Hilton Head Island: Day Two
The second day of our Hilton Head Island vacation began similarly to our first. We eased into the morning and miraculously woke up before Chase. Once he was awake, however, he was ready to go! Choruses of “’Cation! ‘Cation!” (toddler speak for “vacation”) could be heard from his room and as I tried to wiggle him into his clothes, he excitedly talked about biking and doughnuts and we promised to fill the second day of our vacation with both. (He also talked about whales so who knows what he really wanted, but playing with whales was not on the agenda for Sunday.)
Quite a few of you recommended a visit to Harbour Town, a small waterfront community lined with shops and bustling with visitors. We ended up biking to Harbour Town on the beach which was such a treat! Since the sand is hard-packed on the island beaches, it was an easy ride and we had plenty of room to ride next to each other without getting in anyone’s way. Chase was in heaven as he pointed out every dog and seagull on the beach!
We made it to Harbour Town around 10 a.m., placed our bikes in one of the numerous bike racks, and walked over to the large red and white striped lighthouse to check it out.
The weather on Sunday was southern fall perfection: Upper 60s/low 70s and beautifully sunny. Red rocking chairs can be found all over the town and we couldn’t resist relaxing in them for a bit after our morning bike ride.
Our stomachs quickly told us it was time for breakfast, so we walked to Harbour Town Bakery & Café and ordered a quick bite to eat. The bakery was charming and we were soon digging into quiche (for me) and banana pancakes (for Chase and Ryan).
Right across the street from the bakery was a large playground that is clearly a hotspot for kids on the island. Chase had a ball running around and climbing all over the place before we hopped on our bikes and headed off on our next adventure.
When I was in the process of planning our vacation, I stumbled upon a Hilton Head Island vacation recap on the blog You Are My Licorice and loved reading about Lara’s family’s adventures. (This is probably the blogger in me, but whenever we plan a vacation I often Google the name of the place we’re visiting + the word “blogger” to read about a real person’s experience. Lara’s recap was a great find!) Lara said a visit to Lawton Stables was a “must for animal lovers” and since our family fits that bill perfectly, we biked the mile or so over to the stables for our next activity of the day.
Lawton Stables offers trail rides and pony rides but we were most interested in the little farm visitors can wander through for free and pet donkeys, goats, sheep, pigs, alpacas and chickens. (Food is also available to feed the animals for 50 cents a cup.)
The farm was beautiful and Chase was really into the animals but made sure Ryan was the guinea pig and pet them first before he’d reach out to touch any of them. After such a full morning, we figured it was time to bike back to our condo to make lunch, put Chase down for a nap, relax and pack up for our trip home… And then Chase reminded us that we promised him a doughnut earlier in the day so a detour had to occur.
We popped into Duck Donuts for “lunch appetizers” – pink frosting and sprinkles all around! – and ended up grabbing food for lunch from The Fresh Market located in the same shopping plaza before biking the rest of the way back to Palmetto Dunes.
Once Chase was snoozing away, Ryan and I finished eating lunch and began packing up our things for the drive back to Charlotte. We wrapped up our vacation with a quick afternoon trip to the beach before checking out and heading home.
We had such a wonderful weekend away and absolutely loved our time on Hilton Head Island. I’m already dreaming of lots of biking, good food and sunny days at the beach during our next visit!
![\"Quantcast\"/](\"//pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-1e3-7hOJ_U8Bg.gif\")
Oh my goodness. I love Hilton Head and went from birth to age 10 every summer. I have that exact picture on those red rocking chairs. So happy you got to spend some much needed time away and can come back refreshed. You know what the say, the cure for anything is salt water: tears, sweat, ocean. Jessica @ Room for Gelato
Chase doesn’t forget the important things, like playing with whales and doughnuts. It seems like a great weekend getaway you had! I never thought to add “blogger” to the end of a Google search when planning a trip but I’m definitely going to! I’m so happy you mentioned this tip since I’m planning a trip right now.
Have a great day Julie 🙂
Wow, it looks like such a fun time! Whenever we’re planning to go places, I also check out their location on Instagram to see some of the best photos from there – that usually also gives me a sense of things to check out in the area that would be cool to see!
Looks like such a great weekend (or longer) getaway! I’ve never been to Hilton Head Island but I’d definitely consider it after reading your recap. The town sounds so quaint and scenic with great food (those Duck donuts!) which is all right up my alley. I don’t have kids, but my husband and I are very laidback so it sounds perfect.
I want to go to a farm! I love animals and was all over them when I was a kid. You’re really making me want to take a trip to HH. Looks gorgeous, low key and fun!
Looks like such a great weekend. A nice mix of activities, good eats, and beach time! I always google other bloggers pages when visiting places too. Currently I’m planning a bachelorette trip in Scottsdale, AZ. We have a place to stay, but now I’m looking for good hikes and places to eat 🙂
Love your vacation recap! It’s so fun that you got to bike everywhere and the weather was so nice!
All those treats look delicious! I need to plan a vacation here 🙂
You’re not the only one who google’s blog recaps of trips to wherever we’re vacationing next : ) I love finding restaurants / things to do that aren’t always listed on the big travel sites. That’s part of the reason I post my trip recaps so I can hopefully help out another traveler at some point!
What a fun vacation. The photo of you and Chase in the red rockers is so adorable!! Thanks for sharing.
Oh Julie, I just love hearing about your time in Hilton Head. Sounds like so much fun! I am itching to get away, especially since we don’t have anything planned until February..I need a getaway sooner! 😉 Hope you are having a great Thursday! Xoxo
Ever since we had kids, we always opt for the lazy, beach vacations but you made me really want to take a vacation like this! It sounded so relaxing but with fun activities still! Already e-mailed my husband the links to the two posts for him to consider. 🙂
Aw yay!!! Hope you guys enjoy it if you end up planning a fun trip soon!
What a great trip! And yes- totally agree with always searching for other blogger recommendations and recaps because when you just search for general recommendations, there are so many sponsored reviews and recommendations that aren’t great. Blogs are the way to go! And now people can use this one to plan their trips 🙂
I also Google bloggers’ travel reviews, which is how I found your awesome recaps of what to do in Black Mountain & Montreat, NC. We took most of your suggestions and really enjoyed the activities you recommended (especially the Dripolator coffee shop…I still think about that place…) I will remember this list of toddler-friendly activities if we ever venture over to Hilton Head! Thanks!
This made me smile!!!! Thanks for sharing, Sarah!
It looks like you guys had the BEST time!!! I would love to go visit sometime, I hate that I never got the chance to make that trip when we lived in TN!
Looove these vacay recaps! And now I want that donut. And I agree about searching for blogger trips, because it’s a much more personal and detailed and interested peek into a vacation spot. That’s why I love yours! Anyhow, fantastic recap as always.
Thanks so much for these recaps! My family is heading to Hilton Head in around a month and my older son is around Chase’s age. Great tips on the play parks, farm, and things to do!
I am not a blogger but I also always google my vacation destination and “blog” because I always get the best kept secrets of places to go, eat, etc from them!