Hilton Head Islandcast

It's Christmas once again, and we are getting very excited! The golf courses will be closed, the beaches will be open, and all of our favorite bands will be bringing Christmas cheer. In this episode we Mandy welcomes back the Mermaid of Hilton Head to talk about her new Christmas book, where the mermaid teams up with Santa Claus! What's not to love about that? And then our musical guest, La Bodega, joins us for a little Christmas sing-a-long. We had a blast recording this episode, and we know you will love listening to it. Make sure to share this with your friends (you can even call it a present if you want), and don't forget to subscribe and review our podcast on whatever platform you use for podcasts. If you haven't picked on year, there are a few links below to get your started.

Thanksgiving is here! So Mandy and Chris talk about a few Island features that they are thankful for. Whether its enjoying the beautiful beaches, the amazing weather all year round, or all of the wonderful people, there is so much about Hilton Head Island to be grateful for. So check out the minisode, and then let us know what piece of Hilton Head stirs gratitude in your heart. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast, leave a review, and to tell your friends!

In this episode of the Hilton Head Islandcast, Mandy is joined by Chris and their friends Rob and Kristen Benson to talk about our favorite places to get an adult beverage. We hit places in Bluffton and all across the island to give you, our beloved listeners, a full list of bars and restaurants to hit the next time your in the Lowcountry. Have a favorite watering hole that we missed? Let us know! Leave us a message in the comment section below! And don’t forget to share this with your friends.

The town of Hilton Head Island is going through a visioning process, and they want to your ideas. The campaign, Hilton Head Island – Our Future, is seeking the input from island residents, part-time residents, and regular vacationers in an attempt to determine the best course of action for our island’s future over the next twenty years. In this minisode, we sit down with Emily Sparks who is the Project Lead for the Town of Hilton Head Island’s Our Future vision project. Emily shares the purpose of the project, tells us how we can get involved, and politely laughs at Chris’ jokes. Make sure to listen to the minisode, check out the website, and visit one of the engagement events this fall. And don’t forget to tell your friends, subscribe to our podcast, and send us a kind review.

We've had our first couple of days with temperatures under 90 degrees, the humidity is starting to drop, and life on Hilton Head Island is absolutely beautiful.  That's why we're counting down our favorite places to eat outside in Bluffton and Hilton Head.  This is the perfect list of restaurants, coffee shops, bars, and picnic areas to take advantage of the Lowcountry's best eateries and scenery. Got one on your list that isn't on ours?  We'd love to hear about it.  Leave us a message in the comment section below!  And don't forget to share this with your friends.

It’s Time For Fest Fest! We love our festivals here on Hilton Head Island, and in this minisode we break down our Top 5 fall festivals. These festivals cover everything from art and music, to cars, to beer and burgers, and even the vegan lifestyle. So take a listen, and then mark your calendars, because there are exciting things happening all over the Lowcountry this fall. And don’t forget to subscribe, give us a review, and share our island love with your friends!

In addition to beautiful beaches, winding bike paths, and friendly faces, Hilton Head Island is home to one of the greatest stories in American history. Mitchelville was home to the very first self-governed settlement for freedmen in the United States, and it happened right here on Hilton Head Island! On this, our 1 year anniversary, Mandy and Chris sit down with Ahmad Ward, Executive Director at Mitchelville Preservation Project. This conversation taught us so much more about our island, the beauty of the human spirit, and how even today we can be involved in the work of Mitchelville. Plus, we had the distinct please of talking to local musician Jared Templeton about his time on Hilton Head. Jared plays us a few songs and tells us where to find the best cheesesteak in the Lowcountry.

Hilton Head Island is most definitely the best island in the United States, but sometimes even we get rain. In this minisode Chris and Mandy talk about their top five ways to enjoy a tropical rainy day. Whether we're headed to the movies, watching the rain from our porch, or out playing in it, there are a ton of ways to enjoy a Hilton Head downpour. Just make sure to have your umbrella and a dry pair of flipflops!

Recently, the readers of Travel and Leisure magazine named Hilton Head Island the #1 island in the continental United States, and #2 in the world! Obviously, we already knew how great Hilton Head was, but this is an incredible honor and we are so proud of our little island and everyone in it. We thought that this would be the perfect time to sit down with Hilton Head Island's mayor, Mayor David Bennett, to talk about what makes Hilton Head Island such a great place. Oh... and fair warning there is a ton of gushing about how kind and friendly the people of Hilton Head really are. Plus, Chris sat down with local musician Zack Stiltner to hear a few songs and talk a little country music.

The Sandbox Children's Museum is one of Hilton Head Island's hidden little gems. Located off of Pope Avenue, it is the perfect place to bring your children to get out of the heat, or the rain, while on vacation. Packed full with a pirate ship, airplane cockpit, model trains, arts and crafts, and of course a sandbox, this wonderful little interactive museum is sure to be your little one's favorite island spot. In this minisode we sit down with Caroline Rinehart, Operations Manager at The Sandbox, to get a little behind the scenes info. This is definitely a minisode you'll want to share with all of your parent and grandparent friends.

There are so many ways to have a perfect day on Hilton Head Island. The beach, golf, tennis, biking, relaxing pool side. Well in this episode we layout the plans for a perfect day that might just make the top of any top 5 list. There's adventure, culture, relaxation, and of course great food. You'll definitely want to add this day to your plans the next time you visit Hilton Head! Plus a special thanks to Dave Masteller from The Jazz Corner, and Alex Reyes from Zipline Hilton Head for helping us make this day absolutely perfect.

