I'm traveling to Myrtle Beach, SC from NY the first week of July. I have 3 kids in tow, 3 months old and a 3 & 5 year old, so I want to take my time getting there. Thinking of stopping in VA or NC overnight? Any suggestions?

Well, I think you must stop en route because it's a long way but I'd not "take my time" with those little ones. I sort of hope you'll have another adult or teen in the car also!!
I'd suggest you point toward making it to the Darlington/Florence exit on I95. There are MANY motels in that area and you are only about an hour and a half from MB.
A bit north of that in NC would be around Fayetteville, also with many motels, and a shorter second day to get to MB. Good luck.
I would definitely try to get to NC for the night.

If you can get past Richmond on day one, the worst of the traffic will be behind you until, of course, you approach Myrtle. Look at Wilson or Rocky Mount, NC. I would highly recommend you get off the highway a little and avoid cheap motels. I'm a big Hampton fan. You could get a suite, breakfast, excellent coffee and the one in Wilson has a pool.

Good morning, Gretchen!

And back atcha. Probably really good advice for the motels--and Rocky Mount. I supect Darlington would be a bit far.

The best thing about that Darlington-Flo-town exit: Young's Pecans and the SC Farmer's Market.

Thanks ladies. I've researched both Rocky Mt and Wilson. Either should take around 4 hours for me to reach Myrtle Beach and both seem to have enough to keep my little ones entertained.

Great. BE SURE to have some REAL NC BBQ at either of these. It will be readily available, and you might even want to take some to the beach with you!! Classic REAL BBQ!! Be safe.

Thanks Gretchen. My husband loves BBQ! Do you have any restaurant suggestions?

You'll want to leave NC early enough to beat some traffic into NMB. It gets nuts. Ask your rental company about early check in.

I do I do. Wilbur's in Goldsboro. Parker's in Wilson might work for you, but purists will tell you it's not what it once was.

Here's the link to the trail:
http://www.ncbbqsociety.com/bbqmap/trail_map.html

Help your husband understand: it will not be covered in sloppy sauce. I see posts often that state" That BBQ was dry!" Yeah, it's supposed to be dry. Real Eastern NC is Que is cooked over wood, with pepper-vinegar poured over it to get rid of the grease.

What Sue says is SO true. YOU put the sauce on in NC BBQ--it is slow cooked pork with attendant smoke, but NO NO NO sauce until YOU put it on. AND in eastern NC, it is a very "different" from "KC Masterpiece". BUT you need to experience it and enjoy it. It is REAL "road food".

ADDED. If you like the meat, get some to take with you and fix it at the beach.
YOU can do it WESTERN NC style by getting the pork, then get a BBQ sauce like Sweet Baby Ray's at the supermarket. THEN, dilute THAT about half with vinegar, put it on your sandwich--PLEASE don't soak it!== and enjoy WESTERN NC BBQ.

My final bit of NC/SC/BBQ "lore" is-- BBQ is a noun --it means pork cooked low and slow on a fire and is not a verb, as in, "come for a BBQ tonight. We're doin' hamburgers".

It is NOT "cooking hamburgers in the back yard"~~ That is "grilling". LOL

New dog is on my head due to thunder, otherwise I would be sleeping, lol. Thanks for the drool. Miss Queenie.

Ms. Gretchen is correct. Barbeque is pork with no glop. A cook out is when you make burgers on a grill. It's all good.