Where To Stay And What To Do, See, Eat & Drink
After staying in Savannah, GA for four days, my best friend and I continued our road trip back up along the east coast. On our way to Myrtle Beach (the second destination on our route), we decided to break up our 4-hour drive by making a pitstop in Charleston for some lunch and afternoon exploring. Here’s our travel guide to Charleston and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina based on our experience there:
WATCH OUR ADVENTURES IN SOUTH CAROLINA BELOW
CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA
WHAT TO DO, SEE, EAT, AND DRINK
Butcher & Bee: I ordered the brown rice bowl, which was weird (?) but also really good. At the end of the meal, the server brought over our checks each stuck in between the pages of a random book. Mel’s book title was “Wildflowers” and mine was “Nuns Having Fun” – both very relevant. A fun surprise.
King Street: King Street is one of the most famous streets in the US. It’s known for its high-end shopping, gorgeous sidewalks, and revitalized architecture.
Charleston City Market: a long sheltered strip of mom-and-pop stands and kiosks full of jewelry, paintings, hats, trinkets, caricatures, and every other thing you can think of available to browse.
Rainbow Row: A BEAUTIFUL ROW OF LOVELY PASTEL-COLORED BUILDINGS THAT YOU NEED TO TAKE A PHOTO OF AND PUT ON YOUR INSTAGRAM.
Pineapple Fountain: as the name suggests, this is a pineapple-shaped fountain. Based in a waterfront park with the Savannah Bridge visible in the background, the actual fountain itself was cool but little kids were swimming in it the whole time… which was kind of gross. So that’s that.
United States Custom House: beautifully architected and dating back almost 200 years ago, this building has been added to the list of the National Register of Historic Places.
MYRTLE BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA
WHERE TO STAY
We originally wanted to stay in an Airbnb but all of the rentals were super far from the boardwalk, so we ended up staying at the Holiday Inn at the Pavilion located directly on the boardwalk (toward the end).
Our room was nice with comfy beds and its own balcony overlooking the boardwalk, water, and pier. The hotel itself was overrun with children, flooded with pool water on the bottom of the elevator floors, and had fruity alcoholic drinks at the bar, but it did the job.
For a three-night stay in a double queen-bed efficiency suite with a balcony and kitchen, the price came out to $652. Well worth the money split between two people.
WHAT TO DO, SEE EAT, AND DRINK
FOOD & DRINK
Moe Moonz: we literally walked to the first place on the boardwalk that we saw serving fish bowls, and that place happened to be Moe Moonz. Two fish bowls cost us $100 and they didn’t get us drunk, but the pretzels and the chips with salsa and cheese were delicious.
Carolina Ale House: not entirely sure if this place is affiliated with Miller’s Ale House? I tend to shy away from corporate restaurants but I highly recommend the blackened salmon caesar salad.
Pier 41: best pina coladas in the area with a cool bartender who I was able to bond with over MMA and BJJ because I called him out on his slight cauliflower ears.
Riptydz: great, strong margaritas with delicious french fries, Mahi tacos, and a super cool rooftop area. On our first night, we sat on a bench in front of Riptydz and spilled our hearts to each other (yet again) while watching the beautiful blood moon light up the sky.
Good Time Charley’s: I do not recommend the food but the key lime margaritas were soooo good.
SHOPS & STORES
Pick A Pearl: I love pearls, so when we saw this shop at Broadway at the Beach we had to check it out. There was a huge tub full of oyster shells, each with a guaranteed special colored pearl inside. We each picked a shell and mine just so happened to be a lucky one with two peach-colored shells (which represent good health – woo!). I turned them into necklaces and kept one for myself and gave one to my mom.
TOURIST SPOTS & SIGHTS
Myrtle Beach Boardwalk: we didn’t walk the whole thing but the boardwalk was definitely fun to explore.
Myrtle Beach SkyWheel: the SkyWheel was right next to our hotel so we were able to see it all lit up rainbow from outside our door.
Broadway at the Beach: recommended to us by basically everyone, Broadway at the Beach is a huge outdoor shopping mall with restaurants, attractions, and shops. This is where we got our pearl necklaces, pina colada margaritas, and visited the aquarium.
Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach: way smaller than we expected, overcrowded, and overpriced at $30 per ticket, but looking at sharks, sea turtles, jellyfish, and eels was a fun way to pass the time in the rain.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
Charleston is such an adorable little town with so many historic sights to see. Strolling down King Street and E Bay Street was fun to see all of the beautiful architecture, palm trees, and Rainbow Row. We also loved the cobblestone roads and cute homes that lined the way before hitting the waterfront park area. I wish we were able to spend more time there, but I’ll just have to add it back to my travel bucket list.
Unfortunately, Myrtle Beach was our least favorite out of all of the places we stayed during our trip. We were so excited to leave Savannah and get to Myrtle so we could enjoy sunshine and beach weather, but we arrived to nothing but clouds, thunderstorms, and drinks that even didn’t get us drunk.
On a more positive note, one of my favorite experiences from our entire trip happened during our stay in Myrtle: We moon-bathed in the ocean during the blood moon. After a two-hour-long heart-to-heart on the bench in front of RipTydz, we went back to the hotel, changed into comfy clothes, left our phones in the room to charge, and headed back down to the beach. Despite our deep fears of the open water, especially at nighttime, we found ourselves pulled into the ocean. We stood there in the rain in silence, closed our eyes, and soaked in the light of the blood moon as waves smashed our legs and the SkyWheel illuminated a rainbow sky behind us. I have no other words to describe this experience other than spiritual, magical, and refreshing.
As the locals had told us multiple times, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina is basically a heaven for lushes because “the only thing to do [there] is drink.” If you enjoy drinking all day and all night, definitely take the trip. Otherwise, Ocean City, MD and Atlantic City, NJ are way better options with better drinks and food and a lot more to do.
Thanks for reading! Have you ever visited Charleston or Myrtle Beach? What’s missing from this list? Share your thoughts and favorite spots in the comments below.
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