SWING INTO SPRING

SWING INTO SPRING Family friendly fun abounds on the Grand Strand

By Sandra Chambers

Perfect your game at Mt. Atlanticus mini-golf course

Penguin Encounters at Ripley’s Aquarium Spring is a great time to visit Myrtle Beach with plenty of sunshine, family-friendly activities and smaller crowds.

BROADWAY AT THE BEACH

Located in the heart of Myrtle Beach around a 23-acre lake, Broadway at the Beach is South Carolina’s largest entertainment venue offering a plethora of entertainment, one-of-a-kind shops and boutiques and a variety of dining options. The entire family will enjoy Ripley’s Aquarium with its newest exhibit: Penguin Encounters. Get up close with floor-to-ceiling viewing glass and a 360-degree crawl tunnel to waddle through. At Hollywood Wax Museum, guests can take pictures with their favorite stars, peek into the Prop Vault and tiptoe through a laser maze. WonderWorks, an amusement park for the mind, will keep everyone

Crooked Hammock Brewery

The view from above at Broadway at the Beach Family-friendly dining

in the family entertained with more than 100 handson exhibits that challenge the mind and spark the imagination. broadwayatthebeach.com

MINI GOLF CAPITAL OF THE WORLD

Myrtle Beach is well-known as a golf destination, but it has also earned the moniker of the “MiniGolf Capital of the World,” boasting more than 50 extravagant and elaborately themed mini-golf courses. Mt. Atlanticus, a 75-foot-high course, winds three stories to the very top where players are treated to amazing views of the Atlantic Ocean. At Mayday Mountain, a life-size Lockeed PV-2 plane has crash landed on a deserted island. Visitors to Mutiny Bay will spot a life-size pirate ship and can learn about famous pirates at each hole.myrtlebeachminigolf.com

ALLIGATOR ADVENTURE

Billed as the “Reptile Capital of the World,” Alligator Adventure is one of the largest facilities for reptile life in the world. Featuring more than 700 alligators and crocs as well as 50 different species of animals, guests take a self-guided tour through a 15-acre wetland park in the heart of North Myrtle Beach. Don’t miss the alligator feeding and be on the lookout for the 18-foot croc named Utan, the largest crocodile in North America. alligatoradventure.com

WITH A TWIST OF FUN

LULU’S RESTAURANT

Located at Barefoot Landing on the Intercoastal Waterway, this 400-seat restaurant and outdoor dining area offers great water views and fun activities for kids including a sand beach, ropes climbing course and an arcade. The menu has a wide variety of starters, seafood, burgers, southern fare and kid-approved items. lulubuffett.com/northmyrtlebeach

THE ORIGINAL BENJAMIN’S CALABASH SEAFOOD

For a unique dining experience, check out this 1,000-seat restaurant which offers an all-youcan-eat buffet with more than 170 items from seafood to steaks, chicken, barbeque, pasta and veggies. But Benjamin’s is much more than a restaurant—it’s a nautical museum which houses some of the world’s largest scale ship models, including a 18-foot Queen Elizabeth II. originalbenjamins.com

CROOKED HAMMOCK BREWERY

Offering a “hammock-state-of-mind,” this brewery and restaurant is a great backyard escape for the entire family. With indoor/outdoor seating for 500, the menu offers cookout-inspired food like burgers, ribs, seafood, savory sides and a southern staple of cornbread. There are fun activities for the entire family including a firepit, hammocks, ping pong, bocce ball courts, corn hole and a playground for children. And don’t forget your furry friends—this restaurant is pet-friendly. crookedhammockbrewery.com/ myrtle-beach