In Spring break 2021, we knew we needed a beach trip. We would usually head towards the gulf as that’s an easy drive. However, for this trip we wanted to try someplace new. We also wanted to combine the trip with a visit to a friend who lived near Raleigh, North Carolina. Although it was a long drive, we had a lot of fun and really enjoyed our stay.
Nashville, TN to Myrtle Beach, SC
If you drive directly to Myrtle Beach, SC, you can make the trip in a day. It will be a long day of driving. (9 hours plus stopping time) We took a detour towards our friend in Rocky Mount, NC for a few days on our way to Myrtle Beach and drove a more direct path back.
Nashville, TN to Greensboro, NC (8 hours + time change)
We left on Friday evening after school to head towards North Carolina. We made a few stops every 2 hours at Love’s Travel and Pilot Centers. We also made a quick stop at Walmart to buy a meat and cheese tray for everyone to share dinner. Our favorite car activities are stickers and blank paper, sticker puzzles from Target and movies on the tablet. Read more about our tips for long road trips here.
We spent the night at Hyatt Place Greensboro. This was a good place to lay our heads after a night of driving. Hyatt Place is one of my favorite brands due to the space and pull-out sofa. We grabbed breakfast to go for the road. (My favorite thing to do is put cereal in a coffee cup and grab some fruit) We used 5,000 points and this night counted for our goal to get hotel nights to earn Globalist status. You can earn Hyatt points from Hyatt stays, the Hyatt credit card and Chase points which can be transferred to Hyatt. Learn more about points here.
Greensboro, NC to Rocky Mount, NC (2 hrs)
In the morning after breakfast, we finished our drive to Rocky Mount, NC near Raleigh. We stopped here for a few days to visit with a family friend. We spent most of this time hanging out at the house and enjoying time together.
Rocky Mount, NC to Myrtle Beach, SC (4 hrs)
After a few days in Rocky Mount, we set off for the next part of our trip. We made a half-way stop at a McDonalds for lunch.
Read more about our hotel and activities in Myrtle Beach here
Our Return Trip
Myrtle Beach, SC to Nashville, TN
Myrtle Beach, SC to Knoxville, TN (9 hours)
We checked out of our hotel after lunch and started our long drive back to Nashville. We had some leftovers from our meals in Myrtle Beach that we snacked on until we stopped for dinner in Canton, NC.
We were searching for a patio dinner spot along our drive and found this great brewery a short detour away. Bearwaters Brewing. We liked this brewery so much we also stopped here on another more recent trip to Asheville as well. They have burgers and wooden swings and the kids enjoyed skipping rocks into the creek.
From Canton, it was just a few hours to our hotel in Knoxville. This was a long day with lots of iPad time. We stayed at the Hyatt Place Knoxville for 8,000 points. This was just a quick overnight stay on our drive. Note that this hotel was a little loud being downtown and didn’t have a pool. Not sure we would stay here again but it fit our needs for an overnight stop.
Knoxville, TN to Nashville, TN (3.5 hrs - minus time change)
We left early on a Friday morning to end our vacation so that we could go in to work. Super lame. We made a quick stop at Pilot along the way. Pulled out our activity bag and watched some TV for an easy end to vacation. Ready and also not ready for a return to normal routines. 🙂
