Vacation 2020: Hilton Head, SC
Wow, I can’t believe it is August already! Soon the days of summer will be behind us and we will be starting another school year.
Last month my boyfriend and I went on vacation to Hilton Head, South Carolina.
It was very needed during this crazy year we have all been experiencing, and for me was some much needed relaxation. Certainly left me feeling calm and rejuvenated.
When discussing our vacation plans towards the end of 2019, my boyfriend and I talked about many options, and the biggest thing was that we wanted our vacation to be affordable.
We wanted some place that we could drive to, had stuff to do but not necessarily a “night life,” and had lots to offer in terms of food and experiences. Hilton Head seemed like one of the best options fo us, and it was somewhere neither of us had been too.
When looking at places to stay we always go with Airbnb. Traveling with Celiac Disease it is always comforting to have a kitchen to cook meals in if need be. If you have never booked through Airbnb, feel free to use my referral code to get $35 off your first trip!
We ended up staying in this gorgeous condo, that was only 3/4 of a mile from the beach. We absolutely loved our stay, and being within 10-15 minutes of everything on the island. Our host was also really great about responding to questions and making sure our stay was enjoyable.
I wanted to give you all an idea of what we did each day, and what places we used and checked out on our trip.
Travel Day:
We ended up getting to Hilton Head a little after 2:00pm on Sunday. We rented some bikes from Lowsea Bike, Beach & Baby Rentals, and had them delivered prior to us getting down there. Unfortunately, we were not able to use the bikes that day since the code for the lock did not match what we were told in our confirmation emails and the store was already closed for the day. However, we got this sorted the following day.
Hilton Head is a very bike friendly town, and it is something we enjoyed doing everyday, minus our travel day. We would have probably biked more, but I was fairly rusty since I had not biked much in a decade.
The first night we ate at Skillets Cafe and Grill. We did not really eat a lunch so we were super hungry once we got to Hilton Head and were ready for some good food.
They had a dedicated gluten free fryer, so we got some Calamari to start off with. It was delicious! I maybe eat fried food once a year, and it is typically when I go out of town, so it was a good treat for me.
For dinner I ended up getting the Jambalaya and my boyfriend got the Low Country Boil.
From Skillets Cafe & Grill in Hilton Head, SC
We really enjoyed the food, and the best part for me is I did not get sick from gluten that night. You can read my review of Skillets on Find Me Gluten Free, as well as all the other restaurants I will mention in this post.
After dinner we ended up going grocery shopping for essential food items for the week, and walked to the beach. After sitting in a car most of the day I was needing some steps and to stretch my legs. It was wonderful to see the ocean! However, it was stressful to be on the beach that night for me since there were so many people out.
Any normal year it would not have bothered me, however with the pandemic going on it was a real stress factor. My boyfriend and I had a good conversation that night on the beach about how we can stay safe when out on the beach, and how we (mainly me) would try to be present and enjoy our trip in spite of all that is going on in the world.
Day 2: Beach and Mini Golf Day 1
Being the first full day of Vacation, we wanted to kick it off with a good ole beach day!
For me I always have to start the first full day of vacation like this to get into the vacation mindset.
We were at the beach around 10:00am and left around 1:00pm so we could ride our bikes and chill before dinner.
My Man Crush Monday and Everyday! 
Daniel is off to boogy board!
We ended up getting dinner at the Old Oyster Factory. This was not our original plan but the restaurant I had picked out earlier that day was not open on Mondays.
This restaurant had a GORGEOUS view! They even had people directing traffic on where to park. We got there around 5:45pm so it was before the big dinner rush.
I ended up getting the Almond Crusted Mahi- Mahi, and it was scrumptious! The way the Honey Mustard glaze complimented the fish was delightful.
After dinner we ended up going to play at Legendary Golf and Daniel ended up beating me, but barely.
Daniel won, but barely!
Day 3: Kayaking Day!
When planning what all we would do in Hilton Head, Kayaking sounded like something fun to try. We had talked about trying out Kayaking on a lake back home before, so it was something we wanted to try while on vacation.
Neither of us had kayaked before so we knew we wanted to use a company.
We ended up booking with Outside for our guided Kayak tour.
Our Kayak tour was not until the afternoon, so we ended up going to see the Hilton Head Harbour Town Lighthouse and Museum that morning.
