How Myrtle Beach Became a Household Name 50 Years Ago — and Why It Still Is

There is a particular kind of place that earns a permanent spot in the American imagination — not through a single moment or a marketing campaign, but through decades of delivering exactly what it promises. Myrtle Beach is one of those places. Drive down Ocean Boulevard on a summer evening, watch the SkyWheel turning slowly against a deepening sky, and listen to the Atlantic rolling in behind the restaurants and the laughter and the smell of sunscreen on warm pavement, and you will understand something immediately: this is a place that people return to. Not because it is the most glamorous destination on the East Coast. Because it feels like something. It feels like vacation, in the most elemental and uncomplicated sense of the word.

That feeling did not happen by accident, and it did not happen overnight. The story of how Myrtle Beach went from a quiet Carolina town to one of the most visited destinations in the United States is a story worth knowing — especially if you are among the more than 20 million people who make the trip down U.S. 17 each year to see what all the fuss is about.

Before the Boom: A Quiet Stretch of Carolina Coastline

For most of its early history, what would become Myrtle Beach was barely accessible at all. The beaches of Horry County sat behind a wall of geography — rivers, marshland, and poor roads that kept the coastline isolated from the rest of South Carolina well into the late 1800s. It was timber, not tourism, that finally cracked the region open. The Burroughs and Collins Company, a timber and turpentine operation that owned vast stretches of beachfront land, built a railroad to the coast in 1900 to move its product to market. The railroad brought workers to the beach — and workers brought the realization that this sand and surf had potential far beyond lumber.

The town took its name from the wax myrtle trees that grew wild along the shore. By the 1920s it had a modest hotel, a handful of beachfront cottages, and a reputation among middle-class families from the Carolinas as a reliable summer getaway. The tourist season ran roughly from Easter to Labor Day. It was modest and regional and entirely unpretentious — qualities that, as it turned out, would prove to be among its greatest long-term assets.

The postwar decades brought steady but unspectacular growth. Hurricane Hazel swept through in 1954, demolishing much of the oceanfront property along the Grand Strand, but the destruction had an unintended consequence: it cleared the way for a first wave of low-rise hotels and modern development, triggering what would become the area’s first real tourism boom. By the time Myrtle Beach officially incorporated as a city in 1957 — with a permanent population that had just crossed 5,000 — the foundations were in place for something much larger.

The 1970s: When Everything Changed

Fifty years ago, Myrtle Beach was a destination that most Americans outside the Carolinas had still never heard of. That was about to change in a hurry. The 1970s were the decade when Myrtle Beach stopped being a regional secret and became a national name. New construction during that decade alone topped $75 million, and the city’s permanent population tripled. Families from across the East Coast began loading up station wagons and pointing them south, drawn by something that was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore: here was a place where you could have a full, satisfying, genuinely fun vacation without spending a fortune.

Developers recognized the momentum and moved quickly. High-rise oceanfront hotels began replacing the small motels and beach cottages that had defined the earlier skyline. Amusement parks, water slides, arcades, and shopping centers appeared in rapid succession, transforming what had been a laid-back beach town into a full-scale entertainment destination. The Myrtle Beach Convention Center had opened in 1970, a signal that the city was thinking beyond the summer vacation crowd. By the end of the decade, the tourist season — once bounded by Easter and Labor Day — had stretched to something approaching year-round.

The Formula That Made It Stick

A lot of beach towns have their moment in the sun. What separated Myrtle Beach from the destinations that peaked and faded was a deceptively simple combination: accessibility, affordability, and variety. Myrtle Beach is easy to get to from most of the Eastern Seaboard. It is easy to navigate once you arrive. And it has always offered enough variety — beach, golf, live music, water parks, seafood, arcades, outlet shopping, state park hiking — that different members of the same family can have entirely different vacations without ever leaving the Grand Strand.

That last point matters more than it might initially seem. A destination that works for a couple of college students, a family with young children, a pair of retired golfers, and a group of friends celebrating a birthday — and works for all of them simultaneously — is extraordinarily rare. Myrtle Beach has managed to be that destination for five decades running, and that breadth of appeal is the single most important reason it has outlasted so many competitors.

