Myrtle Beach Message Board

I see this hasn't had a lot of interest here in a while- hopefully someone will see this post. After visiting Myrtle Beach recently we started talking about a return trip and were intrigued by all the family campgrounds. I grew up camping and loved meeting new friends there and the simple pleasures of going to get ice cream at the general store. We are interested in Pirateland or Lakewood primarily as they look to have many amenities like a lazy river(Pirateland ) or waterpark(Lakewood) and mini golf, activities for families and kids and it is all self contained. My concern would be I've heard some bad things about the golf cart situation, as young kids often drive them and are speeding around. My second concern would be the noise level- even though they are family campgrounds, is it ever a problem with a lot of partying ,drinking, noise late at night? We'd be coming in mid to late Sept. however, so maybe it wouldn't be such an issue as it would probably be families with younger kids? Thanks for any feedback .

We have only stayed at Lakewood (camped and house) and Ocean Lakes (in a house). We stayed many years at Lakewood and loved it. Our kids were early teens and met many friends over the years that they still have as facebook friends. Yes there were golf carts everywhere .. but funny we loved the golf carts too - part of the beach. We have many found memories of Lakewood ... Ocean Lakes I loved the houses, but missed Lakewood .. I think because of the family memories (walks on the beach with my girls) and loved their pool. Our kids had friends that used to stay at Lakewood and moved to Pirateland. I'm not sure why but they seemed to like it.

Tips .. we liked staying at Lakewood with our awning facing east (west the sun at night and seen some awnings blown off) and more towards the north of the campground (no trees but not as congested) and close to the beach.

We are heading back this year but renting a house on Murrels Inlet for our entire family. Kids are grown and now have little ones of their own. So we'll start making different memories as a family.

I truly believe either one will be fine, the family memories are what are important no matter where you are.

Hope you have an amazing time!

We have some friends that stay at Lakewood and they love it. I think the golf carts there are part of the experience of being there. I know that they went out and bought stuff to decorate the golf carts for some type of parade that they have. A few of the guys in families never leave the campground all week. Don't know if I could do that, but it must be pretty good if they can spend a week inside there.

Thanks for the feedback. We would be renting one of the trailer homes onsite as we don't have a camper so if anyone has any feedback or has seen any , I'd appreciate your thoughts on those. It's just 3 of us, so we don't need a whole lot of space. As for the golf cart, we probably would rent one, I was just hoping the whole atmosphere wasn't too wild.

We camp at Lakewood every summer and have been for years. We love it. The new lazy river and the additional water slides should be a nice addition when we return this summer. Pirate Land and Lakewood both are a lot more laid back than Ocean Lakes, but they still are nothing like camping at a state park or somewhere secluded. The kids should like the amenities. The up side is that all of the amenities at Lakewood are included in your stay.

We just returned from Lakewood where we rented "Villa" 2618. We needed something pet friendly with room for 3 kids (male 21, female 14, male 13) to have their own beds, plus my husband and me. We've had campers since we were married in 1981, with the exception of two years, and of those campers, since 1991 they'd been motor homes. We definitely had a lot more room in the rental unit. It was nice and shady where we were. However, the rental was a park model with an enclosed porch. There were upgrades (new wood laminate flooring throughout), but there was definitely some wear and tear on the unit. The floors were very soft and in some places I worried that one of us would fall through! Overall it was okay, though.

We had a bad experience in Lakewood with our motor home a number of years ago (I think it was 2007 - it's in my signature below, which I can't see as I type this). With the exception of a very few, the bath houses were not air conditioned so you'd get a shower, dry off, and be sweatier than before your shower! They've since upgraded to AC in the bath houses. That may or may not be an issue for you in September.

We have been die-hard Ocean Lakes people, but in 2007 we decided to try something different and regretted it. This time we went with Lakewood because it was the only place we could find rentals that took dogs. We did have an overall good experience this time. The water slides and lazy river are a nice addition, and the "High Steppin' Country" show is now free! You do have to get tickets in advance, but there's no charge.

They lock the entrance gate between 1:00 and 6:00 a.m., so if you're bar hoppers you'd have to keep an eye on the time or risk a long walk back to your campsite. Quiet time is allegedly 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., but we heard noise, people driving by, and fireworks (which aren't allowed) being set off until well after midnight almost every night. Again, though, that may not be an issue in September.

As for golf carts, they're not nearly the problem that they are in Ocean Lakes. They do parade up and down the road along the beach, though, which makes traversing that area difficult, especially after dark. Again, I imagine it won't be so much of an issue in September.

I have no input on Pirateland, as we've only ever driven through but never stayed there.

_________________
Myrtle Beach Travel Park - 1992
Apache Campground - 1993
Ocean Lakes Family Campground - 1994-2006; June 2009
Lakewood RV Resort - August 2007; 7/26/2014-8/2/2014 (in a rental unit)
Dayton House - December 2007
Dunes Village - 12/27/08-01/03/09
Oceanside Village - June 2016