Hilton Head Island

[twinmomplus2]

We have canceled our trip in MArch due to school abscenses. And I know we won't make it to December to go away. I have no desire to go to Disney in August ever again. However I know my preschoolers are going to ask for thier Birthday to go to Disney. I am wondering if Hilton Head Island might do the trick for them. I know there are tons of kids activitys.... enough for newly turned 4 year olds to do though? Is there ever any characters that appear there? Anyone have any experience there the second week of August? And lastly would it be a horrible drive from the Boston area? Any enlightenment would be appreciated. thanks Lauren

 

[JVL1018]

Originally posted by twinmomplus2
I am wondering if Hilton Head Island might do the trick for them. I know there are tons of kids activitys.... enough for newly turned 4 year olds to do though? Is there ever any characters that appear there? Anyone have any experience there the second week of August? And lastly would it be a horrible drive from the Boston area? Any enlightenment would be appreciated. thanks Lauren

There is PLENTY for a just turned 4 year old, my 3 year old last year did the Unbirthday party, the Disney Discovery Butterfly thing(LOL don;t remember the actual name) it was 3 hours, games, learned about butterflies, a puppet show, crafts...she painted a butterfly house, a birdhouse, went to B'lou's magic show, juggling and Shadows Tales, could have done the kids story hour and the Gyotaku(fish painting) as well as the dolphin cruise, but we never got around to that. Also, we did the Campfires.
Shannon Tanner plays music at the marina across the way in the evenings, this is all in addition to the beach and the pool, of course. We didn't bother with the beach, and we still had a fabulous time.
I have not seen characters there and don't believe there are any, but trust me your kids will have such fun, they won't miss them.
I would guess the drive form Boston-HH would be about a couple hours shy of our NJ-WDW drive, which we don't find horrible.

 

[Sammie]

Summer is peak time at Hilton Head and while there are plenty of activities for all ages, there will be nothing there that will be "Disney" to a 4 year old except for the topiaries at the entrance.

No characters at HH at least no Disney ones, lol.

It will be hot and crowded at that time also. Pretty similar to all popular beach resort areas during the summer with lots of people, and lots of traffic.

While HH is a wonderful resort destination it is not Disney World.

 

[Laura1994]

We're from MA and thinking of making the drive. It's approx 17 hours from South of Boston. Fairly easy ride, down 95 into South Carolina, I believe someone said the resort is about 1/2 hour off 95.

Guess it just depends on how much you like driving and how you think the kids will tolerate it. We've driven to WDW the last two years. The kids (4 of them) don't seem to mind, but we also have a tv in our vehicle. I bring lots of new treats, cd's, gameboy games, etc. So they look forward to that also. My dh on the other hand does not like the drive! Complains when I start talking Disney! BTW my youngest was 2 1/2 on her first trip via car and she did very well with it!

We're hoping to get in a little getaway at HH on one of the vacation weeks because it's not quite as far and it's something i've wanted to check out.

 

[cgcw]

Originally posted by Sammie
While HH is a wonderful resort destination it is not Disney World.

True...it is not Disney World, but based on our experience, our family would choose HH over WDW any day.

While we love to go to WDW, it doesn't give us what HH does. Quality family time in a non-rushed, non-get-up-and-go atmosphere. We love to ride our bikes where ever they take us. We love to get up in the morning and watch the birds or go out and see if there might be a dolphin or two swimming in Shelter Cove or along the pier. We love to catch as many crabs as the kids can. It's the unscheduled relaxation that we don't get any other time.

We're coming up on our 4th summer trip there. Yes, the resort is full but it doesn't ever really "feel" crowded. Not like WDW feels crowded when it's at capacity.

 

[Sammie]

Originally posted by cgcw
True...it is not Disney World, but based on our experience, our family would choose HH over WDW any day.

While we love to go to WDW, it doesn't give us what HH does. Quality family time in a non-rushed, non-get-up-and-go atmosphere. We love to ride our bikes where ever they take us. We love to get up in the morning and watch the birds or go out and see if there might be a dolphin or two swimming in Shelter Cove or along the pier. We love to catch as many crabs as the kids can. It's the unscheduled relaxation that we don't get any other time.

We're coming up on our 4th summer trip there. Yes, the resort is full but it doesn't ever really "feel" crowded. Not like WDW feels crowded when it's at capacity.

I love HH as much as anyone, and Yes many prefer it over WDW and at times I certainly do also.

But if a child is expecting DisneyWorld and what it offers, I am not sure HH will be a good replacement. That was what I was trying to point out and never a critism of HH and it's offerings. To me it is the "best" beach resort destination ever.

 

[Jimbo]

I think Sammie makes a good point. We took our grandkids (6 and 9) to HHI in August. At first my wife was telling the girls that we were going to an island and we were going to stay with Disney. To adults like us, Disney means high quality, theming, service, etc. But when a kid that age hears Disney, they think characters and rides. So they might have been disappointed for a couple of days.

So we changed tactics and stopped usind the D word. We said we were going to an island with a great beach and dolphins. By the time we got there they had forgotten all about Disney and we had a really, really excellent time.

 

[treloarf]

We'll be at HH first week in Aug. in a 2 bedroom with cousins, but due to 2 bedroom point requirments, only have enough pts. for 5 nights. Just curious - will we have enough time to relex & enjoy everything. We've never been to HH - only WDW - our kids our 8 & 11. We are considering staying the Sat. night in a studio by ourselves. Comments!

Has anyone driven from Pgh - curious how long a drive?

 

[MiaSRN62]

as well as the dolphin cruise

Hi....we're driving from the Philly area to HH (estimating about 12 hours) at the end of May. We drive when we go to WDW too---have a conversion van with TV so the kids have always been fine.
My question is where can you get info on the dolphin cruise ? Price ? Is it offered year 'round ? Do you need to make ressies ahead or simply when you arrive at the resort ? Thanks.

 

[RumpleMom]

We visited HHI last summer for the first time. You can call the resort the week before your stay and they will fax you a list of the current planned activities. Now they may be slightly different during your week so don't get your heart set on a certain activity on a specific day, but it gives you a general idea of what is available. This helped me tremendously because we plan every day at WDW and to not have anything planned for our upcoming vacation was stressful... go figure! DH kept asking what I had planned for each day and I kept telling him swim at the beach, eat lunch, swim in the pool, go out to dinner swim or shop or mini-golf. We did several of the resort activities including playing pool almost every evening. Can you tell we don't relax well?