<p>I am not a covetous person. I pretty much have every thing I need or want. BUT, if there was one more thing I could have, it would be a place in Sea Pines on Hilton Head Island.</p>
<p>We are on are seventh vacation at HHI since 2001 staying this week at the Marriott Grand Ocean timeshare. I really love it here.</p>
<p>Can you share some of your favorite restaurants, things to do while vacationing at Hilton Head? We have friends that plan to vacation there for Spring Break. Thanks!</p>
<p>Hilton Head is heavenly. We bought a home there last year and I’d love to be able to spend more time there!</p>
<p>DH has a villa (that’s what they call condos on HHI) in Sea Pines, on the fairway of the Heron Point golf course. We’ve listed it on a home exchange website site and have had some interest. </p>
<p>Here’s some text DH wrote from our villa website that might be useful:</p>
<p>Bikes! If you take only one recommendation from us, let it be this one. Rent bikes for the duration of your stay, and do all your daytime-inside-Sea Pines travel by bike. The system of bike trails is extensive and beautiful. One of our favorite trips is to check out the tide tables and go to the Atlantic Ocean beach at low tide when the sand is hard enough to support a bike and rider. We also check the weather channel just to discover the direction the prevailing breeze. The beach runs from southwest to northeast. Almost always the breeze is out of the south or west, and so you want to enter the beach at the southwest end. You can do this on a beach access from the bike trail at Tower Beach. If you are riding on a day when the breeze is from the north or east, your ride should probably start at the Plantation Club. You can, of course, decide to ride against the wind if you want a workout. Remember to stop a few times on the huge expanse of beach and just gaze out to sea. There is magic here.</p>
<p>Groceries. We do most of our grocery shopping in three stores just outside the Sea Pines gate. There is a large Publix in the shopping center to your left just after you exit Sea Pines and just before you reach Sea Pines Circle. There is a Harris-Teeter in the shopping center to the right just as you leave Sea Pines. If you favor a more natural/organic grocery, you can go straight through the traffic circle and within a mile or two find a Fresh Market on the left just past the best miniature golf course on the island.</p>
<p>Restaurants. Hilton Head Island has a huge variety of places to eat, from burgers to outstanding New American cuisine. We generally eat breakfast and lunch at home and go out to dinner. When you go to the grocery look on the sidewalk outside for dispensers of various sorts of free publications. One of them is a thick newsprint publication called Hilton Head Restaurants. Almost every restaurant on the island is listed along with descriptions and a map showing where on the island they are located. There are two places you really should try right in Sea Pines. The first is Truffles. This is where families go for an upscale reunion dinner. It’s family-run and has been a landmark for decades. The second is South Beach. Probably you have seen, somewhere in your travels, a Salty Dog T-shirt. Those shirts all come from the South Beach Marina in Sea Pines. You can have burgers, fried seafood and beer at the justly famous Salty Dog Cafe or try a more upscale seafood restaurant - the point, however, is to soak up the South Beach Marina vibe, and maybe treat yourselves to ice cream or a Salty Dog T-shirt of your own.</p>
<p>History. Find the plantation ruins on your bike trail map. Go lean against a foundation that’s hundreds of years old and let your imagination run free. There’s a novel waiting to be written about this place. Or bike to the Sea Pines Forest Preserve and search out the American Indian shell mounds from an even earlier era.</p>
<p>Active fun. Tennis, golf, swimming, bike riding, frisbee throwing, skim boarding, paddle tennis, and bocci on the beach. There is equipment for some of these in our living room closet.</p>
<p>Rainy days. Probably you won’t have any, but if you do we have a collection of jigsaw puzzles in the closet or you can drive about 3 miles off island to the Outlet Mall. Nearly everyone loves a shopping day. Even men have been known to enjoy themselves at these stores.</p>
<p>When you’ve done all you can or want to do in the way of active fun, just go back to the beach. Take our beach umbrellas and chairs, and just watch the waves. Some people get inspiration from mountains, some get inspiration from the sea. You can even think about your work if you want, and no one will suspect. In our experience, sitting on the beach in the face of a light sea breeze is the best source of new ideas and new insights we’ve ever found.</p>
<p>We too LOVE Sea Pines and have SC now on our very short list of future retirement locations. (This will sound crazy, but there is a really beautiful cemetery as you drive in, but the only way you can be buried there is if you have been a Sea Pines owner. In case one needed further incentive!) We first went to HH for a business conference at the giant Westin, but returned the next summer to stay at a gorgeous villa that we found on a rental website. That place became “our house” for vacations. The island has everything from the most casual to fancy, activities for sun and rainy days, activities for all ages, wonderful beaches, shopping, etc. And, is not a long drive from Savannah and Charleston if you are looking to expand your sightseeing experiences. If you don’t want to do anything without any guilt involved, just go to the beach and stay there for hours. Our favorite time is end of afternoon when most families leave. For restaurants, one of our favorites is Red Fish which is just outside the Sea Pines circle. Enjoy!</p>
<p>We went to Hilton Head for our honeymoon. Many, many moons ago. :)</p>
<p>S is leaving for HH on Saturday for a spring break tennis team trip. Lucky him! He has never been that far south nor really been on an ocean beach. Any suggestions of cheaper restaurants that are well known in HH for the budget conscious college student? Activities?</p>