Golf Capital of the World

No single element of Myrtle Beach’s identity has done more to extend its reach into new markets than golf. The area’s golf boom began in the 1960s, when developers recognized that the Grand Strand’s climate, terrain, and flat coastal landscape made it nearly ideal for course construction. The creation of Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday in 1967 formalized the golf package as a distinct product, and the courses kept coming. By the 1980s, Myrtle Beach had earned the nickname Golf Capital of the World — more golf courses per square mile than any other destination on earth. At the peak, the region boasted over 120 courses and once recorded more rounds played annually than anywhere else in the world.

Today, the region has around 100 courses remaining, following some consolidation over the past two decades as real estate development claimed a number of layouts. But the golf identity has never faded. Players from beginners to seasoned low-handicappers continue to make the Grand Strand a primary destination, drawn by the combination of quality, variety, price, and the ability to play year-round in the mild South Carolina climate. For a significant portion of visitors — particularly those in the retiree and active adult demographic that has made Horry County one of the fastest-growing areas in the nation — golf is the primary reason for the trip.

Staying Relevant: The Boardwalk, the SkyWheel, and Beyond

One of the harder things for any destination to do is reinvent itself without losing what made people fall in love with it in the first place. Myrtle Beach has done this more successfully than most. The beach is still the star of the show — that same Grand Strand coastline delivers the same wide, flat, warm-water experience that pulled those first station wagons down the highway fifty years ago. The fundamentals have not changed because the fundamentals did not need to change.

But the supporting cast has evolved considerably. The Myrtle Beach Boardwalk, completed in 2010, revitalized the downtown oceanfront with a 1.2-mile stretch of open-air restaurants, shops, and walkway that connected the heart of the city to the water in a way it had not been connected before. The Carolina Opry, which opened in 1986, pioneered the live entertainment theater scene that eventually gave Myrtle Beach something resembling a miniature Branson, Missouri on the South Carolina coast. And the SkyWheel, rising nearly 200 feet above the boardwalk, added a landmark that is visible from both the beach and the boulevard — a gondola ride that doubles as one of the best sunset viewing platforms on the East Coast.

Broadway at the Beach arrived in the 1990s as a 350-acre entertainment and shopping complex built around a central lake, adding a destination anchor that gave visitors a reason to spend an entire day — and evening — off the sand. Ripley’s Aquarium followed, and the complex became one of the most-visited attractions in South Carolina. Each addition has built on what came before, layering new reasons to visit on top of the original reason that never stopped working.

More Than Just a Beach Trip

Step off the sand and the Grand Strand reveals itself as something considerably deeper than its postcard version suggests. Myrtle Beach State Park, just south of the main commercial strip, offers a version of the Carolina coast that feels genuinely removed from the boardwalk crowds — maritime forest trails, a fishing pier, a campground, and the kind of quiet that reminds you how wild this coastline was before the hotels arrived. It is a twenty-minute drive from the SkyWheel and feels like a different world entirely.

For families traveling with children, the mini-golf culture alone is worth the trip. Myrtle Beach has more elaborately themed miniature golf courses per square mile than perhaps anywhere else in the country — pirate ships, dinosaurs, volcanoes, waterfalls — and the tradition runs deep enough that many adults have photographs of themselves as children playing the same courses their own kids are navigating now. That kind of generational continuity is not something a destination manufactures. It is something earned, slowly, over fifty years of doing things right.

The live entertainment scene — dinner theaters, concert venues, variety shows — continues to bring visitors who are not primarily drawn by the ocean. The restaurant landscape has matured well beyond the all-you-can-eat seafood buffets that defined the area’s dining identity for decades, though those institutions still exist and still fill up every night in season. And the shopping, anchored by Broadway at the Beach and extended by Barefoot Landing in North Myrtle Beach, gives the retail-minded traveler as much room to roam as the coast gives the beach lover.

North Myrtle Beach: The Quieter, Deeper Side of the Grand Strand

About fifteen miles up the coast from downtown Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach offers a different entry point into the Grand Strand experience — one that trades the high-rise density of the main strip for wider beaches, quieter neighborhoods, and a sense of place that feels more rooted in the area’s original character. It is a separate city with its own government and its own identity, and for many visitors it is the preferred base for exploring everything the Grand Strand has to offer.

