Over this past spring break, my friends and I took a 5-hour road trip down to Hilton Head, S.C. We booked an Airbnb in a condo complex that was about a 10-minute walk to the beach. Hopefully if you ever find yourself in Hilton Head, this will help give you budget-friendly options of activities to do and places to eat.

During our trip, we went to Coligny Beach almost every day. The weather was much warmer than I expected, and there were a couple windy days, but we wanted to take advantage of all the sun we could get. The water was admittedly very cold at this time of the year, but the beach itself wasn’t too crowded most days. In the mornings, it was deserted. I would definitely recommend checking out the sunrise; it was beautiful and there is hardly anyone else around, so you can enjoy the sound of the ocean. In the evenings, we would play games or watch a movie for budget-friendly fun.

On the second-to-last day, we took a road trip to Savannah, Ga., since it is only an hour away from Hilton Head. I had been once before, but there is so much to do here. I would recommend researching ahead of time to find what shops, restaurants or places you want to go to.

We first went to River Street (a must-see) and the Candy Street Kitchen, famous for its pralines. On this street, we also went to Savannah Bee Co. The honey was delicious, and the staff was very informative and friendly. The combo of an apple slice with honeycomb and cheese is worth tasting, even though it sounds a bit unusual. We also went to Foxy Loxy Café, which offers outdoor seating behind the shop. This was great for a midafternoon pick-me-up.

For food options in Hilton Head, we tried to cook most of our meals at the condo to save money. However, we did want to try out some of the restaurants in the area.

Giuseppi’s Pizza gave a great value for the quality of food. The pasta many of my friends got was delicious, and they took leftovers home for another meal. I got two pieces of pizza, and they were huge!

We went to Java Burrito Co. in search of caffeine. To our surprise, it was a Mexican restaurant (that looked similar to Chipotle) combined with a coffee shop. The inside was very trendy, and I got a latte, which turned out to be pretty good. My friend got a cold brew, which was overpriced and tasted a bit off, however.

My favorite restaurant we went to was Chow Daddy’s. We were able to sit outside, and our waiter was very friendly. This was probably the most expensive restaurant we went to, but it was definitely worth it! The seafood they offered was very fresh. I ordered a tilapia bowl, and it was delicious. Everyone was satisfied with their meal after we ate there. Hilton Head Diner was a good, reasonably-priced breakfast option. The omelets looked very good, and the coffee was bottomless. I ordered granola, and it tasted good, but I only got a small cup of it. Not the most filling breakfast, so I would recommend ordering something that would give you more bang for your buck.