My wife and I are trying to plan a honeymoon road trip to the east coast, but don’t know where our destination should be. We would like to be close to the beach, stay at a nice, quiet hotel, away from families and kids if possible, and be close to some fun activities/night life. We are thinking Myrtle Beach or Virginia Beach. We will be driving from Illinois. The trip is going to be in mid July 07. Any suggestions on destination resorts would be very helpful, as well as activities and other suggestions. We don’t know anything about Myrtle Beach. Thanks!
Wow, so many great suggestions already. Your answers are wonderful!
We are in our mid 20’s, to answer one of the comments.
Im thinking we should keep our trip planned north of the Carolina’s, due to the impending hurricane season? Any more thoughts? I saw one response dealing with that, and agree that it would be unfortunate if we were hit with hurricane weather on our trip.
Ocean City, MD sounds like a great option at this point.
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If you like golf and gentlemens’ clubs then Myrtle Beach is the place. If you like a fun boardwalk, great restaurants and rides. Then Ocean City, Maryland is perfect. There is also a state park (Assateague) 15 minutes away where there is a practically empty beach and beautiful wetlands with wild ponies that just roam around. (But don’t feed them. They’re docil but still wild and it teaches them that Cars = Food, which isn’t good at 30 mph for the ponies).
Miami,,,,, no question for east coast…. Beaches, night life, people,,, good weather
otherwise, Las Vegas,,,,,,
A couple of possibilities:
Newport RI -everything you need and then some-great beaches- great night life – great history
Newport has a reputation of being an extremely expensive destination because the super-wealthy of America lived there -While that is technically true I know for a fact that you can find reasonably priced hotels , & restaurants all over Newport
Gurnees Inn at Montauk NY-the end of Long Island is a honeymoon destination also.
Since I’m not in the wedding business I have no idea what is on Cape Cod or Martha’s Vineyard or Nantucket as far as destination resorts. Having been to those places i do know that are nice places to see and be-even in summer
If actually going in the water isn’t important then Bar Harbor Maine / Acadia National Park is also a really neat and romantic place to be,
The problem with selecting Myrtle Beach and also Ocean City as a destination is hurricanes. We are now officially in hurricane season and because both cities are right on the classic East Coast hurricane tracks there is the very real possibility of your honeymoon being ruined by having to evacuate your hotel.
As you get further north towards LI and New England the possibilty of being hit by a major hurricane diminishes significantly.
Regardless of where you ultimatley wind up The East Coast you will pay a premium price for lodging and may have some difficulty getting the space you desire.The reason is simple: July & August is primo tourist season for east coat beach towns.
Watch “Jaws ” which was filmed on Martha’s Vineyard to get an idea of this
The only saving grace may be that the obscenely high gas prices may keep people home and reservations may be cancelled as a result.
Have fun and if you do choose Myrtle Beach get some type of travel insurance to cya
Edit:
catsovermen’s information is in error . The Atlantic Ocean from Cape Cod and south is is in fact very swimmable in summer and you should have no difficulty at all spending an hour or more in the water w/o a wet suit
Unlike the very warm water of Myrtle Beach and points south ,a dip in the 70+ degree North Atlantic can be very refreshing on a hot day .
Current water temps of Sandy Hook NJ-63 F and off of Cape Cod MA 53F high winds are mixing bottom water]
It would be reasonable to expect a 10-13 degree rise in those temps come mid-July.
It depends on what you like. How old are you?
I have to confess that, personally, I don’t think much of either VA Beach of Myrtle Beach. I think they are both a bit trashy and dirty. I made a rule long ago that I would do research, and any city in which there was a Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum would get an automatic strike off my list.
For a honeymoon, huh? Well, there are soooo many areas on the east coast. New England coastal towns are picturesque and lovely. In July the weather will not be hot, but will be nice for outdoor activities. Not too hot or cold to wear you out. However, the water is frigid so no swimming, and nightlife is so so.
Delaware and MD beaches are good. Ocean City, MD (actually where I honeymooned), Dewey Beach, DE, Rehoboth Beach, DE. DE are more family friendly. Ocean City has nightlife, but also has a Ripley’s Museum on the Boardwalk (see above)
Moving south. VA beaches I have to confess aren’t the greatest. They are a bit dirty, and the restaurants aren’t as good as they are in MD. Don’t understand it. The seafood comes out of the same waters, but somehow the Virginians tend to ruin it. I hate to admit this, being a Virginian.
Further south, North Carolina. GREAT for fishing and outdoorsman activities. Remote, secluded beaches. Not much nightlife. Buggy, too.
On down to South Carolina. Well, I may be a bit biased here since this is where I relocated from Virginia. Myrtle Beach and the northern beaches are too close to metropolitan areas to be nice in my mind. Charleston is AWESOME. It is a great town. Historic, beautiful, nightlife, beaches close. Also the Beaufort area. Outside of Beaufort there is a state park called Hunting Island. The state rents out beach houses / cabins on Hunting Island. The beauty of these is that the park is closed at 9pm, so after that you pretty much have the beach to yourself. There are several cabins, but still soooo few people. These are about 20-30 minutes from Beaufort that has some really good restaurants and bars.
Down to GA. Savannah area is neat. You could look for places on Tybee Island. One of the best beaches in my mind. Some good restaurants, and not too far from downtown Savannah where it is perfectly legal to walk in to any bar and order any drink to go. They encourage walking around town, etc. I really love Savannah. Other than that, the GA coast is more family friendly.
Oh, back to SC. Hilton Head Island is nice. Very touristy area though. Expensive. But may have everything you are looking for. Beaches, accomodations, nightlife. It will be crowded in July, though.
Then on to Florida. There are nothing but beach resorts in Florida. Take your pick, they are all the same. One area that I may suggest is Hutchinson Island. Why, you ask? Conchy Joe’s. One of the best effin’ bars anywhere, period. It is a tiki hut out over the Hutchinson River. Good food, better drinks. A short bridge jump away from oceanfront hotels. It is pretty far down the coastline, though. Almost to Ft. Lauderdale, so would be a looonnnggg drive.
Hope this helps.