The four communities of North Myrtle Beach each carry their own personality. Cherry Grove Beach is known for its fishing pier and unhurried pace. Ocean Drive is the birthplace of the shag — the official state dance of South Carolina — and carries the kind of boardwalk history that no amount of development can fully replicate. Crescent Beach sits in the relaxed center, and Windy Hill offers the peaceful southern end of the strip for those who want ocean views without the foot traffic. Visitors can choose from spacious oceanfront home rentals and well-positioned oceanfront condos — putting the Atlantic directly outside the door and everything the Grand Strand has built over the past fifty years just a short drive away.

Frequently Asked Questions

Fifty years of earning a reputation is not something that happens by accident — and experiencing it firsthand is easier than you might think. Thomas Beach Vacations has oceanfront homes and condos across North Myrtle Beach ready for your next Grand Strand trip. Browse the full collection at northmyrtlebeachvacations.com or call (866) 249-2100 and let the team help you find exactly the right place on the coast.

There’s a certain sound that belongs to Myrtle Beach in March. It starts in the distance — a low rumble that rolls in from Highway 17 like distant thunder, except the sky is clear and the sea air smells like salt and motor oil and something good. It’s the sound of American steel headed south, chrome catching the late-winter sun, engines tuned the way they don’t build them anymore. It’s the Run to the Sun Car and Truck Show, and it’s been making that sound for 37 years.

If you’ve never seen the Run to the Sun in person, it’s difficult to describe the scale of it. Over 3,500 pre-1989 vehicles spread across 56 acres of the Grand Strand. Muscle cars. Vintage pickups. Resto-mods that took somebody twenty years and a second mortgage to finish just right. Spectators shoulder-to-shoulder on a warm March morning, leaning in to read the placards, asking questions, trading stories. The largest independent classic car show on the East Coast, and it comes to Myrtle Beach every spring like a reunion between old friends.

The 37th annual show runs March 19–21, 2026, at the Old Myrtle Square Mall. Whether you’re registering a vehicle, buying a spectator ticket, or just planning a March beach trip and looking for something extraordinary to fill a Saturday, this is one of those events that reminds you why people keep coming back to the Grand Strand year after year. It isn’t just a car show. It’s a community gathering with chrome and horsepower and a whole lot of heart.

What Is the Run to the Sun Car Show?

Run to the Sun started in 1988 as a grassroots gathering of classic car lovers who saw the Grand Strand for what it is: a wide-open stretch of coastal South Carolina that welcomes people, warmth, and a good time in equal measure. What began as a modest local event has grown — without losing its independent spirit — into one of the most respected classic car shows on the eastern seaboard.

The show is independently owned and managed by Michael Leaventon, who has kept the event rooted in its original values: a genuine celebration of pre-1989 automobiles, a commitment to giving back to the community, and a crowd-friendly atmosphere where car lovers from across the country feel at home. Cars come from over 28 states. That’s not a marketing statistic — that’s a testament to what Leaventon and his team have built over nearly four decades.

What makes Run to the Sun stand apart from larger, corporate-sponsored car shows is the people. The judging is personal. Staff, partners, and sponsors personally present winner plaques. The vendors are mostly regional. The charities are local. The whole thing feels like something that belongs to the Grand Strand, even when attendees are rolling in from Ohio or Pennsylvania or Tennessee with a trailer full of polished metal and a three-day weekend to enjoy.

2026 Dates, Location & What to Expect

The 37th annual Run to the Sun Car and Truck Show takes place March 19–21, 2026, at the Old Myrtle Square Mall in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The site spans 56 acres — enough room for 3,500 vehicles, 150 vendors, and upward of 10,000 spectators across three days.

March is one of the best times to be on the Grand Strand. The tourist crowds of summer haven’t arrived yet, so parking is manageable, restaurants have open tables, and the beach is peaceful in the mornings before the car show kicks off. Daytime temperatures in mid-March typically range from the low 50s to the low 70s — cool enough to walk comfortably in the sun, warm enough to enjoy being outside all day without much effort.

The Old Myrtle Square Mall property sits in a central location in Myrtle Beach, easily accessible from Highway 17 and close to a range of restaurants, shops, and entertainment options along the strip. If you’re driving in a show vehicle, the flat, open lot makes for easy maneuvering and display. If you’re arriving as a spectator, you’ll want comfortable shoes — 56 acres covers a lot of ground, and there’s plenty worth walking.

