Visiting Myrtle Beach is a great vacation choice anytime of year. With lots of family friendly attractions these are our picks for the top things to do in Myrtle Beach.
There are so many things to do on a Myrtle Beach family vacation. It is a great place for families because there are a lot of family activities, restaurants, and the beautiful beaches.
My kids are in their teen years now and we first started visiting Myrtle Beach when my oldest was a few months old.
With a wide variety of activities like water sports, amusement parks, museums, restaurants, and food festivals, the Myrtle Beach area has top attractions and activities the whole family will enjoy.
Top Things to Do in Myrtle Beach
- Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach
- Dinner Show like Medieval Times or Pirates Voyage
- Broadway at the Beach (Shop and Dine)
- Mini-Golf
- Myrtle Beach Boardwalk
- Brookgreen Gardens
- Beaches
- Tanger Outlets
- Myrtle Beach Pelicans
- Savannah Playground (younger children)
Myrtle Beach Family Vacation Overview
Myrtle Beach has been a family favorite for us for the last 10 years. We have visited multiple times since 2008 and have also visited in April and August. Expect hot temperatures in August and mild warm temperatures in April.
Myrtle Beach appeals to families of all ages due to its kid friendly beaches and offers plenty of things to do.
Where is Myrtle Beach and What are the Different Areas of Myrtle Beach
Myrtle Beach is located on the east coast in South Carolina along the Atlantic Ocean. There are a few different areas in Myrtle Beach and each offers a little different type of vacation.
- North Myrtle Beach: family friendly, close to lots of attractions and shopping, close to Barefoot Landing, house, condo and hotel accommodation options. Located on the beach.
- Grand Strand and Downtown Myrtle Beach: Family friendly but heavy on the spring breakers crowd. Busier and in the middle of all the action. Located on the beach.
- Surfside Beach: Family friendly, quiet, short drive to most attractions, Lots of beach house rentals. Located on the beach. Review of Surfside Beach.
- Murrells Inlet: Quiet area, further from main attractions.
When deciding where to stay keep the above in mind and pick the place that best fits your travel needs. We find renting a beach house in a quieter area the best fit for our family vacation.
Below you can zoom in and out of the map to start looking at great accommodation options!
Average Temperature for Myrtle Beach
- January: 57 High / 36 Low (F)
- February: 59 High / 38 Low
- March: 65 / 43
- April: 72 / 52
- May: 79 / 61
- June: 85 / 69
- July: 88 / 73
- August: 87 / 71
- September: 84 / 71
- October: 76 / 55
- November: 68 / 44
- December: 60 / 38
Is Myrtle Beach Kid Friendly?
Myrtle Beach and the surrounding areas are family friendly. If you are looking to avoid spring breakers consider staying in one of the quieter areas.
How to Get to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
The two options for visiting Myrtle Beach is to drive or fly. Myrtle Beach has an airport that serves most major airlines.
We are about 13 hours from Myrtle Beach and we drive. We like having our car and it is more budget friendly to drive. Read more about our Road Trip: Rochester to Myrtle Beach trip.
Where to Stay in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
My first visit to Myrtle Beach was at a beach house and I have to admit-I loved it! It is great for large families or groups of friends that want to travel together. Choose accommodations that work best for your group.
Hotel prices will fluctuate depending on if you visit during high or low season.
Things to do in Myrtle Beach for Families
We have visiting Myrtle Beach in April many times but a lot of these attractions and events are offered year round. These are our picks for the best things to do when visiting Myrtle Beach.
Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach
Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach is located at Broadway at the Beach and is a great attraction for all ages. It is perfect for a rainy day or a really hot afternoon.
Crowds will be very busy at these times because everyone is doing the same thing!! If you don’t want to deal with crowds arrive early and you can have this aquarium done in about 2-3 hours.
I also recommend purchasing tickets online before you arrive if you can. Ripley’s Myrtle Beach aquarium is a great place to visit for families of all ages.
Savannah Playground
I don’t know how I discovered this playground but I am so happy I did. Located in the newer shopping district, Market Common, Savannah Playground does not disappoint.
It is an enabled playground which means it is accessible to all children of all abilities.
Savannah Playground is a great place to visit if you are traveling with little ones. It is free to enter and has on-site restrooms.
Family Fun Dinner Shows in Myrtle Beach
Who knew a beach city would have so many live entertainment options?
From Pirates to Knights, and clogging groups to variety shows. There is something for everyone!
Dinner shows in Myrtle Beach are so fun because it is food and entertainment all in one. The kids always have a blast!
We have visited Pirate’s Voyage and Medieval Times and always have a good time. We look forward to checking out different shows on our next visits.
Myrtle Beach Dinner Shows:
- Pirate’s Voyage Dinner & Show
- Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament
- Legends in Concert
- The Carolina Opry
- Alabama Theatre
- The Broadway Theater
Broadway at the Beach
Broadway at the Beach is an entertainment, shopping, and dining complex that has so many attractions. It is a great time to enjoy some great activities. We often visit for the Aquarium and to enjoy some fun dining.
Recently we dined at Paula Deen’s Kitchen. It is served family style which means everyone at the table chooses entrees and sides to share. I highly recommend the fried chicken.
Our Family Favorites:
- WonderWorks
- The Simpsons in 4D
- Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach
- Hard Rock Cafe
- Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville
- Senor Frogs
- Starbucks
- Backstage Escape Games
- Beach Rider Jet Boat
- Dino Park
- Hollywood Wax Museum
- Myrtle Waves Water Park
- Myrtle Beach Pelicans
- Pro Football Hall of Fame
- TopGolf
*The above and many more can be found at Broadway at the Beach.
