Editor’s Note: During this period of social distancing, Student Group Tour magazine will continue to provide ideas for planning educational travel. Many attractions and destinations are closed at this time; please contact them directly for updated information.
With 60 miles of pristine beaches, Myrtle Beach is a student group paradise. Students can spend the day on the award-winning oceanfront boardwalk to catch stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean, then board the nearly 187-foot Myrtle Beach SkyWheel.
“Myrtle Beach welcomes all student groups,” said Sandy Haines, group tour sales manager for the Myrtle Beach Area CVB. “We offer educational opportunities from outdoor to indoor experiences. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, is a student tour paradise for entertainment.”
Spend the day exploring beautiful sculpture gardens or visit a stately plantation for afternoon tea. Take students on an exhilarating adventure at one of three water parks. Immerse in interactive activities at multiple attractions highlighting everything from art to STEM. Evenings can be filled with live entertainment shows. With a plethora of shopping centers and local storefronts, students will find the perfect gift to remember thriving Myrtle Beach by.
Myrtle Beach Area CVB
843-626-7444
visitmyrtlebeach.com
Ripley’s Aquarium

Ripley’s Aquarium wants students to “Sea Things Differently!” Located at Myrtle Beach’s premier entertainment, dining and shopping complex, the aquarium offers fun, hands-on learning experiences. Students will find themselves immersed in a watery world of sharks, rays, penguins and colorful tropical fish. Take advantage of one of the many standards-based Marine Science classroom programs during a visit or amplify the trip and book a sleepover. Students sleep in the Dangerous Reef Tunnel and watch marine life come alive at night.
Brookgreen Gardens

Voted one of the Top 10 Best Public Gardens in the U.S. by TripAdvisor, Brookgreen Garden offers a daily selection of tours boasting flora, fauna, amazing sculptures and low country history. Students can partake in educational programs, like Zookeeper for a Day, allowing participants to see animals up-close for a hands-on experience. Visit the site of the Oaks Plantation, a Civil War earthen fort and a historic rice mill chimney. At the botanical gardens, students can awe at butterflies in the butterfly garden and see 250-year-old Live Oak trees.
Live entertainment theaters

Myrtle Beach’s live entertainment theaters are perfect for student workshops and behind-the-scenes tours. Select from a variety of venues — from dinner shows to concert halls — and learn about the inner workings of the theater’s sound, lighting, video and performance operations. See Le Grand Cirque perform amazing aerobatics at Big Top Tent. Travel back hundreds of years at Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament where students watch a two-hour performance with falconry, jousting and more while enjoying a medieval feast.
WonderWorks

Designed to provide immersive STEM Learning experiences, WonderWorks is a science-focused indoor amusement park that combines education and entertainment. Feel the power of 84 mph, hurricane-force winds in the Hurricane Shack. Make huge, life-sized bubbles in the Bubble Lab. Get the NASA treatment in the Astronaut Training Gyro and experience zero gravity. Lie down on the death-defying Bed of Nails. With over 100 hands-on exhibits, there is something unique and challenging for every kind of student.
Crazy Sister Marina’s Saltwater Marsh Eco. Tour

Saltwater Marsh Eco. Tour is the Grand Strand’s most popular ecology trip and is hosted by Crazy Sister Marina. Students will discover a “Marine Wonderland” on a two-hour boat journey guided by a marine naturalist. Explore sea life in a hands-on environment as guides dredge the ocean and pull samples of the ecosystem onboard for observation. Students will come in contact with a vital habitat that houses hundreds of fascinating and mysterious marine creatures.