{"id":51782,"date":"2018-04-20T19:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-04-20T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/?p=51782"},"modified":"2023-05-08T08:15:15","modified_gmt":"2023-05-08T12:15:15","slug":"why-hilton-head-is-a-must-see-for-cruisers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/why-hilton-head-is-must-see-for-cruisers\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Hilton Head is a Must-See for Cruisers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\"Hilton <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t

Iconic Light<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\n
\n Harbour Town lighthouse is unlike its government-backed brethren in that it was privately funded. Developer Charles Fraser paid to build it while constructing Harbour Town Marina and the Sea Pines Plantation. \u2009\u2009Fraser\u2019s Folly is what naysayers called the development, but Fraser got the last laugh, setting up a golf tourney that, today, is known as the RBC Heritage. The lighthouse is open to the public for tours seven days a week, with a $4.25 fee to climb the thigh-burning 114 steps to the top. The walls are lined with memorabilia and historical images.<\/span>\n iStock\/SeanPavonePhoto<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n\n

A year and a half after Hurricane Matthew pummeled the Carolina coastline with brutal blows, Leslie Whitener can vividly recall scenes that, even today, seem surreal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had the fuel docks five days after the storm, but there were a number of days that I didn\u2019t have a dock at the fuel dock,\u201d says Whitener, who is the assistant harbor master at Harbour Town Yacht Basin on Hilton Head, South Carolina. \u201cGuys would have to tie up to the pilings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

Oh, how things have changed. The marina is just about rebuilt, she says, after being closed for nearly nine months and then reopening piece by piece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

\u201cNot all of the docks were replaced, but about 65 percent of them were, with all new power pedestals, dock boxes and everything,\u201d she says. By the time you read this, the marina is expected to be \u00adfully reopened \u2014 with the same transient rates as before the storm, encouraging cruisers, anglers and superyacht owners to come back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe biggest we\u2019ve ever put in here was a 172,\u201d she told Yachting in January. \u201cAnd we\u2019re dredging as we speak right now, so we\u2019ll have 9 to 10 feet [of draft] at low tide this summer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

Transients get full access to the Sea Pines Resort, with its restaurants, tennis courts, outdoor entertainment, golf course and events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\"Hilton <\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t

Swimmers Always Welcome<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\n
\n Hilton Head has 12 miles of public beaches, with the official beach season running from April 1 to September 30. Keep an eye on the signs: During those months, activities such as fishing, surfing and even riding boogie boards are prohibited in designated swimming areas.<\/span>\n iStock\/FangXianuo<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\t <\/figcaption>\n <\/section>\n\t\t\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have the RBC Heritage golf tournament in April,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s a huge draw, a great way to entertain clients. We fill the marina up with corporate boats looking to entertain clients. As far as we\u2019ve been able to determine, we\u2019re the only marina that\u2019s adjacent to a PGA course. I\u2019m looking at the 18th green.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

And because the storm caused a shutdown last year, cruisers went elsewhere; that means reservations for slips today can be made later than usual, sometimes with a few days\u2019 notice thanks to the shortened waiting list. Boaters may still see some rebuilding in progress along the coast, she adds, but \u201cit\u2019s certainly better than it was this time last year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With hurricane Matthew in its wake, this South Carolina destination is back in business as a must-see cruising spot.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28869,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"BS_author_type":"BS_author_is_guest","BS_guest_author_name":"Kim Kavin","BS_guest_author_url":"","hydra_display_date":"20180420","hydra_display_updated":false,"_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"156","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Hilton Head's Harbour Town Yacht Basin is once again ready for transients.","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Why Hilton Head is a Must-See for Cruisers %%sep%% %%sitename%%","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","arc_story_id":"LDEXHWHNURDORIQ5SZUS53YMFY","arc_website_url":"why-hilton-head-is-must-see-for-cruisers\/","custom_permalink":"why-hilton-head-is-must-see-for-cruisers\/","arc_subtype":"right-sidebar","arc_exclude_from_feeds":false,"sponsored":false,"sponsored_label":"Sponsored Content","sponsored_display_label":false,"sponsored_image":0,"post_right_rail":true,"post_right_rail_ad_1":true,"post_right_rail_ad_2":true,"post_right_rail_ad_3":false,"post_right_rail_ad_4":false,"post_right_rail_recirc":true,"fixed_anchor_ad":true,"post_top_ad":true,"post_off_ramp":true,"post_taboola":false,"labels":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[156],"tags":[218,528,173,587],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51782"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51782"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51782\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}