Summer Trip to the Southeast, Charleston, Savannah, Hilton Head, North Carolina???
 

Need help with trip planning. We are 6-8 New Yorkers in our late 20s & early 30s and are looking to do a summer getaway to the southeast but are completely unfamiliar with the area. We are thinking to rent a beach house for the week of July 4th and take a few day trips to interesting towns or activities. What is great beach town to rent a house in? Hilton Head? Or somewhere farther up? maybe in North Carolina? We are not familiar with the area, but love sightseein and walking around cute towns, but also love a great beach and BBQ's. (We are not into a party/bar/college scene).

Thanks so much!

Sergey

Hilton Head is a nice resort area (although see the thread from yesterday about the hard-packed sand, in case that matters to you), but there is nothing "cute" or "quaint" about it. (It's only 27 miles from Savannah though -- so a day trip to Savannah is easy, and it's close to Beaufort, which, although I haven't been there, I understand is charming).

Hilton Head has a complete range of price points on home rentals near the beach. Do a web search of Hilton Head Home Rentals and you'll get more info than you need.

This board has many threads on Hilton Head activities. You can get a feel for local activities.

Between the Outer Banks and Jacksonville, FL HH is more adult than Myrtle Beach. Has more to do than the small town alternatives. And, is closer to Savannah and Charleston that offer sightseeing options.

SShprints- I would definitely skip Hilton Head and do Savannah! You could stay on Tybee Island and drive into Savannah-it's only about 20 minutes to historic downtown!

Hilton Head could be great for you - beautiful beaches, good restaurants, shopping, golf, biking trails, tennis, kayaking, etc. It's only 40 minutes from Savannah or Beaufort for day trips. Much more to see and do than Tybee Island.

colbeck-Im certain that there is more to do in HH, but it's not the place to go IMHO if you like the beach. I suggested Tybee only as a place to stay as it is very close to several great locations to hike, kayak and generally explore a new place. :)

You might want to take a look at Ile of Palms near Charleston...lots of good rentals there as I recall and very close to Charleston.

www.hereinfranklin.wordpress.com

Love the beach at HHI - check out Shipyard Plantation for condo/ house rentals (most have their own pools with each condo rental) and you have full access to beach and bath facilities and free parking within Shipyard. I love the beach there- my family has spent several summers there and plenty to do for all ages- great shopping and restaurants and bars.

There is a public golf course in Shipyard (rather pricey) and great tennis facilities too.

It is close to everything and you can drive over to Savannah in about 45 minutes or take a ferry if you prefer to go by boat.

HHI is usu. crowded during the 4th- we didn't go this past summer & I heard it wasn't as bad because of the gas crunch. Sea Pines Plantation has a great fireworks display and entertainment on the 4th near the water.
There are other displays there as well.

HHi is very clean and safe - tons of bike riders everywhere. I live in NC and it is very popular beach here.

I would avoid Myrtle Beach- too much traffic.
Unless you go to Litchfield Beach -south of Myrtle

Sunset Beach and Ocean Isle in NC are very beachy and nice but HHI would still be my preference- esp for your first trip. Hope that helps

All I can say is that if you ever went to a gulf coast beach, you would not think HH is so great! Personally it's the worst beach I have ever been to!!!

I would look at flying into to Savannah. Stay there a night and go a little over an hour to Jekyll Island. The Jekyll Island Club Hotel is amazing. From Savannah, Charleston is about 2 hours and Hilton Head is an hour.

In addition to the beach, Hilton Head is a lot of fun due to the bike trails, golf, tennis, and nightlife. It's best to rent a house on one of the plantations (which are really large planned communities), so you'll have access to the bike/walking trails. Sea Pines has a trolley service for getting around as well.

I would agree with tambennett that there are nicer beaches in the area - personally I think the beaches farther north, in Myrtle Beach and in North Carolina are much better.

Definitely Isle of Palms, Wild Dunes, or Sullivans Island.

You are a short drive (10-15 minutes) from downtown Charleston.

You will be bored to death on Hilton Head.

I love Hilton Head but it is nothing but families and mediocre dining.

With IOP, WD, and Sullivans, you'll still be covered up with families out on the beach but at night you can head downtown Charleston for fantastic dining and nightclubs.

Forget any outdoor activities such as golf, biking, tennis, etc in July. The heat and humidity will kill you.

While I love Savannah, Charleston has far superior shopping, dining, history, attractions, and dining.

The best shoe store on the East Coast, Bob Ellis Shoes is in Charleston.

Jeffrey Kalinsky's father (of Jeffrey fame) started Bob Ellis some 40 years ago and discovered all the up and coming designers such as Manolo Blahnik when they were nobodies. Guess who gets the best shipments?

I'd say yes to Hilton Head in the fall but not the middle of the summer.

GoTravel-Great advice about HH! My family and I were so disappointed when we visited HH! I know by now everyone knows my opinion of the beach there, to say I was shocked by it is an understatement!!!

Thanks tam. Hilten Head is fine and all but not for 20 somethings and 30 somethings in the middle of July!

There are NO outdoor activities you are able to do with the exception of the beach.

Sullivans would be my favorite.

tambennet,
Out of curiosity, which beach on Hilton Head did you visit and found so shocking? IMHO the beaches in the central part of the island, such as Burke's Beach and the section near the Westin are beautiful. They are hard packed, but great for biking, walking and throwing a frisbee.

I do agree with GoTravel that Hilton Head is hot and humid in the summer, but that is their peak season for travelers from Florida, central Georgia, etc. Personally I would not visit ANYWHERE in the south in the middle of July!

colbeck-I grew up going to Panama City Beach and Destin Florida everyother weekend! I have lived in Southern California and Hawaii, none of which have beaches compared to the gulf! My first visit to an east coast beach was a camping trip we took from Jekyll Island to HH. When we arrived at Jekyll Island I was suprised by the look of the sand and the water is not even really blue, but the beach was nice IMHO! When we arrived at HH and went to the beach I couldn't believe it was like compacted dirt! It's just not what I am used to! Like I said in an earlier post, if you've not had the oportunity to visit a gulf coast beach then you wouldn't know what I am comparing it to! Also unless you play golf there's really not alot to do there!

Uh, some of us actually live here and don't mind the summers a bit. It is the price we pay to only have a couple of weeks of winter and year round outdoor activities like boating, biking, camping, golf, convertible cars, etc.

I wouldn't live anywhere else than the coast of South Carolina unless it was further south.

From Orlando South summer is not peak season. Peak season in South Florida is Thanksgiving through April.

tambennet,
You are right that the gulf beaches (yes, I have been there) are some of the most beautiful in the world - fluffy white sand, emerald water. It's amazing how beaches worldwide vary because of difference in geology. Some are sand, some volcanic ash, some shale, some even pink from coral deposits. I guess I find them all beautiful in their own way.

GoTravel,
I did not mean to insult you with my comment about the heat and humidity in the south during the summer. We actually own property on HHI, where we spend a good part of the winter. We love it there (love the Charleston area too). We rent the property out during the summer when the island is very busy with tourists from farther south. We live in the northeast and prefer the summers up here. Each to their own I guess!

<i>I have lived in Southern California and Hawaii, none of which have beaches compared to the gulf! </i>

I haven't seen the gulf beaches, but I have seen the Southern California and Hawaii beaches, and both are much different (and in my opinion nicer, but again, that's because I don't like hard-packed) than Hilton Head! No insult to anyone -- if you like hard-packed beaches, great.