12, 13, 14….. My son started counting miniature golf courses on Highway 17 as we approached the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina area and got to double digits quickly. The teenage girls in the back seat were happily having similar results with giant gift shops. We saw signs for every imaginable show, restaurant and attraction.

Welcome to Myrtle Beach where, if you can’t find something to do, you’re not trying. We had only a few days, so we did our best to see and do as much as we could. Here's the highlights:

Those with a history of visiting Myrtle Beach remember the downtown area and the Pavilion oceanside amusement park. That was closed and demolished in 2006, leaving an empty field, but the area is being rejuvenated with a mile-long boardwalk and new piers.  A quartet of Ripley’s brand attractions are down here – my daughter has always been a fan of the museums and books that came from Mr. Ripley’s Believe It or Not! collections of oddities.  We spent a couple fun (and air-conditioned!) hours in the Odditorium, hall of mirrors, haunted house and simulator ride.

But the Myrtle Beach attraction star these days is Broadway at the Beach, which is somewhat of a misnomer because it’s not at the actual beach and looks nothing like the New York street. What it is is a sprawling complex of big-name restaurants (think Margaritaville), shops, nightclubs and activities laid out around a lagoon off the 17 bypass.

This is where Ripley’s Aquarium (no, the fish aren’t odd) is located, small -- compared to, say, the Georgia Aquarium -- but very nicely presented with a walk-through shark area, amazingly beautiful tropical fish, ‘pettable’ rays, hand-on horseshoe crab area and a special exhibit of ‘killer’ sea critters. A great way to get out of the sun for a few hours.

One section of Broadway at the Beach has a few of the old Pavilion rides that were saved from demolition and is known as the Pavilion Nostalgia Park. We took a spin on the old carousel, famous for its unusual animals. Those looking for the bigger amusement park experience should go south to Family Kingdom for thrill rides and an oceanside water park.

The big newer attractions and restaurants in the Highway 17 bypass area have ramped up the Myrtle Beach tourist experience. This is where you’ll find NASCAR Speedpark, the Pelicans’ baseball complex, Myrtle Waves waterpark, dinner shows and giant restaurants with supersized signs.

We had a great experience at one of those big eateries, though. From the outside, Phillips Seafood looks like it could be a retail superstore, but the inside was appealing with high ceilings, multiple big screens showing Discovery Channel-style undersea video and those huge ‘curtains’ of encased water. But the best part was the food – we demolished a server-recommended basket of tender calamari rings with their special pineapple chili sauce – and we’re not usually squid fans. Phillip’s house specialty is crab cakes and they were phenomenal – melt-in-your-mouth with lots of crab and perfectly seasoned. Salad bar, dessert bar and friendly service made this place a hit with my family.

Another family-friendly choice was the River City Café – casual, with a menu of every imaginable variation on a burger, peanut shells on the floor, license plates covering the walls and very reasonable prices.

We found the time for one show – Good Vibrations at the Carolina Opry theater, which was a well-presented blend of music from the 60s-80s (entertainment for the kids, nostalgia for me).  Not a dinner deal, just songs, visuals, short comedy bits and feel-good audience participation. (That means I knew all the words.)

Of course, a main attraction of Myrtle Beach is the beach, and this stretch of the Atlantic coast is beautiful.  I tend to have ‘active’ vacations, if you’re more sensible, stay for more than a few days and get more beach time/down time too.  We stayed at the Island Vista, which was perfect for that.  More on the relaxing part of Myrtle Beach in my next blog.

There was a lot we missed, but before we left we had to hit one of the multiple locations of Eagles Beachwear. Why there were so many, we couldn’t quite figure out, but that’s Myrtle Beach.  You just can’t do it all.