Party on the marshwalk: What to know about Murrells Inlet drinking, open container rules
From college students on spring break to family reunions, the Grand Strand has long been one of the ultimate party destinations of the East Coast, often signified by the endless line of coolers along the beaches all summer long.
The party doesn’t have to be entirely BOYB, though. Barefoot Landing and Murrells Inlet have long hosted bars and restaurants for people to hop between on a night out. Even downtown Myrtle Beach is starting to join that crowd, as it adds powerhouse establishments like Grand Strand Brewing.
This isn’t New Orleans, though. Beer and wine might be for sale 24 hours a day at the grocery store and gas station, but revelers can’t just walk the street drinking straight out of a bottle of wine.
There is one place that offers more freedom for partiers: the Murrells Inlet Marshwalk. It’s one of the only places in the region — even the entire state — that allows people to take their drinks with them after leaving the bar where they were purchased.
Murrells Inlet fits as a place where open containers would be legal. After all, it hosts Myrtle Beach Bike Week twice a year, drawing thousands of visitors to a string of bars tied together by little more than a dock and some planks of wood.
What, exactly, are the rules? Can you just take your drink and run wild and free?
Eh, no.
According to Georgetown County, which oversees the Marshwalk, “Patrons may have alcoholic beverages on the boards of the Marshwalk that have been purchased in the local restaurants,” sheriff’s office spokesman Jason Lesley said.
However, “They cannot take drinks to the parking lots or across the street,” he added.
So, partiers shouldn’t feel like they have to stay trapped indoors to enjoy their drink. Take it outside and enjoy the ever-so-slightly cooler weather of fall.
Just don’t go too far.
This story was originally published September 15, 2022 at 9:04 AM.