Our beautiful island has just had a serious upgrade! This year, the town of Hilton Head has launched a pilot program to allow FOOD TRUCKS at some of the local beaches. Now, you can get a taco, hot dog, or lobster roll without leaving the beach! We think maybe the town has been reading our minds, since they have now combined some of our favorite things about Hilton Head Island. In this minisode, we talk to Lori Holland, owner of the Lowcountry Lobster truck, and we get the details about when and where to find these beacons of deliciousness.

Get ready for the second half of our incredible Pretty Darn living room concert. Here it is, dear listeners, part 2 of the Islandcast exclusive concert with one of our favorite local bands, Pretty Darn. In this half, the band plays us the rest of the songs on their incredible debut album, talk about the wonderful things about Hilton Head Island, and play a round a Book, Food, Movie. Also, make sure to subscribe, review, and share this podcast, so your friends can catch some good vibes too.

In this episode of the Hilton Head Islandcast, we are changing things up. We are bringing you, our beloved listeners, part 1 of a 2 part Islandcast exclusive concert with one of our favorite local bands, Pretty Darn. You may remember one half of Pretty Darn, Nick Poulin, as our very first musical guest! Well, now they have released a beautiful album, and they join us to play the music, talk about the songs, share their love for our island, and so much more. We had such an incredible time hanging out with our friends and listening to this fantastic band, we know you'll love it to. Also, make sure to subscribe, so that you get the first update when we release part 2 of this episode next week.

Hey listeners! It's getting warm down here on our beautiful island! It's time to break out the board shorts and bikinis, and find yourself on a gorgeous Hilton Head Beach. So in this minisode, we thought it was time to share with you some of our favorite beach hacks. Mandy and Chris discuss some of their favorite ways to make the most of the beautiful Hilton Head Island beaches, including a few hints on where to go, what to do, where to park, what to bring, and of course... what to eat. Plus, there are hints and tips no matter how you like to visit the beach. Want to camp out and stay all day? We've got you covered. Looking to chill with very little preparation? We've got tricks for that too. So, grab your beach chair, give it a listen, comment below, share with your friends, send Mandy an email (mandy@hiltonheadislandcast.com). Plus, don't forget to head on over to your favorite podcast catcher (like iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play) to subscribe and give us some 5 star reviews. Also, if you want to

In this episode of the Hilton Head Islandcast, we take a short trip back over the bridge to our charming mainland neighbor, Bluffton. It used to be said that Bluffton is a state of mind, and in a lot of ways that is still true. Mandy talks with local celebrity, and owner of The Corner Perk, Josh Cooke about the wonderful and quirky things about Bluffton, South Carolina. We learn about some of the great places to eat, who to call for a ride on the May River, where to find historical landmarks, how to pronounce the word boiled like a local, and so much more. Plus, Mandy sits down with local musician, and manager of The Roasting Room Lounge, Jordan Ross. Jordan shares some stories about his time on Hilton Head, a little bit about one of our favorite music venues, and sings us his life story in three songs. Also, make sure to check out HiltonHeadIslandcast.com for all of the links to the people and places mentioned in this episode, and don't forget to subscribe and leave a nice little review!

Hey listeners! We are so excited to share minisode #4 with you! We had way too much fun talking and laughing with our friends Bob and Anne Hinely about our favorite places to eat on Hilton Head Island. We cover a little bit of everything, and we mention more than a few places that you’ll want try on your next visit to Hilton Head Island. If you've listened to our podcast before, you know that we love to talk about all of the great places to eat on Hilton Head, but on this minisode (which we’ve lovingly deemed a Megasode) we spend the whole time talking about our favorite restaurants for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We do suggest that you eat something before you listen to this episode, otherwise you’ll end up heading our to eat before you finish. So, grab a snack, give it a listen, comment below, share with your friends, send Mandy an email (mandy@hiltonheadislandcast.com), and don’t forget to subscribe on iTunes, Google Play, or where you get your podcast.

It's the most wonderful time of the year! It's Heritage time! We're so excited about the 2017 RBC Heritage Classic, and not just because of the great golf to be seen. The Heritage is a HUGE social event, where everyone gets together to see and be seen, to eat and drink, and to enjoy the beautiful spring weather here on Hilton Head Island. In this episode Mandy sits down with local Heritage guru Tara Cibula and talks about how to do The Heritage like a local. Oh yeah, and Chris chimes in every once in a while too. Plus, our music this episode is second to none. We are joined by local legend Martin Lesch. We talk about jazz, street tacos, and a whole lot more. This one is going to be a classic!

Hey listeners! We're posting this episode because we just could not wait for you to here from our guest Nina Leipold aka The Mermaid of Hilton Head! If you listened to Minisode #2, you heard us talk about not taking sand dollars from the beach, and Mandy suggesting someone should write a book about that. Well, in this minisode we talk with Nina Leipold, author of "Sammy The Sand Dollar." During our conversation, Nina tells us about her adventures as a conservationist, a children's book author, a breath-trained free diver, and yes... a mermaid. We had so much fun hanging out with Nina, and we're pretty sure Mandy is trying to figure out how to get one of her tails. So, grab your snorkel, give it a listen, comment below, share with your friends, send Mandy an email (mandy@hiltonheadislandcast.com), and don't forget to subscribe on iTunes, Google Play, or where you get your podcast.

This may be the most fun we've had with the Islandcast so far. In this episode Mandy talks to local (and national) celebrity Chip Michalove. Chip is a local charter fisherman and Hilton Head Island's local shark whisperer who has had videos of his fishing trips end up on national news and make its rounds on the internet. Chip shares some, but not all, of his secrets, and Mandy gets some extra comic relief from her husband Chris. Please we cram seven guys from Goove Town Assault into our tiny studio office and have an absolute blast.