Put Some Heat in Your Winter Retreat With These Grand Strand Holiday Events

Whether the goal of your winter getaway was to escape the snow and ice back home, to pare down your holiday shopping list or to visit the South Carolina coast without all the summertime crowds (or, even better, to accomplish all of the above), the Grand Strand provides plenty of ways to boost your holiday spirit while you’re here. The holiday season brings a range of annual festivals to the Myrtle Beach area, and Paradise Resort provides a great home base for catching all of them. During your next off-season visit, catch one of these Grand Strand festivals and events – they’re sure to bring some extra holiday cheer:
Nights of a Thousand Candles – The beauty of Murrells Inlet’s Brookgreen Gardens shines even brighter during the holidays thanks to the more than 5,500 hand-lit candles and 100,000-plus twinkling lights illuminating the grounds. To further set the mood at the sculpture gardens, music from handbell choirs, carolers and other musicians fills the air, and you can warm up with some hot cider. The event runs on various nights November 30-December 17. Visit brookgreen.org for more info.
Holiday Shows – Always a big draw on the Grand Strand, the area’s theaters turn things up with their Christmas-themed shows in November and December. Among the most popular are The Carolina Opry’s Christmas Show of the South, the Pirates Voyage Christmas Show and Alabama Theatre’s The South’s Grandest Christmas Show.
Intracoastal Christmas Regatta – At the 33rd Annual Intracoastal Christmas Regatta in North Myrtle Beach, the traditional Christmas parade gets a nautical twist as a fleet of festive boats is decked out in lights and holiday cheer. Crowds gathered along the Intracoastal Waterway’s shoreline soak in the spectacle as the boat parade rolls from Little River Inlet to Dock Holidays Marina. The floating fun starts at 5 p.m. on Saturday, November 25. Learn more at christmasregatta.com.
More traditional Christmas parades can be found in Calabash on Friday, December 1; at Broadway at the Beach and in North Myrtle Beach on Saturday, December 2; in Murrells Inlet on Sunday, December 3; and in Conway and Surfside Beach on Saturday, December 9.
Lighting of the Landing – The most popular holiday event at North Myrtle Beach’s Barefoot Landing is centered around a 22-foot-tall Christmas tree adorned with twinkling lights and decorative ornaments from top to bottom. To add even more oomph to this holiday-season kickoff celebration, the shopping/dining/entertainment complex tops it all off with fireworks and a visit from Santa.  The festivities are set for Saturday, November 18, starting at 6 p.m. Learn more at bflanding.com.
If you’re visiting the Grand Strand a little later in the season, visit the nearby town of Surfside Beach on Thursday, November 30, at 7 p.m. for its annual Christmas Tree Lighting. More info can be found at surfsidebeach.org.
Dickens Christmas Show and Festivals – Marking its 36th year on the Grand Strand in 2017, this award-winning holiday tradition decks the Myrtle Beach Convention Center’s exhibit hall with arts, crafts and unique gifts. With a Victorian Era theme inspired by Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” the event also features more than 300 vendors sporting period-appropriate attire. Holiday shoppers can also enjoy Victorian Teas, a “Santa Through the Ages” exhibit and even a chance to visit with St. Nick himself. The event runs November 9-12 at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. Visit dickenschristmasshow.com for more info.
While the list above is a lengthy one, these represent just a few of the many festive reasons to visit the Myrtle Beach area during the holiday season. Get in the holiday spirit at Paradise Resort on the Myrtle Beach oceanfront – we can’t wait to be your home away from home for the holidays.