Gullah Geechee Biz Travel Magazine: Hilton Head Island — Beyond the Resorts

Everyone knows Hilton Head Island for its golf courses and luxury resorts. But long before the first bridge was built in 1956, Hilton Head was a sacred homeland of the Gullah Geechee people — a community of formerly enslaved Africans who built a self-sufficient, deeply spiritual culture on the Sea Islands of South Carolina.

Hilton Head Island — Beyond the Resorts takes you on a journey to the real island. Discover Mitchelville, the first self-governed town of freed Black Americans in the United States. Visit the Gullah Museum. Support Native Island-owned restaurants and businesses. Learn the story of heirs' property and why Native Islanders are fighting to keep their ancestral land.

This travel guide will show you the historic sites that tell the true story of Hilton Head, Gullah-owned restaurants serving authentic Lowcountry cuisine, cultural tours led by Native Islanders, the sweetgrass basket tradition and where to buy directly from artisans, how to be a conscious, culturally respectful visitor, and the annual Gullah Celebration and other cultural events.

Whether you are a first-time visitor or a lifelong resident, this guide will transform how you see Hilton Head Island. The ancestors are still here.

Part of the Gullah Geechee Biz Travel Magazine Series — exploring the cultural heart of the Lowcountry.