First time to Hilton Head

[brobinso]

Will be going to HHI the end of March with my wife and teenage daughter. Have never been there before. Staying at Marriott's Barony Beach Club. Would appreciate any suggestions for activities, sightseeing and dining. Thanks.

[Janette]

You will have a great time. I would suggest that you go back and read some of the other treads that have been discussed recently concerning HHI. If you have questions, feel free to e-mail me as we live at Sun City HHI.

[Carol C]

Barony is great for biking on the beach, probably the best resort for that. Next door is the Westin which has a fabulous but pricey seafood buffet at night. Lots of good restaurant reviews on TUG, look for reviews and postings by Marty aka JME who knows HHI like the back of his hand. If you can get a babysitter one night, I personally highly recommend an evening of dinner, drinks and jazz at the Jazz Corner at the Village at Wexford. My fave night there is Monday when they have their jazz jam, with no cover charge and often excellent session musicians jam with locals. Good acoustics and sight-lines too.

Have fun!

[Princess Sunflower]

We just came back from HHI on Sunday. We enjoyed walking around Shelter Cove at nite. The shops are open until 9:00 and there are a few restaurants. We ate at the Italian restaurant and found the food to be very good. Tuesday nite there is a fireworks show. We ate at the Parrot Cove Cafe and had a ringside seat. Shannon Tanner puts on a show for kids there almost everynite. Even if you don't have kids it's very entertaining.

HHI is divided into Plantations and you have to pay to drive thru alot of the areas including to see historical markers and for shopping and dining. We took the red trolly tour from the Coastal Discovery Museum. The tour bus took thru these alot of these exclusive areas including to the lighthouse in Sea Pines.

The Coastal Discovery Museum is worth checking out. They have a whole list of activities they sponsor for young/old including guided kayaking and nature walks/talks. We also went on their dolphin cruise which was very enjoyable and you can make reservations over the phone. The Coastal Museum is located on Route 278 on the right hand side next to "The Crazy Crab" restaurant when you are entering the island.

If you like ribs I highly recommend "Sticky Fingers". For a late nite snack the Hilton Head Diner had good food and good service and they are open 24 hours. There are alot of places at reasonable prices to eat so you definitely won't go hungry.

HHI is a great place to ride bikes. There are miles and miles of paved trails. There are places to rent bikes if you don't want to bring your own.

As a newbie to the island, I recommend you get yourself familar with were you want to go in daylight because the first thing you notice at nite is how dark it is. The signage is low to the ground with only a spotlight on it. There are no high signs or billboards. Also, for the most part everything is hidden behind trees, shrubs etc it's really easy to miss places you might want to go.

Janet

[avpmouse]

We were at HH last spring for the first time. One of the things we did do was take one of the Marriott tours that are offered. We didn't feel like driving to Savannah and the tour was well worth it. Very interesting city and a break from our way too relaxed state of mind at HH! My only criticism about the entire trip (we stayed at Grand Ocean) was that it took me a way too long to get back into the swing of things when I returned to work!

Enjoy.
Linda in Austin, TX

[pedro47]

Please take the evenig boat cruise located on Sea Pines Plantation.
Enjoy your week at MB and ask for an ocean front view.

[brobinso]

Thanks for all of the advice. We should find plenty to see and do.

[Big Matt]

Make sure that you dress appropriately. You could have temps in the 70s or in the 50s. It gets very windy at Barony in the spring. It is also cold along the water in Savannah in March.

On the other hand, the weather is great for golf and tennis.

[Beverley]

You mentioned a teenage daughter ... :-)) ... so I should tell you there are also Tanger Outlet Malls. Probably a little too cold for Kayaking unless you luck into 70's temps. If so, then try the tour out of Broad Creek or if you have experience then you can rent Kayaks for less for a really nice wild life full journey through the creeks in Palmetto Dunes which is across from Shelter Cove.

Enjoy, we come to HHI for anywhere from 2 - 4 weeks each summer and love it.

Beverley

[pcgirl54]

There is a wonderful Spa at Barony. Off island there are two plazas with outlet malls. Beach is wonderful,we will be returning this fall.
Redfish on 278 and Truffles in Sea Pines for lunch. Sticky Fingers and Wild Wings are two places we enjoy for ribs and wings.

Online version of the dining guide you pick up on the island.

http://hhidining.com/

[Steve A]

Read, eat, sleep, lay on the beach, watch tv, sleep some more, walk on the beach. I don't think you should do more than that. You could shop at the outlet malls if you are really enegetic.

[jme]

....one great thing about Barony in March is that they have THE best indoor pool anywhere on the island. Grande Ocean's is the next best, but it's a few years older (albeit not "old") and that's a place the kids can really have tons of fun.....the pool itself is huge, and the cathedral ceiling with lots of glass windows all around is beautiful. It's located inside the spa bldg, alongside the deli. So, a rainy or cold day is not a problem. There's also a hottub inside there, and plenty of chaise chairs for reading. You could spend all day in there just relaxing. We like Barony for the offseason weeks, and usually get two units during Pres's week, and let the kids take friends. March can be cool, cold, or slightly warm....very iffy, but if it's warm, it's a great time to be there, especially for bike-riding inside Sea Pines. Marty (jme)