City: Myrtle Beach, SC

Category: Shopping

Telephone: (843) 272-8349

Description: Barefoot Landing bills itself as “the East Coast’s most exciting waterfront shopping, dining and entertainment destination center.” While the truth of such marketing hype is disputed by other shopping areas, the fact is that Barefoot Landing plays host to an estimated seven million visitors every year. Its restaurants, shops, and attractions have been featured in magazines, newspapers, and television clips throughout the nation. Southern Living, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Barron’s Investment, Forbes, and Country America are just a few of the biggest media names that have come to know and love Barefoot Landing. Built around a 27-acre freshwater lake, fronted by US 17 North, and bordered in back by the Intracoastal Waterway, Barefoot has more than 1,800 feet of floating dock on the waterway as well as miles of rocking-chair-peppered boardwalks and bridges. This development, a rare marriage between commerce and preservation, prides itself on environmental sensitivity. While strolling among the more than 100 specialty and factory-direct shops, 13 waterfront restaurants, and an array of attractions, you can enjoy sea gulls swooping over the lakes, alligators swimming stealthily, and all manner of waterbirds, including swans, geese, blue herons, snowy egrets, ducks, and pelicans; you can even feed the fish (fish-food-filled gum-ball machines abound) from many of the boardwalks.Barefoot Landing’s eclectic villages of shops and restaurants are housed in quaint, cedar-shake buildings with bright green awnings. Specialty stores feature resort wear, jewelry, designer fashions, Western wear and accessories, handmade gifts, and unusual collectibles.The Boardwalk Shops, Lakeview Courtyard, and Waterway Village are separated by floating bridges and are accessible by walkways that are well worth a stroll even if you don’t buy a thing. But don’t think there will be no temptation—stores like Anything Joe’s, Conley’s House of Magic, Earthbound Trading Company, Klig’s Kites, Peace Frogs, and Black Market Mineral will mesmerize you with choices of baubles and toys to take home. H2O Plus is your skin-care fitness center. Barefoot General Store, Surf & Sand Beach Shoppe, Pineapple Cove, and the Sunglass Hut make for a lot of bags to carry home. You could even redo your wardrobe at Chico’s, the Izod Factory Store, and Birkenstock. There are a dozen factory outlet stores that sell fine apparel and designer merchandise at 20- to 50-percent savings. With this irresistible combination of atmosphere and savings, you could redecorate your life.This breezy complex is also the home of Alligator Adventure (see the Attractions and Kidstuff chapters), the Alabama Theatre (see the Entertainment chapter), and the House of Blues (see the Restaurants and Entertainment chapters). Throughout the year, Barefoot Landing also hosts such events as car shows and chili and rib cook-offs for charities. Barefoot Landing is also just across the river from the spectacular Barefoot Resort & Golf, which features a yacht club, country club, four golf courses, as well as condominiums and private residences. (See the Golf and Real Estate chapters for more details.)