View from the top 
On top of the Lighthouse
It gives you a nice view of the entire island and we enjoyed walking on the pier afterwards. There were a few shops in the area and we went in some, but we are just not the biggest shoppers.
We ended up eating food back at our Airbnb for lunch and biking some before we headed out for kayaking.
Kayaking was by far our most favorite thing from vacation! We both enjoyed trying something new and found it very relaxing, but also hard work on the arms. We got to see jumping fish, dolphins, and even a sea manatee. We were out on the water for over two hours at the end of it, so was certainly worth the money and time.
Afterwards we ended up treating ourselves and getting some food from Mellow Mushroom that evening, and going to get Ice Cream from Frozen Moo.
Day 4: Pinckney Island
For our fourth day we decided to go for a long walk at Pinckney Island Wildlife Refuge.
When planning our trip we talked about walking around 5 miles or doing the longest trail to “White Point”. We decided the night before we were gonna do the longest one, so we started out on our journey.
The refuge was not a super populated place, which was nice during a pandemic especially.
Around halfway through our walk we got on a long stretch of road mostly covered by trees, and these bugs started trying to bite us out of nowhere. We had no idea what kind of bugs they were but they followed us for the last half of the walk.
Ibis Pond 
Walking path to White Point
When we got to the end we found a deserted beach, which was “White Point.” It was absolutely breathtaking and it was like time stood still for a little while. We discovered all these little tiny crabs everywhere. My boyfriend wanted to catch them but I told him to leave them alone.
We fueled up on some food, took in the views, and rested for a little while before we started heading back.
On our way back my boyfriend spotted an alligator and he threw a rock to try and throw it into the pond it was in, but ended up hitting the alligator on the head instead. It jumped up like it was trying to catch something which was really awesome to see.
We got back to our Airbnb and were in desperate need for a shower after walking 9 miles in the South Carolina humidity and heat.
We ended up going to eat dinner at Charbar Company because we both had just been wanting a hamburger.
They had a dedicated fryer and seemed to know what they were doing in terms of my gluten free request.
I sadly ended up feeling nauseated later that evening, but I believe it was from the cocktail I ended up having with dinner and not from the actual food.
We ended up playing our second round of mini golf that evening at Pirates Island Adventure Golf. We did like it a little bit more than Legendary Golf since there were more obstacles. I ended up getting a hole in one that evening, and won the game!
Day 5: Final Vacation Day on the Beach
We ended up spending our last full day on the beach. It was not nearly as hot as it was on our first beach day so we stayed closer to 2:00pm this time.
We also walked further down the beach to set up since the last time we felt very close to people, and we wanted to create some more social distance. This made it much more enjoyable for me.
Afterwards we went back to the Airbnb and road our bikes for 5 miles. We ended up actually riding all the way to the beach which we did not plan on but it just ended up happening. After we finished biking we end up showering and started getting ready for our last night on the Island.
We had made dinner reservations for Catch 22 that night because I wanted to eat some crab legs. The restaurant was fancy but also relaxed at the same time. I enjoyed the overall ambiance of it, and we received great service.
After dinner we ended up going to the beach to walk and take a few pictures together before we left the following day.
Day 6: Traveling back to Reality
We left around 9:00am the morning we were driving home and ended up being on the road an extra hour thanks to construction and accident jams, and a horrible thunderstorm within an hour of being home.
Needless to say we were happy to make it back and to see our kitty boys by late afternoon, and were ready for some pizza for dinner.
For me this was by far my most favorite and memorable vacation, because it was with my person. I am beyond grateful to have an adventure buddy like Daniel. He is silly and in the moment at all times, which is a quality of his that helps me in our everyday life. He has always had a way of bringing out my inner child, and providing me a sense of calmness and security when doing things outside my comfort zone. What can I say…he is my home.
Even though it will be a while before we plan our next trip, I know it will be just as great and fun with my favorite person and best friend by my side.
I hope you enjoyed the recap of our Vacation to Hilton Head, South Carolina. I am beyond grateful we were able to get away and have a safe and healthy vacation during this time. If you do travel please wait six feet, wear a mask, and wash your hands a lot. Also, maybe self isolate or distance yourself upon your return to normal life or go and get a Covid-19 testing done just to be on the safe side.
Have any of you ever been or plan to go to Hilton Head? Where should our next trip be? Let me know in the comments!
Until next time,
