here are some suggestions. In Hilton Head, book a room in one of the hotels or condos in Palmetto Dunes (beautifully landscaped, very nice beach). For HH restaurants, do a search on this forum, but one that stands out for me is Redfish.
Georgetown, although a neat little port city, is not on the ocean. (I would do that as a side trip or while driving through from place to place.)
In the Myrtle Beach area, beginning from the south and traveling north, I would consider Litchfield Plantation. And for restaurants in that area, lots of great ones to choose from. I'd suggest Frank's, Louis's, and Cafe Lucia. (There are also very good seafood restaurants in Murrels Inlet, as you head north toward Myrtle Beach. You probably can't go wrong with any of them--Nances, Flo's Place, Divine Fish House come to mind.)
In Myrtle Beach, the best place to stay IMO is Kingston Plantation; it's somewhat like the plantations in Hilton Head. You can book an ocean front hotel or condo, or a condo a few rows back and walk to the beach. Very nice beach (I just ran along it this morning!) As to restaurants in MB, avoid the buffets. Instead, dine at some great places like: Thoroughbreds, Aspen Grille, Rossi's, Collectors Cafe, Bone-Fish Grill, Loyal Thai, Blue Water Bistro, Bummz (casual, oceanfront, great buffalo shrimp), Sea Captain's House, Latitude 22 (a little south of MB, in Surfside, third-floor ocean-front, great food & views)--I have to stop, I'm getting hungry.
I live in Myrtle Beach, so I know it pretty well. Other folks on this forum, like GoTravel know the areas south of Myrtle Beach very well (such as beautiful Pawleys Island--that would be a great place to stay).
One major caveat! There are two motorcycle festivals in Myrtle Beach in May--the first is May 16 through May 21; the second is May 27 through May 30. Unless you love extremely loud noise day and night, you do not want to be in Myrtle Beach those days. The areas south of Myrtle Beach are fine then.
Have a great time!
Sep 20th, 2004, 07:20 AM
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My only advice is since you used the term "Carolinas" in your header, you should visit both of them 
Myrtle Beach is only around an hour's drive to Wilmington NC. Visit gardens and the USS North Carolina and walk around the waterfront area.
Myrtle Beach is only around an hour's drive to Wilmington NC. Visit gardens and the USS North Carolina and walk around the waterfront area.
Sep 20th, 2004, 09:14 AM
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At your convenience, read other POSTS under both SC & GA.My preference would be to focus on the area between Myrtle Beach & Hilton Head Island.I would recommend using only 2 hotels-3 nites in MB (very nice,reasonable, high rises on the beach),drive to Charleston for a day and then on to HHI for the rest of the visit.Lodging is a little more difficult in HHI, try http://www.southbeachvillage.com
HHI will give very easy, day trip access to both Beaufort & Savannah and plenty of southern hospitality.Both MB & Savannah have legitimate airports. The drive betwen DC & either Savannah or MB is do-able but not pretty.If you decide to drive from DC, Williamsburg may make a decent place to stop at the beginning & end of the trip.Early May is usually beautiful but stay away from the motorcycle weeks in MB!
HHI will give very easy, day trip access to both Beaufort & Savannah and plenty of southern hospitality.Both MB & Savannah have legitimate airports. The drive betwen DC & either Savannah or MB is do-able but not pretty.If you decide to drive from DC, Williamsburg may make a decent place to stop at the beginning & end of the trip.Early May is usually beautiful but stay away from the motorcycle weeks in MB!
Sep 20th, 2004, 09:42 AM
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Regarding your questions on reservations, it sort of depends when in May your are coming. May 27-30 is the Memorial Day weekend. It is the beginning of the summer travel season in the US. Also many schools begin getting out for summer just before that and families start travelling then. If you are looking at late May, reservations are best. Midweek in early May is probably pretty safe to go without reservations.
Sep 20th, 2004, 09:56 AM
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I am going to second ncgrrl's suggestion to also visit North Carolina. I might give Charleston another night or two, but in NC you should strongly consider Wilmington, either staying in town or at one of the beaches (maybe Wrightsville or Carolina/Kure), as well as the Outer Banks.
Sep 20th, 2004, 11:02 AM
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We arrive in chs on 11 may & leave 27th thanx all for your help.yes i will now include wilmington nc area. great info about the motorcycles thanx beach dweller. on greater investigation distances are not that great but speed on the road is less than in uk (thank goodness)speed kills!
will spoleto fest. be a problem?
will spoleto fest. be a problem?
