Criminal Defense Lawyer in Hilton Head, SC

Dreaming of a beach wedding? Or maybe a traditional church ceremony, a picturesque Lowcountry celebration, a sophisticated golf course event or even a scenic harbor-side affair?

Hilton Head Island is an idyllic destination that offers all of this and more if you’re planning a wedding.

With its stunning natural beauty, romantic beaches and Spanish moss-draped landscapes (coupled with an abundance of wedding facilities and expert vendors), you can craft the perfect “I do” moment and a truly memorable celebration.

But with the joy of marriage, comes the never-ending hassle of wedding planning.

Luckily, the Lowcountry offers an abundance of venues for all wedding sizes, budgets and ideas. Here are just a few of the top spots you can consider when planning your special day:

If you are looking for your perfect beachfront wedding destination that’s great for large groups, the Hilton Resort & Spa is the spot for you. An added plus, your guests can stay in the hotel to enjoy the beach during your wedding.

Open for ceremonies and receptions.

Click here to visit the venue’s website.

For a wedding oasis surrounded by nature and riverside beauty, Montage Palmetto Bluff is a great spot. Justin Bieber even got married in the chapel on the property back in 2019.

This location is also good for larger groups and is open for ceremonies and receptions.

Click here to visit the venue’s website.

If you’re looking for something with more of a classy and upscale vibe, check out Venue 1123.

Located right in the heart of downtown Bluffton, this sophisticated space can hold your ceremony and reception.

Click here to visit the venue’s website.

Historic, charming and secluded — all things you look for in a Lowcountry wedding can be found at Agapae Oaks.

Located on St. Helena Island, this space is open for ceremonies and receptions.

Click here to visit the venue’s website.

For another classy and charming spot, look at Coosaw Point River Club on Lady’s Island.

This location is right by downtown Beaufort and is open for ceremonies and receptions.

Click here to visit the venue’s website.

For a secluded and golf-oriented wedding, Fripp Island’s Golf and Beach Resort is an ideal spot.

Right on the beach, you can have a ceremony and reception at this enchanting venue.

Click here to visit the venue’s website.

For a wedding you’ll never forget, you can get married on one of Hilton Head’s wedding cruises and say your vows among the dolphins and loggerhead sea turtles.

With options for all wedding sizes and budgets, this venue option is the best way to cruise into married life in style.

Local churches like Church of Cross in Old Town Bluffton and First Union African Baptist Church on Daufuskie Island are also great spots to pick from when planning your wedding.

Church of Cross does require a membership for at least a year to have a wedding there.

For additional resources and wedding venues, you can visit The Knot webpage, the Wedding Spot webpage or Hilton Head’s wedding planning page.

Looking for something fun to do this weekend? Hilton Head Island has got you covered for some family-friendly fun to kick off the spring season.

Here are two events happening this weekend that are perfect for car, food and music lovers of all ages.

For good bites, drinks, kid activities and some friendly competition, check out the Hilton Head Wing Festival this weekend.

For 28 years, this festival has brought together local restaurants, families, and visitors alike to share and indulge in Hilton Head’s unique flavors and cuisines.

This two-day festival is full of handpicked bands, Lowcountry brews and (of course) delicious wings.

Here is a rundown of the events and how you can attend.

Pre-party on Friday, March 21

Festival on Saturday, March 22

At the festival, you can expect to see over 20 local restaurants, live music and more. No pets are allowed.

If you want the fun to carry on, you can join the after-party on Saturday from 5 to 9 p.m. at The Bank, 59 Pope Avenue.

All proceeds for this event go to the Island Recreation Scholarship, a local nonprofit organization that ensures every child has access to recreational activity.

Get into the spring spirit with the Harbour Town Spring Fest on Sunday, March 23. Enjoy sidewalk shops, a car show, food, live music, activities and more.

The music artist line-up include local favorite, Deas-Guyz and the festival activities will feature a variety of watersports, tours and boat rides.

You can dine around Harbour Town all day while also browsing the selection of cars on display from the Carolina Dreamers Car Club.

The festival is from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Harbour Town’s Spring Festival will be located at 149 Lighthouse Road, inside of the Sea Pines Resort.

