Hilton Head Island DVC in December - are there activities?

[lpandorf]

My Dad would like to go on family vacation. His first choice is a cruise, but budget wise that is not working out. I asked him what he liked about the cruise idea since he's never been and he said he thought it sounded relaxing. That he could be catered to and sit and relax when he wanted. The family could be together but there would be activities for the kids (ages 8-16) so they could do their own thing sometimes and he would not be worried if they were enjoying themselves.

Hearing about what appealed to him about a cruise got me thinking HHI met many of the things he liked about a cruise but would be at a better price point for the family. We've been one time during the summer and they had a lot of things for the family/kids to take part in. Is December similar to summer? Do they have these same type of activities in December? We'd be going the first week the kids are off on Christmas break and leave a couple days before Christmas Day.

Thanks for your help. I want to make this an especially nice trip for him as my Mom passed away last year.

 

[NuJoy]

Condolences to you and your family. My husband's father passed last year also and his mother just a couple years prior. I understand wanting to have a special trip with your dad.

I live in NC and my parents live in GA. Every other year, for a long weekend in January, My DH and I reserve a Grand Villa at HHI to entertain our own family, my parents, and my sister & niece since my house is not large enough to accommodate everyone and we live in a rural area that does not have hotels very close by. I literally use it as a hosting ground for what I would mostly do at my home if I were able to host them there. I've looked into booking tours and expeditions; but most that are available in the summer are closed in the winter. We don't golf or sail so I have not looked into that. You can still rent bikes at the resort, though, I believe, and they have evening marshmallow roasting/smores/singing around the fire pit. Some other things we have done:

* We usually take one trip down to the beach to walk, collect shells, enjoy the fresh air, and get group family photos. Sometimes we linger at the pool house before heading back to the villa. The counter service is not open in January though.
* Playing pool and relaxing in the Den of the main lodge building across from check-in and visiting with Shadow, the resort's sweet doggie mascot.
* Local dining. I cook almost all our meals; but we do go out once for dinner and once more for lunch as our last farewell before everyone travels back to their homes. Once when my daughter and niece were younger, we let them do the Kids Night Out while the adults went for a nice dinner and they enjoyed that.
* Hammocks
* Since the grand villa has a fireplace, we all gather around on one of the evenings to have our own private marshmallow roasting and make smores.
* Shopping. We like to check out the small store on property and usually browse the nearby shops within walking distance.
* Marsh dock. I think I remember seeing a family pole fishing at the end last year; but I could have totally made that up in my mind. We just like it for the view and sunshine.

We've been lucky with pretty mild temperatures in January, 50-60 degrees on average; but I find I cannot do any outdoor activity without a coat and I'm not sporty. This limits what I'm willing to do. However, everyone is free to come and go as they please and we just give a meal time to meet back up. It works for us.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I know we had a meet with BLou and Shadow in December!

 

[lpandorf]

Thanks for your response. Sounds wonderful.

 

[Simba's Mom]

I've been there in December, but only early December. All the Christmas decorations are up, and they're so pretty. They ran all the same activities as other months, just fewer attendees.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I've been there in December, but only early December. All the Christmas decorations are up, and they're so pretty. They ran all the same activities as other months, just fewer attendees.

Simba's Mom was with me and my cousin when we met Shadow!