Wedding & Event Venue near Myrtle Beach, SC

If you run out of orange juice for Easter brunch or forgot to pick up chocolate for your egg hunt, you can make a last-minute grocery run at these Myrtle Beach-area grocery stores open this holiday weekend.

All major grocery chains around Carolina Forest, Conway, Little River, Murrells Inlet, Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Pawleys Island and Surfside Beach will be open on Saturday, April 19, and Monday, April 21.

However, some stores will be closed on Easter Sunday. Here’s which ones:

Aldi: All locations will be closed on Sunday, according to the Aldi website.

Costco: The Myrtle Beach Costco Warehouse will close on Easter.

Food Lion: Employees at several area locations said the stores will remain open for regular business hours this weekend.

Kroger: According to the Kroger employees, all four Grand Strand locations will operate with regular business hours this weekend.

Lowes Foods: All Lowes Foods locations will be open for regular hours this Easter weekend, according to a spokesperson.

Piggly Wiggly: Both Grand Strand Piggly Wiggly stores will be open for regular business hours through the weekend, store employees said.

Publix: A company spokesperson told The Sun News all Publix locations will close on Easter.

Sam’s Club: All locations will be closed on Easter, according to the Sam’s Club website.

Target: Both Myrtle Beach Target stores will close Easter Sunday.

Walmart: Employees at several Grand Strand Walmart locations said the stores will remain open for regular business hours Easter weekend.

MS

The Sun News

703-944-4132

Maria Elena Scott writes about trending topics and what you need to know in the Grand Strand. She studied journalism at the University of Houston and covered Cleveland news before coming to the Palmetto State.

Recently, there have been a few lawsuits filed by people who say they got bitten by bed bugs while traveling in the Myrtle Beach area.

So, if you’re by the beach on vacation and you end up with bed bug bites, there are a few options for treatment, local medical providers said.

According to emergency medicine physician at Grand Strand Health Medical Center, Dr. Kaitlyn Phelps, bed bug bites don’t require specialized treatment and don’t require a visit to the emergency department.

“Symptoms of mild pain and itching can be managed with over-the-counter antihistamines, such as diphenhydramine, and topical steroids, such as hydrocortisone cream,” Phelps wrote in an email to The Sun News. “For specific guidance regarding the identification and eradication of bed bugs or any pest infestation, please contact your local pest exterminator.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that bed bugs are not known to spread diseases to people.

In some cases with bed bug bites, as with any bug bite, some people can have allergic reactions or develop infections.

According to Dr. William Epperson with Tidelands Health Family Medicine at Prince Creek, people can wash the bites with soap and water to help prevent infection and reduce itchiness.

“Bed bug bites can be itchy and uncomfortable but usually don’t pose a serious health risk and typically heal and go away within a week or two,” he said. “A key to healing is to prevent repeated bites each night by getting rid of the bed bugs. Those recurrent bites are what are likely to lead to complications including infection.”

If the itching and swelling don’t improve, or if the bites get worse after a few days or causes extreme discomfort, Epperson recommends seeking care from a doctor, who can assess for possible reactions or infections and provide appropriate prescription creams and antihistamines, as well as antibiotics, if an infection has developed.

Bites that show signs of redness and oozing may be infected, he said. Anyone experiencing severe allergic reaction symptoms, including difficulty breathing, swelling or fever should seek immediate medical attention.

The Sun News

828-237-1377

Elizabeth covers local government and politics in Myrtle Beach and holds truth to power as the accountability reporter. She’s lived in five states and holds a masters degree in Journalism.

MYRTLE BEACH — The future of minor league baseball in Myrtle Beach could be decided next week.

City and Horry County leaders on April 22 plan to discuss a new stadium lease agreement for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans that's designed to keep the Chicago Cubs' Single-A affiliate playing in the city beyond this season. City Council meets that morning and County Council convenes at 4 p.m.

"It's for the benefit of our citizens," Horry County Council Chairman Johnny Gardner said of the team staying. "I've had calls from people. They want to keep it. … I want to keep it, too."

A key question is who will pay for the stadium upgrades required by Major League Baseball. Since the ballpark opened on 21st Avenue North in 1999, it has been jointly owned by Myrtle Beach and Horry County, with the city controlling 70 percent and the county owning the remaining 30. Maintenance costs have followed the same split.

But after Major League Baseball mandated stadium improvements in 2020, the city, county and team have been mired in a debate about how to pay for those upgrades. After years of fruitless talks, local officials said they must soon reach a deal that would allow them to complete the required renovations by the start of the 2026 season or minor league baseball could leave Myrtle Beach.

Earlier this year, the three parties developed the framework for a new lease. Under that proposal, the team's rent would increase from $150,000 per year to $750,000 and the lease would extend through 2045.

The $20 million stadium project would include upgrades to the visitors and home clubhouses, bullpens, warning track and video board, among multiple other improvements, according to county records. The proposal called for the county to contribute $6 million to the enhancements while the city would pay $14 million.

A final contract would require the approval of each council and the team.

Some county officials had supported paying the $6 million if the city would agree to accept the county's share of the ballpark and take sole responsibility for the facility moving forward. But that hasn't happened thus far.

"I would like for Horry County to be out of the baseball business," Gardner said. "But I will stay in the baseball business if that's the only way we can keep baseball in Horry County."

He declined to say much about the latest lease terms, citing the contract negotiations, but he noted they are similar to the framework the parties had agreed to discuss.

City officials have also been tight-lipped about where things stand.