<p>Lots of good suggestions. I’m a beach person and when we are down there that’s where I spend most of my time. Of course it’s a little cool for that now, but it has been nice to sit around the pool. When I’m not sunning or sitting around water of some kind I am out riding a bike. I rented one for $30.00 per week at the Grand Ocean where we are for the week. It included a week pass for entry into Sea Pines, which is a gated community accessible for visitors for a fee. If your friends are staying in Sea Pines they will probably get a pass, but it might depend. Sea Pines, and the rest of HHI, is covered with paved, flat bike paths. Beautiful forests, horses at Lawton Stables, ponds, alligators, herons, cranes, turtles, and homes to see when you are out riding. </p>
<p>There are also tennis courts, golf courses, and various water activities. There is plenty of shopping including a major discount outlet with two locations. One is closed until the end of March. Savannah is nearby, about an hour away. </p>
<p>As for restaurants. There are lots and lots of them. There are several on Skull Creek, the Chart House, Hudson’s, and Skull Creek, that are worth a visit. Also try Redfish and the Studio. Restaurants.com generally has a few discounts for HHI and nearby Beaufort. </p>
<p>One caveat for your friends. HHI is very, very dark at night. There are virtually no street lights and on business 278, the main road in and out, all the business are set far back from the road so you cannot see them from the highway, and you need to know where you are going.</p>
<p>Doesn’t everyone have to make a trip to The Salty Dog Cafe if for the nothing else but the t-shirt?</p>
<p>My parents used to have a house in Port Royal Plantation. PRP is on the Atlantic side, with no condos (all single-family houses) and no short term rentals allowed. One could walk the beach for miles. Bike riding was also great. Savannah is a definite must-see.</p>
<p>I’m intrigued by HH. How does one choose which area to stay? Is there a better place for a family traveling with 20-somethings? Are there differences between beaches or access to services?</p>
<p>Big fan of the great biking trails on HHI. This was the place where I first fell in love with being able to do that on a beach vacation. Now, wherever we go, I always look for that option. </p>
<p>Re the vacation with the 20 somethings, try to stay somewhere they can easily get to things on their own. It’s been awhile since I’ve been there, but some locations in Sea Pines are kind of far from the “busy” area of town, although there are certainly a few places to go to within Sea Pines. </p>
<p>I’m sure you will get many more well informed opinions than mine. And I’m really jealous of anyone who owns a property there. Lucky!!</p>
<p>We have a place in Sea Pines. I know all of HH is beautiful, but I love Sea Pines. The bike trails are great, be sure you venture off to some of the less commonly traveled trails. Our place backs up to the Forest Preserve and that is definitely an underused treasure. It is a beautiful place to hike. </p>
<p>altmom - Coligny Plaza/Forest Beach is right outside of the Sea Pines ocean gate. It’s a casual beach area with lots of shops, restaurants, and merchandise stands. The public beach/parking is across from Coligny Plaza, but if you’re staying in one of the condos or beach houses you just walk out to the beach that’s right in front of you. This area may be more appealing to young adults who want to do more than sit on the beach. Another area a little further away from Sea Pines, but not too far, is Shelter Cove. It’s not on the ocean side of the island, but it is an area that has shops, restaurants, boating trips, a nearby small mall, and they have fireworks on Tuesday nights during the summer. I believe a lot of the places to stay at Shelter Cove have access to the ocean beaches at Palmetto Dunes, but I’m not 100% sure about that. I also strongly recommend one of the dolphin boat rides. Go on the small boats that have you right down by the water. Lots of fun to see the dolphins up close. I would still vote to stay in Sea Pines, but these others places are close by for entertainment.</p>
<p>Packmom - Yes, you have to get a Salty Dog t-shirt. You spot people wearing them all across the country. I was in Wyoming once, in the middle of nowhere getting gas, and saw someone in a Salty Dog t-shirt.</p>
<p>Just back from a late lunch at the Skull Creek Boathouse restaurant. Two things: there really is a boat house there, right next to the restaurant. We watched them put a boat in the water. Secondly Skull Creek is less a creek and more a river in its size. Then we drove over to Harbor Town where I sat in a red rocking chair with someone’s dog at my feet and looked at the rich people’s boats and the fake lighthouse. It was in the mid-60s with a strong, warm sun.</p>
<p>yes, alot of the Shelter Cove places do have beach access at Palmetto Dunes…</p>
<p>In laws have a timeshare on HHI. We spent the last week of October there for many years. The kids trick or treated there for years. We have amazing memories of the beaches, food, and shops (loved to see what closed/what opened each year). Hope we can get back someday soon. Sigh … :)</p>
<p>i would recommend Tybee island over hilton head if you are just looking for a laid back time. Tybee is just south of hilton head, it is in northern Georgia, and is a lot less commercial!! Just as beautiful but less tourists… there are a few hotels on the island but also many houses that can be rented! It is also a short drive from Savannah! definitely check it out. Just so you know if you plan on golfing, Tybee does not have any golf courses…</p>
<p>Odd coincidence…I was just looking at vacation ideas and came up with Hilton Head. Does anyone have any recommendations for hotels on the beach? Travelocity picks a Marriott Resort as its top pick.</p>
<p>Back to Madison. It snowed last night. I clearly understand the message invoked. Alas, I can’t do anything about it for now. The only thing hot around here is the politics.</p>
<p>tsdad, we arrived today. Sunny and 78 and just what we needed after a very long, cold, and snowy winter. A bike ride, a walk, some time at the driving range, a quick trip to the grocery store, a nice dinner and a glass of wine on the deck watching the sunset. I’m thrilled to have a couple of weeks but can’t wait until I can stay longer!</p>
<p>EPTR: just booked at Grande Ocean for long weekend in July…supposedly great!!..this thread made me realize how much I missed taking our annual trip…</p>