Hilton Head ideas?

[ephemery1]

I was about to do some online research, but thought maybe I''d throw it out here on Pricescope too and see if anyone has any suggestions for me! My BF and I are headed down to Hilton Head island in a few weeks with my parents, my brother, and his parents. We''ve been down once before with his extended family, and it was a lot of fun... but this time will be for a full week, and I''m just wondering if anyone has any restaurant or activity suggestions from their own experiences? The guys will be golfing every day, and I''m perfectly content to hang out on the beach with a book to read... but it''d be nice to know what my other options are as well! All input welcome... thanks guys!!

 

[mrssalvo]

we went there every summer when I was a kid, but i haven''t been for many years. I know we loved going to Harbor Town and at the time there was a great restaurant called europa Cafe or something like that. there are tons of little shops there as well and there was always live entertainment of some sort. My sister and I were just talking about planning a family vacation there again because we had such good memories growing up.

 

[FireGoddess]

Gosh, I went once with some friends for a week...14 years ago!!! But we did go horseback riding, and it was really fun!! I didn''t (and don''t) golf at all but it was still lots of fun, went to some plantations and lighthouses (which I especially love).

 

[XChick03]

I live like an hour away and hardly ever go.

It''s gorgeous and all, I just prefer Charleston. HH has some great scenery though, and I''ve gone horseback riding a few times and that was fun. I''m sure you''ll be able to find a ton of stuff to do.

 

[gailrmv]

I''m watching this thread with interest, I will be there in June for a long weekend!

Last time I was there, there was a great outlet mall (including COACH!!) I think I went to the Coach store 2-3 times and each time they had different inventory out. Purses are my other obsession, outside of jewelry.

There were also great walking/biking trails near the beach, if I remember correctly.

 

[Gemklctr]

I was in HH last week. We have a house in North Forest Beach, near Coligny Plaza. It has lots of beachy shops, a number of casual but good restaurants including Skillets, and a small theater with classic and indie-type films as well as occasional live performances. I second Harbor Town, although you have to pay at the Sea Pines gate ($5 for a day pass) if you are not staying in that plantation. If you go there, you should also check out the South Beach Marina.

Favorite restaurants for fine dining include Red Fish, Michael Anthony''s and Bistro Mezzaluna. For a casual bar-type atmosphere, we like the Wild Wing Cafe. We had terrific weather (low to mid-80s). Hope you do too. Enjoy!

 

[XChick03]

Date: 4/19/2006 11:26:17 PM
Author: gailrmv
I''m watching this thread with interest, I will be there in June for a long weekend!


Last time I was there, there was a great outlet mall (including COACH!!) I think I went to the Coach store 2-3 times and each time they had different inventory out. Purses are my other obsession, outside of jewelry.


There were also great walking/biking trails near the beach, if I remember correctly.

The Tanger Outlet center, they have a lot of stuff, Nike, jewelery, Coach.

Wild Wing is good, but its not really unique to Hilton Head, they''re everywhere. They''re are some really good seafood places, just ask around when you get there. Oh and its probably going to be really hot when you come. The weather here is kinda crazy right now. It was hot last week, in the 90s but this week its been a lot cooler this week, especially in the mornings.

 

[princessv]

Hey XChick, Tacori and I are trying to plan a Charlotte get-together...we have a thread called Southern GTG, would you be interested in going?

Sorry I don''t have anywhere else to recommend ephemery! I loved Harbor Town and check to see if they have any downtown festivals..I went a few years back for St. Patty''s day and it was so much fun

 

[XChick03]

Oh, I''d love to! I''ll go find the thread.

 

[ephemery1]

Thanks so much for the suggestions, guys... a festival would be SO much fun... I''ll definitely check into that. And I''m a big restaurant person (hey, I''m from Philly), so those recommendations are always appreciated too!! But otherwise, I''m definitely putting outlet shopping and horseback riding on my list of possibilities. I believe my parents'' place is in Palmetto Dunes... condos called Windsor Place maybe? I''ll have to find a map of the island and figure out where each area actually is. Anybody know of any good spas on the island? I saw a few online but wasn''t sure if they were any good or not... but I''m figuring if the guys get to golf a zillion rounds, the girls should get to spend at LEAST that much on a spa day...

