Best Moving Company in Hilton Head Island, SC

Travel + Leisure readers have long loved the Palmetto State.

And while there are plenty of vacation-worthy places across South Carolina, from the marshy Lowcountry to the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains, one region is a clear winner this year. Eight of our readers’ 10 favorite South Carolina resorts can be found along the coast; three winners are located on Hilton Head Island (with another just off the island in Bluffton), and four are located in the communities surrounding the reader-favorite city, Charleston. Of course, the Upstate is home to a couple of standout properties as well—two of this year’s winners are in Greenville, a blossoming city in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

It’s clear the South Carolina Lowcountry has captured our readers’ hearts. Both Hilton Head Island and Kiawah Island, frequently voted among the top islands in the continental U.S., are home to some of our readers’ favorite coastal resorts. Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort, voted No. 8 this year, offers a family-friendly escape in a scenic natural setting (far from Disney’s famous theme parks), while The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort (No. 4) is a prime golf getaway with world-renowned courses just minutes away.

Of course, no matter which of these hotels you pick across the Palmetto State, one thing remains consistent: the dedication to that warm Southern hospitality the region is known for. Of Hotel Hartness, which made No. 2 this year after winning the top spot in 2024, one reader commented, “This hotel continues to provide excellent and bespoke service, as well as a truly unique experience.”

While there are several returning favorites, the top property for 2025 is a luxe newcomer—but more on that below.

The Winner

The Dunlin, Auberge Resorts Collection

One of South Carolina’s newest luxury resorts is also the state’s best, according to T+L readers. The Dunlin, Auberge Resorts Collection opened last summer in the new Kiawah River development on Johns Island, about 20 miles from downtown Charleston. The WBA newcomer has 72 rooms and suites spread across several buildings that feel like a Lowcountry home away from home. The luxe property features a marshfront pool lined with mint green loungers, an elevated take on Carolinian coastal cuisine at Linnette’s, and guest rooms decked out in gingham and pastels. One reader described it as a “new gem just outside Charleston” with “incredible interior design.”

The Full List

The $47.5 million project is funded by taxes and fees on hotels and rentals paid by visitors.

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. —

Changes are coming to Hilton Head Island beaches in an effort to keep them beautiful.

According to town officials, 2.2 million cubic yards of sand will be brought in to refresh the shores of Hilton Head Island’s beaches, starting at Fish Haul Beach Park.

That’s part of the town’s beach renourishment project, a process done every six to 10 years, according to Heather Woolwine, director of communications for the town of Hilton Head.

“We need to have these wide beach spaces to really serve as those storm surge barriers and protection,” Woolwine said.

The project, which runs from August to May 2026, will renew all of Hilton Head’s beaches one by one.

“It’s one of our most important assets environmentally, economically, for all of our mental health and wellbeing, so it’s worth the time and the energy to invest in making sure that it stays as wonderful as it is,” Woolwine said.

The $47.5 million project is funded by taxes and fees on hotels and rentals paid by visitors.

“Whether you are a resident, a business owner, a visitor, or someone who cares deeply about the environment, habitats for endangered species, beach renourishment is important for all of those reasons,” Woolwine said.

The first two phases of the project will bring new sand to the island’s beaches. Phase three will include installing breakwater structures, though no schedule has been set for that yet.

Fish Haul Beach Park will be closed for five days from August 6 through August 15.

TRENDING STORIES

A dolphin named Lucky lived up to her name this weekend as she was saved from a shallow, Bluffton-area lagoon and returned to the May River to swim free. Local officials and marine experts alike said the rescue was like nothing they had ever seen.

Passerby found the approximately 8-foot dolphin stranded around 10:30 a.m. Saturday in a tidal lagoon inside the Hampton Lake private community. In the hours that followed, an eclectic rescue team helped carry the mammal up a steep embankment before she was driven to a private dock and released around 6 p.m. that evening.

Experts believe Lucky swam into the lagoon through a culvert connected to the May River as heavy rainstorms covered Beaufort County on Thursday. As the tide receded, the dolphin became trapped in water that was only a few feet deep.

When Amber Kuehn, a local sea turtle expert and volunteer logistics coordinator with the Lowcountry Marine Mammal Network, was called to the scene, it quickly became clear that Lucky had gotten herself into a very unlucky situation. Somehow, the dolphin had navigated through Stoney Creek, through a culvert and into the drainage ditch before getting trapped as the water began to drain out.

