Our second trip with Isabel was to Myrtle Beach with my parents. It was great to go to a familiar place we love, bring her with us, and even have my dad and stepmom be there to help with the baby and enjoy the fun!
We used to go to Myrtle Beach every winter for our anniversary because that’s where we went on our honeymoon! It is a special place to us. I have heard it referred to as “Dirty Myrtle” before but I think this has to do with the crazy young people in the summer months. In the winter, be prepared to be with the cute senior citizens. 🙂
You don’t typically think of a beach vacation in the middle of winter, but Myrtle Beach is a great destination to go to in the colder months! For one, there are way less crowds, and two, prices are better. If you’ve never been to Myrtle Beach, you might think what else would there be to do besides enjoy the ocean, but MB is packed with activities that are family-friendly!
Myrtle Beach is in South Carolina – which has some beautiful beaches stretched on a 60-mile coast. It has mild winters in the 50’s and 60’s Fahrenheit averagely. The city is a resort tourist location to visit.
7 Things to Enjoy in Myrtle Beach’s Winter
Naturally, you can do all these things in the summer, but why not in the winter too!?
1. Restaurants Galore
Many types of food offered from seafood (of course), German, Brazilian, Ethiopian, Thai, Filipino, and way more. Whenever we go to MB, we like to eat at places that we can’t get in our hometown. One advantage of January and February is the discount at the Brazilian steakhouse, Rioz. It’s almost half price on Sunday lunch there. It’s pretty much tradition to go there with my parents every time now in February! There are other Brazilian restaurants there too that we loved because of their traditional cooking (and price too!)
We most recently went to Cafe Old Vienna for German/Austrian food. The atmosphere is fun, live traditional music is played sometimes, and the waitresses dress up in those old school Bavarian dresses. Try the sausage platter or schnitzel, and don’t forget red cabbage on the side!
We usually like to get crepes from Crepe Creation Cafe because it makes us feel like we are in France! We can get crepes at home at IHOP… but it’s not like the ones served here!
For pizza, a family friend always recommends King’s Famous Pizza.
If you want seafood, there are a ton to choose from. The buffets at those huge ones can get pricey.
2. Broadway at the Beach
I just love to walk around this place. There’s shopping stores, restaurants, a movie theater, games, a big lake in the center, and tons more. Feed the fish, Build-a-Bear, visit the Ripley’s aquarium, check out the bizarre upside down house Wonder Works, gorge out in the huge candy store, or fill your belly in the Paula Dean restaurant. There’s something for everyone and you can come back multiple days and not do everything. There was also a mini-golf place we always went called Dragon’s Lair that is currently closed for renovations (although it looks like it’s been completely torn down.)
3. Boardwalk and Promenade
Take a walk along the beach, check out the SkyWheel, eat at the restaurant on the pier (Pier 14 Restaurant), grab a coffee or ice cream, look into the beach shops, and even some Ripley’s museums. The boardwalk is over a mile long so, enjoy all it has to offer! You probably need a jacket for the weather but if it’s sunny, there’s nothing better! The Skywheel is the biggest on the east coast and the has highest views of the Atlantic Ocean. I’d recommend going on it at least once!
This was Isabel’s first visit to the beach!! She was cranky because she was sleepy but we still made it!
4. Entertainment Shows
There are two dinner theater shows in Myrtle Beach: Medieval Times and Pirates Voyage. If you don’t want to smell horses while you eat dinner then maybe don’t choose medieval times (ha!) It doesn’t bother me, but my dad is not a fan. Both are good though! And the food portions are huge. At Medieval Times you sit in sections that are different teams and there are sporting events that you watch and cheer your team on. It’s fun!
There are other entertainment shows such as Carolina Opry House, House of Blues, Alabama Theater, and Legends in Concert to name a few. There are events all year long. Look up ahead of time before you go and book something that interests you! My family always enjoys the Carolina Opry House.
5. Shopping
There are a few malls, two Tanger Outlet malls, and other shopping complexes to visit if you are looking for something! Plenty of beachy tourist stores if you want that special souvenir as well. We always enjoy going to the World Market because we don’t have that store at home and always find interesting things there. Broadway at the Beach as mentioned earlier falls under this shopping category.
6. Swimming
Stay in a hotel with an indoor pool and lazy river on the beach front! The prices for rooms are always cheaper off season! If you can go during the week instead of weekend, even better prices usually! Since you may not care to swim in the Atlantic because it’s too nippy, still pack your bathing suit for indoor fun.
7. Golfing or Mini-golf
Marvin losing at putt-putt
Myrtle Beach has been called the “golf capital of the world” with over 100 courses. I don’t care a thing about golf personally, but if you do, then plenty of it to do here! I don’t mind a bit of putt-putt though. 🙂 There are multiple places to do this at too!
Hopefully we’ve convinced you that MB is an option for a winter vacation! What do you enjoy doing in Myrtle Beach or other things you can do during the winter we left out?
More Tips on Traveling with a Baby we Learned Along the Way
- We keep paper towels in our car now for clean-ups, in addition to wet wipes. My dad was holding Isabel in a grocery store and he felt her poop. I looked under and saw a wet spot on her pants! We headed to the car, used the trunk with her mat as a cleaning area. The trunk was a nice flat area to take care of business. The paper towels helped wipe up some of the stuff without smearing it along the way. Boy did we need it, it got on her clothes. Another thing is disposable bags, I put her dirty clothes in there to clean up later!
- Carry a stick of stain remover on trips for the clothes! I do not know if other babies poop is like Isabel’s but this stuff does not rinse out under hot water! We soak it, then rub the stain remover, then wash it. Works like a charm.
- Staying in a place that has a washing machine and dryer is a super plus!
- From the last blog post, I was given a tip about pack a shirt for yourself in the diaper bag which is a great idea, because after the clean-up in the hotel (a separate blow-out), once we got to the restaurant, realized that poop got on the sleeve of my shirt… like high up on the shirt. Luckily it was yellow, so maybe it could have passed as mustard!
Any more tips on traveling with a baby are always welcome of course. Check out our first trip to DC with a baby here!
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Happy travels!