Best Shopping & Indoor Activities in North Myrtle Beach

The bags are lined up on the kitchen counter — bright tissue paper poking out of a Ron Jon Surf Shop tote, a box of pralines from Savannah’s Candy Kitchen, a pair of sandals you weren’t planning to buy but couldn’t walk past, and a gummy bear the size of a football that your eight-year-old is already negotiating to open before dinner.

This wasn’t the backup plan. This was the plan.

We have a rainy day guide for those afternoons when the weather chases you indoors. But the best shopping and indoor activities near North Myrtle Beach aren’t consolation prizes — they’re destinations people build entire afternoons around. Outlet malls with real deals, waterfront shopping villages with live entertainment, aquariums, escape rooms, and enough retail therapy to balance out all those early-morning tee times.

Here’s where to go and what’s worth your time, organized by distance from the condo at 601 Hillside Dr N.

K1 Speed Indoor Go-Karts — 2 Minutes (Walkable)

Location: 720 Main Street, North Myrtle Beach

Forget the gas-powered tourist karts on Kings Highway. K1 Speed is an indoor, climate-controlled electric go-kart track less than half a mile from the condo — and the adult karts hit 45 mph. The acceleration pins you back in the seat. The turns are tight. Your thirteen-year-old will trash-talk you for the rest of the vacation, and you’ll deserve it because she was genuinely faster.

Junior karts (up to 20 mph) are available for kids at least 48 inches tall. Adult karts require 58 inches. No age minimum — it’s purely height-based. Helmets and head socks provided. No reservation needed; just show up and race.

Pricing: $24–$60 per person depending on how many races you run, plus a one-time $7.95 annual membership. A family of four doing two races each will run $100–$200, so plan accordingly — but the speed is the real deal, not a watered-down kiddie ride.

The move: Thursday night is Glo Karting — blacklight racing with neon lights and music. Closed Mondays. Open Tuesday through Sunday, 1:00 PM–8:00 PM (9:00 PM on Friday and Saturday).

OD Arcade & Lounge — 2 Minutes (Walkable)

Location: 100 S Ocean Blvd, North Myrtle Beach (corner of Main Street and Ocean Blvd)

This is the heart of the Ocean Drive shag district — a bar, restaurant, and arcade rolled into one that’s been a Main Street institution for years. Pool tables, darts, air hockey, arcade games, a spacious dance floor with live bands and DJs, and karaoke on Thursday and Sunday nights. The vibe is lively, casual, and unapologetically local.

But here’s what people really talk about: the burgers. Review after review calls them the best in North Myrtle Beach. Lunch specials run $6.95 — meatloaf, fried chicken, flounder, pot roast — and happy hour brings peel-and-eat shrimp and crab leg deals.

Best for: An evening out with games, drinks, and live music within walking distance of the condo. The arcade and pool tables give everyone something to do, and if you time it right, you’ll catch a shag dance night — this is where South Carolina’s official state dance was born. Open daily 11:00 AM to 2:00 AM.

810 Entertainment (Billiards & Bowling) — 5 Minutes

Location: 1105 Highway 17 S, North Myrtle Beach

If it rains — or even if it doesn’t — 810 is the single best indoor entertainment option near the condo. Twenty bowling lanes (including six boutique lanes with LED lighting and leather couches), pool tables, shuffleboard, bocce ball, cornhole, darts, ping pong, a full arcade, indoor glow-in-the-dark mini golf, and a shelf of board games from Giant Jenga to Trivial Pursuit. You could spend three hours here and never touch a bowling ball.

The food is the surprise. This is not bowling alley nachos — 810 has a real kitchen turning out brick oven pizzas fired at 800 degrees, coconut shrimp, mahi tacos, and rosemary parmesan fries with truffle oil. The milkshake bar is over-the-top in the best way. Two full bars pour craft cocktails and local beers.

Pricing: Bowling is $8.10 per person plus $4 shoe rental. Happy hour runs Monday through Friday, 4:00–7:00 PM with discounted drinks and appetizers. Reservations recommended on weekends — this place fills up.

