What are your "must see" things at HHI?

[my 2 monkeys]

My family and I are traveling to HHI at the end of July and I am looking for some "must see" activities or restaurants. I have 2 kids, DD is 8 and DS is 5. We have only been to the island one other time over spring break, so we are excited to have some summer beach fun. I would love any input from HHI veterans.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Simba's Mom]

Our "must dos" may not be yours since we don't have any young kids. For us, it's a trip out to the Salty Dog resturaunt in Sea Pines and a walk through the Sea Pines Forest Preserve. For me and probably for your kids, I'd definitely recommend a visit with Shadow, the resort's pet. Last trip I mentioned to B'leu Crabbe that I hoped to see her, and later that day he came with her and found me at the pool. One of the resort activities, I don't remember the name of it, but it involved walking through the marsh in boots, was also fun although in July it might be kind of hot.

 

[whitepicketfence]

You are going to have a great time! My kids were 7 and 8 the first time we went to HHI. Some of the highlights for them:

Crabbing!-get some chicken (necks or wings) from Publix or Piggly Wiggly.
Banana Peels at the beach-kind of like a recumbent bike for the beach.
Campfire
Kid's night out-they had pizza and games and went to a movie. My husband and I went to a wine tasting.
Daufuskie Island-we went on a tour (just us on the boat) and got to get out and explore a completely deserted part of the island. Saw lots of dolphins too. We have also done shark fishing which is really fun.
Meeting Shadow
Kids' activities-crafts and games, etc.
The BEACH!
The pool slide

We have gone down to the Salty Dog and Sea Pines and now we don't. It is so crowded and the kids just aren't interested, even as young adults. I go out the first day we are there and get a bunch of easy to throw together meals from Fresh Market and Publix. We would rather be at the beach, the pool, crabbing, in hammocks, playing games on the porch, or riding bikes than waiting for a table. At the peak, even getting a pizza delivered can be a huge wait. We do go out to eat when we are at HHI during off-peak times. There are some nice places but, for us, nothing worth waiting (or as my kids call it, wasting our vacation) a long time for.

Have a great time!

 

[my 2 monkeys]

Thanks so much for the replies! It's funny, but the only thing my kids remember from the last trip is the Salty Dog, so they are begging to go back there. Well, that and mini golf...but you can do that anywhere.

I had no idea that there is a kid's night out there. Do they take advance registration like the WDW resorts? Thanks for the heads up about that! They love the KNO at WDW, so it will be a treat for them at HH too.

whitepicketfence--thanks so much for all the great ideas. Looks like my kids will have a blast! I would have never thought about the crabbing. Never having done that before, what else is involved? Sounds like it would be neat seeing the crabs, definitely not something we would see around here.

Thanks again!!!

 

[Sammie]

We love going to Salty Dog and Old Oyster Factory for dining.

Several nice minature golf places and we enjoy the dolphin tour.

 

[whitepicketfence]

Crabbing is so much fun for young kids and way more satisfying than fishing! They sell crab nets at the recreation window (where you sign up for events and rent bikes). They also sell shrimp for bait, but crabs love chicken, the stinkier the better. A small pack of wings will last you all week. You just hook the chicken on the hook on the bottom of the net and drop it into the water. (We have only crabbed at HHI on the pier near the pool.) Wait a bit and pull it up and see if you have anything! They are all smallish blue crabs that you release (and probably re-catch several times on your vacation!).

As far as KNO, I signed up once we were there. I don't know about signing up early but you could give them a call. Mine have done it a few times here and always had a blast.

There are fireworks during the summer-I think on Tuesdays but I am not sure.

Also, we always request and usually get a marshview. Very peaceful and fun to watch the birds and other wildlife.

The tours (shark fishing, daufuskie, etc.) that you sign up with through Disney are great. We have been a group of 4 or 5 and always had our own boat. The captain customizes to your family-say we had a total of three hours-we might have fished for an hour and a half, looked at very nice homes on the water while looking for dolphins, and the last half hour the captain let the boys each take a turn driving the boat.

We also like to go the beach late in the day at least once. I will pack snacks and drinks and the kids bring kites and a frisbee. Everyone is leaving and there is plenty of room to run around and fly kites.

Honestly, during that time of year, there is so much going on the hard part is deciding what to do. The downside to that is some things will be crowded and some activities will fill up. Last time we were there during the summer, I tried to call Giuseppi's to order a pizza. It just rang and rang. My husband finally drove up there and ordered it in person. The guy at the counter said they never answer during the summer!

 

[my 2 monkeys]

Thanks again whitepicketfence! I've read that Giuseppi's gets really busy, but their pizza is great. That's one of the places we were planning on trying this trip.

I really appreciate the ideas. I feel so out of my element with this trip. I am a planner by nature and it's hard for me to go somewhere without a plan and just relax. Guess I've taken too many WDW trips to not have all our days planned out. Thanks again for all the ideas, I'm sure we will have a fun time.

 

[saintstickets]

I feel so out of my element with this trip. I am a planner by nature and it's hard for me to go somewhere without a plan and just relax. Guess I've taken too many WDW trips to not have all our days planned out. Thanks again for all the ideas, I'm sure we will have a fun time.

DITTO - DITTO - DITTO!!!
I am at a total loss trying to figure out what to do during our trip to HHI this October.