Wedged between Charleston and Myrtle Beach, the Hammock Coast is paradise for anyone who loves to be on the water in all its forms: uncrowded beaches, winding salt marshes made for kayaking and bragworthy fishing.
The area spans six communities — Pawleys Island, Murrells Inlet, Litchfield Beach, southern Garden City, Georgetown and Andrews. And they all have one big thing in common: water. Five rivers meet at historic Georgetown and flow through Winyah Bay out to the Atlantic.
History runs deep here, too, and you can even nap on a piece of it: riverboat captain Joshua John Ward invented the Pawleys Island rope hammock in 1889 (and Pawleys Island Hammocks has continued making them on the island for almost a century). Come for the beaches, stay for the seafood and stories, and leave some time for swaying.
Which area is right for me?
Best for vacations to unplug
Pawleys Island, which Architectural Digest named to its list of “Top 10 Best Small Towns in America,” has a slow pace and pristine oceanfront. A second option: the southern portion of Garden City offers a quiet retreat where the inlet meets the ocean plus a full-service marina and easy access to neighboring Murrells Inlet.
Best to please a crowd
Litchfield’s wide beaches — named one of the top 10 in the U.S. by TripAdvisor — have a relaxed vibe and a plethora of vacation rental homes, making it an easy beach getaway for families and groups. But it’s not too far from activities when the sand gets old: golf courses, tennis clubs and Huntington Beach State Park, considered a top destination for birding with sightings of more than 300 species of birds logged.
Best for history buffs
A port city with three centuries of history, Georgetown has plenty of history to dig into, from dozens of buildings and homes listed on the National Register of Historic Places to five museums in the downtown area alone. Learn how rice once made the county one of the richest in the colonies at the Rice Museum and the stories of the region’s Gullah Geechee culture at the Gullah Museum.
Best for those who love an itinerary (and great seafood)
On the north end of the Hammock Coast closest to Myrtle Beach, Murrells Inlet has a little bit of everything: the lively MarshWalk and proximity to popular attractions like Brookgreen Gardens. It’s also where you’ll find some of the best seafood restaurants on the coast, including Lee’s Inlet Kitchen and Russell’s Seafood Grill.
Best for hardcore nature lovers
Just northwest of Georgetown, Andrews is a small town with great access to the outdoors. Check out the Black River State Park, one of the state’s newest state parks and first linear park, with 70 miles of water trails. The private Black River Cypress Preserve, open only to groups of six or more who book in advance with a guide, offers miles of walking, biking and paddling trails through cypress swamps and great opportunities for bird watching — more than 70 species of birds have been documented here.
Photo: Andrew Cebulka.
Stay
Accommodations of every sort can be found throughout the destination, from resorts to vacation rental homes, but be sure to check out the historic hotels and inns that dot the Hammock Coast, including:
Wicklow Hall, Georgetown
A stay in this new boutique bed-and-breakfast near Georgetown will take you back in time — the 11-acre estate, on the National Register of Historic Places, dates back to the mid 19th century. The owners have lovingly restored the property, which opened in 2025, keeping many original elements in the process, like the original heart pine floors. Guests can choose between one of several cottages on site, some with fireplaces and hot tubs, or cozy suites in the historic main house.
The George Hotel, Georgetown
Perched on Winyah Bay, The George Hotel makes a lively basecamp for exploring Downtown Georgetown and beyond. Its 56 rooms are layered and colorful; and The Independent’s menu is an ode to the city’s former seafood market of the same name. Arriving by boat? Dock at neighboring Harborwalk Marina, which partners with the hotel.
Pelican Inn, Pawleys Island
Originally a 1840s-era summer home, Pelican Inn now operates as a simple but stunning eight-room bed-and-breakfast on Pawleys Island. The home is an open invitation for relaxing, with its rope hammocks, wide porches and direct beachfront access. Note that the inn is open from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend, and rates include full family-style breakfast and lunch.
Photo: South Carolina’s Hammock Coast
Do + See
In Murrells Inlet, you’ll find the largest and oldest public sculpture garden in the U.S. During the holiday season, the gardens come alive with more than 2,700 hand-lit candles and millions of lights at its “Nights of a Thousand Candles” event.
On the third weekend of October, the waterfront along Front Street in historic downtown Georgetown comes alive with visitors coming to see more than 100 classic wooden boats, boatbuilding challenges, a regatta and a showcase of maritime arts and crafts.
Plan ahead to join a guided tour of this 24,000-acre protected swath across South Carolina’s barrier islands. The center is a research field site for coastal ecology and wildlife, including alligators, wading birds and waterfowl.
Guided tours will reveal centuries of history at this former plantation-turned-winter hunting retreat of a wealthy Wall Street financier, now a 16,000-acre preserve just north of Georgetown.
Photo: South Carolina’s Hammock Coast
Eat + Drink
Mark Stevens, director of tourism development for Georgetown County Chamber of Commerce, which runs South Carolina’s Hammock Coast tourism brand, says that the area’s culinary scene is “exceptional” for the number of restaurants run by generations of the same family and few-to-no chain restaurants. Below, four that have stood the test of time:
The same family has owned and operated this Murells Inlet seafood restaurant for 78 years. On the menu: shrimp from nearby McClellanville, homemade pimento cheese grits, crabcakes made with Carolina lump crab meat and its famous shrimp salad: boiled fantail shrimp tossed with Duke’s mayonnaise, sweet relish and chopped eggs.
On the southern end of Murrells Inlet, Russell’s is a seafood institution that has been around since before Hurricane Hugo swept through the area in 1989. The marsh views, hush puppies, conch fritters and she-crab soup are guest favorites.
This restaurant on Ocean Highway in North Litchfield Beach still follows decades-old family recipes. Notable menu items include all of the house-made soups — try the Murrells Inlet oyster stew — and the Southern oysters Rockefeller: oysters topped with collard greens, chopped bacon, cheese and spices.
This simple Georgetown eatery, now in its 56th year, is “the kind of restaurant that [takes you] back in time,” says Stevens. Menu items, often named after locals, cater to the Southern palate: fried pork chops, fried chicken and house-made biscuits and pies.