Hilton Head 101

Wow! Thank you bbn1122 for all of your fabulous maps! I think visually seeing it all laid out really makes sense now. It makes me very excited to go there and am thinking we should add more days to our trip. This has all been so incredibly helpful and I appreciate the time everyone has take to share information.
 
As others have noted, HHI is a great resort for relaxation--a totally different vibe than WDW. If you're going in June, you may very well have a tough time getting booked there. Once late mid to late May hits, and all the way through Labor Day, it's extremely chancy to get into HHI. Best of luck to you!

Hmm..getting a little nervous about booking the days. Thanks for the well wishes!
 
We are trying to put a budget together for our upcoming first trip with our teens in a few weeks. We have quite a bit of Disney Gift Cards & rewards points accumulated. Am I correct in assuming we could charge meals, drinks by the pool, craft activity fees, bike rentals, ect to the room and use our gift cards to pay before we check out as we would at Disney?

Also I hear lots of people talk about activities such as crabbing & sand dollar hunting, kyacking, dolphin watching, shark fishing... Are any of these booked thru Disney HHI (and able to be charged to room or on a gift card) or are they all private tours booked outside the hotel? If booked privately, are there any tours we should book in advance of our arrival?

Also our kids are 13 & 14 years old. Any suggestions of things they should look in to?
 


We leave tomorrow for HHI. Driving from NJ. We have decided to leave at 8pm and drive thru the night. We have 4 drivers, so it should not be too bad. We are hoping to be there by 10am.

I just got the Google Earth App, so here are some great aireal shots of the Resort property and Beach House.

I will try to report back on our short visit. We are onto WDW and VGF on Monday! ☀️


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We are trying to put a budget together for our upcoming first trip with our teens in a few weeks. We have quite a bit of Disney Gift Cards & rewards points accumulated. Am I correct in assuming we could charge meals, drinks by the pool, craft activity fees, bike rentals, ect to the room and use our gift cards to pay before we check out as we would at Disney?

Also I hear lots of people talk about activities such as crabbing & sand dollar hunting, kyacking, dolphin watching, shark fishing... Are any of these booked thru Disney HHI (and able to be charged to room or on a gift card) or are they all private tours booked outside the hotel? If booked privately, are there any tours we should book in advance of our arrival?

Also our kids are 13 & 14 years old. Any suggestions of things they should look in to?


Our first trip was in 2012. My boys were 12, 14 and 18. We were there for 4 nights.

My boys were content with the beach, pools, playing basketball, riding bikes, corn hole and horseshoes. They also played a lot of Ping Pong and Billiards at the Resort and at the Beach House. We did go mini golfing one time. And we took an afternoon trip to Harbourtown, climb the Lighthouse and then on to South Beach for lunch at The Salty Dog.

We did not spend a lot of money on extras. We did try to go on a family kayaking trip thru Disney, but it was canceled due to chance of thunderstorms.

My DH and sons had a ball playing Volleyball in the pool at the Beach House, with some other DVC guests. They also enjoyed riding bikes on the beach.

So, you can do a lot, which may cost a lot or do things that are free and fun.

We will be there in 2 days for the weekend. My boys are older, but they can not wait to ride bikes, swim in the ocean and chill in a hammock.

They may rent kayaks or paddle boards thru the Marina at Shelter Cove.

HHI is fun just swimming and soaking in the sun.

And I believe everything at the resort or Beach House can be charged to your account.

Have a great trip.
 
TAKE THE BUS TOUR that Mike offers daily. It was awesome and took you to so many places. We went 'off peak' so they were renting bikes and fishing poles and stuff for free (I'm not sure how it works in busier times). Regardless of where you stay on property, nothing is a far walk including the pool on property. It looks larger than it actually is. There's a shuttle to the beach house and we did crafts and stuff there in January. Poseidon was the restaurant we ate at and it was awesome. I will look for the other ones we ate at that were almost just as good.
 


Has anyone gone the first part of December? I was wondering what the weather is like at that time of year. Is the area decorated for the holidays?
 
Has anyone gone the first part of December? I was wondering what the weather is like at that time of year. Is the area decorated for the holidays?

We've been there several times, going for Thanksgiving and staying the following week, which is often the first week of December. The resort is fully decorated for the Holidays. The weather is usually in the low 70s or upper 60s. Some people swim, but we're wimps, so we don't.
 

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We are wimps to. We are looking for a relaxing adult only trip. Thanks for the pictures. I love Christmas so where ever we go has to be decorated.
 
I am sitting at my desk in downtown Savannah. I'll be glad to help with "tourist"y questions whenever.

I have been out of the loop on the Disboard for a bit, but, hope to correct that.

It's been a bit (2 years arghghgH) since we stayed at HHI, so, I'll leave that part to those who have been there more recent.
 
I am sitting at my desk in downtown Savannah. I'll be glad to help with "tourist"y questions whenever.

I have been out of the loop on the Disboard for a bit, but, hope to correct that.

It's been a bit (2 years arghghgH) since we stayed at HHI, so, I'll leave that part to those who have been there more recent.

