Lifelong Local's Guide
Things to Do
- 6 local picks
- Parks, landmarks, beaches & more
— Murrells Inlet Kayak, Lifelong Resident
Key takeaways
- Six standout things to do in and around Murrells Inlet: Huntington Beach State Park, Atalaya Castle, Brookgreen Gardens, the MarshWalk, Pawleys Island, and Garden City Pier — plus the inlet’s fishing and fresh seafood.
- Most of these are reachable or enhanced by kayak — Huntington Beach’s marsh, the MarshWalk’s docks, and the creeks around Garden City all connect to the water.
- Several MarshWalk restaurants have dock access for paddle-up dining — see Where to Eat.
- Combine two or three in a single day using the One-Day Murrells Inlet Kayak Itinerary for a suggested order.
DON'T MISS
Local Favorites
State Park
Huntington Beach State Park
South Carolina's most beautiful state park
- $8/adult, $5/child (6-15), under 6 free
- 6am–10pm
Landmark
Atalaya Castle
Moorish-style castle inside Huntington Beach State Park
- Included with park admission
Attraction
Brookgreen Gardens
America's first public sculpture garden
- $20/adult, $10/child (4-12)
- 9:30am–5pm
Landmark
Murrells Inlet Marshwalk
Half-mile boardwalk lined with restaurants and bars
- Free
Beach
Pawleys Island
The arrogantly shabby beach — a Lowcountry icon
- Free
- Pawleys Island
A Closer Look
What Makes Each One Worth Your Time
Every stop on this list works on its own. What makes them special here is how naturally they pair with a morning on the water. Here’s what to know about each, and how it connects to a kayak trip.
Huntington Beach State Park
Just south of the inlet in Georgetown County, Huntington Beach State Park protects about 2,500 acres of beach, salt marsh, and freshwater lagoon — the land was leased to the state in 1960 and has stayed wild since. It’s one of the best birding spots on the East Coast, with wading birds and alligators in the causeway marsh, and the beach is as quiet as any on the Grand Strand.
By kayak: the park’s sheltered marsh creeks are calm, beginner-friendly paddling on a rising tide. See our Huntington Beach kayak route guide and the park page for the land side of a visit.
Atalaya Castle
Inside Huntington Beach State Park, Atalaya is the Moorish-style winter home that Archer and Anna Hyatt Huntington built during the Great Depression with local labor. It’s a maze of open courtyards, studio rooms, and covered walkways — one of the most underrated historic sites on the coast, and the setting for the annual Atalaya Arts & Crafts Festival each September.
By kayak: you can see the building from parts of the park’s marsh, but the visit itself is on foot. Pair a morning paddle with an afternoon walking the castle — here’s how to do both in a day.
Brookgreen Gardens
Founded in 1932 by the same Huntingtons on the grounds of four former rice plantations, Brookgreen Gardens covers roughly 9,100 acres and holds the largest collection of American figurative sculpture displayed outdoors anywhere. There’s also a Lowcountry zoo, boat tours of the old rice fields, and live oak allées that are worth the trip on their own.
By kayak: Brookgreen borders the creek systems south of the inlet, but the gardens are a land-based visit. Most people drive down after a paddle — it’s a short trip from any Murrells Inlet launch. See the Brookgreen Gardens page.
Murrells Inlet MarshWalk
The MarshWalk is a half-mile boardwalk of waterfront restaurants and bars looking straight out over the salt marsh. It’s the center of the inlet’s food scene — this is the “Seafood Capital of South Carolina,” after all — and the go-to spot for sunset, live music, and people-watching.
By kayak: this is the one attraction you can paddle straight to. Several restaurants have dock access for tie-up dining, and the boardwalk is one of the best sunset paddles on the coast. See The MarshWalk, Paddle to Lunch, and our sunset kayak guide.
Pawleys Island
A few miles south, Pawleys Island is one of the oldest summer resorts on the East Coast and proudly “arrogantly shabby” — weathered beach houses, hammocks, no high-rises, and a slow pace that hasn’t changed much in decades. The island sits between the ocean and a wide tidal creek, which is where the paddling happens.
By kayak: Pawleys Creek and the marsh behind the island are calm, scenic water with public access points covered in our Launch Sites guide, and Pawleys Kayaks rents right on the island. See the Pawleys Island page.
Garden City Pier
Just north of the inlet, Garden City Beach sits in Horry County and runs south to a peninsula at the very mouth of Murrells Inlet. Its pier is the classic Grand Strand fishing pier — open late, with an arcade and live music in season, and a good place to fish without a boat.
By kayak: Garden City is more beach than marsh, but the creeks behind it connect to the inlet, and the closest public launches are listed in our Launch Sites guide. If you’d rather fish from a kayak than a pier, start with our kayak fishing guide. See the Garden City Beach page.
Fishing and fresh seafood
The two things the inlet is best known for are also the easiest to combine with a paddle. Redfish, flounder, spotted seatrout, black drum, and sheepshead all live in the same creeks you’ll kayak, and a guided kayak fishing trip puts you on them with local knowledge — see Kayak Fishing in Murrells Inlet. And when you’re done, the seafood on the MarshWalk was probably landed a few hundred yards from your table — see Where to Eat.