Sep 20th, 2004, 11:57 AM
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I have to second the advice of my fellow carolinians about Wilmington. The riverfront area is very neat. We take day trips from MB quite a bit, mainly to eat at the Pilot House restaurant that has deck seating overlooking the river (and very good food).
Also, about driving times. Here are some observations. Charleston to MB, along Highway 17, is 2 hours. It's relatively lightly traveled (once you clear the Mount Pleasant traffic north of Charleston), and it brings you right through Georgetown, so you could stop and look around (just follow the signs to the Historic District).
Driving north/south in the MB area depends on what your objective is. The fastest way through (in 2005) will be to use Highway 31 (a six lane, divided highway, with a posted speed limit of 60 MPH, and most importantly no traffic lights--or roundabouts!). In the south, you'll pick that up by exiting from Highway 17 onto Highway 544 East. In the north, by exiting off Highway 17 in Little River onto Highway 9 North. Also, there are several connectors in the MB area that link 31 to the more traveled highways (17 and 17 By-Pass). In May you won't have nearly the traffic problems that occur between June and August.
Also, about driving times. Here are some observations. Charleston to MB, along Highway 17, is 2 hours. It's relatively lightly traveled (once you clear the Mount Pleasant traffic north of Charleston), and it brings you right through Georgetown, so you could stop and look around (just follow the signs to the Historic District).
Driving north/south in the MB area depends on what your objective is. The fastest way through (in 2005) will be to use Highway 31 (a six lane, divided highway, with a posted speed limit of 60 MPH, and most importantly no traffic lights--or roundabouts!). In the south, you'll pick that up by exiting from Highway 17 onto Highway 544 East. In the north, by exiting off Highway 17 in Little River onto Highway 9 North. Also, there are several connectors in the MB area that link 31 to the more traveled highways (17 and 17 By-Pass). In May you won't have nearly the traffic problems that occur between June and August.
Sep 21st, 2004, 10:02 AM
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georgec,
as I mentioned, Charleston to MB is only a 2 hour drive (perhaps 2.25 hours if you drive conservatively). If you would like to stay somewhere inbetween, I'd say Pawleys Island or Litchfield (which are actually between Georgetown and MB). The only stop I can think of between Charleston and Georgetown is taking a little detour to the waterfront in McClellanville--it is a tiny fishing village.
You could see Georgetown in an hour or two (it's a small waterfront, historic district). To the north, between Pawleys Island and MB, you'll have several great places to explore (you could easily do these from either MB, Litchfield or Pawleys Island). First, Brookgreen Gardens--by most accounts, one of the best gardens in the southern U.S. Across the highway from Brookgreen, you'll find Huntington Beach State Park--beautiful, unspoiled, with an interesting "castle" (not really, just a unique former estate) called Atalaya.
I hope this helps.
as I mentioned, Charleston to MB is only a 2 hour drive (perhaps 2.25 hours if you drive conservatively). If you would like to stay somewhere inbetween, I'd say Pawleys Island or Litchfield (which are actually between Georgetown and MB). The only stop I can think of between Charleston and Georgetown is taking a little detour to the waterfront in McClellanville--it is a tiny fishing village.
You could see Georgetown in an hour or two (it's a small waterfront, historic district). To the north, between Pawleys Island and MB, you'll have several great places to explore (you could easily do these from either MB, Litchfield or Pawleys Island). First, Brookgreen Gardens--by most accounts, one of the best gardens in the southern U.S. Across the highway from Brookgreen, you'll find Huntington Beach State Park--beautiful, unspoiled, with an interesting "castle" (not really, just a unique former estate) called Atalaya.
I hope this helps.
May 13th, 2005, 12:35 PM
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How is the Marriott in Grand Dunes/Myrtle Beach. If we go during the memorial weekend, will we be immune from the biker week noise? Can we still drive to eat places that weekend or should we go to Myrtle Beach in June?
May 14th, 2005, 08:23 AM
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If you are interested in World War II history, you would enjoy stopping at the Eighth Air Force Museum not far from Brunswick, Georgia. The Eighth Air Force was the major element in the bombing of Germany in WWII, and they were for the most part lodged somewhere in the UK. Enjoy your trip.
