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Getting There
The Charleston International Airport is a 30-minute drive from the resort. Although Wild Dunes doesn't offer a free shuttle, the resort can arrange transportation if you fly in and don't want to rent a car.
All about the Extras
Fitness Center
The Fitness Center offers cardiovascular and weight training equipment for adults and teens ages 15 to 18 who are accompanied by an adult. You can also sign up here for yoga and body sculpting classes, as well as physical fitness and sports training assessments or sessions with a personal trainer. Other options include the photographic running tours and beach boot camp. (Open daily from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.)
Sand & Sea Salon and Spa
The spa offers massage, hair and nail treatments, and a full menu of body treatments, including the 50-minute warm lava shell massage (similar to a hot stone massage but uses smooth tiger-striped clam shells filled with a heated gel) and the 25-minute Shirodharra treatment (where a steady stream of fragrant oil is poured slowly on your forehead and hair).
Kids' Spa programs for ages 9 and under include the Bee a Princess facial (featuring Burt's Bees products), Little Miss Manicure, Princess Pedicure and the ultimate: This Little Piggy, a manicure and pedicure plus a little piggy pillow. During summer Saturdays, the Little Girls Spa Camp (for ages 5 to 8) includes a manicure and pedicure, a facial mask complete with cucumbers and a craft activity (decorating your own pedicure slippers). Teen girls will drool over the 80-minute Chocolate Honey Cake, a body scrub using locally made honey followed by a mocha body mask.
Island Adventures VIP Club Pass
The summer-only, weeklong Island Adventures VIP Club Pass includes a color-your-own beach tote with markers, an Island Adventures T-shirt (for a tie dyeing activity), unlimited crafts and activities, including admission into all night activities (excludes Bingo and Teen Night).
Go Wild Cards
Available at any resort outlet, the cards act like debit cards for goods and services available at the resort. They're great gifts from grandparents or even a good way to give older kids a vacation "allowance." There's no fee to buy the card or to load it, and you can reload it as often as you want.
The Art of Smart Timing
Summer is, of course, the peak season here. The first week in August is Kids' Week at Wild Dunes, which means five days of even more special fun for kids (including animal shows put on by the South Carolina Aquarium and the Center for Birds of Prey). The week ends with a big KidsFest party on Friday, featuring games, an inflatable waterslide, food and prizes.
While many offerings are closed in the off-season, Wild Dunes is indeed open year-round and offers the best bargains from October through January. This is when the resort is the least crowded and you can enjoy crisp-weather walks on the beach and also go into Charleston. Over the holidays, look for memorable special touches like elf tuck-ins, stockings delivered by Santa's helpers, and other seasonal specialties.
For Mom and Dad
Hire a sitter and book the Champagne Sunset Paddle for Couples Only, which the resort arranges through Nature Adventure Outfitters on Shem Creek. This excursion takes you on a guided two-hour kayak paddle through the saltwater marshes with a brief stop for a little bubbly. Or try the Serena Sunset Sail aboard a romantic 50-foot yacht.
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