Hyperbaric Chamber Therapy in Kiawah Island, SC

After Hawaii, Florida is probably the U.S. state that comes to mind most often when people think of sunny, beach-side vacation spots. And with more than 8,000 miles of coastline, it's not hard to see why!

In addition to its superb mainland beaches, Florida has many exceptional island destinations. The Florida Keys are by far the most famous, but there are also underrated Florida islands with equally beautiful beaches and resorts.

But for all its well-deserved fame, Florida is hardly the only state in the U.S. with amazing beach and island vacation spots. Across the country, you can find plenty of underrated beach destinations with clear "Florida Keys" vibes.

Georgia, Florida's neighbor to the north, has its own version of Key West that makes an excellent Spring Break stop. However, perhaps the most underrated state in the southeast for sunny island vacations is South Carolina.

In the popular consciousness, Hilton Head is South Carolina's best-known Florida Keys alternative for spring breakers. But arguably the best single South Carolina alternative to Sunny Florida sits on a lesser-known island just south of Charleston.

Though not as well-known as Hilton Head, Kiawah Island is a true "Florida-style" paradise with incredible beaches, resorts, and ample vacation opportunities for all sorts of travelers.

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Kiawah Island Is A Florida-like Island Paradise Just South Of Charleston

Kiawah Island is one of the many barrier islands that extend along the Atlantic from North Carolina to Florida. Many of these islands are popular vacation destinations in their own right. However, Kiawah Island stands out (at least within South Carolina's share of the Atlantic barrier islands) for its stupendous mix of sunny weather, beautiful scenery, excellent amenities, and a convenient location.

Though Kiawah looks like a remote island paradise at first glance, it's actually quite close to the city of Charleston. For years, Charleston has consistently been voted as one of the best cities in the U.S. for vacations. And that's not even taking into account its proximity to memorable island destinations like Kiawah!

Within the Charleston metropolitan area, Kiawah Island preserves arguably the best collection of supreme beaches and beach-side scenery. The island has around ten miles of protected shoreline, with plenty of gorgeous private beaches for island visitors to enjoy lazy days amid the surf, sand, and sun.

Kiawah Island's beaches often come attached to some of South Carolina's top luxurious resorts for visitors to indulge in some well-deserved pampering among the beautiful ocean views. And with no shortage of amazing restaurants and bars, you'll be able to experience some of South Carolina's best dining options while you enjoy the warm climate!

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Kiawah Island Is A Particularly Attractive Destination For Golfers

Kiawah Island's reputation largely centers around its status as one of America's top golf destinations. This reputation comes thanks to the exceptional Kiawah Island Golf Resort, a truly exceptional golfer's paradise located along a scenic, ten-mile stretch of the island's most picturesque coastline.

Kiawah Island Golf Resort doesn't just have one outstanding golf course. It has five of them. In fact, the resort's top-ranked courses were actually designed by some of the sport's biggest names, including Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, and Pete Dye.

With their combination of expert design and an outstanding coastal setting, the resort's courses have frequently been included in rankings of the best golf courses in the United States. The resort's courses have also hosted some of the most prestigious events in the world of golf, including the PGA Championship and the Ryder Cup.

But as impressive as its golf credentials are, the Kiawah Island Golf Resort is much more than just top golf courses. The resort also features superb accommodations, including luxurious beachside villas, rental cottages, and the five-star Sanctuary Hotel. And with excellent spa treatments available at the resort as well, you can indulge in some much-needed pampering between your rounds of golf!

Golf Aside, Kiawah Island Is A Perfect Spot To Enjoy South Carolina's Seaside Beauty

Of course, Kiawah Island is ultimately much more than great golf courses, luxury hotels, and fine dining. The island's location along South Carolina's scenic coastal region provides it with a lovely tableau of warm beaches, coastal marshes, and unique ecosystems.

Even if you're not a huge golf fan, Kiawah Island still provides abundant opportunities for peaceful strolls along the beach amid gorgeous natural scenery that rivals anything found in Florida.

The Kiawah Beachwalker Park is the island's main recreational area that's open to the general public. With photogenic views of both the ocean and the island's charming river system, Kiawah Beachwalker Park is the perfect spot for a stress-free walk along the beach for anyone visiting the Charleston area.

Animal lovers can also take advantage of the Kiawah Island Nature Program to witness some of the region's unique wildlife on an immersive and informative tour. Depending on the time and location, you might get to see animals like sea turtles, bald eagles, dolphins, bobcats, and even alligators!

In short, Kiawah Island has pretty much everything you'd want from a comprehensive trip to the Florida Keys—with some of the country's best golfing thrown in as an added bonus!

While Florida may be the main attraction when it comes to beach resorts and ocean-side golfing getaways, South Carolina's secret Kiawah Island gives the tourist hotspot a run for its money.

