Myrtle Beach

So for Spring Break, I took the boys down to Myrtle Beach for 2 nights on Monday and Tuesday. We picked that spot as none of us had been there before and it is a tourist Mecca that everyone in the South has been to at least once.

Pretty easy drive down gets us to Bay View Resort on the Boardwalk mid afternoon. We walk along the Boardwalk and stop 8th Ave Tiki Bar for a late lunch. It was the first place we came across, had outside seating, and good food, so a good find. Afterwards we walked up to Pier 14 and braved the winds and walked out on the pier. Weather is not great and after getting checked into the hotel, we head out to Broadway On The Beach to find dinner. Good, clean, family fun area, Broadway On The Beach gave us a million choices to eat. After getting news of an hour's wait at the Hard Rock Cafe, we ended up at Melt for a filling dinner. We spent the evening looking around here and then heading back to the hotel.

L & B, Pier 14, Myrtle Beach, SC

B, Bay View Resort, Myrtle Beach, SC

Late start the next day, as the boys take advantage of sleeping in a dark room (they have skylights at home). We are close to our beloved Litchfield Beach, so we opt to drive down to Parlor Doughnuts for breakfast. 45 minutes for the world's greatest doughnuts. Of course! Driving there, I'm taken aback by the volume of touristy spots there are here. There are so many pirate-themed mini golf courses, pancake houses, and Calabash seafood buffets, it's hard to imagine how they all survive. On the drive back we cut through Murrell's Inlet and Surfside Beach to have a look. I liked Surfside. It looks like more of a residential area, without the high rise hotels, And not tired. Myrtle looks like weather beaten and old, Surfside looks like a bunch of locals that take of their beach properties. We did stop at Cancun Lagoon on the way back to support a local mini golf course. Good fun playing in and around at Chichitza styled pyramid. No lunch, so back to the hotel, quick change, and onto the beach to enjoy this 77 degree sunshine, via the oversized chess board for a game of B v L. It was nice sitting on the beach as the boys played on the water's edge. The water, however, was painfully freezing. One foot in for me, a splashing fight for the boys, and L took a tumble into the water. Another chess game before heading back into the room. I let the boys pick dinner while I showered, and they picked this awesome Italian restaurant, Vicini's, a few miles away. We were there early, but by 6.15pm, the 12 tables were full. And the food excellent. On the way back we stopped at Mt. Atlanticus, for another round of mini golf. Great fun again, and no none of us won free golf for life at the end. We walked up and down the Grand Strand with ice cream to see Myrtle at night. It reminds me of Surfer's Paradise back at home. Plenty of people just on vacation looking for fun.

B&L, Parlor Doughnuts, Pawleys Island, SC

Dad, B & L, Cancun Lagoon, Myrtle Beach, SC

B & L, Myrtle Beach, SC

Plans for an early beach move were thwarted by some heavy rain. Instead we packed up and made one last stop at Hot Cakes for breakfast. Hearty start to the near 4 hour drive back home.

Nice to break up the week with a couple of days in a new spot. Though I'm not sure I ever need to go back to Myrtle again.