I Like Me Better by the Sea: A Week of Wandering Hilton Head Island

Beach days, birthday celebrations, dolphins, seafood, and a reminder that sometimes the best itinerary is simply slowing down

Spend a relaxing week with me on Hilton Head Island, from beach days and Harbour Town to dolphins, seafood, birthday celebrations, and plenty of Lowcountry wandering.

*I like me better by the sea. 🌊 A week in Hilton Head was a pretty good reminder why.*

There’s just something about being near the ocean that changes my whole mood.

Maybe it’s the salty air. Maybe it’s waking up knowing the beach is right there. Maybe it’s the fact that shoes become increasingly optional.

Whatever it is, I’ve decided:

I like me better when I’m by the sea. 🌊

I spent the better a week in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, a few weeks ago and unlike some of my trips where I’m trying to squeeze approximately 47 things into a perfectly reasonable amount of time, this one had a much slower rhythm.

And I loved it.

There was plenty of beach time, quality time with some of my favorite people, birthday celebrating, exploring, boat time, dolphins, ridiculously good food, and absolutely no shortage of reasons to stop and appreciate where I was.

Beach Days & Barefoot Wandering

*No itinerary required. Sometimes the best part of a beach trip is simply having nowhere else you need to be.*

Some of my favorite moments were also the simplest.

Walking along the beach. Watching the waves roll in. Finding stretches of sand covered in tiny shells. Leaving footprints behind and knowing the next tide would eventually erase them.

And somewhere in those walks, I couldn’t help but think about “Footprints in the Sand,” one of my favorite poems. The image of looking back over the path you’ve traveled and realizing that during the hardest stretches, when there was only one set of footprints, you weren’t walking alone—you were being carried.

Standing there looking at actual footprints disappearing down the beach made that familiar message hit a little differently.

We don’t always recognize God’s presence while we’re in the middle of something. Sometimes it’s only when we look back that we can see where He was carrying us, redirecting us, protecting us, or simply staying beside us through a season we weren’t sure how we’d get through.

No agenda. No place I particularly needed to be.

Just ocean.

*Sometimes you have to look back to recognize the places you weren’t walking alone. One of the reasons “Footprints in the Sand” will always be one of my favorites. ❤️*

There’s something incredibly peaceful about standing at the edge of something so much bigger than yourself. The waves don’t care about your to-do list. The tide isn’t interested in whether you’ve been productive enough lately.

It just keeps coming in and going back out.

Sometimes that’s exactly the reminder I need.

Celebrating Some Pretty Special People

This trip wasn’t only about getting away, it also meant getting to celebrate my BFF’s birthday and spend some quality time with her daughter, and family too.

And really, those are the things that make a trip memorable.

The destination can be beautiful, and Hilton Head certainly is, but the laughs, conversations, ridiculous moments, meals together, and memories you make with people you love are what give a place its story.

We celebrated, relaxed, explored, ate entirely too well, and generally enjoyed being together.

Exactly how vacation should be.

Exploring Harbour Town

*A little Harbour Town wandering, and one very hard-to-miss lighthouse. 😂*

Of course, I couldn’t spend a week somewhere new without doing at least some wandering.

Harbour Town gave me plenty.

The red-and-white striped Harbour Town Lighthouse is probably one of Hilton Head’s most recognizable landmarks, so naturally I had to check it out, and climb up for the views.

From the top, you get a completely different perspective of the marina and surrounding water. Boats lined the docks below, and the view stretched far beyond them.

I also spent some time exploring the lighthouse itself and learning a little more about the area’s maritime history.

*A little maritime history along the way because apparently I can’t go anywhere without learning something.*

And because apparently educational sightseeing burns calories…

There was ice cream.

*Sightseeing calories don’t count. I’m almost positive that’s a travel rule. 🍦😂*

Obviously. 😂

Pirate Life Chose Me

*When pirate day calls, you dress accordingly. 🏴‍☠️*

There was also some time on the water, which included the appropriate attire.

If you’re going to have a pirate day, you commit to pirate day. 🏴‍☠️😂

Being out on the water gave me another view of Hilton Head, the marshes, waterfront homes, wildlife, and that gorgeous Lowcountry landscape that looks completely different from the beach.

And then came one of my favorite sightings of the trip:

Dolphins!

There is something about spotting one in the wild that immediately turns grown adults into excited five-year-olds.

Yes, I took pictures.

Yes, I probably took more than necessary.

No, I regret nothing.

And Then There Was the Food…

*I came to Hilton Head to relax. Apparently I also came to eat my body weight in seafood. 😂🦀*

Listen.

I went to Hilton Head fully intending to relax.

Apparently my stomach interpreted that as a personal challenge.

I basically ate my way around the island, and I am perfectly comfortable with that decision. 😂

Fresh seafood absolutely had to happen, including one particularly enthusiastic encounter involving crab legs and a lobster bib.

There were sweet treats.

There was ice cream.

There were vacation meals where nobody needed to rush anywhere afterward.

And honestly, food is part of travel for me. I love finding the places people recommend, trying something local, and discovering those meals that become part of how you remember a destination.

Hilton Head understood the assignment.

What I Loved Most About Hilton Head

Hilton Head surprised me a little.

There’s plenty to do if you want to stay busy, but it doesn’t feel like a place demanding that you do something every second.

You can explore.

You can get out on the water.

You can climb a lighthouse.

You can hunt down good food.

Or you can sit on the beach and watch the waves for an embarrassingly long time.

I did a little bit of all of it.

And maybe that’s why this trip felt so good.

Not every getaway has to be about conquering an itinerary or checking another destination off the list. Sometimes travel gets to simply be about enjoying where you are and who you’re there with.

A little saltwater.

A lot of laughter.

Good people.

Good food.

Bare feet.

Dolphins.

And enough time near the ocean to remember:

Yep.

I definitely like me better by the sea. 🌊❤️

Wonder With Me

Have you been to Hilton Head Island? What was your favorite thing to do, or, perhaps more importantly, where did you eat that I need to try next time? Because we all know there will be a next-time food list. 😂

For now, I’m just adding Hilton Head to the growing list of places that reminded me why I started Wander With Me in the first place. Not every adventure has to be big, perfectly planned, or packed from sunrise to sunset. Sometimes wandering looks like exploring somewhere new. Sometimes it looks like trying something you never have before. And sometimes it looks like sitting beside the ocean long enough to remember what matters.

Wherever the next detour leads…

Wonder with me. Wander with purpose. And don’t be afraid to take the scenic route. 🧭🌊