 

[XChick03]

The European Spa is supposed to be really nice. I think there''s also one called Faces and another one called Indulge.

 

[mrssalvo]

we also you to take a day and go to Savannah, GA which is a lot of fun too.

 

[XChick03]

I hate Savannah. I live here for the time being (only another week) and it''s awful, IMO. There just isnt much to do here. I''m terribly homesick for Charleston, though.

 

[Gemklctr]

Date: 4/20/2006 9:57:29 AM
Author: ephemery1
Thanks so much for the suggestions, guys... a festival would be SO much fun... I'll definitely check into that. And I'm a big restaurant person (hey, I'm from Philly), so those recommendations are always appreciated too!! But otherwise, I'm definitely putting outlet shopping and horseback riding on my list of possibilities. I believe my parents' place is in Palmetto Dunes... condos called Windsor Place maybe? I'll have to find a map of the island and figure out where each area actually is. Anybody know of any good spas on the island? I saw a few online but wasn't sure if they were any good or not... but I'm figuring if the guys get to golf a zillion rounds, the girls should get to spend at LEAST that much on a spa day...

I've stayed in Windsor Place and the condos and amenities (pool, etc.) can be very nice. The Hilton and Marriott resorts in Palmetto Dunes probably have excellent spas, but I'm not sure you can get access to them if you're not staying there. You might want to check.

ETA: Old town Savvanah can be interesting, and Paula Dean's restaurant there is very good if you like southern-style cooking.

 

[princessv]

Ooo I wanted to add that last time I was in Hilton Head, I went horseback riding on the beach..I believe there are several companies that do that and it was just spectacular!

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 4/20/2006 10:17:31 AM
Author: XChick03
I hate Savannah. I live here for the time being (only another week) and it''s awful, IMO. There just isnt much to do here. I''m terribly homesick for Charleston, though.

Really? I loved going as a kid. We would go and see all of the historic homes and walk down by the river. I remember getting pralines or something freshly roasted and they were always so yummy. We only went for a few hours though so maybe that''s why there seemed to be plenty to do. I really love all the history there and loved touring old estates, i can see if you don''t like that type of thing that it might not be a very interesting place to be

 

[XChick03]

Date: 4/20/2006 11:52:27 AM
Author: mrssalvo

Date: 4/20/2006 10:17:31 AM

Author: XChick03

I hate Savannah. I live here for the time being (only another week) and it''s awful, IMO. There just isnt much to do here. I''m terribly homesick for Charleston, though.

Really? I loved going as a kid. We would go and see all of the historic homes and walk down by the river. I remember getting pralines or something freshly roasted and they were always so yummy. We only went for a few hours though so maybe that''s why there seemed to be plenty to do. I really love all the history there and loved touring old estates, i can see if you don''t like that type of thing that it might not be a very interesting place to be

I guess it''s because we have all of that in downtown Charleston and then some. We have the old homes, the Ashley river, loads and loads of history (which I love), so I guess since I''ve lived in a place like that my entire life, Savannah just doesn''t appeal to me much. I''m sure other people would think its lovely though.

Also, does anyone happen to remember any names of horseback riding places? I can''t for the life of me and I''ve been dying to go for a while now. I thought it''d be something fun we could do before we move.

 

[mrssalvo]

XCHICK, I do agree with about Charleston, I love it there too

. We just always went to savannah for a day trip on our Hilton head vacations. How far is Charleston?

 

[JDgirl]

That''s so funny, I was just going to recommend Sea Pines Plantation (Salty Dog Cafe is out there), Harbourtown and Cafe Europa!

And, if you like good very unfancy seafood, there''s Old Oyster Factory.

And there''s tons of outlet shopping just off-island.

Have fun!

 

[XChick03]

Date: 4/20/2006 12:36:50 PM
Author: mrssalvo


XCHICK, I do agree with about Charleston, I love it there too

. We just always went to savannah for a day trip on our Hilton head vacations. How far is Charleston?

It usually takes about 1 hr 45 minutes to 2 hours to get there. I think its around 100 miles.