Just imagine an Island where residents live by choice and in harmony with nature. Where top-ranked golf courses, tennis courts, marine facilities, shops and restaurants, and 12 miles of unspoiled beach are practically in your backyard.
Just image living in a quality conscious community with government and organizations committed to the betterment of the island. Imagine the nature preserves, abundant marine and wildlife, miles of winding bike trails, young and old enthralled with the beauty of their island paradise.
This is Hilton Head Island. At some point in our lives, each of us has seen the Island’s quality and were determined to call this place home. There is a sense of the extraordinary on Hilton Head Island. It is felt from the first glimpse of the bridge leading toward the island. Seen from those heights are stretches of wild marshlands residing with wildlife, the glass surfaced waterway sliced by a boat or perhaps a dolphin’s fin, and then the strands of pines and oaks aligning the shore. Beyond that first impression and past those shores awaits an island where the opulence of nature meets the best of luxurious amenities and activities.
Here on Hilton Head Island is a world of coastal beauty to discover. Efforts have been made to focus attention on preservation in conjunction with the numerous amenities and attractions available here on Hilton Head Island.
From the Beginning
Named for the English sea captain William Hilton, who spied the island in 1663, Hilton Head boasts a long and illustrious history. Archeological excavation has unearthed mysterious shell rings from civilizations that inhabited the Island 4,000 years ago. Pottery shards have been recovered from French and Spanish explorers and Ewascus and Yemassee Indian tribes dating from the 1500s. The African-American Gullah culture, prevalent since the 1800s, is a revered part of Island history. Today’s Islanders have recognized the need to preserve the esteemed heritage.
Hilton Head Island Today
Since formal incorporation in 1983, Hilton Head Island has grown and prospered while maintaining an unmatched standard of living. Once dotted with fertile indigo, rice and cotton plantations, Hilton Head Island now prospers with an astonishing assortment of outstanding amenities and world-class communities. The new breed of plantation is the master-planned resort and residential community, some 10 in all, where you’ll find cozy golf, lagoon, and marsh front villas and homes, to spectacular seaside villas and estates.
Careful planning, conservation, and environmental sensitivity are all goals Hilton Head has set for itself. The Island’s stringent environmental, architectural and developmental regulations have provided the delicate balance between man and nature. In this harmonic existence, the serenity of the natural environment and the luxuries of a world-class resort are inextricably mixed.
The Islanders- Who Are They?
The people who have chosen to live on Hilton Head Island hail from points across the country and around the world. Hilton Head Island is home to approximately 34,600 full-time residents and is substantial enough to support all the services of a small city: excellent schools, a fine hospital and medical center, town government, fire, rescue, police protection, and a wide variety of churches, financial institutions, shopping areas, art center, restaurants and businesses. Hilton Head is a community of all ages and interests. With an average age of 44 years old, the typical Islander is just as likely to be a career and family-oriented professional as an empty nester. Early retirees account for 28% of the population and enjoy active lives. Young professionals have discovered the area is unequaled as a town in which to work and rear families, and people between the ages of 20 and 64 make up 60% of the population. With access to nature, wildlife, sports and fine private and public schools, children thrive on Hilton Head Island.
Hilton Head also plays host to about two million visitors per year and there are about 50,000 people on the island at any given time during the summer. However, visitors and residents coexist extremely well: Hilton Head’s reputation for tasteful tranquility precedes itself, and the commercial hubbub is not allowed to disrupt the island community.
What unifies our Islanders?
It’s an abiding love and respect for the nature that surrounds us and a desire to preserve the Island’s special way of life. They say there’s always a trade involved when making any move. In the case of Hilton Head Island, it means a move to fresh air, tree-lined boulevards; open space; a soothing, sub-tropical climate, golf courses, tennis courts, boating and fishing, marinas and harbors, and wide, warm beaches of the Atlantic. Heading to Hilton Head is definitely a move in the right direction and you’ll quickly find that it’s more than a destination to visit, it’s an incredible place to live.