One of the most beloved children’s book series from our youth is Choose Your Own Adventure. Kids would flip through the interactive tales of pirates or astronauts, eagerly awaiting the moment when the author would write something like, “If you want to scale the wall, go to page 14” or “To make a left in the jeep, jump to page 32.” The scenarios seemed endless.
Montage Palmetto Bluff, a Spanish moss-draped, heron-filled escape tucked along the South Carolina coast between Hilton Head and Savannah, is that concept personified in a postcard-ready vacation destination. The Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star resort is a family getaway for some. For others, it’s an outdoorsy paradise, with clay shooting, bike riding and bird watching in abundance. And there’s another group who loves the place for its food and libation fun. Everyone’s right. Montage Palmetto Bluff is all those things — sometimes even on the same trip. Come for a few days and let the spectacular property help you write your own memorable story.
Your first choice happens even before you arrive at the property. Sure, you could reserve a room in the hardwood-floored, column-anchored Main Inn and you’d be happy as a northern quahog clam. But you’d be missing all that the resort’s cottages bring: high ceilings, a full wet bar and at least 1,100 square feet to stretch out in. The spaces are coastal cool, from wall to wall. And beyond the impressive interior, some of these units also come with great lagoon views. Wait, is that a gator? Yes, probably so.
After settling in, make the short walk over to Octagon for lunch. A comfortable spot for all-day dining, Octagon specializes in Southern standouts (pimento cheese-topped fried chicken sandwich) and seafood (fried fish battered with local River Dog IPA). Go with the smoked turkey and truffle panino, if you’re in the mood for something light. Looking to laze away the afternoon? Try the heftier smash burger with sweet bacon jelly and pickle aioli.
Your next move depends on how full you are and when you’re visiting. Because the resort is a bike lover’s paradise — amenities aren’t terribly far from each other, car drivers aren’t in a hurry and there’s plenty of visible signage — an afternoon ride on any clear day makes great sense. But so too does a round at May River Golf Course. The Jack Nicklaus-designed beauty embraces its natural surroundings, creating 18 memorable holes that are dotted with century-old oaks and show-stopping water hazards.
If you’re in town this spring and summer, there’s a good chance a Well Living activation will be going on. This May, for example, Mother’s Day (trunk shows) and Asian heritage (taste-and-tell culinary events) are the focus. Come June, the spotlight will shift to Pride (the Lowcountry Community Pride 5K, June 8), Juneteenth (sweet-grass-coaster-making class, June 15) and fathers. All of that is on top of a year-round calendar of activations centering around physical health (Pilates, pickleball), learning (conservancy workshops, nature tours) and passion pursuing (boating, fishing). Whichever midday activity you select, a bit of rest back in your private quarters will be in order once you’re done.
When you’re ready to get back out in the world, check out River House for dinner. The resort’s signature eatery does a splendid job with steakhouse staples such as dry-aged rib eye, halibut and a perfectly baked lobster mac and cheese. The kid’s menu is robust, too, with more than 15 options for mains and sides. Still, the table may want to skip a few pages and get right to the s’mores dessert, be it the restaurant’s variety (smoked marshmallow ice cream, Manjari chocolate and graham sablé) or the old-school version you put on a stick at the nightly s’mores cart right outside the inn.
If there’s any adventure left in you, make your way downstairs from River House to Hush for a nightcap. Hiding behind a nondescript framed mirror is the entrance to a speakeasy that could double as a private library in Bruce Wayne’s manor. You’ll spot tables of revelers laughing over rounds of shots. The brilliant barkeeps can mix whatever you want, but we think having a strawberry margarita or a Maple Smash (bourbon, maple syrup, lemon and black walnut bitters) in a leather chair near the fireplace is the best way to close the book on the first night.
The next morning, walk or pedal back over to Octagon for breakfast. Though your usual coffee or OJ might be your first option, select the sweet citrus juice (orange, carrot, ginger, turmeric and agave) or the mixed berry smoothie to set your day off on a fun new path. When it’s time to choose your entrée, however, go with your first mind — the stack of buttermilk pancakes, breakfast potatoes, eggs and chicken apple sausage links are just that good.
As you’ll notice during your time at Montage Palmetto Bluff, a lot of the action directly or indirectly involves the water. There are 32 miles of rivers, marshes and such surrounding the place. Schedule a private inland waterway ecotour with naturalist Cassie Beato for a deeper understanding of it all. During your one-hour voyage, Beato will share the history of the area (Palmetto Bluff once had cotton and rice plantations), point out random facts (yes, Justin and Hailey Bieber did have a splashy wedding at the resort in 2019) and see how many turtles you can spot. If there’s a better way to learn while lounging than riding around with Beato on a Duffy electric boat, we haven’t found it.
Once you dock, two-wheel it over to quaint Wilson Village for a little shopping and some pictures because everyone back home won’t believe you when you say the place actually has cobblestoned streets and ruins from a 1920s mansion. Lunch will also happen nearby at Buffalos. This is the place for salads, sandwiches and, if you’re positioned right by the window, superb views of May River Chapel across the way. For a post-meal treat, walk over a few feet to Melt for a scoop of Bourbon Bomb or whatever other flavor the creamery has on ice.
When it starts sweltering, you have more options: either get to Five-Star Spa Montage Palmetto Bluff for a traditional massage or one of the timely specials (see: Palmetto body polish done with a seasonal blend) or ease back on over to the Carolina Room for an unapologetically Southern tradition called “porching,” where you sit in a chair for a midday break, holding a cookie in one hand and some sort of refreshing beverage in the other. Proper porching calls for a lemonade or sweet tea.
By now, you will have written quite the relaxing vacation story. But there’s one final decision to make at dinnertime. While everyone will be on the same page about where you’ll eat, Flame pizza truck, you can go a number of directions with the wood-fired pie. One enticing option is the classic margarita. Another is the spicy Calabrian (chilis, salami, mozzarella and Parmesan). Wherever you choose to go for your last culinary adventure, it’s safe to say it’ll have a delicious ending.
