By The decision had been made to sell our house and go on this big adventure. If you’re new to the blog, check out our post detailing how we decided the nomad life was meant for us (and how it might be for you). That decision was the hard part. Then came the fun part. Where the heck are we going to visit?!?
Hours of research and discussion landed us on our first destination: Sunset Beach, North Carolina.
Now most of you are probably thinking “what (or where) the heck is that?” And that was our first reaction too. But it’s been the perfect first stop on our workcation.
We had never heard of Sunset Beach when we started looking for places to stay on VRBO (pro tip: VRBO offers amazing discounts for month-long stays, especially during the offseason for beach locations). It was by random chance that we came across this quaint beach town and are able to spend an entire month in this little slice of paradise.
Long story short, we put in some basic filters in a VRBO search (3+ bedrooms, 2+ bathrooms, WiFi, and washer/dryer), and then just zoomed in on warmer (mostly beach) destinations across areas of the country that were within realistic driving distance from St. Louis. As much as we love California (especially San Diego), the prospect of driving 24+ hours with a toddler was too much even for us. Here are our tips for surviving a road trip with a toddler.
We found a house in Sunset Beach that met our needs and was reasonably priced (we do have a budget after all), so we did minimal research on the town and booked the VRBO, deciding that we could figure out the details as it got closer. That’s typically how we roll. We once booked a flight to Barcelona on a whim through Scott’s Cheap Flights for $400 round trip per ticket, just because we saw an email advertising the deal.
Some of the most fun adventures aren’t super planned out in advance. Make the plans and figure out the rest later. The anticipation and excitement that come with booking a trip this way are unmatched. There is so much fun to come.
Plus, prepping to sell a house while working full-time and taking care of a toddler doesn’t leave much time to plan vacations. A few weeks before we left for our trip, we started to Google restaurants, places to see, and cool things to do with toddlers. Other than spend as much time on the beach as possible, of course! As much as we like to have some planned activities, we love our unstructured days even more. You can explore, you can relax, you can do whatever you want. Sometimes impromptu plans are the best plans.
All of this is just a long-winded way of saying…we found a hidden gem in Sunset Beach.
So where exactly is Sunset Beach? It’s a small seaside town (population around 4,000) about an hour north of Myrtle Beach, SC. If driving isn’t for you, you can fly into Myrtle Beach and make a short drive to Sunset Beach.
We absolutely love it. Here are some reasons why (and we’ll continue to update this list as we go along):
The beautiful white sand beaches
Of course this is going to be #1! Who doesn’t love a picturesque white sand beach?
The best part is that it’s far from the crowds. That’s certainly true during the offseason (late October and November), but we hear similar even during the summer months. While we don’t quite have the beach to ourselves, there’s plenty of room to spread out and run around without bothering other folks. As Amanda describes it, it’s a “wide” beach as well.
The beach is clean, the sand is soft (and not sticky), and there are plenty of public beach access points. Sunset Beach features a pier as well. Built in 1960 and refurbished in 1976, it’s a great place to go fishing, enjoy a walk, or grab a bite to eat.
It’s been a great place for Luca to run around, splash in the water, dig in the sand, and collect seashells. Add in a few cold drinks, and you’re all set. Beach time is the best time.
The weather is perfect
Granted, the timing for us coming here is also perfect. We arrived here on October 24th and were greeted with wonderful temperatures. The highs have been mid- to high-70s with lows in the low-50s. There’s been a steady, cool breeze as well.
Coming from St. Louis, where it’s been chilly and rainy, being able to enjoy this weather day and night has been a huge bonus. Whether it’s morning walks on the beach or evenings on our back deck around the fire pit, we’ve certainly taken advantage of the fresh air.
Fits our remote work needs
With all of our nomad life destinations, we are going to take some vacation time to enjoy our new temporary home. Life is about a lot more than just work after all. That being said, we obviously can’t enjoy endless vacation time.
Amanda and I are both fortunate enough to work for amazing companies that allow us to work from anywhere. All we really need are our laptops, reliable WiFi, and a decent amount of space for our makeshift workspaces. Currently, it’s a kitchen table and a kitchen counter/bar sitting area. When booking our long-term stays, remote work considerations are big factors.
Our beach house in Sunset Beach has provided everything we’ve needed. As the cherry on top, the WiFi even works outside on the various balconies. Spending parts of the work day with ocean waves as the background music is hard to top. Not to mention the views!
Since the beach is such a short walk away out our back door (literally just a minute or two jaunt), it’s an added perk being able to break up the work day with a quick walk on the beach at lunchtime or when we need to clear our heads.
Kindred Spirit Mailbox
This was one of the highlights of our many days spent exploring. The Kindred Spirit Mailbox was actually the inspiration behind Nicholas Sparks’ latest novel Every Breath. It sits on a secluded stretch of beach on Birds Island, about a 1.5-mile walk from the nearest beach access point. Over the past 40 years, thousands of people have poured their thoughts, fears and dreams into journals that sit within the mailbox. For our full post on the Kindred Spirit Mailbox, Amanda has that covered here.
Bill’s Seafood of Sunset Beach
The initial tally of our visits to this full-service seafood market and convenience store stands at two trips in five days. It’s that good. The selection of fresh fish and seafood is fantastic, and they also offer steamed shrimp, crabs and crab legs to go. We’ve taken advantage of that already. If you’re a fisher, they’ll also clean your fish for you.
However, our favorite thing about Bill’s is tHowever, our favorite thing about Bill’s Seafood is their homemade dips and soups. The crab dip, shrimp dip, and she crab soup are all out of this world.
This is a can’t-miss stop if you’re in Sunset Beach.
Disclaimer: We are suckers for seafood, and it’s Adam’s favorite type of cuisine. Even Luca is enjoying the crab dip!
Sunset Beach Town Park
If sandy beaches aren’t for you, or if you just feel like a sand-free experience, this is the place to go for a relaxing hour or two.
Located on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, the park features bench swings that provide a great view of the water. Luca loved watching the boats and jet skis pass by. He also made sure to spend time throwing washed-up seashells back into the water.
The park also includes restrooms, a picnic shelter, a small fishing pier, and brick walkways that meander through five acres of oak trees (hat tip: https://www.ncbrunswick.com/listing/sunset-beach-town-park/173/)
We haven’t even been here a week yet, but we’ve already found our fair share of adventures. There are still a lot of places we haven’t checked out yet but still want to hit up: Ingram Planetarium, Bird Island Reserve, Oyster Bay Golf Links, and more.
We’ll continue to update this post as the days fly by here. Much more to come!
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