Grand Strand, White sand beach in South Carolina, US.

Grand Strand is a coastal stretch in eastern South Carolina that runs along the Atlantic shoreline and features wide sandy beaches with low dunes and scattered patches of beach grass. The shoreline runs relatively straight, interrupted only by small inlets and the mouths of several rivers meeting the ocean.

The Waccamaw people fished and travelled the shore around Little River before European settlers arrived in the late 18th century; land grants went to families such as the Withers and to James Minor, whose barrier island is now Waties Island. In 1822 a hurricane swept R. F. Withers's house into the ocean, drowning 18 people, and the family abandoned its plots. The Conway & Seashore Railroad began daily service on 1 May 1900, carrying timber and weekend bathers; the Seaside Inn opened in 1901, and the town took the name Myrtle Beach in 1957.

The name Grand Strand first appeared in 1949 in Myrtle Beach newspaper columns, one titled "From the Grandstrand" and another "From the Grand Strand." The name Myrtle Beach, chosen when the town incorporated in 1957, honors the Southern Wax Myrtle shrub that grows locally; Burroughs' wife suggested it in a naming contest.

Water temperature is suitable for swimming from May through September, while summer months bring the highest visitor numbers. Outside peak season you find less crowded sections and milder weather for walks along the coast.

The name Grand Strand first appeared in 1949, in a Myrtle Beach Sun column titled "From the Grandstrand" and a Myrtle Beach News piece of December 3, 1949. The strip runs over 60 miles (97 km) from Little River to Winyah Bay, crossing Horry and Georgetown counties.