Two LMMN employees began driving down from Charleston. But as Kuehn looked around, she realized that getting a dolphin weighing more than 400 lbs up the steep embankment and back to the May River would require more manpower.

She called the Bluffton Fire department and and explained the situation to the man at the end of the line.

“This young kid answers the phone and I was like, ‘Hey, my name is Amber Kuehn. I have a dolphin at Hampton Lakes that I need help removing from one of their water catchment ditches,’” Kuehn said. “And he said, ‘Ma’am, I’m gonna have to call my supervisor.’”

Stephen Combs, a spokesperson for the Bluffton Township Fire District, said this was the department’s first-ever rescue of its type. Kuehn said this is the first time she and the LMMN responded to a situation like this one.

A team made up of Bluffton firefighters, Hampton Lake neighbors and experts with the Lowcountry Marine Mammal Network assembled to capture the dolphin and transport Lucky out of the drainage ditch. The LMMN staff deployed from Charleston are federally authorized to handle marine mammals.

Lucky initially swam further into the lagoon, but rescuers eventually guided her onto a specialized marine rescue tarp attached to stabilizing poles.

They navigated the dolphin to Kuehn’s trailer, where she set up a half-deflated inner tube. With the help of a firefighter escort, they drove down S.C. 46 (May River Road) to a nearby dock, walked the dolphin down the steep ramp and released her into the water.

“It was just such a local effort,” Kuehn said.

The team was able to identify the dolphin as Lucky, a year-round resident of the May River, based on her dorsal fin, Kuehn said. The dolphin has had three calves since researchers at the University of South Carolina-Beaufort first started tracking her. Fortunately, she didn’t have a calf who could have followed her into the drainage ditch this year.

The Bluffton fire department advised residents who see a marine mammal in distress to call 911 and allow authorities to respond. Approaching and attempting to help the animal, even if well-intentioned, “can put both people and the animals at risk.”

The Lowcountry Marine Mammal Network encourages the public to follow these guidelines to protect dolphins and other marine mammals in our region:

Pro-golfer Brian Campbell, a California native turned Bluffton local, has secured his second win on the 2025 PGA Tour in the John Deere Classic this week.

This marks his second win in a playoff.

He closed with a 4-under 67, finishing at 18-under 266, the first player to do so, and held off a charging field that included Emiliano Grillo and Max Homa.

This recent win makes Campbell one of only five players this year to snag multiple PGA Tour titles, putting him in the same company as a few familiar names: Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Sepp Straka and Ryan Fox.

It extended the win-or-bust season for Campbell, whose first win came at the Mexico Open at VidantaWorld in late February. Since then, he has dotted his finishes near the top 30 every tournament, except for his two victories.

After finishing the John Deere Classic a half-hour ahead of the final group, Campbell didn’t wait on the practice range like many do. Instead, the PGA Tour noted that he stayed in the clubhouse, watching his score as the final groups battled the course.

His 3-wood on the par-5 17th set up a two-putt birdie and he nearly missed a 25-footer on 18. It was enough to get into a playoff, but even as one of the shorter hitters on tour, he made par to seal the deal.

Campbell, who has lived in Bluffton for almost three years, first caught local eyes when he teed it up at Harbour Town Golf Links during the RBC Heritage earlier this year, finishing a solid 32nd.

He matched that result in his appearance at The Masters in early April, also holding a top 50 finish in 32nd place.

Now, with two wins under his belt in 2025, Campbell’s name no longer seems to be flying below the radar in the local golf scene.

The 32-year-old grew up in Irvine, California, and played college golf at the University of Illinois. But the game first caught hold of him far from the palm trees and prairie, on a quaint 9-hole course in Knowlton, Quebec, where his family spent summers visiting, which is near his father’s hometown of Montreal.

Now, Campbell calls Bluffton home.

He moved to the Lowcountry about two and a half years ago, drawn both by family who relocated years earlier and the fairways, specifically to dive into the challenge and nuance of Bermuda grass.

When in Bluffton, he plays out of Colleton River Club, previously telling The Island Packet he enjoys playing the beauty of the Lowcountry, soaking in the Spanish moss-covered trees.

After joining the PGA Tour in 2017, Campbell has played in 41 events.

The Island Packet reached out to Campbell for comment following his win at the John Deere Classic, but he was not available due to international travel for the Genesis Scottish Open starting July 10.