Play a Round of Mini-Golf
It is not called the Mini-Golf capital of the world for nothing!! Home to 50+ mini-golf courses you and your family will find a theme to love!
We like to let the kids pick out their favorite courses and visit in the evening or early morning to avoid the crowds and heat. A few locations offer indoor mini-golf as well.
Our All Time favorite Mini-Golf Courses:
- Captain Hook’s Adventure Golf
- Cancun Lagoon
- Mt Atlantics Mini-Golf
- Shipwreck Island Mini-Golf
Myrtle Beach Boardwalk
Located in the heart of downtown Myrtle Beach. The Boardwalk is a 1.2 mile walk way along the beach. Lined with shops and restaurants it is a great place to spend an evening.
There are beach shops along the way as well as an amusement park. For the brave you can ride the Myrtle Beach Skywheel for a birds eye view of the city and Atlantic Ocean. Learn more here Skywheel.
Brookgreen Gardens
Brookgreen Gardens is part botanical gardens and part zoo in Myrtle Beach. It offers gorgeous grounds to explore. They also offer tickets that include consecutive visits for 7 days.
If you are staying for a week and looking to stretch your budget this might be a great place to visit.
Enjoy the Myrtle Beach Beaches
One of the best things we did during our most recent visit was take advantage of the short walk to the beach from our rental house. We took time to enjoy the beach.
We went for walks, played in the sand, and took advantage of enjoying the beach.
More Myrtle Beach Attractions
- Murrells Inlet Marshwalk
- Family Kingdom Amusement Park
- Myrtle Beach Food Truck Festival (First Weekend in April)
- The Bowery has live music nightly.
- Myrtle Beach Zip line Adventures
- Easter Events like Easter Egg hunts are scheduled when Easter is in April.
- Myrtle Beach Convention Center has different events happening throughout the year.
Where to Eat in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
My husband is the chef at home and he is in charge of where we go out to eat too! He loves to plan it almost as much as I love to plan everything else!!
When we rent a house we typically eat in a lot. We like to buy fresh seafood and he makes some amazing dinners. We also like to treat ourselves to a few nights out. These are the restaurants we make sure to stop at every time we are in town.
- Nacho Hippo (Love their Nachos)
- Bubba’s (Best Fried Pickles!)
- River City Café (Best Burgers)
Myrtle Beach is a great choice for your next family vacation. You will find something everyone enjoys!
Read Next: Awesome Family Friendly 6 Night Myrtle Beach Itinerary
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Leah has been traveling with her family of 5 since 2012 and sharing her expertise on planning family vacations and visiting theme parks since 2016. Leah has been featured in Visit Rochester, Undercover Tourist, and Home Publications. She has worked with brands like Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, Hersheypark, Toyota, and various Tourism boards and destinations. Leah creates family travel itineraries based on real trip experiences with her family. Her guides and tips help others plan great family vacations. Learn more about Leah and Five for the Road.
Thank you so much for this post! I just moved to a new D.R. Horton home in Conway SC and my kids have been complaining they are bored in this new place, so when I found your post we have done at least one thing each week and it made this such a wonderful summer! Thank you so much
Oh my gosh! Thank you so much for reading! I am so happy to help your move go a bit smother! Myrtle Beach has so many fun things to do and I hope your kids grow to love it.
Such a fun place to live or visit! We lived in Myrtle Beach back in the day but I haven’t been back there in nearly ten years. It looks like they added some new fun stuff for families since our last visit. Our favorite stops back in the day (besides the beach itself) was Broadway at the Beach. (We lived close enough that we could walk there from our condo!) We especially loved Ripley’s Aquarium.
Wow! That is awesome that you lived there. We love how it is a great mix of everything beach and attractions!
This sounds like a perfect family trip. Love the photos. 🙂 It sounds like y’all had a great trip!
I’ve never been to Myrtle Beach, but oh my gosh, I want to go just for Savannah Playground and Harmony Park! They look so fun!
Medieval Times! Those are still around?? I totally went to one when we took a middle school class trip to Toronto. I’ll have to keep this in mind, as we would like to get to Mytrle Beach one day,
Yes!! So much fun!
It sure is! I love relaxing at the beach for the week!
I went to myrtle beach w an old boyfriend a looonnggggg time ago!!! I really need to bring my kids given that we are a golf and beach family
My kids love it!
I love a road trip!! Perfect to end at the beach! Thanks for reading!
That’s awesome!
Now this looks like my kind of vacation! I love staying in beach houses as well if we are going to be staying for a few days. Saving this for when we plan our Myrtle Beach vacation.
It is for us too! So many great memories!
Yay!! Isn’t it great!
Oh great!! We love it for beach fun!
It’s fairly new! We loved it!
Looks like you had a lot of fun! We touched a sting ray at the aquarium in Chattanooga, TN and it is unbelievable how soft they are! We will have to try the Ripley’s aquarium next time we are near Myrtle Beach!
It’s nice that they have a few of the Ripley’s Aquariums throughout the US!
Pinned this!! What a great place–I need to put this on the bucket list for sure!!
My bucket list keeps growing!!
I have never been to Myrtle beach but I would really love to take my family!!
You should! Thanks for reading!
Looks like a great place to take the entire family to. I’ll definitely plan a trip to Myrtle Beach soon!
Belle | One Awesome Momma
Yay! Thanks for reading!
A love a good road trip to the beach! Myrtle Beach seems like a great place for kids!
It really is great! Thanks for reading!