There is a moment, usually about ten minutes into your first visit to Brookgreen Gardens, when you stop walking and simply stand still. Maybe it happens when the live oaks close in overhead, their branches draped in Spanish moss forming a cathedral arch above the path. Maybe it happens when you round a bend and find yourself face-to-face with a bronze figurine frozen mid-leap against a backdrop of still water and wild azaleas. Either way, it happens. And when it does, you understand why people who come here once tend to come back year after year.

Brookgreen Gardens sits just south of Myrtle Beach in Murrells Inlet, tucked along U.S. 17 on the Waccamaw Neck, a stretch of land so naturally beautiful it feels almost unfair. The property encompasses more than 9,000 acres and holds the distinction of being the first public sculpture garden in the United States, opened in 1932 by sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington and her husband Archer. That legacy is felt in every corner of the grounds, where more than 2,000 works of American figurative sculpture are displayed outdoors and in gallery spaces throughout the property.

The sculpture alone would be worth the trip, but Brookgreen is so much more than an art institution. The formal garden spaces — designed in the shape of a butterfly when viewed from above — are meticulously maintained and seasonally spectacular. In spring the camellia allée blooms in shades of pink and cream. In summer, the reflecting pools shimmer under long afternoon light. In fall and winter, the Nights of a Thousand Candles event transforms the entire garden into something from a storybook, with luminaries lining every path and live music drifting through the trees.

Families will find plenty to keep younger visitors engaged at the Lowcountry Zoo, a naturalistic habitat area within Brookgreen that houses native wildlife including otters, bald eagles, and white-tailed deer. Children can also explore the nature center, take a pontoon boat tour through the salt marsh, and wander the children’s garden designed specifically for small hands and curious minds.

Plan to spend at least half a day here, and wear comfortable shoes. The grounds are expansive and the pacing is entirely your own. There are no crowds pressing you forward, no neon signs competing for your attention. Just the soft sound of fountain water, the creak of old oaks, and the quiet pleasure of discovering something genuinely extraordinary just minutes from the beach.

Brookgreen Gardens is open daily, and admission covers all garden areas and the zoo. Membership is available for those who, like so many visitors before them, find they simply cannot stay away.