Show or dolphin cruise?

One-line answer

Choose by the kind of time you want, not by price or length, because the two are close on both, and each fits comfortably inside half a day. The tribute show is music in a theatre: a seat, a band, a rotating cast of tribute artists and an audience singing along. The dolphin cruise is the coast itself: an hour and a half on deck with the wind in your face, a guide talking you through the water and the wildlife, and the chance of dolphins breaking the surface nearby. If rain is forecast, the show wins. If the sky is clear and you have not yet been out on the water this trip, take the boat, then decide about the show after dinner.

What the two have in common

Both are short, so neither swallows a day of your holiday. Both are booked through GetYourGuide on the same terms: a full refund if you call it off at least 24 hours ahead, payment that can wait until nearer the day, and a voucher that lives on your phone. Both suit families. And both depend on something no ticket can fix in advance. On the show it is the cast, which changes by season; on the boat it is the dolphins, which are wild animals that keep their own schedule. Seen that way, the choice is less about which is better and more about whether tonight calls for music or for water.

The tribute show

The show fills about two hours, intermission included, in a theatre inside a shopping and entertainment complex in central Myrtle Beach. Several tribute artists take the stage in turn, each styled and sung as a famous star, backed by a live band, backing singers and dancers, and the whole thing is billed as live vocals rather than miming. The cast changes with the season and acts can change without notice, so no single performer is promised. Food and drinks are extra, though the theatre has a snack bar. It is wheelchair- and pushchair-accessible, infants sit on laps, and flash photography and filming are not allowed during the show.

Read next: Tribute show: worth it?

The dolphin cruise

The cruise takes roughly ninety minutes and leaves from Little River, at the northern end of the Grand Strand. It runs on a large, stable tour boat with a restroom, open to the air with 360-degree views, and there is room to move around for a better look. A guide narrates in English as the boat works through Little River Inlet and along the Intracoastal Waterway, pointing out the wildlife and explaining the waterway's ecosystem. The search is for bottlenose dolphins, with birds along the shore. It suits families with small children, but it is not recommended for anyone prone to seasickness, and the start time for each date is shown in the calendar.

Little River and the inlet

Little River takes its name from the river that reaches the Atlantic at the state line between North and South Carolina. Wikipedia notes that its inlet has long served as a breakpoint for tropical cyclone warnings, which tells you how exposed this corner of the coast can be. The area is a mix of housing, old scrub pine, marsh and swamp, bordered by the Waccamaw River and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, with live oaks, Spanish moss and palms along the way. Little River began as a suburb of North Myrtle Beach and still feels quieter than the resort strip. From the water you see the marshy edges of the coast rather than the hotel towers, which is part of the appeal after days spent on the main beach.

What the cruise can't promise

Dolphins are the reason to go, but they are wild, and no boat can guarantee them. Bottlenose dolphins are toothed whales found in warm and temperate seas almost everywhere except the polar regions, and they are common, widespread members of the oceanic dolphin family, but any one trip can still come back without a sighting. Treat any sighting as a bonus on top of a pleasant hour and a half on the water. The narration, the marsh scenery and the inlet are there either way. If seeing dolphins is the only thing that will make the trip worthwhile for a child, set expectations before you leave the dock.

The waterway itself

The Intracoastal Waterway is a 3,000-mile inland route along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States, running from Massachusetts round the tip of Florida to Brownsville, Texas. Some stretches are natural inlets, rivers, bays and sounds; others are dug canals, kept navigable by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. Around here it shapes the map: the waterway has separated Myrtle Beach from the rest of the mainland since 1936. On the cruise you see that line of water from the inside, which explains why so much of the coast's life faces two ways, out to the ocean and back to the creeks.

Weather and the water

The show is indoors, so weather never touches it. The cruise is the opposite: an open boat on the water, where wind, rain and heat all reach you. Summer is long, hot and humid on this coast, and thunderstorms are common in the hot season, usually building in the heat of the day before short, heavy downpours. If storms are forecast for the afternoon, the show is the safer evening, and the free cancellation window on both tickets, up to 24 hours before, helps you swap one for the other. Bring sun protection and a light layer for the boat, and keep the theatre for the night the weather turns.

With children

Both outings work for families, in different ways. The cruise is suited to small children and wildlife fans, with a restroom on board and room to move about, though anyone who gets seasick should sit it out. The show welcomes children too: babies sit on a grown-up's lap, and the ticket types for your date appear in the calendar. Length matters more than age for most families. An hour and a half on a boat with something to look for holds a young child well, while two hours in a theatre seat suits school-age children who like music and bright staging more than toddlers do.

Doing both in one day

Because each takes under a morning or an evening, pairing them is easy. Look in the cruise calendar for a daytime or late-afternoon departure, enjoy the water while it is light, then drive back towards the centre of Myrtle Beach for dinner and a show date in the evening. If you only have one free evening and the forecast is uncertain, book the show for the night and keep the cruise as the outing you add if a calm, bright day turns up. Families often find the pairing works well for mixed ages: younger children get the boat and the wildlife, older ones and grandparents get the music, and everyone shares dinner in between.

Which one to pick

Pick the tribute show if you want a night out with music, a seat and no dependence on the weather, and if a seasonal cast you can't choose in advance suits you. Pick the dolphin cruise if you would rather be out on the water, see the marshes and inlet from a boat and take your chances on wildlife, and nobody in your group is prone to seasickness. If both appeal, do both on the same day. And if you are still unsure about the show itself, the first guide on this site answers the worth-it question in full, including who you can expect to see.

Read next: Tribute show: worth it?