Charleston, Savannah and Myrtle Beach with a Baby and a Dog: Our First Road Trip as a Family of Three
Our first van trip with a newborn: three weeks in South Carolina and Georgia with a 12-week-old and a German Shepherd. Charleston, Folly Beach, Myrtle Beach State Park, Sullivan's Island, Savannah's Forsyth Park and Wormsloe, plus what worked.
This was the big one: our first real trip as a family of three, plus the dog. Andi was born in January, and by early April we were itching to get back on the road. We wanted somewhere warm, not too far, and not too ambitious, so we pointed the van at South Carolina and Georgia and gave ourselves three weeks.
Andi was 12 weeks old when we left. If you’re nervous about traveling with a newborn, I get it. I was too. But this trip showed me that the newborn stage is actually a pretty portable one. She slept on us, in the car seat and in the van, and she didn’t care at all where we were as long as she was fed and close.
- Route
- St. Louis → Upstate SC (The Cliffs and Greenville) → Charleston base → Folly Beach, Myrtle Beach and Sullivan's Island → Savannah
- How long
- 3 weeks (Apr 9 – May 1)
- Who came
- Colin, me, Andi (12 weeks old) and Jack, our German Shepherd
- Where we slept
- A rental house in Charleston, our van at Myrtle Beach State Park, and a stay in Savannah
- Best for
- A gentle first trip with a newborn: warm weather, short drives, lots of shade
Our route
- Driving down through Tennessee (Apr 9)
- The Cliffs and Greenville, Upstate South Carolina (Apr 10–11)
- Charleston, our two-week home base (Apr 12–26), with beach days at Folly Beach, a camping trip to Myrtle Beach State Park (Apr 17–19) and lunch on Sullivan’s Island
- Savannah, including Forsyth Park and Wormsloe (Apr 27–30)
- Home on May 1
Upstate South Carolina: The Cliffs and Greenville
We broke up the drive in the Blue Ridge foothills of Upstate South Carolina. The sunset from the balcony at The Cliffs was the first moment of the trip where Colin and I looked at each other and said, “OK. We can do this.”
The next day we spent an afternoon in Greenville, which is walkable, green, and very dog friendly.
Charleston with a newborn
Our plan for Charleston was simple: rent a house, stay two weeks, and do one thing a day. With a 12-week-old, that pace was everything. The house had a porch with a hammock, and Colin and Andi spent part of every single day in it.
Some days the one thing was a walk past the live oaks and marshes at golden hour. Some days it was a night out. On others it was just the porch, a coffee and a nap with Jack. I’m not going to pretend we saw all of Charleston, but we lived there for a couple of weeks, and that was the point.
On our last night we met up with friends for sunset on Charleston Harbor, with the bridge glowing in the background, which was the perfect goodbye.
Folly Beach with a baby and a dog
Folly Beach became our beach. It’s about twenty minutes from downtown Charleston, it’s laid back, and in April Jack, our German Shepherd, was allowed on it with us. We went three times.
Our setup was a big beach umbrella, a blanket and a little baby beach seat with its own canopy. Andi stayed in the shade, Jack lay right next to her, and we took turns walking down to the water.
Folly Beach dog rules: in April, leashed dogs were allowed on the beach all day. From May through September the hours are limited to early morning and evening. Check the city’s current rules before you go.
Camping at Myrtle Beach State Park
Halfway through our Charleston stay we packed up the van and drove up to Myrtle Beach State Park for a few nights. The campground is shaded by tall pines, which is a huge deal with a baby, and it’s a short walk from your site to the beach.
This was Andi’s first time camping in the van, and she did better than we did. We set up the chairs and the outdoor kitchen under the trees, napped in the van in the afternoons, and spent the mornings on the beach.
Jack was welcome in the campground on a leash. Beach rules for dogs vary between the state park and the city of Myrtle Beach, and they change by season, so look them up for your dates.
Sullivan’s Island
One of our best lunches of the trip was on Sullivan’s Island: a big sandwich, an iced coffee and a quiet beach town afternoon. It’s a lovely, slower alternative to Folly if you want a calmer beach day near Charleston.
Savannah with a baby and a dog
We ended the trip in Savannah, and I fell hard for it. The city is built around shady squares, so you’re never more than a block from a bench under a live oak, which is perfect for a feeding break or letting the dog sniff around.
We spent a whole afternoon in Forsyth Park, walking the paths and hanging out by the fountain with the stroller and Jack.
Wormsloe
The next day we drove out to Wormsloe on the Isle of Hope, home of the famous mile-long avenue of live oaks draped in Spanish moss. It’s every bit as good as the photos. We walked the whole avenue with Jack on a leash and Andi in the car seat on the stroller frame, and got our favorite family photo of the trip.
Traveling with a 12-week-old: what worked for us
- One base, one thing a day. Two weeks in one Charleston rental was the best decision we made.
- A car seat that clicks into a stroller frame. Andi napped in her car seat everywhere we went, and moving her from van to stroller without waking her was gold.
- Shade, shade, shade. A big umbrella and a baby beach seat with a canopy made beach days possible.
- Contact naps in the carrier for walks around the squares and the oak avenue.
- April is the right time. It was warm but not hot, and the beaches weren’t crowded yet.
Traveling with a dog in the Lowcountry: what worked
- Folly Beach in spring is great for dogs, with all-day leashed access before May.
- Savannah’s squares and Forsyth Park are made for dog walks.
- State park camping at Myrtle Beach let him be part of everything.
- Bring a cooling mat for afternoons, even in April.
Would we do it again?
Absolutely. If you’re planning a first trip with a newborn, this is the one I’d recommend: short drives, warm weather, lots of shade and easy beaches. Andi went from 12 weeks to almost 15 on this trip. She came home a seasoned traveler, and so did we.
A few weeks later we took her to Europe for five weeks. Read the 5 weeks in Europe with a baby itinerary.
