A Local's Favorite: Folly Beach
Folly Beach is a barrier island located just South of Charleston, South Carolina. Known by locals as the best place in the state to surf, we visited for a different reason: to relax.
Traveling with our dog in tow, we stayed at The Tides Hotel and enjoyed beach-front views and a short walk to the pier and downtown. The accommodations were great and the mimosas on the patio in the morning hit the spot. It wasn't long before a large pod of dolphins was spotted off-shore, which, as I was told by our server, is a fairly regular occurrence.
Folly Beach Pier
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The Recently Rebuilt Folly Beach Pier
An early morning stroll on the pier is highly recommended. Take in the sunrise and salty breeze with minimal people in sight.
Rebuilt in 2022, the Folly Beach pier was clearly built for fishing. There are places to park your fishing pole, and your behind that span the entire length of the pier. You'll also find plenty of places to clean your fish and toss out your waste; leaving the pier exceptionally clean.
Walk to the end of the pier and you might be lucky enough to get a great view of the dolphins feeding as they breach the surface; which isn't all that rare to see here.
Just under the pier are showers and changing rooms, which are convenient to walk to from the water. Above, there is a cool little place to grab a bite to eat, get a drink, or buy beach themed gifts.
Center Street, the Main Drag
Downtown Folly Beach is what you might consider in your mind as the quintessential tiny beach town. It reminds me something of Pismo Beach back in California.
Colorful shops dot Center Street, which is considered Folly's downtown. You'll find surf shops, bars, and all sorts of food, clothes and gifts within a few blocks. We found most shops and restaurants to be very dog friendly and a good amount of people walking with dogs up and down the street.
Stroll down the street in the evening and you'll smell the scent of various cuisines wafting through the air. If you're like us. it was hard to pick a place to eat, as most places on this stretch are highly rated online -- however, we chose the place serving the food closest to my heart: Tacos.
Center Street, Folly Beach
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We found ourselves at the highly recommended taco joint, called "Taco Boy" and instantly knew why locals love this place. The food is reminiscent of Mexican food back in Cali, although slightly different - it was delicious.
Folly Beach County Park
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Folly Beach County Park
Just a couple of miles from Center Street, following the coast, you'll find the county park. There is a ten-dollar fee for all-day parking, which is frankly, a steal in comparison to paying for parking meters elsewhere.
The beach building offers restrooms and showers as well as a seasonal snack bar, which was closed by the time we visited in the fall. The park website says it opens in April each year.
Our stroll down the walkway to the water, was peaceful, with only a few people along the vast shoreline. We saw a few people hunting for seashells and strolling along the edge of the water, but other than that, it was us and the birds zipping along the water's edge.
Of note, we were warned that during the summer months, this park gets packed and often has a long wait to enter. So, if you come during the hot summer months, get here early!
There's a Lighthouse out there (and sharks)
On the far South end of Folly Beach, you will see a lighthouse off in the distance. What's incredible about this particular lighthouse is that it has been standing since it was built in 1876.
What's also interesting is that we were told (and I wasn't about to verify) that this little inlet is a happy place for black tip sharks, among others.
The water here is quite shallow and at low tide, it almost looks like you could traverse the expanse from the shore to Morris Island where the lighthouse stands -- but, please, don't try.
Morris Island Lightouse
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Article Updated: November 5, 2023
Authored by Samara Hart; wife to Kyle, mom of 4, and resident of the South since 2018. Exploring the South has brought me much joy. I love learning about history, photographing places, buildings, food, and things up close. But, my favorite thing of all is sharing the adventure with you. Learn more about me or what I do for a living on LinkedIn.