For full event schedules, vehicle registration details, and spectator ticket purchases, the official site is the best resource: runtothesuncarshow.com.

The Cars: 3,500 Classics on 56 Acres

The cut-off year is 1989 — anything pre-1990 is eligible — and the variety that rule produces is remarkable. Walk the show floor on a Saturday morning and you’ll move from a row of perfectly preserved 1950s Chevrolets to a cluster of late-1960s muscle cars to a collection of first-generation Broncos and Blazers with more personality than most of what rolls off assembly lines today.

Run to the Sun draws vehicles from over 28 states, which means you’re not just looking at local restorations. You’re seeing the best work from garages across the Mid-Atlantic, the Deep South, the Midwest, and New England — owners who hauled their pride and joy down to the beach specifically because this show has that kind of reputation. Decades of careful bodywork. Original engine bays that look better than the day the car left the factory. Custom builds that blend eras and styles into something wholly original.

The show includes a formal judging process, with winner plaques presented personally by staff, partners, and sponsors. Categories cover everything from stock restorations to radical customs, and the competition is taken seriously by everyone involved. But even if you’re just a spectator with a passing appreciation for old cars, the sheer density of beautiful machines in one place is something you don’t forget easily.

What Kinds of Vehicles Are Typically Featured?

Expect a broad mix: classic American muscle (Camaros, Mustangs, GTOs, Chargers), vintage pickups and trucks, pre-war rarities when they appear, custom hot rods, lowriders, and surf-ready woodies. European and Japanese classics occasionally make appearances in their own right. The pre-1989 rule keeps the focus on vehicles with genuine history, and the quality of what’s on display reflects the dedication of owners who take the craft seriously.

Vendors, Awards & Entertainment

With 150 vendors on-site, the Run to the Sun isn’t just a car show — it’s a market, a gathering spot, and a full weekend of activity. Vendors typically offer automotive parts and accessories, restoration supplies, memorabilia, vintage signage, apparel, and a range of food and refreshment options to keep you going through a full day of walking. The vendor section draws its own crowd of enthusiasts looking for hard-to-find parts or just a good deal on something they didn’t know they needed until they saw it.

A charity silent auction is held in partnership with the National MS Society, with 100% of proceeds going directly to the society. The auction items vary year to year but typically include automotive memorabilia, experiences, and locally sourced goods. It’s worth making a lap through the auction area early — popular items get competitive quickly.

There’s also a 50/50 raffle hosted by McLeod Children’s Hospital, giving attendees another way to support a worthy cause while putting a little skin in the game. The combination of competition, community giving, and casual weekend energy is what separates this show from a simple parking lot display.

Winner plaques are presented personally by show staff and sponsors — a touch that keeps the recognition feeling genuine rather than ceremonial. If you’re showing a vehicle, this is the kind of event where winning actually means something, because the people handing you that plaque know what went into the build.

Giving Back: Charities & Community Impact

In 37 years, Run to the Sun has donated more than $2.3 million to local and national charitable organizations — including over $175,000 in the last four years alone. That’s not background noise. That’s a meaningful part of what this event is. The car show has become one of the Grand Strand’s most significant annual charitable fundraising events, and the community it supports is broad and deep.

The 2026 beneficiaries include:

• National Multiple Sclerosis Society — silent auction proceeds
• Children’s Miracle Network at McLeod Children’s Hospital — 50/50 raffle proceeds
• Horry County Sheriff’s Department Benevolent Fund
• Grand Strand Miracle League
• Florence Miracle League
• Carolina Forest High School NJROTC Booster Club
• Boys and Girls Club of Grand Strand

The Boys and Girls Club of Grand Strand, the Miracle League programs that give children with disabilities the chance to play baseball, the NJROTC cadets at Carolina Forest — these are local organizations doing real work in Horry County. When you buy a spectator ticket or register a vehicle, you’re contributing to all of that. The show owner has been deliberate about keeping this connection alive for 37 years, and it shows in the loyalty the event commands from participants who return every single spring.

