Broadway at the Beach Blog

It's the week many of us wait for every summer. The mere mention of it summons up memories of old classic movies like "Jaws" and images from new, trendy movies like "Sharknado."

It's "Shark Week!"

This year's celebration of the ocean's toothy carnivores is set for August 10 through August 16. There will be a barrage of Discovery Channel reality shows and the Syfy channel's shark-themed movies.

But why watch films about sharks when you can get up close to the real things? Just imagine looking upward and seeing sharks just inches away.

At Ripley's Aquarium, Shark Week is a celebration that both parents and kids can enjoy. It's an opportunity to closely observe and learn about these fierce and majestic creatures.

At Broadway at the Beach, Ripley's gives us all the opportunity to sink our teeth into several shark-themed events.

Every day during Shark Week, there will be a Shark Teeth Scavenger Hunt (at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. & 5 p.m.), shark-themed face painting (3 p.m.), and educational shark presentations (1 p.m., 3 p.m. & 7 p.m.).

Have an artist in the family? A shark-themed chalk art contest will be held for ages 5 to 10 at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, August 12. Kids 11 – 15 can show their sketching skills at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, August 13. Adults and older kids (ages 16 and up) can even get in on the fun with a little friendly drawing competition at 10 a.m. on Thursday, August 14. Winners will be in announced each day at 4 p.m.

What's shark week without a little blood? At Ripley's, that means a blood drive to save lives. Teaming up with the Red Cross, the Aquarium will host a blood drive on Tuesday, August 12 between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

And, there's no more memorable way for parents and kids to cap off their Shark Week than by actually sleeping with the fishes — and the sharks. A sleepover in Ripley's acrylic tunnel from 8 p.m., Thursday to Friday at 8 a.m. will give your family a chance to observe some of nature's largest predators as they swim overhead.

This year, celebrate Shark Week at Ripley's Aquarium, where you can get up close to these amazing animals.

July 25 is National Carousel Day, a holiday created to honor the first carousel patented by its inventor, William Schneider of Davenport, Iowa, in 1871.

Celebrate the day with a ride on one of our two carousels – or both.

Located near Capriz at Pavilion Park West, the kids will love riding the beautiful Morgan-Chance carousel made in the mid-1980s.

But while this carousel is a beauty, our other is a real, historic gem.

Built by two brothers-in-law in 1912, our Herschell-Spillman Carousel is located at Pavilion Park East near the Hampton Inn at Broadway at the Beach. There are less than a handful of these wonders still operating in the world, making riding this carousel a truly memorable experience.

Unlike many traditional carousels that showcase only horses, ours has many different animals on it, including frogs, lions, ostriches, zebras, giraffes, roosters and more. The animals are hand-carved out of wood, hand-painted, and have real glass eyes.

Some of the animals on our carousel are rare even for a Herschell-Spillman. For example, our frog (hop toad) is dressed in human clothing and the stork has the image of a baby carved on its side. Other special animals include the ostrich, sea serpent, and the "flag" horses which have the image of the American flag carved on their sides and tails of real horse hair.

At Broadway, history and fun come together on National Carousel Day.

There's nothing better to top off a summer day at the beach than a nice dinner, followed by a blockbuster action movie.

Except maybe a blockbuster action movie in 3D on a giant floor-to-ceiling movie screen, with state-of-the-art sound systems, and high resolution, awesomely bright picture quality. And, in Myrtle Beach, that means heading to the one place that delivers the ultimate movie experience, the BigD Theater at Broadway.

Starting Friday, July 25, you can sit back in a comfortable leather seat that actually rocks, slip on a pair of 3D glasses, and be amazed by one of the most anticipated movies of the year. It's "Hercules" with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson taking on the iconic role of the the powerful son of the god king Zeus.

But be forewarned: when you catch a 3D movie at BigD, you'll become part of the action. Images will jump off the screen right before your eyes and booming sounds will swirl all around you, as the theater walls vibrate. Can you endure ferocious giant lions and slithery serpents leaping from the film and armies of the undead swarming all around you?

