Pawleys Island is an Atlantic coast barrier island off the coast of the Grand Strand of Myrtle Beach. The small island is only 4 miles long and about a half-mile wide and is one of the oldest resort areas on the East Coast. There are few cars on the South Carolina island and parking is limited.

Apache Pier, Pawleys Island, SC

Apache Pier, Pawleys Island, SC

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The Apache Pier is a family-friendly attraction located at the Apache Family Campground. The pier is the longest wooden pier on the East Coast. It is open every day of the year and provides a selection of fun activities for visitors and local residents.

Visitors can walk the length of the pier to take a look at the ocean below.

During the summer months, there is live music. Those who love fishing or wish to try fishing for the first time will find everything they need at Apache Pier.

The pier offers rod and reels for rent as well as a full-service bait shop selling live bait, tackle, and more.

Apache Pier, Myrtle Beach, SC, Phone: 843-497-6486

Applewood House of Pancakes


Applewood House of Pancakes is a pancake house on the Ocean Highway.

The restaurant is best known for their fantastic weekend breakfast bar.

The buffet-style bar includes a wide variety of pre-cooked items as well as cooked-to-order eggs and omelets, and it offers a good value for the price.

Even though their weekend buffet has made them famous, the restaurant is a great place to grab breakfast during any day of your vacation.

They serve a range of items including fresh fruit, cereal, traditional style breakfast, and of course pancakes.

They have an impressive selection of omelets, including several with seafood like Awesome Amy’s Shrimp Omelet.

14361 Ocean Highway, Pawleys Island, SC 29585, Phone: 843-979-1022

Atalaya Castle

Atalaya Castle

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Atalaya Castle is the former holiday home of Archer Huntington, who was the son of a well-to-do robber baron, and his wife Anna, who was a famous sculptor.

At one time they owned a massive amount of property including what is now the Huntington State Park. The property includes more than thirty rooms built around a perimeter creating an enclosed courtyard in the middle.

The large home has a 40-foot tall square water tower in the center that provided the home with water.

The property also includes Anna’s sculpting studio and a small stable. During the summer tourist season, the castle is staffed with docent guides who provide one hour guided tours of the building and grounds.

Atalaya Road, Murrells Inlet, SC 29576, Phone: 843-237-4440

Black River Outdoors Center


Black River Outdoors Center is a canoe and kayak tour company and outfitters. The company offers two and four hour kayak tours guided by knowledgeable, local naturalists.

The tours explore the relaxed Tidelands of South Carolina, which include Huntington Beach State Park’s salty marshes as well as the Sandy Island Wildlife Preserve and the Waccamaw River Cypress-Tupelo Swamp Preserves.

They also offer short tours of the Georgetown Harbor in the evenings as well as kayak tours by moonlight during the summer months.

The tours use very stable solo and tandem river kayaks that are perfect for adventurers of any age.

62 Byers Trail, Pawleys Island, SC 29585, Phone: 843-546-4840

Blue Wave Adventures Dolphin Tour


Blue Wave Adventures is a tour company that offers dolphin tours and kayaking adventures out of the Crazy Sisters Marina in Murrells Inlet.

The dolphin tours are family friendly and are available to children age three and up and of course adults. The boat is a 42-foot aluminum vessel with seating for forty guests.

They run their tours every day as long as the weather permits and offer six 1.5-hour tours each day. Knowledgeable tour guides narrate the tours, which include information about wildlife, history and interesting sites.

Guests on the tours may have the chance to see dolphins, turtles, eagles, rays, sharks, jellyfish, and much more.

4123-B Hwy 17 BUS, Murrells Inlet, SC 29576, Phone: 843-651-3676

Caffe Piccolo


Caffe Piccolo is an Italian restaurant serving traditional Italian favorites with a locally inspired touch.

The restaurant features an intimate space complete with a fireplace and a menu that reflects fresh, local seafood and produce. Caffe Piccolo is committed to using only the most fresh and local ingredients in their old family recipes.

The restaurant offers gluten free pasta and bread options for those with gluten sensitivities. Vegan dishes are also available.

The restaurant space can be reserved for private parties, and the staff of Caffe Piccolo even offers in-home catering where they go to a guest’s home and prepare meal for a party or special occasion.