Hi Conan:
Do you have any suggestions for what to do in Savannah with our boys kids (19 and 29)? Of course, they like adventure type activities. They wouldn't enjoy a historical tour or anything like that.

Thanks!
 
Hi Conan:
Do you have any suggestions for what to do in Savannah with our boys kids (19 and 29)? Of course, they like adventure type activities. They wouldn't enjoy a historical tour or anything like that.

Thanks!

Even if they don't want the tour, they may want to visit Ft Pulaski and just walk around. It's a beautiful spot. Dolphin tours? Yes you can do that on HHI...you can even take one here where you can see HHI (with a good pair of binoculars, I THINK you can see the Beachhouse from Tybee).

Anyway, if they are in to things like Golf, we've got that. River st and City Market will have live music many times, and, the local spots almost always have someone (but the 19 y.o. may have trouble getting in some of them). There is LOTS of great food. I HIGHLY recommend Mrs Wilkes, but, be aware that you have to wait in line to get in, and, it's "Family Style", so, you sit with the folks you waited in line with. (Kind of like the German restaurant in EPCOT).

There is a waterpark in Pooler which may be easier to get to than Savannah from HHI. There is an IMAX theater there too.

If nothing else, tell them to go to Leopold's Ice Cream and get a few scoops. VERY good ice cream.

The main issue is that the main point of Savannah is Historical Tourism. They don't call it Slow-vannah for nothing.

Write me back if you think of anything else!
 
TAKE THE BUS TOUR that Mike offers daily. It was awesome and took you to so many places. We went 'off peak' so they were renting bikes and fishing poles and stuff for free (I'm not sure how it works in busier times). Regardless of where you stay on property, nothing is a far walk including the pool on property. It looks larger than it actually is. There's a shuttle to the beach house and we did crafts and stuff there in January. Poseidon was the restaurant we ate at and it was awesome. I will look for the other ones we ate at that were almost just as good.

Was it just this past January that you visited and bikes and fishing poles were free to rent? Do you happen to know when the off season starts? We will be there the week of Halloween and that would be a nice perk for sure!
 
I've never gotten a free bike rental and I have been going for 10 years, and often off season. In fact, I recently invested in a bike carrier for my car so I no longer have to rent!
 
Was it just this past January that you visited and bikes and fishing poles were free to rent? Do you happen to know when the off season starts? We will be there the week of Halloween and that would be a nice perk for sure!

It was this past January/February. I'm not sure when the off season starts, but we were pleasantly surprised :)
 
In November we paid. Maybe attendance is much lower in Jan/Feb so they offer this special.
 
Even if they don't want the tour, they may want to visit Ft Pulaski and just walk around. It's a beautiful spot. Dolphin tours? Yes you can do that on HHI...you can even take one here where you can see HHI (with a good pair of binoculars, I THINK you can see the Beachhouse from Tybee).

Anyway, if they are in to things like Golf, we've got that. River st and City Market will have live music many times, and, the local spots almost always have someone (but the 19 y.o. may have trouble getting in some of them). There is LOTS of great food. I HIGHLY recommend Mrs Wilkes, but, be aware that you have to wait in line to get in, and, it's "Family Style", so, you sit with the folks you waited in line with. (Kind of like the German restaurant in EPCOT).

There is a waterpark in Pooler which may be easier to get to than Savannah from HHI. There is an IMAX theater there too.

If nothing else, tell them to go to Leopold's Ice Cream and get a few scoops. VERY good ice cream.

The main issue is that the main point of Savannah is Historical Tourism. They don't call it Slow-vannah for nothing.

Write me back if you think of anything else!

HI there,

Talk to me about Golf. The husband wants to play a few courses in September 2019, and there are so many to chose from. He's quite a good player and like a challenge. We will be staying at HH for this time so courses that are close would also be great.

Many thanks in advance..
 
HI there,

Talk to me about Golf. The husband wants to play a few courses in September 2019, and there are so many to chose from. He's quite a good player and like a challenge. We will be staying at HH for this time so courses that are close would also be great.

Many thanks in advance..

Golf-DH has played every course on the island that's open to the public, some multiple times. He's a single digit handicapper and loved Hilton Head National and Dolphin Head best. Sea Pines courses are OK, but expensive. Last time we were there, the Fazio Course, also challenging, wasn't in very good shape at all. Same with the other he played in Palmetto Dunes (Arther Hill?). Oyster Reef is fairly nice, not too challenging.
 
Golf-DH has played every course on the island that's open to the public, some multiple times. He's a single digit handicapper and loved Hilton Head National and Dolphin Head best. Sea Pines courses are OK, but expensive. Last time we were there, the Fazio Course, also challenging, wasn't in very good shape at all. Same with the other he played in Palmetto Dunes (Arther Hill?). Oyster Reef is fairly nice, not too challenging.
hi there,
thanks for the reply, DH is on a 13 atm but hopes to be in single digits by sept next year, so if your DH found those courses a good challenge then we are on the right path.
can i ask, what did you do while he golfed, will i be bored?? and is 3 nights too long??
thanks
 

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