Myrtle Beach is a major tourist destination along the South Atlantic coast of South Carolina. It is widely known for its wide beaches, large selection of challenging golf links, excellent seafood restaurants, and outlet-style shopping activities. It attracts over 14 million visitors annually, consisting of tourists from other Southern states or "Snowbirds" from the North, who may own a condominium or timeshare along the coast.

While the area itself may be referred to as "The Grand Strand", this term is not simply limited to the city of Myrtle Beach. Several smaller towns to the north (Briarcliff, Atlantic Beach, and North Myrtle Beach) in addition to Myrtle Beach make up what is known en masse as the "Grand Strand".

Being a beach town, the tourist season coincides with the summer months, with the season peaking around the July 4th holiday and slowly declining from there. Beware of the last couple of weeks of May and the first few weeks of June - several "Biker Weekends", known locally as "Harley Biker Weekend" for the Harley-Davidson weekend and "Black Biker Weekend" for the Atlantic Beach weekend (this isn't meant to be racist - a majority of the draw on the latter weekend has been traditionally African-American, as it was started by a group of primarily African-American bikers). Traffic during these weeks tends to be horrible, especially during the latter, when in 2005 the city of Myrtle Beach saw it fit to create a new lane, serving only Atlantic Beach traffic, in order to remove some of the glut.

Get around

One aspect of Myrtle Beach that is less-than hospitable are its roads. A tourist may find the style of driving in Myrtle Beach to be aggressive, reckless and hard to manage - and for the most part, he or she is right. Myrtle Beach has one of the highest accident rates in the state, due in part to it's impatient drivers and oddly-placed roads (many of which are simply paved versions of old dirt roads placed there to service an establishment or two).

Myrtle Beach has a city-wide bus system entitled "Lymo", in which one can get a trip across town for around $2-5, depending on the distance. The hours, however, are being cut down, possibly due to the competition it poses to the private cab services in the area (which can run up to $50 for a trip across the Grand Strand).

If you must drive, plan ahead - if you are going a short distance (under five miles), then take one of the main roads that runs adjacent to the beach. If you are going a longer distance, try and take one of the interstate roads that branches further out - these are generally clear of traffic, and thus are much more bearable than the city roads.

Attractions

The namesake of Myrtle Beach is, of course, the beach. Although crammed through the season, with parking scarce, you can usually find them to be much more hospitable if you are staying at a shore side resort, since parking is provided and the beachfront usually belonging to said resort, leaving it much easier to access. For those on a budget, however, don't fret - the beach is still basically public, although you may have to fight for a spot during the day. Never underestimate the beauty of the shoreline at sunrise, when the sands are basically abandoned, the temperature modest, and the seashells have yet to have been picked from the prior nights' wave crashes.

Myrtle Beach is also home to many big-name attractions, with a few of the more commonly-known listed here.
 • Broadway at the Beach - a huge cluster of bars, nightlife, shops, a movie theatre and even an aquarium, Broadway stands to be one of Myrtle Beach's more accessible attractions.
 • Coastal Grand Mall - a recently-built massive mall that services large crowds year-round.
 • Myrtle Beach Pavilion - amusement park towards the southern end of the city. A mainstay in the city for decades.
 • Barefoot Landing - the first major tourist center in the area with over 100 shops, great eateries, steakhouses and a brewery, home to the Alabama Theatre and House of Blues, both offering live entertainment nightly.

Dining

Pizza
 • 67th New York Pizza & Sub, 6613 N Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-497-5900
 • Above & Pizza Co, 9660 N Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-692-2272
 • Ala Mario's Pizza, 2286 Highway 501 E, Conway, SC 843-347-0805
 • Anthony's of Myrtle Beach, 2807 S Ocean Blvd, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-445-6400
 • Anthony's Pizza & Pan Pasta, 2298 Glenns Bay Rd, Surfside Beach, SC 843-215-5444
 • Ashley's Pizza & Pub, 405 N Ocean Blvd, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-626-6655
 • Athen's Pizza Inc., 5419 Dick Pond Rd, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-650-0044
 • Basil's Pizza Seafood & Subs, 219 Sea Mountain Hwy # A, North Myrtle Bch, SC 843-249-0748
 • Battista's Lighthouse Cafe, 905 Highway 17, Little River, SC 843-249-7377
 • Benito's Brick Oven Pizza, 1596 Highway 17 S, North Myrtle Bch, SC 843-272-1414
 • Benjamin's Bagel Bakery & Deli, 531 Highway 17 S, Surfside Beach, SC 843-238-2922
 • Bisogna's Pizzeria, 9714 N Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-497-8688
 • Boston Pizza Plus, 1208 N Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-448-1177

Mexican
 • Casa Blanca Cafe North, 400 N Ocean Blvd, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-444-9050
 • El Cerro Grande, 108 S Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-946-9562
 • Villa Katrina's Underground, 821 Main St, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-946-6216
 • Taco Bell, 1307 N Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-448-1706
 • Chalupa's Mexican Restaurant, 2801 N Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-626-4566
 • Fiesta Del Burro Loco, 960 Jason Blvd, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-626-1756
 • Chili's Grill & Bar, 4401 N Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-448-6319
 • Bobarosa's Chile Ranch, 3071 Waccamaw Blvd, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-236-9916
 • La Fiesta Taqueria Y Tienda, 5211 N Kings Hwy, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-449-7845
 • Fiesta Mexicana, 410 70th Ave N, Myrtle Beach, SC 843-497-2781