9428 Ocean Highway, Pawleys Island, SC 29585, Phone: 843-314-3424

Carolina Guide Service


Carolina Guide Service offers chartered fishing trips for the whole family. A U.S. Coast Guard Captain who skillfully guides the boats through the backwaters and saltwater estuaries to find the best places to score a big catch leads the trips. The company operates trips year round and has an option of half and full day trips. Each fishing charter has room for one to four fishermen.

The trip includes everything you need to enjoy a day out on the water, including bait, rods, tackle, and a fishing license. The trips are family-friendly, and children are welcome on any of their trips.

169 Windover Drive, Pawleys Island, SC 29585, Phone: 843-814-7900

Island Art Gallery


Island Art Gallery is an art gallery located in Pawleys Island’s Village Shops. The gallery features a selection of fine art by local and nationally known artists. They offer services to both large-scale corporate and private art collectors as well as individuals, whether they are novice enthusiasts or established art collectors. Island Art Gallery also hosts educational art classes for the community throughout the year. Some of the classes that they offer include landscape painting courses, introductory art classes, and more. They also have open studio time where guests can reserve a spot and join any time there is room. The open studio time consists of independent painting in a group setting with an instructor available for help.

10744 Ocean Highway, Pawleys Island, SC 29585, Phone: 843-314-0298

Surf the Earth


. Surf the Earth is a surf shop offering rentals, sales, lessons and tours on Pawleys Island. They offer weeklong surf camps as well as lessons in either private or group format. Professional instructors who can effectively teach basic surfing skills as well as water safety teach the camps and lessons. For more experienced surfers, they offer board rentals and sales. Surf the Earth offers several eco-tour options that explore Pawleys Island and the Litchfield salt marshes, including kayak and stand-up paddleboard tours. For an especially memorable experience, guests can book a full-moon kayak tour.

47 Da Gullah Way, Pawleys Island, SC 29585, Phone: 843-235-3500

Caledonia Golf and Fish Club


Praised for its immaculate course and challenging tracks, the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club boasts an immaculate course that will test the mettle of beginners and veterans alike. This scenic course, with its fairways, bunkers, and more, is so well kept and so well designed that the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club has consistently found itself listed as one of the best courses to play in major golfing magazines like Golf Digest and Golfweek. With 18 signature holes, the course is situated on 6,526 yards of gorgeous land along the Hammock Coast. Par 4 is an iconic tee shot on the course and requires excellent precision to carry your ball over water and onto the green by the clubhouse.

369 Caledonia Drive, Pawleys Island, South Carolina 29585, Phone: 800-463-6800

All Fired Up Studios


At All Fired Up Studios, you’re the artist, and what you say goes! This popular activity destination is a great place to take kids who love arts and crafts, or even to bring your girlfriends for a crafty night out. The studio offers a massive selection of pottery pieces to paint, with over five hundred styles and designs to pick from. The studio also offers more than one hundred different colors of glaze to paint your pieces with, so you can get as creative as you want with your hand-painted pieces.

47 DaGullah Way, Pawleys Island, South Carolina 29585, Phone: 843-314-3495

Chive Blossom Restaurant and Bar


Dine beneath majestic Lowcountry live oaks or within a bright and rustic restaurant at the Chive Blossom Restaurant and Bar, one of the most popular foodie destinations on Pawleys Island. Owned by Paul Kelly and Trina Renualt, culinary geniuses with many years of experience in the industry, the restaurant specializes in Southern classics with unique flairs, and dishes of French, Asian, and Mediterranean influence. While the Chive Blossom offers a delectable array of dishes through their lunch and dinner menus, regular swear by mains like the Blackened Pork Porterhouse, the Wild Salmon, and the 8 Ounce Center Cut Filet Mignon.

85 North Causeway, Pawleys Island, South Carolina 29585, Phone: 843-237-1438

Frank’s and Frank’s Outback, Pawleys Island, SC


Two restaurants in one, Frank’s and Frank’s Outback is undeniably one of the most popular restaurants to dine at on the Grand Strand of Pawleys Island. Frank’s Inside Bistro, or just Frank’s for short, is a formal restaurant that specializes in beef, pork, lamb, and other local game, while Frank’s Outback is a casual but sophisticated outdoor restaurant that dishes up Lowcountry pleasers like blackened fresh caught fish and shrimp and grits. At the end of the day, Frank’s and Frank’s Outback are both about providing their patrons with the ultimate Pawleys Island gastronomic experience, so sit back, relax, and enjoy meals that will satisfy even the pickiest of epicureans.

10434 Ocean Highway, Pawleys Island, South Carolina, Phone: 843-237-3030