Hilton Head resort question

I am planning to go to Hilton Head for the first time in the summer. In the "second tier" resorts such as Marriott Harbour Point, Bluewater, and Waterside, which do you prefer? We recently had the opportunity to re-trade into a 3BR Waterside unit from our current reservation at Harbour Point. But we had no frame of reference as to which was a better place to stay for a family. Any thoughts?

If you are travelling with children or more than 4 adults I would probably change to Waterside and the larger unit. For 2-4 adults I would stick with Harbour Point. Waterside has bigger and better pools that kids would probably prefer. Waterside is walkable to the beach although it is a fairly long walk with beach gear in the summer heat. It is a really nice public beach with all the facilities to change and clean off, etc at Coligny (near Waterside) but it is quite crowded. The beach access for Shelter Cove is more private although still probably fairly crowded during the summer. Its not walkable and would be a fairly far bike ride for most in the heat with beach gear. The parking can be limited if you don't get there early. There is a free jitney bus that will take you to the beach and bring you back.

Altho we own at Marriott Grande Ocean and Barony (and are well familiar with Harbour Point), we also own two 3-BRs at Waterside for "extra time at HH", and Waterside is a very nice resort.

Advantages for Waterside:
1. beach is close/walkable---several blocks; pools are bigger.
2. adjacent to Coligny Plaza, full of shops and restaurants.
3. 3-BR will give more space....2 master suites.
4. imho, better location for a family vacation.

Advantages for Harbour Pointe:
1. it's a Marriott!
2. units are nicer----rooms, furniture, TVs, kitchen, etc--- so you'll be more comfortable.
3. inland waterway view is nice.
4. pool is fine....slightly smaller but clean and well-kept.

Bluewater is nice but very isolated. Longer drive to anything, don't recommend given other choices.



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IMHO, Waterside has a very good large pool, excellent for kids, plus a little waterworks/pool for kids (sort of hidden between 2 bldgs-not at the big pool). I do not like the location of BlueWater, although it would be good if you kayak, as they have free kayaks, I think. I love W's easy access by foot or bike to shops, putt-putt, etc. My teens like the W location for a bit of freedom not too far from the resort on foot/bike. The 3BR are large, they typically have 2 Kings and 1 set of twins.

Here are list of non Marriott's resorts that are very nice on the island Royal Dunes @ Port Royal Plantation, and Port O Call & Spinnaker's at Shipyard Plantation just to names a few resorts.

Royal Dunes & Port O Call have 3 bedrooms units.

What non-Marriotts are recommended for Myrtle Beach?

mrsc said:

What non-Marriotts are recommended for Myrtle Beach?

Click to expand...

We bought 2 weeks at Waterside in Hilton Head to gain "extra" HH beach time at cheap prices.

LIKEWISE, we bought 2 weeks at Sheraton Broadway Plantation at Myrtle Beach for "extra" beach time there. These purchases were dirt cheap, but the resorts are very nice and the MFs are reasonable and lower than our Marriotts.

(IMHO, there are only about 3 or 4 "nice" non-Marriotts from which to choose. Marriott Oceanwatch is unsurpassed, as you know, so these I'd characterize as second-tier resorts, but they are heads and shoulders above all other third-tier resorts.) I chose SBP initially because of the price, but the quality has been overwhelmingly impressive the more we see it, so I'd rate it at the top of the second tier.

SBP at Myrtle has great villas (all recently refurbished with granite countertops, etc., etc), and has THE best pool complex at Myrtle Beach because it has a huge, beautiful Adult area pool, a fantastic Kids' pool called Pirate's Cove, a Lazy River, and a huge Indoor Pool. That's a lot of variety, and all fun. They also have screened-in porches. Look at these photos---it's a nice place.

http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=5601

The resort is adjacent to (less than a quarter mile, and walkable) to the famous "Broadway at the Beach", which has many restaurants, shops, and attractions, including a theater.

http://goo.gl/maps/yUZgM

http://www.broadwayatthebeach.com/

The only drawback is that it's one mile from the beach. Beach parking is not a hassle, though, and you simply drive straight to the beach and park in the designated Public Beach lots which are oceanfront.



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A few more things about Harbour Point:
1) there is a free shuttle to the beach access. You can park at the beach access, but there aren't a lot of parking spaces and when they fill up you are out of luck
2) the Shelter Cove area is being refurbished (mall, new Whole Foods, etc.). This makes for a much nicer area than before
3) you have fireworks at Shelter Cove each week
4) water views can be spectacular, but it isn't the beach
5) there are multiple different sizes for the 2BR units and some have much better views than others. I stayed in the smallest one and overlooked the parking lot. The units were old, but refurbished.

Overall, I really liked Harbor Point and Sunset Point. They are the best values in the destination club from a points perspective (IMO).