"We're working hard" was all Myrtle Beach City Councilman Gregg Smith would say.

One reason talks have progressed this far has been the team's willingness to increase its rent. The stadium isn't a moneymaker. In fact, the city previously reported an average operational loss of $90,000 per year.

City officials have said the additional money in a new lease would go toward the debt needed to pay for the stadium improvements.

In recent weeks, concerns were raised about the deal. Email records obtained by The Post and Courier show that Pelicans owner Chuck Greenberg claimed that when he agreed to pay the $750,000 per year, he understood the arrangement for operating expenses and some capital expenses would stay the same as it is under the current lease.

Other points of discussion included who would pay for future clubhouse upgrades.

The records stated Greenberg considered it "critical" that a lease be finalized by April 22 because of the councils' meeting schedule.

A spokesman for the Pelicans could not immediately be reached for comment.

Technically, neither the city nor the county can give final approval to the lease by April 22. That process would require two City Council readings and three from County Council. But an early favorable vote could signal which way they are heading.

County Council had considered voting on the lease this week, but Gardner said they didn't have enough information to feel comfortable moving forward. Staffs from both the city and county met April 17 to discuss the details, and a special County Council meeting was announced by the afternoon.

However, Gardner said it's unclear how county leaders will vote. Some have steadfastly opposed putting more money into the stadium while others are willing to do it to keep the team.

"Not a clue," he said when asked if there's enough support to approve a new lease. "There's 12 of us. … One way or the other, by 5 o'clock Tuesday we should know what's going on."

A small college town in South Carolina was named one of the nation’s best — again.

Clemson — home to Clemson University — ranks No. 5 on a list of places where “small-town charm meets campus life.” But the destination didn’t only receive praise for boasting a school.

Clemson also landed in the No. 6 spot on a separate list of the best small towns to visit in the South, according to results published April 9.

The lists come from USA Today’s 10Best, which publishes vacation-related rankings. To determine the top small towns, travel experts nominated destinations from across the country. Then, editors said they narrowed down the choices and allowed readers to spend a month voting on their favorites.

On the resulting lists of readers’ choice award winners, Clemson was the only place in South Carolina to earn spots in the two rankings. The town, a roughly 30-mile drive southwest from Greenville, has about 18,000 residents.

The list of the nation’s best small college towns considered places with 50,000 people or less. 10Best said the winning destinations have “fun, youthful vibes, unexpected dining and shopping options, and plenty of cultural offerings. Throw in a beautiful campus and some regional surprises, and you have a recipe for a great vacation.”

Clemson was praised for drawing in Tigers football fans and for having attractions on and near campus.

“Visitors also enjoy exploring the South Carolina Botanical Garden, heading to the Bob Campbell Geology Museum to view local fossils, or getting out on the water at Lake Hartwell,” 10Best wrote in its report.

Meanwhile, the small-town rankings focused on “charming” Southern destinations with fewer than 25,000 residents. That list also highlighted Clemson’s football games and proximity to nature, while urging travelers to keep their “eyes peeled for tiger paw prints throughout town.”

It’s not the first time Clemson has been recognized on a national scale. Last year, Travel + Leisure named it the No. 1 small college town in the United States. In those rankings, the magazine gave a nod to the city’s “quaint” downtown and referenced the longtime in-state rivalry with the University of South Carolina.

On the latest list, the top-ranked college town was Florence, Alabama, home to the University of North Alabama.

In other categories, 10Best named fan-favorite small towns for food, historic sites and other attractions. The only other place in South Carolina to make one of the lists was Beaufort, which ranked No. 10 among the nation’s top small coastal towns.

In the past, 10Best has told McClatchy News it doesn’t reveal the number of people who vote in its contests.

Read Next

South Carolina

January 9, 2025 11:19 AM

Today, the Myrtle Beach SC News crew explored Ocean Boulevard and discovered Easter Vacancy signs on display at each hotel in the area.

Easter Vacancy: A Look at the Impact on Local Businesses

Downtown Myrtle Beach has more than 200 hotels within a 9-mile radius, and each hotel displayed an Easter vacancy sign.

Hotels are expected to be near capacity this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Myrtle Beach is now primarily a city visited only on weekends. This trend has scared off many potential investors in the Arts and Innovation district.

As a result of lower tourism numbers, at the city’s budget retreat last month, data revealed that within the downtown Arts and Innovation District, there are 42 empty properties, with three of them currently up for sale.

“One of the questions we still continue to ask is why aren’t we seeing the investment? And it’s not because we don’t know, it’s because we want to be able to articulate that why,” Myrtle Beach Assistant City Manager Brian Tucker told local media. “One of the biggest things is risk. Nobody wants to be the first one downtown to do a big thing. We feel like we’re setting the stage with public investment to do that, but there’s still an element of risk there.”

“Most of our business investments have been on the north end and the south end, not so much in the core of the city,” Myrtle Beach Mayor Brenda Bethune said.

“And when you think about the center of our city, the heart of our city is located right off of Ocean Boulevard, right where the majority of our tourists drive by every single day,” Myrtle Beach Mayor Brenda Bethune said. “We have to have a thriving downtown area. And that’s not just to support that part of the city, that is to lift up all of the city.”

Perhaps all of these Easter vacancy signs indicate that the city should not expect investors until the tourist numbers improve.

Just ten years ago, the City of Myrtle Beach could expect the entire town to be filled to capacity Easter Week.

Last Updated on: April 16, 2025