Best for: Families (kids love the arcade, glow bowling, and milkshakes), couples (boutique lanes + cocktails = date night), and golf groups looking for something to do after the round. Ranked #2 Nightlife in North Myrtle Beach on TripAdvisor with over 2,400 Google reviews at 4.5 stars. Open daily — weekdays from 3:00 PM, weekends from 11:00 AM.

Barefoot Landing — 8 Minutes

You already know Barefoot Landing as NMB’s premier entertainment complex, but the shopping deserves its own spotlight. Over 50 retail shops line the Intracoastal Waterway boardwalks, and the atmosphere — string lights, water views, live music drifting between buildings — makes browsing feel like an experience rather than an errand.

Shops worth stopping into:

• Ron Jon Surf Shop — The massive flagship store is part museum, part gear heaven. Even if you’re not buying a surfboard, the two-story layout with vintage boards on the walls is worth a walk-through.
• IT’SUGAR — A candy superstore that doubles as a tourist attraction. Giant novelty sweets, candy by the pound, and the kind of sugar rush your kids will remember for years.
• Monkee’s — Designer shoes, jewelry, and clothing you won’t find at the outlets. Start here if you need a special dinner outfit.
• Pick a Pearl — Choose an oyster from the tank, watch staff crack it to reveal your pearl, then have it set into jewelry on the spot. Kids and adults are equally mesmerized.
• Duplin Winery Tasting Room — North Carolina’s oldest winery pours $18 for a tasting of sweet Muscadine wines. Bottles start around $10 — great take-home gift.

Barefoot Landing is open daily and free to visit — no admission, no parking fee. Combine shopping with dinner at one of the waterfront restaurants and you’ve got a full evening planned.

Tanger Outlets — 20 Minutes

Location: 10835 Kings Rd, Myrtle Beach (~20 min from the condo)

If you came to shop with intention — name brands at outlet prices — Tanger is where you go. This is the Grand Strand’s premier outlet mall, with over 100 stores in an open-air layout that feels more like strolling a village than grinding through a mall.

Best deals (consistently):

• Nike Factory Store — 30-60% off retail. The clearance wall in the back is where the real finds hide.
• Under Armour Factory House — Golf polos and performance wear at prices that make stocking up painless.
• Columbia Sportswear — Fishing shirts, PFG hats, and outerwear. Essential Grand Strand gear at outlet pricing.
• Coach and Kate Spade — Bags and accessories at steep discounts. These stores are why some visitors plan their trip around a Tanger stop.
• Skechers — Walking shoes for golf course rounds and beach strolls at half retail.

Insider tip: Download the Tanger app before you go. It aggregates additional store coupons on top of the outlet prices — stacking discounts is the whole game here. And visit the Shopper Services desk near the food court for a free coupon book when you arrive.

Tanger is open daily. Plan 2-3 hours if you’re a serious shopper, 60-90 minutes for a focused trip.

Broadway at the Beach — 25 Minutes

Location: US-17 Bypass and 21st Ave N, Myrtle Beach

If Barefoot Landing is NMB’s answer to waterfront shopping and dining, Broadway at the Beach is its bigger, louder, more theme-park-adjacent cousin in Myrtle Beach proper. Wrapped around a 23-acre lake, Broadway packs in over 100 shops, 20+ restaurants, and some of the Grand Strand’s most popular indoor attractions — all in one sprawling complex.

This is an afternoon-into-evening destination. Come hungry, come curious, and come ready to walk.

Shopping highlights: Savannah’s Candy Kitchen (the aroma of fresh pralines hits you before you see the storefront — the pecan pralines are the move), Pepper Palace (hundreds of hot sauces with $18 for a tasting), Tervis Store (customizable souvenir tumblers), plus dozens of beach shops and galleries.