No tickets are required, but there is a $9 cash fee at the gate.

Here is an event schedule for the festival:

Hilton Head Island and the surrounding areas have long been ideal locations for outdoor activities such as golf, biking and even the increasingly popular sport of pickleball.

Those who like to get their exercise in through a morning stroll or evening run can also be added to that list.

With an abundance of facilities and over 60 miles of public pathways throughout Hilton Head, it can sometimes be hard to figure out what kind of track best fits your running needs.

From indoor tracks, outdoor spaces, nature trails and more, these are some of the top publicly accessible locations for those who love to run, jog or walk.

Beaufort County offers a few spaces dedicated to walkers and runners alike. There is a fee attached to using these facilities, but setting up an account is free.

Costs are $2 per day for those over 18 and $1 a day for those over 55. You can also opt to pay weekly, monthly or yearly. For more information, visit the Beaufort County Recreation Center fee page.

Here are some of the specific spaces runners and walkers can use:

Indoor location

Outdoor locations

Beaufort County Recreation Centers are open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

If you’re on the hunt for a tranquil running spot on the north side of the island, Mitchelville Freedom Park may be the place for you.

This park features historic exhibits, beach access, a picnic pavilion, an observation gazebo, restroom facilities and a trail.

Mitchelville Freedom Park is located at 40 Harriet Tubman Way and is open Monday through Sunday from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

For a more central location on the island, the Bristol Sports Arena and Crossing Park are right next to each other and provide a wide range of space for runners. They are separate locations, but both provide a great location for those looking to get a workout.

The Bristol Sports Arena has an outdoor skate park and other basketball and hockey facilities. It is located at 4 Helmsman Way.

Right across is Crossing Park, which is a 74-acre park. The wooded park features a baseball complex, a small playground, grass meadow, a picnic shelter, soccer field and interpretative trails. It is located at 4 Haig Point Circle.

Both parks are open Monday through Sunday from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Hilton Head Island is home to roughly 64 miles of publicly accessible trails and pathways for runners, walkers, bikers and all things in between.

Below is a map of the entire trail and the paths runners, walkers and joggers can use.

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The Beaufort County Recreations Centers also offer indoor cardio facilities that guests can use.

Here are the locations that have cardio equipment available:

Beaufort County Recreation Centers are open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Hilton Head and Bluffton have a variety of options for runners, walkers and joggers. This list included only a few.

If you are looking to use a dedicated running track like athletes do, there are not many options other than using the high schools, which is often not permitted due to school safety concerns.

However, joining a running group may be a good option for you if you’re just looking to hit the track once a week.

The Hilton Head Running Company has a weekly running group that uses the Hilton Head High School track on Tuesday mornings before students arrive.

The Palmetto Running Company also offers group running.

Running with a group is also a great way to increase your safety if you are worried about running solo.

Just like any sport, runners, walkers and pedestrians need to be mindful of their environment no matter if they are running indoors or outdoors.

Here are some safety tips from the Road Runners Club of America that all runners can keep in their back pocket:

HILTON HEAD ISLAND — Working in less-than-ideal weather, a crew boarded a barge under tow as it rode open-ocean waves roughly 15 miles southeast of Sea Pines Resort.

They set about opening valves that had been welded to the barge's hull, which measured 180-feet long and 80-feet wide. Sea water surged in through open valves and started to fill the vessel. From that point, the barge's fate was sealed. It was simply a matter of time before it slid beneath the waves and then settled some 50 feet below on the ocean floor.

"We used to blow them up, but they don't let us do that anymore," said Ryan Yaden, program coordinator for the S.C. Department of Natural Resources artificial reef program.

It can take as little as 45 minutes for a barge to sink in particularly unpleasant waters, Yaden said. If conditions are glass smooth, the process can take 10 hours.

Far from being the end of the barge's useful life, its sinking on March 13 was an addition to PA-49, an artificial reef also known as Hilton Head Reef. For decades, it will contribute to the ecology and economy of the region.

DNR has been building artificial reefs off of the coast from Myrtle Beach to the Savannah River since 1973. To date, 43 reefs have been built, some in water as shallow as 35 feet. Others are in water much deeper. Most reefs are less than 130 feet below the surface, which is the depth limit for recreational divers.

When the barge settled in the mud and sand it joined a surprising variety of the other objects in the depths below, including tanks, armored personnel carriers, three other barges, a 35-foot Navy boat, 20 shipping containers and more.

DNR's reef program experienced a spike in the 1980s and 90s. That's likely when the Hilton Head Reef got its start. Deciding which of the 43 reefs should get new materials added is usually a balancing act based the location of the item to be sunk and an intention distribute materials as equally as possible along the entire coast.

A 2007 economic analysis conducted by DNR explored the benefits of artificial reefs, said Yaden. The study determined the reefs added $83 million a year to the state's economy based only on the impact of fishing and diving. That figure is not adjusted for the 18 intervening years of inflation, so the actual impact in today's dollars would likely be well in excess of $100 million.

"It was surprising to us. We didn't think it was going to be that high," Yaden said.

From an ecological perspective, more than 50 years of reef building has revealed that artificial reefs behave nearly the same as natural reefs.

"The main reason the program was started was that we do not have a lot of natural reef structures off the coast like they do in Florida. The artificial reefs give fishermen other places to fish and reduce fishing pressure on the natural reefs," explained Yaden.

Only days after its sinking, it's likely that fish are already using the barge for shelter. In as little as 30 days, invertebrates will begin to accumulate on its structure, which will provide food for larger fish. The process will continue to develop and be more productive into the foreseeable future. To make this barge more attractive to sea life, 10 shipping containers were welded to the deck to give it a deeper profile, as it was only about 8-feet deep.

"By adding the shipping containers on there, it gives more area for fish to hide," Yaden said, adding that it will also give more opportunities for fisherman trolling over it.

This is likely the last reef addition to occur in Beaufort County this year, though other projects further north are planned, including the sinking of a 102-foot barge near Cape Romain in Charleston County and a shrimp boat that will be placed off Little River in Horry County.

If you’re visiting Hilton Head soon, make sure to pack your clubs, channel your inner pro and get ready to tee up for a trip that’s sure to be under par (in the best way possible).

Hilton Head is known for its 30-plus golf courses and is dubbed as a hub of golf tourism.

However, one of the pains of planning a visit to the course is having to get a membership. This seemingly small barrier can put a damper on anyone’s hopes of becoming the next golf pro.

But don’t let that deter you. Hilton Head has an abundance of courses, tournaments and special offers to make sure your once-in-a-lifetime trip or casual Sunday afternoon can be a hole-in-one.

Here are some insider tips on where (and how) you can golf on Hilton Head without a membership.

Popular resorts like Sea Pines and Palmetto Dunes include golf access in their vacation packages. Resorts often offer a variety of custom golf packages for small and large groups.

You may even save a bit of money if you choose a resort package with included tee times and course access.

You may also get priority tee times or access to semi-private courses. If you want to investigate how much a resort golf trip may cost you, you can use the quote tool at the bottom of the Visit Hilton Head Island webpage.

Some private courses open their doors for fundraising events, offering a rare chance to play premium courses while supporting a good cause.

There are a handful of charitable golf events during the springtime where you can experience playing a round on top courses.

Some of the events for 2025 include:

Note that some of these events may require tickets.

Many private clubs on the island and surrounding area allow members to bring guests.

If you have local connections, this is one of the best ways to get access to exclusive courses like Sea Pines Country Club or the Country Club of Hilton Head.

Note that you may have to accommodate their schedule and preferences, which can limit your control over play times.

One of the easiest ways to play is through the abundance of public courses open to guests and locals on the island.

Some of the most popular locations include:

Public courses are perfect to visit for affordability, a casual atmosphere and can cater to all skill levels.

For more recommendations on public courses, click here. Golf Digest also provides a ranking of the top public and private courses.

The Harbour Town Golf Link course, part of Sea Pines Resort, is public but usually in high demand. For all courses, booking in advance or staying at the resort increases your chances of getting the tee time you want.

This story was originally published March 19, 2025 at 6:00 AM.