SkyWheel Myrtle Beach

SkyWheel Myrtle Beach is one of the first, if not THE first large observational Ferris Wheel ride in the United States. Standing at 187 feet tall, it’s the shortest of the ones I’ve been on myself. To compare, the Great Smoky Mountain Wheel in Pigeon Forge is 200 feet tall, while the Wheel at Icon Park in Orlando is a whopping 400 feet tall.

Even so, you get a great view of the Myrtle Beach strip. During the day, you can see everyone at the beach and the ocean. At night, the whole strip lights up, and you can even see reflections of the SkyWheel on the tall condo buildings nearby. I’d recommend a sunset ride if you can manage it. I tried for one myself but arrived too late, and the line was too long. By the time I got on, it was already dark, and I couldn’t see the ocean at all. They offer sunrise rides as well, with coffee and a pastry included with your 30-minute flight.

Location

The SkyWheel Myrtle Beach is adjacent to the Myrtle Beach boardwalk and next to a small park with a stage. (On my Thursday night visit, karaoke singers took the stage.) At the base of the SkyWheel is the LandShark Bar & Grill, and you walk through their gift shop when your ride is done.

The Experience

I found two big lines when I arrived to ride. The line to buy the ticket, and the line to then to board the SkyWheel, which is very long. They’ll upsell you a ticket to skip the line if you want. I confess I don’t remember how much it is, but it might be the $30+ difference between a regular and a VIP ticket; see below. I remember it was far too much, even to skip that long line! It took me about an hour from getting in the first line to getting off the ride.

Once you finally get to the SkyWheel, they’ll direct you to a spot to stand, and they load a bunch of people on during one stop of the wheel. Each gondola holds six people, though they don’t seat separate parties together. I had one entirely to myself, which was nice. Each gondola is fully enclosed, air-conditioned, and has a help button if you have an emergency during your ride.

The ride itself is four revolutions or about 12 minutes in duration. I felt like it lasted longer, but not much more than 15 minutes, certainly. And it’s fun! Even though I missed the optimal time to ride, it’s a good ride. But I would have rather been able to see the ocean.

Tickets

To experience the SkyWheel Myrtle Beach, each ticket costs $16 for adults 12 and up, $12 for kids 3-11, while 2 and under are free (but still need a ticket from the ticket booth.)

A VIP flight costs $50 for adults and $35 for kids, a ride in a special gondola with a glass floor, and for double the ride time of a normal flight, plus a group photo and the ability to skip the line to board. I’m a little confused on the wording – it says the $50 price is per person, but it also says that each VIP can bring up to three guests. $50 for four people ($12.50 a head) sounds too good to be true, so I assume it’s $50 per person for the VIP experience.

You can also purchase an annual pass for $45 for adults and $30 for kids for a year of rides on the SkyWheel.

Even if you don’t ride the SkyWheel Myrtle Beach, at night it’s a really fun beachside visual with the light show in various patterns on the side. I shoehorned my visit to the SkyWheel during a visit to the Family Kingdom Amusement Park, which is about a 30-minute walk away. And you can walk almost the entire way on the boardwalk, which is nice, but I’m not sure I recommend that strategy for everyone. And if you’re in Panama City Beach, there’s a second SkyWheel there, plus a ropes course and miniature golf.