Where to Stay for the Run to the Sun Car Show

If you’re driving in for the weekend — whether you’re trailering a show car or just coming to spectate — the Grand Strand gives you options at every price point and preference level. But for visitors who want the full coastal experience alongside the car show, North Myrtle Beach is a particularly appealing base.

North Myrtle Beach sits roughly 15 miles north of the show venue, easily accessible on Highway 17. It’s a separate city from Myrtle Beach — quieter, with a more residential beach-town character — and it offers everything you need for a comfortable long weekend: easy beach access, good restaurants, and the kind of laid-back atmosphere that makes March on the coast feel like a genuine getaway rather than just a drive-in, drive-out event trip.

What’s Nearby the Show Venue?

Within walking or short driving distance of the Old Myrtle Square Mall, you’ll find a full range of Grand Strand dining and entertainment. Collector’s Café on Highway 17 Bypass offers a sophisticated dining experience in a setting that would feel right at home among car show enthusiasts — the walls are covered in original artwork and the food matches the ambition. For something more casual after a long day on your feet, River City Café on Highway 17 is a Myrtle Beach institution known for enormous burgers and a relaxed atmosphere. Down toward the Boardwalk, the Myrtle Beach Boardwalk and Promenade gives you a waterfront walk and easy access to coastal dining.

If the car show is just one part of a longer beach vacation — and honestly, why not make it that — North Myrtle Beach vacation rentals put you close enough to enjoy the show each day and far enough from the main tourist corridor to actually decompress at night. March rates are typically far more reasonable than peak summer pricing, and the weather is genuinely pleasant. It’s one of the better-kept secrets of Grand Strand travel planning.

For more ideas on how to spend your time on the beach this spring, check out our guide to things to do in Myrtle Beach and our roundup of Myrtle Beach events happening throughout the season.

More Things to Do Around Myrtle Beach in March

The Run to the Sun takes up most of a Saturday, but three days on the Grand Strand gives you time for more. March is underrated as a travel month here — the ocean is still too cool for a long swim, but the beach itself is beautiful for walks, and the town operates at a pace that feels like breathing room compared to July.

Broadway at the Beach

Broadway at the Beach, just a few miles from the show venue, is Myrtle Beach’s largest entertainment complex — restaurants, shops, miniature golf, and attractions centered around a 23-acre lake. In March it’s pleasantly uncrowded, and the waterfront dining options are worth an evening. Restaurants like Margaritaville and Dave & Buster’s are right on the complex if you’re looking for something casual and lively after the show.

Myrtle Beach Boardwalk and SkyWheel

The Myrtle Beach Boardwalk stretches 1.2 miles along the oceanfront and is one of the few boardwalks in the country that still feels genuine rather than manufactured. The SkyWheel at its northern end gives you a bird’s-eye view of the coastline that puts the whole Grand Strand in perspective — from up there, you can almost trace the route the car show participants took coming into town. Rides are available year-round and the lines in March are practically nonexistent.

Barefoot Landing in North Myrtle Beach

If you’re staying in North Myrtle Beach, Barefoot Landing is a waterfront shopping and dining complex on the Intracoastal Waterway that’s worth a slow evening. The Alabama Theatre hosts live entertainment, and the surrounding walkways and docks have a genuinely pleasant low-key atmosphere that makes it easy to linger over a meal. It’s a nice counterpoint to the energy of the car show — quieter, more scenic, unhurried.

The Beach Itself

It seems obvious, but it’s worth saying: March mornings on the Grand Strand are among the most peaceful moments the coast offers. The light is low and golden before 9 a.m., the water is steel blue and cold and honest, and the beach belongs almost entirely to whoever shows up with coffee and a willingness to walk. After a full day of 3,500 cars and 10,000 people, a morning beach walk has a way of resetting everything.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you’re planning to be on the Grand Strand for the Run to the Sun Car Show — or if the show just reminded you that a March beach trip is long overdue — Thomas Beach Vacations can help you find exactly the right place to stay. The team knows North Myrtle Beach the way locals do, and the vacation rental options range from cozy off-season retreats to properties with enough room to bring the whole crew. Give them a call at (866) 249-2100 or browse available properties at northmyrtlebeachvacations.com. A great car show deserves a great weekend to go with it.