Planning a Trip to Myrtle Beach on a Budget
Are you yearning for a family beach vacation but not sure if you can afford it? I am here to encourage you that you can enjoy Myrtle Beach on a budget!
We did our first beach vacation as a family of 5 in April 2023 and spent less than $1,300! In this post I’ll share a few tips on how we saved money but still enjoyed our family beach vacation.
Go Off Season
You probably think of summer when you think beach vacation but going in late spring or early fall is the cheapest time to go to Myrtle Beach, SC.
Places to stay will be cheaper during the off season but the off season can still be fun. June through August is peak season for Myrtle Beach.
We went the first week of April and got lucky with perfect warm weather. Although April could be a busy time depending on spring break schedules, we were fortunate enough to not be overrun by spring breakers. Going off season also means there are less crowds!
Find the Perfect Beachfront Hotel
There are so many hotels along the beach to choose from when you are planning your Myrtle Beach on a budget. I kind of ended up in a rabbit hole of hotel research to check them all out.
The “perfect” hotel for you will depend on your needs and wishes.
We wanted something along the beach and learned that some are more kid-friendly. Some hotels have more kid focused water amenities, like splash pads. I liked those because I thought it would be more family oriented and not attract the college kids on spring break.
After comparing amenities, pricing and room layout (yes most hotel sites along the beach have various hotel layouts and you can check them out on their website!) we decided on the Partial Ocean View Double Suite at Captain’s Quarters Resort.
Captain’s Quarters first grabbed my attention with their 15 water features! The ironic part was we only ended up using one. It was easier for us to just have the kids in the pirate ship themed splash pad. It allowed us to cool off as well but kept them out of the deep water. They loved it!
I’m not going to go on about all the features but the hotel was nice and the staff was friendly. They also had an arcade and bowling alley, but we didn’t even go to those because we wanted to be on the beach. It was the backup plan for a rainy day.
Captain’s Quarters was a great value because we had plenty of room in our suite, it was right on the beach and the pools were great. For under $200 a night (before taxes and fees) I considered it our place to stay AND our entertainment, which was a pretty good deal. For the full 2 days we were there we only went off site twice. There are a lot of other area attractions that we didn’t check out simply because we didn’t have time. We went for the beach and pools and that’s what we enjoyed!
If you have older kids you may want to look at other hotels in the area with large pool slides. Check out this list at the Best Family-Friendly Hotels in Myrtle Beach.
Drive If You Can
Aside from the hotel another usual big vacation expense is the travel portion. We decided to drive, simply because we haven’t tried to travel with the kids on a plane. We also like having our own vehicle.
Your choice between plane or car depends on your distance, preference and budget. Generally driving is cheaper than flying, especially with a large family.
Google Maps told us that it was about a 12 hour drive without stops. We broke it up in 2 days both ways and stayed with family in York, PA to break it up. This saved us money but also extended our trip to 4 days of travel.
The kids did ok on the long trip. Ask me again if I would drive next time instead of fly and you might find my searching for the cheapest flights possible. 🤣
Make Your Own Food
One of the easiest ways to do Myrtle Beach on a budget is to prepare your own food. Buying 3 meals a day at a restaurant for the whole family can really drive up the cost. If you are staying in a place that has a kitchen or at least a mini fridge and microwave, try to plan most meals in your hotel.
We had a full fridge, microwave, stove and oven in our hotel. Our plan was to have 1 meal out and make our own simple meals.
We also packed a lot of snacks for the car, which we also had during out stay.
Related: 5 Tips for Saving Money on Groceries
What We Ate
Our first night there we got in late so we ordered 2 pizzas, which we enjoyed leftovers the next day for dinner.
The next morning we did take advantage of the convenience of the hotel breakfast because we hadn’t gone shopping yet. Unfortunately it wasn’t free. The view from the 9th floor was great but it was $42 for the 5 of us (I think 2 and under was free). Thankfully the kids ate pretty well there before we hit the beach but the food wasn’t necessarily anything to brag about for the price.
For lunch we walked to Legends Sports Bar and Grille, which was really good. They had a kids menu and we enjoyed eating outside under the large covered patio.
After lunch we went to Walmart, which was only about an 8 minute drive. Our focus was simple, kid friendly food. We got Eggo waffles, fruit, bread, jelly for PB&J (I packed a small jar of peanut butter from home), milk, chips and ice cream treats.
(Maybe too many ice cream treats for 2 days since we ended up leaving some in the freezer. I hope the housekeeping staff enjoyed them. 😆)
On our second day we had the Eggo waffles for breakfast and enjoyed PB&J by the pool. A true summer feeling – having lunch by the pool!
Our meal out for the second day was Chick-Fil-A for dinner with friends (who were so kind to treat). Nothing fancy but we were all hungry and it was getting late. Plus we don’t have many Chick-Fil-A’s near us so it was something different.
Now I will admit living on pizza, fried chicken and PB&J wasn’t the healthiest. Like I said, we kept it simple and kid friendly. We were only there for 2 full days so we didn’t want to get too much food or spend time cooking. Now that we are familiar with the are a little and know how convenient it is to get groceries, I will plan for some healthier options next time.
Find Deals for Myrtle Beach on a Budget
Do your research and look for deals before you book your hotel or plan for outings. As I was researching hotels a lot of them have seasonal deals or free night stays for a certain period of time. Take advantage of those deals if you have flexible dates.
When we checked into the hotel we received the Vacation Member Benefits (VMB) card. Honestly, I was not very good at taking advantage of the savings on this card. It kind of got buried with our stuff and I never looked into all the savings benefits.
We could have used the card at Ben & Jerry’s when my daughter needed her ice cream fix at Broadway at the Beach. Learn from my mistakes!
The VMB card will give you savings on area attractions, entertainment, dining, shopping and transportation.
You may also find discounts in the Myrtle Beach Bucks Coupon Book. The coupon book was available at our hotel with all the other area brochures. They also have an app you can download on your phone.
Plan for Parking
One thing I was not entirely prepared for was the cost for parking. I knew parking at the hotel was $12 a night but I did not consider public parking.
(As a side note, I’m glad that we had a secure gate enclosed parking area for our hotel. It provided an extra sense of security.)
We spent most of our time at the beach outside our hotel so we only paid for public parking 1 time. For updates and rates on parking go to visitmyrtlebeach.com.
Create a Savings Fund for Your Beach Vacation
By now I hope I have you convinced that you CAN do Myrtle Beach on a budget! And by doing so you want to be able to pay for it in cash and NOT rack up credit card charges.
Do you research, find the deals and make a vacation budget.
Here’s a breakdown of our main Myrtle Beach trip costs for hotel, gas and food:
Does not include gifts we bought for ourselves and for cousins for Easter. Your costs may be higher if you plan to include other entertainment as well.
$753.43 Hotel (3 nights including parking)
$287.15 Gas
$253.44 Food (not including snacks purchased before we left)
$1,294.02 Total
Once you have an idea of how much it will cost when you want to go start saving for your family beach vacation with a sinking fund. A sinking fund is simply a savings fund dedicated to a specific thing.
Visiting Myrtle Beach on a Budget
If you are looking for an inexpensive beach vacation then give Myrtle Beach a try! With a little planning and some saving you can enjoy Myrtle Beach on the cheap and still have lots of fun!
