Things to Do in Florence

Scampering through Lazer FX–Lazer Tag's 7,500-square-foot labyrinth, combatants volley photons in exhilarating 20-minute skirmishes. Laser soldiers don luminescent vests and DayGlo bowties before entering the arena, where a mix of 30-odd friends and foes dodge blasts while darting from refuge to refuge. For groups of four, the battle extends out of the arena and onto the 8,000-square-foot arcade floor. Here, more than 120 games—including pool tables, skee-ball lanes, driving simulators, and air hockey—promote hand-eye coordination more effectively than soccer.

Purchased by philanthropist Archer Huntington and his wife, Anna Hyatt Huntington, in 1929, the 9,127 acres of forest, swamp, rice fields and beachfront that became Brookgreen Gardens were originally intended to become the couple’s winter home. Instead, they created a nonprofit institution in 1931 that transformed the property into the first sculpture garden in the United States. Brookgreen Gardens now adorns more than 300 acres of gardens and facilities with more than 1,400 works. A National Historic Landmark, Brookgreen Gardens fields a staff that edifies guests on the property’s plantation history and its gardens’ evolution during seasonally shifting programs, exhibitions, and tours. A medieval, seven-circuit Chartres labyrinth lures visitors with its serene quietude, an exhibit chronicles the narrative of the land from Native American occupation through the present, archeological sites unearth information about life on rice plantations, and the museum’s zoo beckons the intellectually curious with its critters.

On the same strip that Myrtle Beach Zipline Adventures inhabits today, the beloved Pavilion amusement park entertained beach-going families for 58 years. A sextet of 600-foot zip lines renews this sense of excitement as riders fly downward at up to 40 miles per hour, much like an energy-drink-fueled seagull that spots an unattended sandwich. To seal the ride’s thrill for patrons young and old, flights end with a free fall from a 60-foot tower.:m]]

Positioned in the heart of a triangular expanse with Charleston, Myrtle Beach, and Columbia at each point, the Andrews Airport serves as the departure site for Skydive Georgetown's freefalling adventures. Experienced skydivers latch themselves and their parachutes to patrons, and, when the soaring aircraft reaches the peak of its trajectory, both plummet into the open atmosphere. Adrenaline junkies hurtle toward the earth at up to 120 miles per hour while staffers commemorate the journey with videos or photos.