Coming off a record year, Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport is preparing to welcome even more passengers with the announcement Tuesday of four new Allegiant Air nonstop routes from Allentown, Pa.; Grand Rapids, Mich,; Niagara Falls, N.Y.; and Portsmouth, N.H.

To accompany the announcement, Allegiant said it is offering fares on three of the routes as low as $49 each way.

“We’re excited to announce yet another expansion in Savannah,” said Drew Wells, Allegiant’s vice president of planning and revenue.

“We’re sure folks in Allentown, Grand Rapids, Niagara Falls and Portsmouth will be thrilled to take advantage of these convenient, ultra-low-cost, nonstop flights to enjoy the historic charm of Savannah and the sunny shores of Hilton Head.”

If you are trying to sell your home this fall, we have a few ideas that can help welcome buyers. Make sure you do not “over decorate” and take the focus off your home’s best features. Adding a few tasteful accents is all you need.

Before the buyers can see the indoor fall décor, you will need to make a great first impression. Play up that fall feeling with curb appeal. Clean up the yard, rake leaves, trim bushes, plant fall flowers like mums or paint “welcome” on a pumpkin by the front door. 

Emphasize comfort by adding warm and cozy blankets & throw pillows to the sofa or chair. Choosing fall colors such as orange or red will remind the buyers of cozy fireside nights.

Add fall scents such as cinnamon or apples to your home. This can be

Single-Use Plastic Bag Ban

Single-Use Plastic Carryout Bag Law Goes Into Effect November 1, 2018

Stop by our office to receive your FREE reusable bag!  

Beginning November 1, all retailers are prohibited from providing customers with single-use plastic carryout bags. An Ordinance passed by the Hilton Head Island Town Council affects all grocery and convenience stores, restaurants and other retail establishments.

The goal behind the single-use plastic carryout bag law is to improve the Town's environment, our ocean and waterways, and to protect our marine life. Marine birds and sea turtles, for instance, mistake plastic bag pieces as food. Plastics can cause blockages in the animal's digestive tract and subsequently lead to death.

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Public Beach Accesses

All of the beach is public, from the ocean to the high water mark. Access to the beach, however, is often private. The Town of Hilton Head Island provides beach accesses at the following locations: Beach Video

• Alder Lane Beach Access, off South Forest Beach Drive
  Additional Directions:  located off of South Forest Beach Drive
  Hours:  Monday thru Sunday 6:00 am - 9:00 pm
  Winter Hours: Monday thru Sunday 6:00 am - 6:00 pm 
  Hours change according to Daylight Savings Time

• Burkes Beach Access, at the end of Burkes Beach Road
  Additional Directions:  located off of William Hilton Parkway at the end of Burkes Beach Road

• Chaplin Community Park, off of William Hilton Parkway
  Additional Directions:  located

Lowcountry Brunch Festival.  Saturday September 8th from 11-3 p.m. Enjoy brunch inspired bites, beer, mimosas and Bloody Mary’s. Shelter Cove Community Park.

Italian Heritage Festival.  Saturday September 15th from 11-4 p.m. Come to the Coastal Discovery Museum at Honey Horn and enjoy live music, bocce ball, grape stomping and amazing food!

Blufftemberfest. Saturday September 15th from 2-8 p.m. What a fun event- stop by the Bluffton Oyster Factory Park and listen to live music and enjoy a food court full of delicious eats! Fun for the entire family featuring face painting, arts & crafts as well as water sports.

Hilton Head Island Shrimp Festival! Saturday September 22nd from 2-6 p.m. Shrimp tasting, craft beer, live music and fun for the

Getting ready to sell your home? You may ask yourself how much needs to be done before putting your home on the market. We encourage you to schedule an appointment with one of our experienced Realtors, so we can guide you through this process. We have a lot of tips and tricks to help “stage” your home. Some ideas to help are:

1)      If your home has a lot of color on the walls, you may want to consider neutral paint. Neutral shades are anything but boring these days. Gone are the days that neutral means bland tan or shades of white. Painting the walls will not only brighten the space, it will also give the home a “new” feeling. Choose a color that will balance out the rest of the room. Think of the walls as a foundation that will help the other hues

Local Summer. The “end of summer” really isn’t the end on HHI. Summer is a state of mind. The fun continues long after the children have returned to school. The weather is perfect, the beaches are less crowded, and the residents take back their way of life. For us, this is our favorite time of year. Crisp air in the morning and warm sunny afternoon days. Fall festivals, pumpkin pie, craft shows, listening to music while watching the sun set or enjoying a meal in one of our many outdoor restaurants.

What’s it like to live in the place you once called a vacation? Amazing. While many people have a set vacation time planned to visit our island, locals can enjoy an afternoon on the beach, a game of golf or sail away anytime. If you are looking for an

Just like last year at this time, prospective home buyers should expect a competitive housing market for the next several months.  With payrolls trending upward and unemployment trending downward month after month in an extensive string of positive economic news, demand remains quite strong.  Given the fact that gradually rising mortgages rates often infuse urgency to get into a new home before it costs more later, buyers need to remain watchful of new listings and make their offers quickly.

 New listings were up 14.8% to 669.  Pending sales increased 24.6% to 588.  Inventory levels shrank 7.1% to 2,211 units.

 Prices moved higher as median sales price was up 9.7% to $328,000.  Days on market decreased 2.8% to 139 days.  Months supply of inventory

BY MANDY MATNEY - Island Packet

The music scene is always hot in the Lowcountry and it gets even hotter in the summertime.

You can see a cheap or free show virtually any night of the week this summer in the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton area — communities surprisingly saturated with local talent.

How awesome is that? So spice up your summer and save this list for some awesome summer nights.

Shelter Cove Community Park will be rocking every Friday night starting June 15. All you need is a blanket or a beach chair for this family-friendly concert series.

When: Every Friday 7-10 p.m. June 15 through Aug. 17
Cost: Free
Music Schedule: June 15 - Deas-Guyz. June 22 -The Headliners . June 29 - Cranford Hollow. July 6 - Headliners. July 13 -Target.

Lights out for Turtles

The Loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) is the state reptile of South Carolina and the most common sea turtle nester along our shores. They are easily recognizable by the large size of their head in relation to their body and their brownish or yellow skin. Adults have top shells that measure from 30-42 inches in length and usually weigh up to 400 pounds. Males are larger than females, and are not known to come ashore once they leave their beach of birth. Females usually begin to nest the first or second week in May; the nesting season usually ends by the end of August. Females usually emerge to nest at night and lay an average of 120 eggs per nest. They locate an appropriate nest site by judging the temperature and