My family of 13 and I recently traveled to Myrtle Beach for our annual family vacation. We arrived on the Fourth of July and stayed for the following week. A few days prior to arriving, the Myrtle Beach council members announced that face masks would now be mandatory in Horry County. We were all prepared for this new mandate. Recently, Myrtle Beach has consistently been in the news, stating COVID-19 cases were on the rise. Because of this I wasn’t sure what to expect when we got there and I was fearful that they would cancel our vacation.
But to my pleasant surprise, considering it was the Fourth of July weekend, the hotels and beaches were not packed full of people. The resorts are operating at 50% capacity so contrary to what is being portrayed by the media it was a very pleasant and relaxing vacation due to it not being overcrowded. All other guests at the resort, we stayed at Paradise Resort, were all polite and courteous due to the circumstances. I especially noticed this when riding in the elevators. If you were in the elevator and it came to a floor for someone else to try to get on it, they would not enter and instead would wait for the next free elevator and vice versa for us as well. In the past when traveling to these destinations people would crowd themselves on these elevators so it was nice to see that wasn’t an issue during our most recent trip.
When we would venture down to the pool and beach it was the same scenario as the elevators. We did not have to worry one time about others being in our space. And to answer the question that most people are wondering as to whether you have to wear face masks while at the pool and beach, you do not. They did however ask for them to be worn in the lobby, their dining area, and the elevators. They also have hand sanitizer stations everywhere you looked. Each floor of the hotel has two on each side right between the elevators and they also have multiple at the pool area, their restaurant, and their tiki bar. Needless to say, that was a very nice touch considering every time we would touch a surface the hand sanitizer stations were right there for your use.
While in Myrtle Beach we decided to eat breakfast and lunch in our condo, but every evening we would go out for dinner. Every restaurant did require face masks to be worn while walking through the restaurant but once you sat down with your group you were able to remove the face masks to enjoy your dinner. We only experienced one night where the wait times were pretty unbearable, especially considering we had 7 children ranging in age from 5-13 years old, but the other 6 nights we had absolutely no issues.
We also did our fair share of shopping and playing miniature golf, which Myrtle Beach is known for their miniature golf courses. We shopped at Broadway at the Beach two afternoons during our trip and once again I have to admit I wasn’t sure what to expect as in previous years this place was always packed full of people. But both times we went there were many times we were the only ones in these shops. This made for yet another very pleasant experience. Each golf course we played at was very thorough about cleaning their putters and golf balls and as you know it’s quite easy to maintain your distance while playing miniature golf. All the restaurants and miniature golf courses all had hand sanitizer stations everywhere you turned as well. I have to admit that all of these places have gone above and beyond to make sure we stay safe but not only that they make sure we FEEL safe!
I have to admit that although COVID-19 has definitely thrown many negative curveballs our way it has helped people to be more courteous to others and truly made this vacation more enjoyable than past vacations! If you have been hesitant to travel, or if you have clients who are hesitant to travel, I hope this article can help put you mind at ease and realize that these popular tourist destinations are truly doing everything in their power to help keep us safe!
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