Savannah or Tybee Island??

We are a family of 4 travelling to Atlanta in July and want to spend a week somewhere near the coast but not more than about 4hrs drive. My husband is a golfer and wants to see Augusta and I would love to see Savannah. We%26#39;ve been to Hilton Head Island before and enjoyed that but would like to try somewhere different - have been looking at Savannah, Tybee Island, St Simons Island (too far?). Our kids are 10 and 12yrs. We like eating out and doing the malls in the evening so am not sure if a week on Tybee Island would be too quiet for us?? I don%26#39;t mind not being beside the beach so long as we have access to a pool for the kids during the day? Don%26#39;t want to be too far from restaurants, malls, movie theatres, stuff for kids at night etc. Would really appreciate suggestions please? Have been looking at some nice vacation rentals on Tybee Island but I believe it%26#39;s a 30min drive into Savannah at night. Suggestions welcome please? Many thanks.

Savannah or Tybee Island??

Two things...

Augusta National golf course is private and due to its popularity has been completely surrounded by a tall fence that is also surrounded by thick, impenetrable vegetation. If you go to Augusta to see the place where they play the Masters, it might be a little disappointing unless you have ';an in';. (This would probably be a good question to post on the Augusta, GA forum).

Secondly, if you do veer off the main road to Augusta, then it will be worth your time to consider Charleston. If you haven%26#39;t been here before, it will keep you and the children busy and entertained for many many days. OUr beahces are very close by and when you mentioned restaurants, malls and theaters and water parks as well as proximity to beaches I could not think of a better place than one of the Mt. Pleasant or Isle of Palms hotels (see the map on the Charleston forum). Weekly rentals at or near the beach can be a deal; nightly rates off the beach in Mt. Pleasant can be a deal as well.

If you haven%26#39;t been to Charleston, it%26#39;s worth a good look and is do-able in a day trip to Myrtle Beach as well.

Savannah or Tybee Island??

Thanks so much! That info about Augusta has saved us time and disappointment, think we%26#39;ll give that a miss now. I will defo check out Charleston - sounds like an ideal place - our kids LOVE water parks! Approx how long is the drive from Atlanta to Charleston?

Atlanta to Charleston is about 5 hrs. But before you completely cancel the Augusta stop - please do check on the Augusta forum and pose the question about ';what is there to see';. I%26#39;m taking my info from a friend who lived there 20 years ago - maybe things are different or they have a time that you can take a guided tour. I have read that it is much more beautiful than it looks on tv.

If you go to Charleston, don%26#39;t miss the aquarium, IMAX theater and boat out to Ft Sumter, all together in a little complex on the river.

Don%26#39;t give up on Savannah though, Tybee is maybe 20 minutes from downtown and the southside of town has the malls and fast food that every other city has.

It is mind bogglingly hot here in the summer, the beach is a few degrees cooler and usually has a nice breeze. I would give it serious consideration.

River Street, Ships of the Sea Museum, most of the squares around town have fountains and grass areas to run in, live music in City Market, all fun for kids, not Disney World, but fun.

I visited Charleston In February and there was a sign on the door that said the IMAX theater had closed down.

The Aquarium is average, but probably for more smaller children. The eagle, was a nice addition and other mammals were on show, just not what I would find in the Aquarium.

If you do decide to go to the Aquarium, then your tickets will enable you to get some money off the tickets to Fort Sumter.

We stayed on Tybee in October and drove to Savannah many times. It isn%26#39;t a 30 minute drive. Tybee is wonderful. We stayed in a condo right on the beach (parking lot was right out front, which was just fine). As far as night life goes - Savannah didn%26#39;t have much night life. Bar life, probably, but we don%26#39;t care for much late night stuff although we did hit a few bars and ate fresh oysters. River Street is great, but not sure how late at night it goes. There are some nice live web cams, (savannahcams.com) You can see what%26#39;s going on in Savannah and at what time. The downtown in Savannah is neat, older buildings and stores. The history of Savannah is unbelievable. If your kids like ghost stories, take a night trolley tour. We did so on Halloween, ending at the pirates house for dinner. I really really loved going back to Tybee after being in Savannah. The shopping was just ok on Tybee, but I prefered it for lodging.