Myrtle Beach in October, When the Towers Go Quiet
By the third week of October, Myrtle Beach has exhaled. The summer crowds of June through August have driven home, and the oceanfront towers stand with most of their balconies empty, beach chairs folded and stacked like cordwood. The water hasn't caught up with the calendar yet; it often holds a late-summer warmth into the 70s while the afternoons stay mild. Some attractions trim their hours and a few seasonal shops pull their shutters, which is the trade you make for a beach this wide and this unclaimed.
From a one-bedroom like Paradise Palms, oceanfront and priced from $95 a night, the morning view is mostly sky, pelicans in a loose line, and a man with a metal detector working the tide line as though he has all week. He does. So might you.
Arrive, drop the bags, and walk south at low tide until the hotels thin out. Then see the full guide.
