It’s not surprise to those of us that live here, that we were again named as one of the fastest growing family and vacation destinations in the nation. More than 17 million people visit our beautiful east coast shores annually. Our nickname, “the Grand Strand” is appropriate as we have been recently named one of the Best East Coast Beaches by TravelChannel.com, a Top 10 East Coast Beach Making A Splash by TripAdvisor and one of the Top 10 Beach Beach destinations in the US for honeymooners by Tripping.com. This year Myrtle Beach will have plenty of new things for visitors and new residents to enjoy.
New communities, developments and businesses are popping up everywhere. So much diversity in residential choices make this area a prime destination for those young and older to live. We have great condo communities with all the “must have” amenities, amazing active adult communities sure to keep everyone engaged and stunning oceanfront condos overlooking our beautiful beaches. New construction is booming here with builders working overtime to meet the demand. Resales continue to be strong in Myrtle Beach and 2016 is looking to be even stronger.
Buchanan Hotels will be planning a new hotel in central Myrtle Beach at 17th Avenue. It’s planned to have 530 units and construction should be complete in 2017. Buchanan Motels is based out of Virginia and we look forward to welcoming them to the Myrtle Beach area. Another big change coming is at Springmaid Beach Resort. The property-wide renovation project began in September 2015. The property will be re-branded as the Double Tree Resort by Hilton and completion is scheduled for early 2017. To find out the details, visit www.SpringmaidBeach.com/rebranding.
In addition to some great new developments in the Myrtle Beach area, we have new restaurants, schools and businesses moving to the Grand Strand. Now that our airport has been expanded and new flights coming into Myrtle Beach, we can attract some of those larger chains we’ve been waiting on. Other new and exciting things that we will be getting this year include a LEGO’s Brick Sculpture at Brookgreen Gardens made from almost 400,000 legos bricks. You can see more information at www.Brookgreen.org.
Also planned to open is Extreme Sports Center, Myrtle Beach’s first indoor trampoline park planned to open this month. The facility will include an open trampoline field, a trampoline dodge ball stadium, slack lines, basketball hoops, flying trapeze, a ninja warrior aerial obstacle course and Olympic sized foam pits with 50,000 cubes of foam. Find out more about this fun facility at www.CircusTrix.com.
From a culinary perspective, we’ve got some awesome new additions coming in 2016. Plans are in the works for a new Bluefin, a new oceanfront restaurant along the Myrtle Beach boardwalk near the iconic Skywheel. Rumor has it there will be indoor and deck seating, a rooftop deck and in front of the building will be sand volleyball courts. A new craft beer and restaurant opened in the Market Commons last month called The Brass Tap. It offers 70 craft beers on tap and a full food menu that looks delicious. Go like them on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/BrassTapMyrtleBeach.
We are all excited about The Claw House opening in Murrells Inlet built to look like an old fashioned New England-style lobster house. They will be serving North Atlantic lobster trucked in fresh from Bedford, Mass. Of course, there will be all the other great seafood favorites too. The Claw House is set to open some time this month (February). Find out more at their Facebook page, www.Facebook.com/TheClawHouse. We’ve been told that the owner of The Wicked Tuna in Murrells Inlet have decided to open a second location in downtown Myrtle Beach near the 1900 block of N Ocean Blvd across from the beach. They are expected to start construction this year.
The owner of Art Burger Sushi and The Chemist is planned to open Gordo’s Taco and Tequila in downtown Myrtle Beach at 9th Ave North. They will serve 50 different tacos that are organic as well a hormone and antibiotic free. It will also include outdoor seating close to the Myrtle Beach boardwalk and beach area. And finally, The International Culinary Institute of Myrtle Beach is planning a major expansion by building a brand new, state of the art facility adjacent to the Market Commons. This will move their student roster from 180 to 500 students. The new $15 million facility will feature a seat restaurant with a local focus, bringing seasonal products from local fishermen and farmers, while still adding an international flare to their food. There is so many new things coming with this facility that you’re going to have to click through to their website at www.hgtc.edu/culinaryinstitute.
From an events standpoint, we have the second year of the Country Music Festival in June bringing big names such as Tim McGraw and Keith Urban. The first Scottish Highland Games is coming to Myrtle Beach March 18th and 19th. The games will feature displays of strength through a caber throw, Scottish entertainment, authentic food and much more. Find out the details here www.MyrtleBeachHighlandGames.com. The Calvin Gilmore Theater is adding Time Warp to their show lined up this year as well. Time Warp features the ever so iconic music from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s taking us back on a tour of this time. Should be a memorable show and we can’t wait to check it out ourselves. Another great happening is Surfside Beach signed a proclomation in January 2016 making them the first Autism-Friendly travel destination with support of the Champion Autism Network. Surfside is looking to raise awareness through local restaurants and other hospitality driven businesses to learn to be more understanding and accepting of those families that have autistic children. You can find more information at www.ChampionAutismNetwork.com/autism-friendly-travel.
We hope that you’ve found this information helpful and we look forward to bringing your more area information. Matt and Christy are always here to assist you with all of your real estate needs, so feel free to reach out to us anytime. www.MattHarperRealEstate.com or call Matt at 843-267-7556.