South Carolina · Lowcountry · Shoulder & winter
Sep–Feb flips: parking fees, October through March dog hours, Town swim-area lifeguards. This is when the island feels most like itself — warm enough to use, quiet enough to breathe.
After Labor Day the calendars flip — fees, dogs, and stands.
This is when the island feels most like itself — warm enough to use, quiet enough to breathe.
Water stays swimmable. Town swim-area lifeguard season ended September 30. Shore Beach still patrols year-round; ask the attendant or call 843-785-3494. Next Town swim season starts April 1. Ask the stand if one is up. Oyster season starts, and nesting-season lights-out rules still matter for turtles.
Quieter sand, golf and bike weather. Town swim-area lifeguards are off this stretch of the calendar. Shore Beach still patrols. Pack a layer.
Outside Mar 1–Sep 7, parking fees are typically off. October through March: dogs welcome anytime on Town sand — leash, or off-leash only if you can reliably control by voice. Scoop waste. Midday leash window returns April 1. Summer’s dogs-off-beach 10 a.m.–5 p.m. window ended Labor Day, Monday Sept. 7. Dogs and other animals are prohibited in a marked zone at Fish Haul Creek — year-round, all hours, about 600 feet from the public access. The rest of the park follows the same Town dog hours.
Outside Mar 1–Sep 7, parking fees are typically off. Peak paid window: Mar 1–Sep 7, 7am–5pm · $3/hr weekdays · $5/hr weekends · phone app only. Coligny’s lot at 102 Pope Avenue is still free — it fills early; when full, mid-island Town parks.
Parks generally 6am–10pm. Fuller parking page → · Parking
Updated Aug 13, 2026 · Town · editorially verified
October through March: dogs welcome anytime on Town sand — leash, or off-leash only if you can reliably control by voice. Scoop waste. Midday leash window returns April 1. For next-year planning: Island summer hours ran Friday before Memorial Day through Labor Day — dogs off the beach 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
Dogs and other animals are prohibited in a marked zone at Fish Haul Creek — year-round, all hours, about 600 feet from the public access. The rest of the park follows the same Town dog hours.
Fuller dogs page → · Fish Haul / Mitchelville · Town animals
Town swim-area lifeguard season ended September 30. Next Town swim season starts April 1. Shore Beach still patrols year-round, and chair stands run late March through late October, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Ask the attendant, or call 843-785-3494.
Outside Mar 1–Sep 7, parking fees are typically off. Peak paid window is Mar 1–Sep 7.
October through March: dogs welcome anytime on Town sand — leash, or off-leash only if you can reliably control by voice. Scoop waste. Midday leash window returns April 1.
Town swim-area lifeguard season ended September 30. Shore Beach still patrols year-round; ask the attendant or call 843-785-3494. Next Town swim season starts April 1.
Town parks, parking windows, mid-island sand, and off-season timing.
Peak fees, Coligny free lot, and mid-island overflow.
Summer hours, Fish Haul marked zone, and Town fines.
Also: Off-season · Parking · With kids · Tides · Today on Hilton Head Island · Coligny · Driessen