5 Days in Myrtle Beach: First-Timer Plan
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Five days keeps the same 4-day spine of beach, the Boardwalk, Broadway at the Beach, and Brookgreen Gardens, then adds a golf or mini-golf day and North Myrtle Beach, and slows the whole trip down further so no single day carries more than one outing. Add water sports and a full day trip by moving up to the 6-day or 7-day plans.
Book these before you go
- A place to stay along the Boardwalk core or North Myrtle Beach
- A tee time if golf is your day-four outing; stay-and-play packages are the dominant booking model here
- Ripley’s Aquarium tickets for a fixed morning slot, and a Carolina Opry seat for evening two
Day 1: Arrival and the Boardwalk
Morning
Check in and get straight to the beach. Swim near a lifeguard and check the flag: green is fine, yellow is medium risk, a single red flag means stay out, double red closes the water, and blue warns of marine life.
Afternoon
More beach time. Between Memorial Day and Labor Day, only circular umbrellas up to 7.5 feet are allowed and tents or canopies are banned; alcohol and glass are banned on the beach year-round regardless of season.
Evening
Walk the Myrtle Beach Boardwalk & Promenade, 1.2 miles of oceanfront and free, and ride the SkyWheel (about $21 adult, check the current price). Dinner nearby, Calabash-style seafood is the easiest find close to the Boardwalk; expect the roughly 11.5% restaurant tax inside city limits on top of the check.
Day 2: Broadway at the Beach and a show
Morning
Spend the morning and early afternoon at Broadway at the Beach, a separate district about two blocks off the Boardwalk. Ripley’s Aquarium (about $43 adult/$27 child) or WonderWorks is the one outing for the day.
Afternoon
Beach or pool time back at the hotel.
Evening
Catch a Carolina Opry show, the country-and-variety venue that’s been a Myrtle Beach staple for years.
Day 3: Brookgreen Gardens and Murrells Inlet
Morning
Drive about 18 miles south to Brookgreen Gardens, a major sculpture garden with the Lowcountry Zoo included in the same roughly $25 admission, good for 7 consecutive days. Across the highway, Huntington Beach State Park holds Atalaya Castle plus premier birding, about $8 entry; it’s a separate park with a separate fee from Myrtle Beach State Park back in the city.
Afternoon
Walk the Murrells Inlet MarshWalk, a half-mile boardwalk over the marsh.
Evening
Dinner on the MarshWalk: Dead Dog Saloon, Drunken Jack’s, Wahoo’s, Bovine’s, The Wicked Tuna, and The Claw House all sit along it, in the town that calls itself the Seafood Capital of South Carolina.
Day 4: Golf or mini golf, then North Myrtle Beach
Morning
Tee off at one of the roughly 80-90 courses along “the Golf Coast,” Caledonia Golf & Fish Club, The Dunes Club (host of the PGA TOUR’s Myrtle Beach Classic), and TPC Myrtle Beach among the standout names. If golf isn’t your thing, swap in a round of mini golf instead; Myrtle Beach bills itself as the Mini Golf Capital of the World, and Hawaiian Rumble’s 40-foot volcano is the best-known course.
Afternoon
Drive up to North Myrtle Beach and browse Barefoot Landing, a shopping-and-dining district on the Intracoastal Waterway.
Evening
Stick around North Myrtle Beach’s Ocean Drive neighborhood, the birthplace of the Shag, South Carolina’s official state dance since 1984. The Shag is the dance itself; “beach music” is the genre it’s danced to. Alabama Theatre, right at Barefoot Landing, is a good option if you want a second show on this trip.
Day 5: A slower day
Morning
No outing scheduled; use it for a real beach morning rather than a packing rush.
Afternoon
Browse Market Common, the upscale, walkable shopping-and-dining complex built on a former Air Force base, for a relaxed lunch.
Evening
An early dinner and pack for departure. If you’re flying out of Myrtle Beach International Airport (MYR), remember Spirit exited in May 2026, so confirm which airline is actually flying your route.
Getting around and where to stay
A car is essential for this itinerary, since Brookgreen Gardens, Murrells Inlet, and North Myrtle Beach are all a real drive from the Boardwalk core, and Coast RTA transit won’t cover all of them. The core Boardwalk area works for days one through three; North Myrtle Beach is a reasonable alternative base if golf and Barefoot Landing are the priority. If you’re traveling June through November, keep an eye on the tropical forecast; Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, peaking mid-August to mid-October.
One concrete tip: book your tee time and the Carolina Opry seat before you leave home if you’re traveling in summer. Both sell out weeks ahead in July, with no walk-up guarantee once you’re on the Strand.