29 Best Sights in Myrtle Beach and the Grand Strand, South Carolina

One of the Grand Strand's most magnificent hidden treasures, the 9,100-acre Brookgreen Gardens is the oldest and largest sculpture garden in the United States, with more than 550 examples of figurative American sculpture by such artists as Frederic Remington and Daniel Chester French. Each sculpture is carefully set within garden rooms and outdoor galleries graced by sprawling live oak trees, colorful flowers, and peaceful ponds. The gardens are lush and full in spring and summer, and in winter splashes of color from winter-blooming shrubs are set off against the stark surroundings.

The property was purchased as a winter home for industrialist Archer Huntington and his wife, Anna Hyatt Huntington, in 1929, but they quickly decided to open it to the public as a sculpture garden and wildlife sanctuary. You'll find a Lowcountry zoo (including native red wolves), an aviary, a cypress swamp, nature trails, an education center, and a butterfly house. Summer concerts under the stars and the garden's breathtaking Night of a Thousand Candles during the Christmas season are Brookgreen traditions. The gardens are just beyond The Fighting Stallions, the Anna Hyatt Huntington sculpture alongside U.S. 17.

You're greeted by a giant octopus constructed of recovered plastic trash at this hidden gem in a 1920s beach cottage on the southern cusp of Ocean Boulevard. The museum has a permanent collection of surf-, coastal-, and wildlife-themed works, plus an ever-changing eclectic array of sculptures and paintings that will open your eyes to the art community that thrives on the Grand Strand.

The true star of Archibald Rutledge's home (he was the poet laureate of South Carolina for 39 years until his death in 1973) may not be his 18th-century plantation house but the centuries-old Washington Oak in the yard, a now-massive tree saved by the first president. The mansion's exterior has been restored; cutaway sections in the finely crafted interior show the changes made through the centuries. There are walking trails and picnic areas on the grounds. You can also learn more about the slaves that toiled on the plantation, as well as freed people who made their homes in the area after emancipation.

This 2,500-acre former estate of Archer and Anna Huntington lies east of U.S. 17, across from Brookgreen Gardens. The park's focal point is Atalaya (circa 1933), their Moorish-style 30-room home. A nature center features live native animals, including an aquarium with rays and horseshoe crabs. There are nature trails, ample areas for biking (including a bicycle path from Huntington Beach to Litchfield Beach), fishing, picnic areas, bird-watching expeditions, a playground, concessions, and a campground.

Take a short hike through a forest canopy of pine, magnolia, and live oak, and escape the traffic of Highway 17 while discovering what Myrtle Beach looked like before all the neon. This state-protected parcel of land has a mile-long beach, 350 campsites, picnic pavilions, hiking trails, a fishing pier, an ice cream shop, and playgrounds. There are year-round family or children's activities offered through the park, like crabbing and nature programs, and lifeguards at the north section of the beach. Amenities: food and drink; parking (free with $8 admission to park); showers; toilets. Best for: sunrise; swimming; walking.

More than 3 miles of tranquil and natural beach run along the shoreline of Pawleys Island. The surrounding architecture consists only of beach cottages and low-lying resorts, so it's a peaceful retreat. Lack of crowds allows for bicycling on packed sand, shelling, or napping on a hammock. Note that there aren't any lifeguards. Amenities: parking (limited; on side streets). Best for: surfing; swimming; walking. 

Interactive reptile shows, including an alligator-feeding demonstration, are the main attractions at this wildlife park. Boardwalks lead through marshes and swamps on the 15-acre property, where you'll see wildlife of the wetlands, including a rare white albino alligator, the largest known crocodile in captivity, giant Galápagos tortoises, river otters, and all manner of reptiles, including boas, pythons, and anacondas. Unusual plants and exotic birds, as well as mountain lions and ostriches, are also in residence.

This go-kart race park features seven different tracks, including one indoor slick track. The 26-acre facility also has bumper cars, kids' rides, an arcade, and miniature golf.

Between two high-rises in the relatively quiet community of Cherry Grove, this small oceanfront park with pretty, budding landscaping has amenities for families, like a shaded gazebo, bench swings, and a ramp to the sand for strollers. Amenities: lifeguards; showers; toilets. Best for: solitude; sunrise; swimming; walking.

