Myrtle Beach is a coastal city on the east coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is situated on the center of a large and continuous stretch of beach known as the Grand Strand in northeastern South Carolina, consisting of 60+ miles along an essentially uninterrupted arc of beach land. Myrtle Beach is one of the major centers of tourism in the United States because of the city’s warm subtropical climate and extensive beaches, attracting an estimated 14 million visitors each spring/summer/fall. The population of the city is at 27,000 with the Myrtle Beach metropolitan area population at 466,000 according to a 2013 estimate.
Technically a man-made island, Myrtle Beach has been separated from the continental United States since 1936 by the Intracoastal Waterway, forcing the city and area in general to develop within a small distance from the coast. In part due to this separation, the area directly west of Myrtle Beach across the waterway remained primarily rural, whereas its northern and southern ends were bordered by other developed tourist towns, North Myrtle Beach and Surfside Beach.
Since then, the inland portion of the Myrtle Beach area has developed dramatically and the beach itself is developing westward. The Myrtle Heights-Oak Park Historic District, Myrtle Beach Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Station, Ocean Forest Country Club, Pleasant Inn, and Rainbow Court are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Also listed was the Chesterfield Inn, now demolished. Hosting over 14 million visitors annually, The Grand Strand is home to an array of tourist attractions, and the area receives a large influx of visitors during all seasons. Nearly 100,000 visitors a year are estimated to come from overseas, with tourists from Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom. The majority of visitors make their way to the region during the high season (June–August) looking to make the most of its fine weather.
Myrtle Beach hosts a variety of special conventions, events, and musical concerts. The area’s attractions include its beaches and many golf courses, as well as a number of amusement parks, an aquarium, Legends In Concert, retail developments, a number of shopping complexes and over 1,900 restaurants including seafood restaurants. The area also has dinner theaters, nightclubs, and many tourist shops. Myrtle Beach has an estimated 460 hotels, with many on the beachfront, and approximately 89,000 accommodation units in total. Also in the city is Myrtle Waves, one of the largest water parks on the eastern seaboard. List of attractions in Myrtle Beach. Myrtle Beach has many stores and malls, is one of the largest shopping areas in the Southeastern United States, and is the largest shopping destination in South Carolina. The Myrtle Beach Convention Center is a large facility that hosts a variety of meetings, conferences, exhibits, and special events every year. The expansive center, which opened in 2003, also features a Sheraton hotel and resort. Myrtle Beach welcomed Hard Rock Park in 2008, which was themed after the popular Hard Rock Cafe chain. After financial issues, the park became Freestyle Music Park for the 2009 season. The park features attractions themed after various genres and eras of music, such as the British Invasion. The park did not open for the 2010 season, and continues to be closed due to having been engulfed in legal issues. As of 2014, the park has been closed and is being dismantled.
Each March since 1951 during Ontario’s spring break, Myrtle Beach has hosted Canadian-American Days, also known as Can-Am Days. Tens of thousands of tourists flock to the area for a week’s worth of special events. Myrtle Beach is also home to Coastal Uncorked, a food and wine festival held in the late spring annually. In June, recently graduated high school seniors come to Myrtle Beach for Senior Week. With numerous professional fireworks displays along the oceanfront, Myrtle Beach is recognized among the top destinations for Fourth of July travel.
