Things to Do in Myrtle Beach, United States

Quick facts: Stroll along about 1.2 miles of oceanfront boardwalk where you’ll pass arcades, souvenir stands, and the salty tang of fried seafood on every corner. Bright attractions like a 187-foot Ferris wheel and frequent live music give the place a carnival energy after sunset, with families and couples crowding the rail for the view.

Highlights: Take a glass-enclosed gondola up 187 feet, the sea breeze and surf sounds suddenly filling the cabin while the shoreline unrolls beneath you. After evening shows many vendors ring cowbells and hand out warm, salted kettle corn, a small local ritual that tastes of caramel, salt, and the ocean air.

Quick facts: Expect a carnival-like mix of shops, restaurants, and attractions all gathered around a lively waterfront, where music from street performers blends with the clatter of dinner plates. Don't be surprised to find live concerts, themed festivals, and family-friendly entertainment keeping the lights on well into the evening.

Highlights: Neon reflections from a lakeside light-and-music show paint the water while the aroma of kettle corn and grilled seafood drifts from nearby patios. Local performers regularly stage impromptu dance-offs and acrobatic acts beneath strings of colored bulbs, a quirky tradition that often draws applause and photo-filled crowds.

Quick facts: Rising about 187 feet above the shoreline, passengers get sweeping, uninterrupted views of the Atlantic and the downtown skyline. Enclosed, climate-controlled gondolas hold up to six people each and the wheel’s nighttime show uses roughly 1.2 million LED lights to paint the sky with vibrant colors.

Highlights: Local couples often book one of the two glass-floored VIP gondolas to propose at sunset, the sea-salt air and golden light making photos glow. After dark the wheel performs timed light shows with over 1.2 million LEDs, shifting through palettes that ripple across the water and can be seen from miles away.

Quick facts: You can stroll through an acrylic tunnel with sharks and rays gliding overhead, while touch tanks let you feel starfish and horseshoe crabs right under your fingertips. Glowing jelly displays ripple in blue light, and informative diver talks sprinkle surprising tidbits that make the place feel lively rather than just a museum.

Highlights: A diver leads two feeding shows each day, hand-feeding sand tiger sharks and cownose rays while the tunnel above fills with bubbles and gawking faces. Press your palm to the touch-pool glass during feeding and you might feel a subtle pressure change as a passing ray brushes by, a quiet, oddly intimate reminder you're sharing the water with creatures that can span a few feet across.

Quick facts: A carnival-meets-boardwalk atmosphere lights up after dark, with more than 30 rides ranging from gentle carousels to a rattling wooden coaster that makes a satisfying clack on every hill. Families often buy wristbands for unlimited rides, which keeps kids circling the midway until they collapse from sugar and sunburned shoulders.

Highlights: Nighttime magic happens under strings of bulbs and a salty breeze, the wooden coaster called Swamp Fox clacking loudly as riders scream through tight, echoing turns. A quirky employee tradition pins colorful paper ticket stubs to a corkboard behind the main office, hundreds of faded tickets forming a patchwork that glows warm under an old incandescent bulb.

Quick facts: A narrow band of protected coastline backs a dense maritime forest, where palmettos and live oaks shade short nature trails and quiet lagoons. Anglers cast from a low-profile pier while migrating shorebirds and dolphins often cruise close to the surf, giving easy wildlife viewing without long hikes.

Highlights: Golden light along the dunes turns the sand pink, and the salt-thick air smells of seaweed and pine, so even a short walk feels cinematic. A shady boardwalk slips into the heart of the forest where the crunch of palmetto fronds underfoot and the resinous tang of live oak sap create an almost otherworldly contrast to the surf.

Quick facts: More than 2,000 pieces of American figurative sculpture are set along winding paths and under shady live oaks, so a bronze horse or classical figure often appears around the next bend. Ancient oaks draped in Spanish moss blend with formal flower beds and salt-marsh views, creating quiet nooks where birdcalls and the scent of gardenia are part of the experience.

Highlights: Sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington personally placed many bronzes across the landscape, so you'll stumble upon life-sized animals and heroic figures framed by gnarled roots and dappled light. During the annual 'A Night of a Thousand Candles' more than 1,000 hand-lit candles and luminarias line the walkways, turning every statue into a warm silhouette against the night and filling the air with waxy, smoky sweetness.

Quick facts: A lively mix of boutiques, restaurants and tree-lined promenades turns weekday errands into a laid-back outing. You’ll stumble across outdoor sculptures, pop-up food vendors and a movie theater that keep evenings feeling social and easygoing.

Highlights: String lights and wood-fired pizza aromas turn the central green into a living room each Friday night, while local surf-rock and bluegrass bands set a relaxed soundtrack. Neighbors and visitors habitually pull up folding chairs by the fountain on Sunday afternoons to swap gardening tips, trade recipe recs and listen to the fountain's rhythmic spray, a simple ritual that feels unexpectedly communal.

Quick facts: Shoppers and diners stroll along a waterfront boardwalk that connects over 100 specialty stores, restaurants and attractions, with a working marina adding salty sea air to the mix. Live music and outdoor performances animate the evenings, and a large reptile park gives families a unique animal encounter alongside the shops.

Highlights: At low tide the exposed pilings become a stage for more than a dozen resident herons and egrets, a photogenic wildlife display that local photographers time for sunset shots. A longtime weekend tradition has buskers staging impromptu jam sessions under strings of lights, frequently pulling crowds of 50–200 people and turning the boardwalk into an energetic street festival.

Quick facts: Step inside and you'll find over 200 lifelike celebrity figures, posed for selfies under museum-style spotlights. Expect interactive sets like a red carpet entrance and a towering ape diorama with dramatic lighting and pulsing sound, and most visitors spend about 60 to 90 minutes exploring.

Highlights: A tucked-away red carpet photo spot lets visitors don feather boas and step into a glitter wall while an attendant counts how many guests take the same pose; more than 12,000 selfies are snapped at that spot yearly. Look closely at the wax work of a famed singer and you might notice hand-painted freckles and real human hair stitched into the scalp, details the artists say take up to 30 hours per figure to finish.