Indoor Attractions — The Real Draw

Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach — Hands down the Grand Strand’s best indoor attraction. The Dangerous Reef tunnel — a moving walkway that carries you through an underwater acrylic tunnel while sharks, sea turtles, and rays glide inches above your head — is one of those moments that sticks. Touch tanks, jellyfish galleries, a stingray feeding experience, and a seahorse exhibit that’s quietly stunning. Plan 2-3 hours. Buy tickets online in advance to save by buying online (adults from $39.99, children 6-11 $26.99, ages 3-5 $12.99)

WonderWorks — The upside-down building is the Instagram shot; inside is a three-story interactive science museum disguised as a playground. Hurricane-force wind simulators, a laser tag arena, a ropes course 36 feet in the air, and a 6D motion ride. Designed for families, but adults without kids have been spotted on the ropes course having the time of their lives.

TopGolf — Right next to Broadway. Climate-controlled hitting bays, a full menu, drinks, and games that make terrible golfers feel like they’re competing. Perfect warm-up before hitting the real courses.

Coastal Grand Mall — 25 Minutes

Location: 2000 Coastal Grand Circle, Myrtle Beach

The Grand Strand’s traditional indoor mall, Coastal Grand has the full lineup: Dillard’s, Belk, JCPenney, and 150+ stores including H&M, American Eagle, Bath & Body Works, and a well-stocked Barnes & Noble. If you need something specific — a dress shirt for a nice dinner, a birthday gift, a phone charger — Coastal Grand is the reliable, air-conditioned answer.

It’s also home to a Regal Cinemas with recliner seating — a genuinely good movie theater for that afternoon when everyone wants something low-key.

Not a destination shopping experience like Tanger or Barefoot Landing, but a practical one that every visitor ends up needing at least once.

Myrtle Beach Boardwalk & Second Avenue Pier — 30 Minutes

Location: Ocean Blvd between 14th Ave N and 2nd Ave N, Myrtle Beach

The 1.2-mile Boardwalk stretches along the oceanfront in downtown Myrtle Beach — arcades packed with ski-ball and claw machines, candy stores, souvenir shops, and the iconic SkyWheel (a 187-foot Ferris wheel with enclosed, climate-controlled gondolas). Don’t miss Gay Dolphin Gift Cove, a multi-story souvenir institution that’s been here since 1946. Best visited late afternoon into evening, when the Boardwalk lights up.

More Indoor Activities Worth Knowing

Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum (3100 S Ocean Blvd, Myrtle Beach, ~30 min) — Free admission, rotating exhibits, and a permanent American art collection housed in a restored 1924 beach cottage with ocean views from the upper gallery. Quiet, uncrowded, and surprisingly excellent. Open Tuesday through Saturday.

Movie theaters — Regal Cinemas at Coastal Grand Mall and the multiplexes along Hwy 17 all have recliner seating. Matinees run $8-10 per ticket — not a bad deal for two hours of air conditioning and a bucket of popcorn.

How to Plan Your Shopping Day

Half-day (3-4 hours): Pick one — Tanger for deals, Barefoot Landing for atmosphere, Broadway at the Beach for entertainment + shopping.

Full-day: Tanger in the morning (stores open, crowds light), lunch on Hwy 17, then Broadway at the Beach for the afternoon — Ripley’s Aquarium, shops, and dinner on the lakefront.

Evening: Barefoot Landing after 5 PM. Shop as the sun drops, dinner on the waterfront, and a show at Alabama Theatre if the timing works. The string lights reflecting off the Intracoastal Waterway at night are worth the trip alone.

For the full list of things to do near North Myrtle Beach, check out our complete activity guide.

Come Home to Your Own Place

After a day of outlet shopping and aquarium tunnels, you’ll pull back into the Ocean Keyes gate with a trunk full of bags and a phone full of photos. The condo at 601 Hillside Dr N will be exactly how you left it — the kitchen stocked, the WiFi humming, the balcony waiting. Kick off the new sandals. Spread the souvenirs across the dining table. That’s the beauty of staying in a place that feels like yours.

Ready to book your stay? Check availability for our 3-bedroom, 2-bath condo — sleeps 8, full kitchen, gig-speed WiFi, and two parking spots — at beachgolflife.com/booking/.