Raining on Your Myrtle Beach Parade? No Problem
by Diane Goldberg



Beach-bound families can lighten up when the sun isn't shining at Myrtle Beach. While the bucket brigade goes to the Grand Strand for fun in the sun, there's lots to do up and down the coast during summer showers.

Start with Fanta-Sea Wheels - call 803-238-0409 for time and ticket info - a roller rink ringed with seven aquariums. You and your kids can rent either in-line or regular rollers to skate past denizens of the deep.

Ripley's Believe It or Not, a Grand Strand landmark situated at 901 North Ocean Boulevard will make you wish for a summer shower. Additionally, Ripley's newest beach enterprise, an enormous aquarium, boasts a walk-through tunnel that takes you safely through the shark tank.

Star Wars fans can indulge their passion for futuristic fun at Beamers, a laser tag gaming palace. (Beamers details are available at 803-448-1900). If the Force didn't come to the Grand Strand with you, check out Maze Mania, an indoor fun park for hours of elaborate hide and seek. Maze Mania's telephone number is 803-238-0409.

If shopping gets you hopping you can spend a blissful week on the Grand Strand without seeing the surf. Beginning in 1976 with Waccamaw Pottery, the South Carolina coast transformed into a shopper's treasure trove. Waccamaw Pottery has outgrown its original 50,000-square-foot bargain basement and swelled to a sizable 125 separate stores.

Six miles from the ocean on US 501, upscale outlets cluster under the Myrtle Beach Factory Stores Umbrella. Among other familiar names you'll find Gap, J Crew and Tommy Hilfiger outlets. If eclectic boutiques suit your shopping desires, check out Barefoot Landing on Hwy. 17 for one-of-a-kind shops.

While not a haven for the confirmed shopper, the Gay Dolphin on North Ocean Boulevard - just past the Pavilion - is a must-visit for beach purists. The Dolphin, which has been in business for decades, specializes in the unabashed beach kitsch. Wandering through the shell-packed aisles looking at sharks-tooth jewelry, shell figurines, and "Biggest Beer Belly at the Beach" plaques is always great fun.

Myrtle Beach's art deco Pavilion, where the ding of pinball drowns out the roar of the ocean, is a safe bet through the summer of '99. On a rainy day, try your hand at ski ball. The Pavilion also has games of chance that children have played for generations, along state-of-the-art Sega masterpieces. In inclement weather you can indulge in beach basics - foot-long hotdogs, corn dogs, candy apples and cotton candy.

Entertainment addicts need to schedule a few extra days to take advantage of the offerings at the area's 11 different live show theaters. From the Big Band sound of the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra at Fantasy Harbor to the down-home sounds of the Carolina Opry, there is something to suit every member of the family. Rock and roll and Medieval banquets are on offer. Country music purists can make a pilgrimage into the honky-tonk environs of the Bowery in downtown Myrtle Beach. Alabama started their career in this unpretentious beer bar.

If you are in the mood for an upscale urban evening, don't hesitate to swing by Broadway at the Beach. You'll choose between Planet Hollywood, Nascar Café, the Hard Rock Café and other options. It's a difficult choice - the Grand Strand is home to more than 400 different nightclubs and bars.

The Grand Strand is justifiably famed for its multitude of golf courses. During a light drizzle, you'll find that its home to an equal number of whimsical, quirky miniature golf courses. Putting is perfect when the beach is a tad too rainy for swimming.

Of course, if it's romance you've come to the seaside for, nothing can compete with watching the waves during a summer storm from the windows or balcony of a luxury suite - except for maybe a stroll hand-in-hand through the mist or cuddling beneath a pier.