Myrtle Beach - Columbus,OH

I agree with the below post...stay in North Myrtle. We stay at Island Vista Resort and love it. Lots for kids and families to do in North Myrtle.

Make sure it's in NORTH Myrtle Beach. Not Myrtle Beach. Myrtle is for college kids and teens. North Myrtle is for families. I promise you that you'll be much happier in North Myrtle.

Dawn

I second the advice to stay in North Myrtle Beach. Myrtle Beach is a little too honkytonk for my liking. Check out out Ocean Creek resort. Very nice, plush or affordable options for lodging and you're right across the street from Barefoot Landing and within walking distance to several nice places to eat. Other than the grocery store, you can park your car & walk.
www.oceancreek.com

http://www.cityofmyrtlebeach.com/

Every city, has a website.
On it you will find much information.

We were there last June. My husband, me, and our four kids aged 7ys-7months. We started out at Compass Cove resort...we were assigned a room that was much worse than the inet photos and it was awful. I frantically looked for somewhere else and found the "penthouse" at a days inn (or something similar; I forget exactly which hotel but it was a major chain) for $259/night. Not super nice but very roomy at least, with a kitchen, two bedrooms/baths and fridge and deck.

I would not suggest staying on the major strip with kids, especially when it's busy (we went in mid-June). People we know have since told me they stay just north or south (Garden City is one place). The new Big Wheel was ok and the amusement park is ok, but be ready to spend money on rides! Some of them were quite fun, though, and my 7-year-old loved it.

If we go again, we will be staying just North or South of the "strip" for sure!
Also, beware of weather and dangerous waves. Two people drowned within three days around the time we were there. We watched our kids like hawks.

Sorry for the negative-sounding story; we had fun on the beach and in the pool and looking at things, but I prefer more old-school historical towns anyway. It is a fun place to visit with access to shopping, etc.

We go to Myrtle Beach every year. Just like the other posts said, make sure to stay at North Myrtle Beach. It is more family oriented. There is a condo complex that was walking distance from the beach that we stayed at last time. I'm sorry, I can't remember the name. But the pool there was also nice and you can rent golf carts for a week which you can also ride to the beach with your beach toys. I think we rented the condo from vrbo.com. I love that site. Have fun! I love beach vacations...they are the cheapest vacation too. And there is this Alligator Adventures that you must take your daughter to. My kids loved it.

We just went for a mini-getaway two weeks ago. It was just the hubby and I. We went on Priceline and named our own price for the hotel. Got a SWEET deal doing it that way. We stayed at the Sheraton Convention Center for $60/night! It was a really nice hotel....a STEAL at that price....

We also went to Medieval Times and Pirates Voyage. Both were great! Pirates Voyage is definitely more "family friendly," but both can be attended with children. Pirates Voyage was REALLY crammed though, which was the only downside.

We went to the Outlets and window shopped, which was a nice thing to do. We also went to Broadway On The Beach, but it can be skipped. It's a tourist money trap really. :)

North Myrtle is definitely nicer and has plenty to explore and do with kids. We liked North Myrtle.

Be prepared for a lot of people in the actual Myrtle Beach area in August. It will be pretty busy, but I'm sure you will still be fun.

Take care and enjoy!

We went to North Myrtle Beach last year and are going back this year. Not sure where we stayed (FIL organized everything) but it was great! We were in a condo complex directly on the beach, walking distance from a little amusement park there. Our complex had a smallish pool and we alternated beach and pool.
One of the most fun outings was to go to Wild Waves. We went on a weekday afternoon (less expensive) and the park was EMPTY, no lines at all! You could walk right up to whatever slide you wanted to go down. It was great!

Just as a side note, when we arrived we had the wrong address in our GPS and ended up in Myrtle Beach proper. It was mid-June and it looked like one of those spring break places you see on MTV - the streets were just littered with drunken college aged kids... not really a "family destination". North MB on the other hand was really great.

A third vote for North Myrtle Beach. We checked out Ocean Creek, too and it was beautiful, but we ended up staying at Sea Watch resort. We really enjoyed Myrtle Beach, it was very relaxing.

Check out VRBO (vacation rentals by owner) to find a place to stay.

Have fun planning!