A Vacation In Hilton Head

Hilton Head, South Carolina is a popular vacation destination for thousands of familes each year. I should know, my family is one of them. Some people prefer a laid back atmosphere to take the family. If that is you, then Hilton Head is the place for you.

There are many things you can do on your trip to Hilton Head. Of course you have the beach, which is not crowded at all compared to some of your other South Carolina beaches. You have pretty much anything you want at your disposal at Hilton Head.

Hilton Head island's busy season is pretty much the same as all other beach destinations. We went the last week in July. I would say it definitely could have been worse. It was not too crowded for my tastes. I will say the Saturday that we were there was a bit more crowded, but that is to be expected. The weekends will always be more crowded.

I have never been any other time, but I have been told that around Thanksgiving and the Valentines holiday, certain restaurants will close for a few days to tidy up. Most of the water activities are unavailable. I have also been told that certain trips like the Hilton Head to Savannah boat trip is still an option. If it’s too cold to swim, you can always play golf. If I remember correctly, there are over 20 golf courses in the area, so if you like golf, Hilton Head Island is your place.

We have gone on the busiest times. Sometimes you don’t have a choice. Most people take their vacations in the summer. The kids are not in school so it makes traveling easier. It is pretty busy during July and August. If you want to get into a good resaurant, you may want to get reservations. We did that in Savannah when we went to Paula Deen’s restaurant, The Lady and Sons.

According to various travel websites, visitors to Hilton Head Island arrive and leave on Saturday. Which probably explains what I mentioned above. It will be more crowded on the weekend, especially Saturday. This year we arrived on Sunday, which was actually very easy. Traffic was not a problem, and neither was checking in.


Go on the net and check about the tides on Hilton Head before you go, just to give you an idea of how fast they can rise. They seem to rise at a pretty good clip, maybe this was just because I actually paid attention this time!  If you are a runner, the mornings are best, there is a lot more hard sand to run on earlier. Obviously the beach is less populated too. You will just have the early birds trying to find sea shells. You will have plenty of room to do your morning runs or walks. Everyone we met out there was very friendly. How could you not be considering were we were. Those little crabs were out in full force those early mornings. The other half and I both had them crawling up our ankle on a couple of occasions.



Rules on Hilton Head Island
Be aware of the regulations at Hilton Head. No alcoholic beverages on the beach. Don’t think you can get away with having a few brews either. Don’t take anything living from the beach. Sometimes that can be a challenge with the kids, some of them wanted to take the sand dollars and starfish that floated up in the mornings.....that is a big no no!

It is against the law to walk on the sand dunes. Something I didn’t realize until later on. Apparently, the dunes are very fragile. They are held together by the grass you see growing there. Apparently those areas are very important to the beach as a whole. It’s against the law to walk on them. Just use the little overpasses and you will be fine.

Bicycles on Hilton Head
Bicycling is popular on Hilton Head, and there are many bike paths all over the island. I have never seen so many people biking in my entire life....they are all over the place.  Especially at the  Sea Pines Resort. There are two good reasons to travel by bike - there's no parking problem and it's good exercise. There are plenty of places to rent bicycles. You see people on bikes everywhere.

Be careful of driving around people on bikes. It’s not unusual to see someone almost get hit. It’s both drivers not paying attention and at the same time some people on bicycles forget what they are doing. Just have your head on a swivel.

Hilton Head Island is a great place to take the family. I love going there and will continue to do so. I can be a little pricier than some areas, but I feel that it is worth it. My whole family enjoys it and I am sure yours will too.