Kiawah Island broke a record with $1.07 billion in home sales in 2024 even as annual transactions normalize after the pandemic spike.

In all, 447 properties sold last year on the seaside resort community. The total is much closer to the typical annual volume of 318 closed properties in 2019 that sold for $300 million than the 656 sold for $807 million in 2020.

The biggest change is the prices.

“What’s interesting is the pace of sales has dropped to normalcy,” said Dan Whalen, president of Kiawah Island Real Estate. “We’re selling a similar number of properties prior to COVID, but the average price went up exponentially.”

Founded 45 years ago, KIRE is the island’s primary real estate brokerage. Of the $1.07 billion in closed sales for 2024, the agency handled 80 percent of the volume, or roughly $825 million in transactions.

The overall 2024 sales eked out the island's previous 2021 record of $1.04 billion from 733 transactions.

“It’s still that old economic equation of supply and demand,” Whalen said. “We have had very little inventory since we got through COVID in 2020 and 2021.”

As of Jan. 1, the island had 113 homes for sale out of a total of about 4,800 properties. A healthy inventory is about 8 percent to 10 percent, but current resales equate to 1.5 percent, Whalen noted.

Pricing for single-family homes stabilized somewhat in 2024 after years of high growth, with the average sale price recorded at $3.88 million and the median sale price at nearly $2.98 million, versus $3.66 million and almost $3 million, respectively, in 2023.

As single-family prices continue to increase, buyers are looking to the island’s 1,600 other dwellings as points of entry, Whalen said.

“Our villa and cottage market has gone through the roof with sales up 79 percent,” Whalen said. “Before, if a person’s budget to get on Kiawah was $1 million or $1.5 million, there were a fair number of single-family homes in that price point.”

Median prices for villas and cottages have increased by 104 percent year-over-year.

For the second consecutive year, more than 20 homes on Kiawah Island sold for more than $5 million.

Among the priciest transactions of 2024:

Whalen said buyers are still a mix of moving within the island, coming from drive-to markets like Charlotte or making major moves from New York and California.

Chicago resident Alison Beitzel and her husband will close on their first Kiawah property on Valentine's Day after five years of looking to buy a vacation getaway on the island.

Beitzel grew up in Ohio traveling to South Carolina every summer and plans to continue the tradition with her grown sons once she completes renovations.

"We decided Kiawah would be our spot and went there a couple years ago to begin looking," Beitzel said. "I think my husband had us ride our bikes on every single road to view properties."

While Beitzel said other South Carolina spots like Hilton Head are attractive, Kiawah Island offers more for its residents with a golf course membership, restaurants, amenities, a home with a marsh view and easy access to Charleston.

"Kiawah is quintessential Lowcountry and to be near a pretty decent size city is a huge selling point," she said. "We've traveled the world, and Charleston is one of our favorite cities for sure."

Like golf itself, the landscape of golf real estate is experiencing a renaissance, driven by a perfect storm of factors that extend well beyond the traditional appeal of a links lifestyle. While the sight of homes along fairways probably won’t excite most golfers mid-round, the dream of owning property alongside a course or in a residential golf community is in exceedingly high demand.

This resurgence is evident in golf communities across the country, from the coastal shores of South Carolina to the Hill Country of Texas and the Hawaiian Islands.

Take Kiawah Island, where 2024 marked the most successful year in the resort island’s history, with over $1 billion in total sales volume across 447 transactions, surpassing even the COVID-era peak of 2021. The average sale price reached $3.8 million, with 20 home sales exceeding $5 million on Kiawah Island, which has five resort courses and two private layouts, with a third on the way.

"The continuing strength of the real estate market on Kiawah Island further solidifies our belief that the desire to be a part of this exceptional community is much more enduring than a cyclical trend," says Chris Randolph, Managing Partner at South Street Partners.

Fundamental Shift

A key element in play is a fundamental shift in how people view these communities.

Rob Duckett, President of Operations at South Street, has observed a significant transformation in residential patterns. "There’s been this migration to these safe-haven communities, and COVID heightened the demand,” Duckett said, pointing to Palmetto Bluff in South Carolina as an example. The Lowcountry community has seen full-time residency climb past 50% – up from 30% to 40% just five years ago and from 20% when the property first opened.

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Palmetto Bluff opened a reversible short course called Crossroads at the start of 2024 and more recently unveiled plans for a new 18-hole course designed by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw that will anchor the community’s third village. The new offerings could help Palmetto Bluff surpass what was a near record-breaking year in 2024, with over $384 million in sales, just $7 million shy of the community’s 2021 historic total.

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And the trend extends well beyond the Southeast U.S.

While the prestigious South Carolina enclave of Timbers Kiawah has been sold out since 2021 due to increased demand – with buyers from the Northeast in particular seeking year-round golf and other outdoor activities – Timbers Kauai in Hawaii is experiencing record sales because of new offerings. This ranges from shared ownership interests in Hokuala’s private residence club to full ownership residences in Timbers Kauai and vacant lots in a new subdivision for families to build a dream home on the Garden Isle.