For a break from the beach, or as a pleasant way to spend a cool or cloudy day, take a 15-mile day trip inland to the historic town of Conway. A huge source for lumber in the 1870s, the town is now an eclectic hub for art studios and the arts (take a glassblowing class at Conway Glass!), antiques stores, and a growing number of foodie hot spots, including the celebrated Rivertown Bistro. Conway's Riverwalk, along the Waccamaw River, offers a peaceful respite for walkers, joggers, and bikers. If you're charmed and want to stay the night, the elegant Cypress Inn is a luxurious respite worlds away from the busy attractions of the Grand Strand.

Dominated by a giant white wooden roller coaster called the Swamp Fox, Family Kingdom amusement park is quite an experience, and it's right on the ocean. There are thrill rides, children's rides, a log flume, a go-kart track, an old-fashioned carousel, and the Slingshot Drop Zone, which rockets riders straight down a 110-foot tower. It's a bit like going to a state fair that runs all summer long. Bring your bathing suit and cross the street for more fun at Splashes Oceanfront Water Park. Operating hours can vary, so check online before visiting, especially on Saturday when the parks are sometimes rented by groups. Money-saving bundled tickets and multiday passes are readily available.

Horry County's southernmost beachfront is backed by a causeway that crosses creeks and tributaries feeding into Murrells Inlet. The coastline is a curious collection of a few high-rise hotels, older condo buildings, and cute, stilted beach houses. Beachfront disappears at high tide farther south—so much so that it slaps up against the pilings and sea wall. The Garden City Pier is a must for fishing ($10), strolling (free), playing arcade games, or dancing to live music at the partially covered bar perched at the very end. Other beach activities include kayaking, Jet Skiing, kiteboarding, parasailing, banana-boat rides, and boogie boarding. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards (sometimes); parking (no fee); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: sunrise; surfing; swimming; walking.

This 7-acre park offers an easy escape into nature, via a series of raised wooden walkways through the marsh that runs a few streets behind the beach cottages and high-rise hotels lining the ocean. A small parking lot allows visitors to park and explore the preserve on foot. Common sights include ibis, herons, and kingfishers. The park is free to the public and open daily 7 am to 8:30 pm.

This historic landmark was once the vast estate of the late Wall Street financier Bernard M. Baruch. Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill came here to confer with him. A small interpretive center has exhibits on coastal ecology and history, with special emphasis on the Baruch family. There are aquariums, touch tanks, video presentations, and guided two-hour tours of the 16,000-acre wildlife refuge.

Built in 1735, this National Historic Landmark overlooks the North Santee River and is surrounded by moss-draped live oaks, magnolias, and tree-size camellias. The mansion has a fine Georgian staircase and hand-carved lighted-candle moldings. In addition to house tours, daily programs focused on the lives of the enslaved people who worked here and the Gullah culture of their descendents are available, and sweetgrass basket-weaving workshops are held on Thursday. The River Oak Cottage Tea Room on-site serves a full menu of Southern treats.

Overlooking the Sampit River from a bluff is this sprawling historic home (circa 1769) that's notable for its collections of regional antiques and furnishings and its Chippendale and Duncan Phyfe furniture, Royal Doulton vases, and silver. Events at the Kaminski House include summer outdoor concerts on the lawn.

This shaded vineyard makes its Twisted Sisters wines from the sweet muscadine grapes grown on the property. Tastings and tours are available on Wednesdays and Saturdays for $15 and include live music. The gift shop offers everything from wine to savory dips and fun grape-themed items.

The beachfront of the city of Myrtle Beach stretches from the Springmaid Pier at the south end up to 82nd Avenue North. Expect the entire length of this popular family beach to be busy from May to October with people fishing, boogie boarding, parasailing, surfing (only allowed before 10 am and after 5 pm), and sunbathing. In the off-season (November–February) you can take horseback rides on the beach. Restaurants and shops line the boardwalk section of 2nd to 14th Avenues. A beachfront trail of workout stations lines the north end. Note that an ordinance bans tents over 7½ feet in diameter from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Amenities: lifeguards (May–September; no lifeguards in residential section of 38th–48th Avenues North); parking (free at north-end beach access areas; metered on street along Ocean Boulevard; pay by day or hour at Pavilion Parking Garage at 8th Avenue North); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: partiers; sunrise; swimming; walking. 

