MYRTLE BEACH — Hotel and vacation rental operators along the Grand Strand are entering the spring season with unusual confidence, reporting that advance bookings for spring break weeks and the early summer corridor are running approximately 18 percent ahead of the same period last year — a figure that tourism industry groups say would, if it holds, make 2026 the strongest Grand Strand season on record.

The Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, which tracks lodging data across Horry and Georgetown counties, said the booking surge is being driven by a combination of factors: continued strong demand from the Midwest and mid-Atlantic drive markets that rediscovered the Grand Strand during the pandemic, a relatively mild winter that has kept the early-arrival retirement and snowbird segment in the market longer, and a wave of hotel renovations completed over the past 18 months that has improved the quality of available inventory.

“We’re seeing people book further out and with more confidence than they have in years,” said Chamber President [Name]. “The guest who would have waited until April to book spring break is now booking in January. That’s a different kind of visitor, and it’s good for everybody.”

On Ocean Boulevard, several restaurant and retail operators said they are hiring earlier than usual to meet anticipated demand. [Name], who owns a seafood restaurant on Kings Highway near the Myrtle Beach Convention Center, said she posted her summer seasonal positions in February and filled them by early March — two months ahead of her typical timeline.

“Last spring we were still scrambling for staff in May,” she said. “This year we’re actually ready.”

The Grand Strand’s 60 miles of beachfront — running from Little River in the north through Surfside Beach and into the Pawleys Island area of Georgetown County — generates an estimated $6.3 billion in annual economic activity and supports roughly 90,000 jobs across the coastal region.

Remaining headwinds include concerns about spring weather volatility and ongoing road construction on U.S. 501, the primary inland approach to Myrtle Beach from Interstate 95, which has created congestion delays that some visitors cite as a deterrent. SCDOT has committed to completing the 501 widening project by late 2026.

The Chamber expects peak spring break traffic the week of March 28 through April 5.