The newest Laola Nani luxury townhomes along the signature 15th hole of the Jack Nicklaus-designed Ocean Course, which traces the shoreline of Ninini Point Bay, range from $6.1 million to $7.5 million.

Prices have been “steadily increasing across the board in all offerings,” said Debbie Edgerton, Senior Sales Executive at Hokuala Real Estate, who attributes this success to more than just the golf amenities. "Buyers really love the community and 'ohana' feel of Timbers Kauai. The owners and Timbers Kauai Ohana are a tight-knit community. (But) the golf course definitely plays into the sales presentation as the Ocean Course is our most significant amenity here at the property.”

On the Big Island of Hawaii, the 1,260-acre oceanfront residential community of Hokuli’a on the Kona Coast also had its strongest year to date, with an average sale price of $4 million to $6 million. Not far from community’s recently-renovated Jack Nicklaus Signature course, Hokuli’a has launched new real estate options that include 20 oceanfront parcels than range in price from $4.25 million to $7.5 million and come with agricultural easements for owners to plant crops like fruit or coffee.

Evolution of Golf Communities

The evolution of these communities is exemplified at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Georgia, a 12,000-acre lakefront resort real estate property halfway between Atlanta and Augusta.

Reynolds has seven courses, five of which are open to public play as well as for guests of the on-property Ritz-Carlton. The other two, including the newly opened Richland course, are private options for some of the community’s 4,000 member families.

"We have seen almost a complete inversion of our membership demographically and psychographically over the last 10 years," explains Dave Short, Senior VP of Sales, Marketing, and Strategic Planning. "It's not the 65-year-old guy pensioning off from GM after 30 years who wants to play six days a week. When I put up a billboard, it's a much broader group of people who are attracted and are figuring out how to make this their permanent place."

In Texas Hill Country, the similarly established golf and lakeside real estate development at Horseshoe Bay continues to grow and expand, with $350 million in new and recently updated amenities.

Real estate sale prices in Horseshoe Bay increased 12% in 2024, with the offerings spanning a wide range, from the Waters Unit Condos that have been sold out for over two years to a new luxury development called Atten Hill that’s in a founders campaign. There are 92 homesites in the 24-hour guard-gated community, with each including a membership at the Horseshoe Bay Club’s private Summit Rock course that’s valued at over $200,000. The Jack Nicklaus design is the members-only course within the community that also boasts three resort courses designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr.

Stacey Persinger, the general manager of membership at The Club at Horseshoe Bay, said the surge in interest is predominantly driven by urban professionals and families seeking reprieve from the congestion of city life. They’re instead pursuing a full-amenity lifestyle that blends luxury with recreation and natural beauty.

A Reprieve From City Life

“But it’s more than just amenities – it’s a lifestyle shift,” said Persinger. “More people are trading city stress for the tranquility of the Hill Country, seeking not just a getaway but a community. The Club at Horseshoe Bay is meeting that demand with a robust social scene, exclusive dining, and a vibrant, active membership.”

About a half hour east, Loraloma Private Club and Estates outside Austin recently unveiled 29 homesites along its new David McLay Kidd-designed course, his first in the southern U.S. These fairway-front sites, priced between $1.13 million and $1.83 million, reflect the more measured approach to current golf-related real estate development than the boom years of the 1990s and early 2000s.

According to the National Golf Foundation, while U.S. golf development remains limited compared to previous decades, new course construction is at its highest levels in more than a decade. Among course projects under construction or in planning, 42% have a housing component – notably higher than the 25% of overall U.S. golf supply tied to real estate.

The impact on property values is significant, with NGF's research showing homes on golf courses experience an average 15% bump in property value.

Florida leads the nation in golf communities, with more than 500 residential golf developments, followed by California, Texas, Arizona, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

Among the newest golf real estate offerings in the Sunshine State is Cabot Citrus Farms, a four-course destination that has a limited number of two- and four-bedroom golf cottages along with a forthcoming selection of two-story Fairway Homes. Prices start at $1.8 million for the cottages, which are grouped in a small neighborhood between the courses near the main clubhouse that’s under construction, and $3.7 million for fairway homes that are situated near the 10^th hole of the Roost course.

This new era in residential golf interest and new development reflects broader societal shifts: increased workplace flexibility, a renewed appreciation for outdoor recreation, and a desire for community connection in the post-pandemic world.

While these communities span seasonal retreats to year-round havens, they continue to attract older golfers with more time, money and inclination to engage with the game as well as a more diverse and younger demographic. The commonality is that all are seeking not just a place to play golf, but a comprehensive lifestyle that balances recreation, social engagement, and the freedom to work from anywhere.

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