The heart of Myrtle Beach is this mile-long oceanfront destination that stretches from the 14th Avenue Pier, where seafood restaurant-café Pier 14 roosts, to the newly renovated 2nd Avenue Pier and its Wicked Tuna restaurant and open-air rooftop lounge. Take a sky-high seat on the SkyWheel, one of the largest observation wheels on the East Coast at 187 feet tall, with enclosed gondolas for a smooth ride (don't miss the light show at night), then stop in for a bite to eat at the LandShark Bar & Grill located right at the entrance. You can also take the kids to play in the old-time arcade, zip across the Myrtle Beach Zipline Adventures aerial course, break for a soft-serve ice cream cone, shop for a souvenir at the world-famous Gay Dolphin, shuck oysters at Dirty Don's, pull up a stool at the Bowery (the legendary bar that gave country band Alabama its start), or just stroll or sit, taking in the beach scene. A schedule of free live concerts, performances, fireworks, and children's carnivals abounds in summer at the boardwalk's Plyler Park. Don't miss the holiday, family-friendly block parties year-round.

Bikes, pets, and skateboards are prohibited on the boards May to September.

At South Carolina's largest water park you can shoot through twisty chutes, swim in the Ocean in Motion Wave Pool, race your friends down the Turbo Twisters, or ride a boogie board on the Racin' River. Even the toddlers will enjoy splashing in Bubble Bay and Saturation Station playground. There's beach volleyball, too, for when you've had enough water. Shaded areas with lounge chairs offer respite from the sun, and private cabanas, complete with waitstaff, are available to rent for the day.

Choose from more than 240 access points to this beach, which is populated with fewer sunbathers than Myrtle Beach—especially farther south and north of Main Street's stretch of beachfront. Ocean Park, at 101 South Ocean Boulevard, offers a nice setting, with a beachfront picnic shelter and a giant, 40-foot-tall inflatable triple waterslide, dubbed the Trippo, open in summer (rides are $3). Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (metered); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: sunrise; surfing; swimming; walking; windsurfing. 

The historic oceanfront Pavilion (razed in 2006) lives on through its amusement rides that are now split between three sections at Broadway at the Beach. East Park features original Pavilion rides like the famous Herschell-Spillman Carousel, dating back to 1912. West Park is home to kiddie rides and the Myrtle Turtle coaster, while Central Park includes an array of modern thrill rides. In between, hit the snack stands vending funnel cakes and snow cones.

Named after King George II, this church still serves the Anglican parish established in 1721. It was built in 1737 with bricks brought from England.

A graceful market and meeting building in the heart of Georgetown, topped by an 1842 clock and tower, has been converted into a unique museum, with maps, tools, and dioramas that outline the history of rice in Georgetown. At the museum's Prevost Gallery next door is the Brown's Ferry river freighter, the oldest American-built water-going vessel in existence. The museum gift shop has local pine needle baskets, African dolls, and art (including baskets made from whole cloves), as well as South Carolina rice and honey.

Glide underwater (no need for a wet suit) through a winding tunnel exhibit that's longer than a football field, where sharks of all kinds and exotic marine creatures, including poisonous lionfish, moray eels, and an octopus, swim over and around you (or below you, if you spring for the glass-bottom boat tour). Children can examine horseshoe crabs and stingrays in touch tanks, and two of the newer residents are a pair of two-toed sloths. There are also add-ons, like the up-close 30-minute, $90 Penguin Encounter. Admission discounts are available when combined with the price of Ripley's Ocean Boulevard attractions.

Dubbed "the Family Beach," this small strand just south of Myrtle Beach offers up about 2 miles of white sand. Here, the hotel high-rises, bright lights, and big city of Myrtle Beach disappear, replaced by beach houses, cottages, and peaceful views. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards (May–September); parking (lots with meters at 12 out of 36 beach access areas); showers; toilets. Best for: solitude; sunrise; surfing; swimming; walking.

Tall windows, high ceilings, and plenty of copper and wood create a high-toned ambience for sipping pepper vodka (made with Carolina Reaper peppers), rum made with local molasses, and smooth rye whiskey aged in American oak barrels.

Each October, Front Street is transformed into a popular event where craftsmen showcase their works in the wooden boat exhibits. There's an intense boatbuilding competition (finished off by a rowing race on the river), kids' model-building contest, live music, and arts and crafts. All proceeds from the show are donated to the Harbor Historical Association's maritime museum.