If not, you can choose a 2D option on the BigD giant screen. Or you can head over to the Carmike Cinema where 2D and 3D versions will be shown on more traditionally-sized screens.

Do you have the courage to face all that Hercules delivers from the BigD screen?

We get questions about Broadway at the Beach every day. Visitors stop by Guest Services or drop us a post on our Facebook page wondering about all sorts of things. Most folks are intrigued by the sites, the sounds and the size of Broadway. We're asked about our fireworks, traveling performers and even the fish in our lake. So we thought we'd share ten interesting facts about Broadway that answer many of the questions we're asked. And, if you have more, head over to our Facebook page and ask away!

1. Broadway at the Beach's 14 million visitors a year literally come from all over America and beyond. The top 5 states that send us visitors are North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

2. Our 75 in-line shops and 30 kiosks offer everything from trendy sandals and delicious fudge, to beautiful jewelry and apparel. We even have a magic shop called Broadway Magic.

3. Sixteen nightclubs provide a wide variety of entertainment from comedians performing at the Carolina Comedy Club to live bands playing all kinds of music at several clubs in Celebrity Square and nearby restaurants.

4. Twenty-six attractions fill up your senses at Broadway. Tribute artists give high energy performances at Legends In Concert and an awesome magic show is currently playing at The Palace. Ripley's Aquarium lets you walk through a tunnel with sharks swimming overhead. You can even get your photo taken with a life-like wax model of your favorite star at our new Hollywood Wax Museum.

5. There are more than 20 amusement rides in 3 different parks around Broadway. From kiddie rides to thrill rides, we've got it. It's also an adventure to soar over Lake Broadway on a zipline or have some fun just riding on the lake in a jet boat, paddle boat or water rollerz.

6. Events are a regular part of the Broadway experience. Broadway at the Beach hosts an average of 25 events and/or festivals annually including several 5K's, car shows and charitable walks. And our Christmas Tree Lighting Celebration is one of the most popular events in the area as we illuminate our 52 foot tall tree with 141,000 lights as performers bring in the holiday season.

7. Just how big is Lake Broadway? Our 23-acre lake is 100 feet across and 1 mile in length. Depths range from 3 to 15 feet.

8. How many fish are in our lake? We've stopped counting! We originally stocked the lake with about 29,000 fish including Bream, Catfish, Hybrid Bass, Japanese Carp and Israeli Carp when we opened in 1995. A quick look around and you'll see that we have a pretty healthy (and growing) aquatic population that now also includes wildlife such as seagulls, turtles, ducks and more.

9. Our fish consume approximately 34,000 ponds of fish food every year, thanks to our many visitors who stop on the bridges at our feeders and toss in the food that draws the fish up to the surface for chow.

10. Our most popular regular events are our fireworks shows held Tuesdays and Fridays at 10 p.m. during the summer as well as several seasonal shows throughout the remainder of the year. Weather permitting, we'll present 30 free fireworks shows this year. And by seasons end, we will have exploded nearly 100,000 shots over Broadway.

Now that you have the facts, come out and enjoy!

Summer vacation is a time to make lasting memories. What will your child remember most about a Myrtle Beach vacation? Maybe it's catching that perfect wave on a boogie board. Going up, down and around on a favorite carousel horse while waving to you. Or maybe just walking along the sandy beach with you searching for that special seashell.

This year, why not also take home both the memory of a great time together and a lasting reminder of the trip?

At Build-A-Bear Workshop®, kids can literally "make" a new friend. A bunny, a bear, just about whatever the heart desires can be customized from start to finish with special clothing and accessories. Choose the popular beach theme and create a new friend dressed in shorts and decked out with accessories like beach towels, Myrtle Beach bag packs, sunglasses and sandals.

You'll both leave Build-A-Bear Workshop with a smile on your face and a lifelong friend, as well as an extra special beach memory that can be treasured forever.