Living up to its motto, “preserve and prosper,” Hilton Head assures its future success by making the most of its past and its natural resources. Tightly controlled development and attention to ecology are to thank for its unparalleled and entirely unique charm. Plentiful trees, splendid beaches and resorts that are gracious and devoid of tacky overdevelopment lend an air of leisure and relaxation wherever one goes.
Greenery and model community planning notwithstanding, Hilton Head offers plenty of beds and plenty of meeting space. There are more than 6,000 villas and rental homes, 3,000 hotel and motel rooms and 22 meeting and convention properties, many of which are located on the beachfront. The island’s maximum meeting capacity is as large as 3,500 people.
Hilton Head is the name of the largest island in this coastal South Carolina area as well as its largest city. Other important communities include the town of Bluffton and Daufuskie Island. The area is 45 miles north of Savannah and 90 miles south of Charleston. Hilton Head Island Airport is within a five-mile drive of any area resort, and Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport is 45 miles away.
“Hilton Head Island is focused on maintaining its preferred and preserved resort environment,” says Jack Reed, director of sales at the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce. “Even as other destinations pursue “green” initiatives, the island has been environmentally friendly from the beginning, with no streetlights, no neon signs and tree buffers between roads and business establishments.”
Hilton Head Island is a family-friendly destination and many meeting and convention visitors bring guests and extend their stay beyond the meeting, according to Reed.
“The island has an attractive ambience, great weather and a wealth of activities, and it is a recognized brand that is easy to sell to attendees,” he says. “While it is a great retreat to relax and reconnect, the upscale resort setting is conducive to corporate meetings.”
The island’s green and historical attributes are complemented by a variety of fresh new features. What’s new is what’s for dinner—and drinks—with several exciting restaurants and nightspots hitting the scene or undergoing upgrades in the past year. There are more than 250 restaurants in Hilton Head.
“There’s a lot of focus on cuisine for visitors these days, and we’ve seen some updates in food and beverage venues,” Reed says. “The Hilton Oceanfront Resort completed major renovations of the new HH Prime Restaurant and the XO Lounge. The Holiday Inn Oceanfront has refurbished the Tiki Hut, an oceanfront island icon popular with both visitors and locals. They also updated the Island Eatery.”
HH Prime specializes in aged prime steaks and fresh seafood as well as boasting a large wine selection. The cosmopolitan XO Lounge offers a wide array of liquors from around the world crafted into tempting cocktails. Located right on the sand, the Tiki Hut is truly a quintessential island experience, mixing up frozen favorites. The casual Island Eatery has a menu of burgers, salads and other options.
Also fresh on the food scene are Bistro 17, which opened in 2008 to offer fine French cuisine overlooking Shelter Cove Harbour; and the whimsical Wren Bistro, Bar and Market, newly arrived in Beaufort, where unorthodox combinations and an eclectic wine list amuse the palate.
The island area’s resorts are its heavy hitters as far as meeting space goes.
On Hilton Head Island, Marriott Beach and Golf Resort, which recently completed a renovation, boasts 513 guest rooms and more than 45,000 square feet of function space. Westin Hilton Head Island Resort and Spa has 412 guest rooms and 28,000 square feet of meeting space. Hilton Oceanfront Resort offers 324 guest rooms and 12 meeting rooms. The 340-room Crowne Plaza Hilton Head Island Beach Resort, also recently renovated, has 20,000 square feet of meeting space. Sea Pines Resort has 500 guest rooms, villas and separate homes, and more than 15,000 square feet of indoor meeting space, plus outdoor venues as well as 54 holes of highly rated golf.
On nearby Daufuskie Island, Daufuskie Resort and Breathe Spa offers accommodations for 190 and more than 21,000 square feet of meeting space.
Meanwhile, the Inn at Palmetto Bluff in Bluffton features 50 cottages and several two- to four-bedroom rental homes, as well as the 200-person River House Ballroom, a 1,000-square-foot wine cellar and two executive boardrooms.
A number of interesting off-site locations provide attendees with the backdrops that make Hilton Head so special, from lush golfing greens to extravagant plantation manors.
For an air of stately Southern grace, planners can book the clubhouse at Port Royal Golf Club. The antebellum mansion is festooned with deep verandahs overlooking lush greens and a croquet court. The venue has 4,300 square feet of banquet and meeting space. The club is also pleased to host group outings and offers a variety of starting options to accommodate any schedule.
Groups can get out of the boardroom and into the field at historic Honey Horn. The 68-acre nature preserve is a former plantation overlooking a marsh. Its Coastal Discovery Museum offers a dozen different tours and cruises designed to introduce visitors to the ecology and history of the region.
Apart from fantastic places to meet, Hilton Head and its surrounding area provide a perfect playground for adventurous attendees, art and theater fans, nature lovers, families and sporty outdoor types.
“There are many opportunities to enjoy the island’s natural resources and attractions,” Reed says. “For example, visitors can see dolphins that strand feed here, chasing fish up to the banks for an easy catch and an awe-inspiring show. It is one of very few areas in the U.S. where this happens.”
Fishing, boating, kayaking, hiking and golfing are among the most popular activities.
Wildlife thrives in the protected island atmosphere and furnishes visitors with exciting, up-close encounters on kayak tours, cruises and hikes. More than 300 dolphins live in the waters around Hilton Head.
Other residents include eagles, kingfishers, deer, bobcats, otters, minks and, rarely, wild boar. Hilton Head’s 12 miles of beach provide the exclusive nesting place of the endangered, 200-pound loggerhead turtle. Very lucky and patient visitors might catch a glimpse of one laying her eggs in the sand during late summer nights.
Golf offerings in the area are world-class. The 18-hole Harbour Town Golf Links at Sea Pines Resort, designed by Pete Dye, is among the most highly rated and most challenging. Daufuskie Island Club & Resort boasts two more of the nation’s top courses. At Palmetto Dunes Resort, the Arthur Hills-designed course features 10 holes on the water. Another course designed by Hills at Palmetto Hall Plantation rounds out a few of the top-ranking greens.
Outdoor activities are a no-brainer. However, Hilton Head also offers far more cultural opportunities than one might expect in a town its size. (Its permanent population is 34,000.)
For example, the 350-seat Arts Center of Coastal Carolina features Broadway-quality plays; the community’s symphony orchestra is highly rated; and the island hosts one of the largest annual outdoor wine-tasting festivals in the region.
WineFest, held in March, allows participants to taste more than 1,000 wines from around the world. This year is the 24th anniversary of the festival. Another annual cultural event, BRAVO Arts & Cultural Festival, celebrates various aspects of the arts with dozens of performances, classes and exhibits held throughout the month of May.
Maintaining that perfect balance between green and growth, nature and culture, and business and pleasure is the island’s particular forte, and it’s one whose demand will only continue to increase.
“Hilton Head Island is the first eco-planned resort development in the U.S., and it has maintained its natural setting while offering all the modern technologies meeting planners require today,” Reed says. “It has a reputation as a great meetings destination and a world-class resort with affordable rates.”
For More Info
Hilton Head Island–Bluffton Chamber of Commerce and Visitor & Convention Bureau 843.785.3673 www.hiltonheadisland.org
