How to plan a trip to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

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When I was a kid, my family would always spend the first week of August in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.  I have such wonderful memories of visiting Hilton Head.  To this day, it is still one of my favorite vacation spots.  Not only does it hold special memories for me, but it also just has a lot going for it.

I suspect you’ll love taking a trip to Hilton Head, too.  So we will help you out with our travel guide for planning a trip to Hilton Head.  We want to give you our help and recommendations to not only make your trip more fun, but more affordable, too!

How to Get to Hilton Head Island

My family would always drive to Hilton Head Island, but I grew up in nearby Charlotte, North Carolina.

If you live too far to drive or you’d prefer flying, the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport is the closest major airport to the island.  You can also get to the island via Hilton Head Island Airport.  You can find the cheapest flights to these airports here.

If you fly into Savannah, you may want to rent a car to get to the island (and to use around the island).  You can rent a car here.  You could also consider booking an airport transfer here.

Where to Stay in Hilton Head

One option that was not available to my family when I was a child was Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort.  It is an option that I am very glad exists today.  My family absolutely loves the hotel.  It is not right on the water, but it does have a shuttle to the beach.  And the hotel has those wonderful Disney touches.  You can see for yourself in our video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxXVxDdHorc

We also talk about some of Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort’s best features here – and we tell you there how you can save a lot of money on a stay there!

If you are looking to be right on the ocean, though, a hotel my family highly recommends is the Marriott Hilton Head Resort & Spa.  It is an amazing hotel with so many great features, which you can really see for yourself in our video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVjiQifVMJg

We talk about the hotel and its features a bit more here.

The only negative of that hotel is that it is a bit more on the expensive side than the budget side.  If you are looking for a more affordable hotel, though, then my family recommends Grand Hilton Head Inn.  It is not an oceanfront hotel like Marriott, but it is just a very short walk to the ocean.  It doesn’t have the amenities of a resort like Marriott, but it does have a free breakfast and is a lot cheaper.  You can read our review of the hotel here.

If you’d like to rent a condo, home or apartment, then check out these HHI rental options.

What to Do in Hilton Head

So one of my favorite things to do in Hilton Head is of course the beach.  But there are other fun things to do in Hilton Head when you are not in the ocean.

For example, there is a lot of great restaurants in Hilton Head.  With it being on the water, there’s lots of good seafood, though not just seafood.  One restaurant for both good seafood and other food that we recommend is Nick’s Seafood and Steak, which you read about in our review.

And with it being Hilton Head, there are also great dining options right on the water, including this Hilton Head sunset cruise.

For example, my family has always enjoyed taking a dolphin cruise.  We recommend this dolphin and nature cruise in our review here.

Other fun attractions include: