Edisto Island, SC is one of the rare beaches that make you feel as though you've gone back in time. No clattering amusement parks, no towering condos, not even one traffic light.
Instead, Edisto Beach is a delightful oasis of live oaks and Spanish moss, sand dunes and marsh creeks, quiet unspoiled beaches with magnificent views in every direction.
This is the way the islanders wish to keep it. They view their contribution to beach vacationers and tourists as offering a last refuge to those who value a special place to enjoy life and nature in its purest form.
Wow.
Hotels and Rentals on Edisto Island, SC
The Wyndham Ocean Ridge Resort is the island hotel, across from the marina on Big Bay Creek. It's a spacious, wonderful resort with both timeshares and rentals. The layout is spread out like a campus, with a restaurant, 3 swimming pools, a championship golf course, and several tennis courts.
You can find great beach houses and villas to rent all over the island, suitable for large families or a couples' getaway. Some are managed by island realtors, some by private owners. There's also the Seaside Plantation Bed & Breakfast and Egret's Point Townhouses. All just right, all completely "Edisto."
Edisto Beach - What to Eat
Edisto Island has fine restaurants, and sandwich shops are everywhere. There are a few grocery stores, but any major shopping is best done in Charleston (50 miles northeast.) But why would you want to?
There are great local food shops and outdoor markets on the island - just visit Miss Pink's vegetable stand, King's Farm Market locally grown fruits and veggies, and Geechie Boy Market and Mill - all offer wonderful, fresh seafood, vegetables and much more.
Edisto Eats features great fresh seafood and ready-to-bake casseroles to take back and stick in the oven. There's even a grocery store that delivers right to your beach house - stocked and ready for when you arrive to the island!
Things To Do on Edisto Island
No. 1: Take your shoes off.
Then... go fishing for flounder, whiting, and spot. Spend the day shrimping and crabbing. Walk and swim on the beach. Play golf. Play tennis. Take your family for a bike ride and explore the island.
Enjoy a boat tour of spectacular Botany Bay Plantation. Take off in a kayak. Rise at 4:00 a.m. for an off-shore charter and troll for dolphin, wahoo, tuna and billfish ... all from Edisto Island.
Be sure to visit Edisto Beach State Park, which features its own special brand of lodging. There are seven furnished cabins as well as RV camping spots and tent sites. Even if you aren't into camping, you're surrounded by the most beautiful beach on the East Coast. Fantastic hiking trails, fishing, boating access - and the birdwatching is supreme. Bring your pups to the beach (but not the camping spots) as long as they are on a leash.
Don't miss the Edisto Island Serpentarium. It doesn't matter if you're not a fan of snakes - a trip to this wonderful facility is a real treat. You're surrounded by fantastic outdoor gardens and indoor natural environments for all sorts of reptiles! There are 19 adult alligators too, all to help us visitors understand Edisto Island's stewardship of their wildlife.
Golf on Edisto - The Plantation Course at Edisto is the only golf course on the island. Nestled where the ocean breeze stirs the magnolias and palms, this course is as challenging and upscale as any. Perhaps overshadowed by the more commercially famous courses of nearby Hilton Head and Kiawah Island, many golfers may not be aware of this course. But that's all the better for those that are!
Map of Edisto Island
Edisto Island, SC is north of Hilton Head Island and just south of Seabrook Island and Kiawah Island.
