The 10 Most Affordable Beach Towns for Families in the U.S.

The most affordable beach towns for families in the U.S. are Gulf Shores, Myrtle Beach, Galveston, Destin, Hilton Head Island, Ocean City, Virginia Beach, South Padre Island, Amelia Island and San Diego. For the eight towns priced in all four seasons, a week of family lodging runs between $889 and $1,239. Gulf Shores and Amelia Island have fewer priced weeks. Every figure is the nightly median at a town’s kid-friendly 3-star hotels, not the lowest teaser rate. Gulf Shores posts the lowest rate in our whole cost index, $74 a night in January, and runs $97 in October. Our approach to a beach week is to pick one town and stay put rather than tour four of them. By the end you will have a town that fits your budget and a week to book it in.

How We Priced Them

Every figure below is the median nightly rate for that town’s 3-star hotels, the tier where a pool and a breakfast come standard, measured across four separate weeks spread through the year. Eight of these ten towns had at least four in-town 3-star rates in all four weeks, the minimum we need for a median. The weekly total is that median times seven nights, lodging only. We use the median rather than the lowest listed rate because almost every beach town has one $70 motel that makes the whole place look affordable and one $600 resort that makes it look impossible. A family ends up booking neither.

Orlando and Anaheim both appear in our wider family beach week cost index, but neither is a beach town, so they are not on this list.

The 10 Most Affordable Beach Towns for Families

1. Gulf Shores, Alabama

Our August week had too few Gulf Shores hotel rates to price. Across October, January and March, though, Gulf Shores averages the lowest of the ten towns here. In January it drops to $74 a night, the lowest single figure in the entire index. October is the sweeter deal for most families though, at $97 a night with highs still around 79F. The sand here is the same squeaky white quartz as Destin’s, where the same October week runs $134 a night and January runs $91. Start with our guides to the Gulf Shores beaches and family hotels with pools.

2. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Myrtle Beach averages $127 a night, or $889 a week, but the number that matters is October. At $87 a night, $609 for the week, with highs at 75.6F, no other beach town’s week in our index costs less while the weather still suits the beach. That is roughly half what the same room costs in August. The tradeoff is that Myrtle Beach in October is a quieter town, which for a family with small children is usually the point. See the Myrtle Beach beaches guide and what a full week actually costs.

3. Galveston, Texas

Galveston averages $127 a night, $889 a week, and it is the rare town on this list that does not spike in peak summer. August runs $136 a night with highs at 92F, which is the most affordable hot beach week we found outside Florida. October is better still at $112. Galveston does not have the prettiest water on this list, but for a family driving from anywhere in Texas it is very hard to beat. Our Galveston beaches guide covers which stretches are worth the drive.

4. Destin, Florida

Destin averages $145 a night, $1,015 a week, which surprises people who think of it as a splurge. January is $91 a night and October is $134 with highs near 81F, so the water is still swimmable and the crowds are gone. Peak summer is where Destin earns its expensive reputation, at $182. We have a full Destin travel guide, plus what to do there with toddlers and a rainy day plan.

5. Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

Hilton Head averages $148 a night on hotels, which puts it mid-table. Its two-bedroom rentals run $92 a night in October and $101 in January, the lowest rental rates of any town in our index, and they undercut Hilton Head’s own hotels in three of the four seasons we priced. This is a rental town, and booking it like a hotel town costs you money. We compared both directly in resorts versus VRBO rentals on Hilton Head.

6. Ocean City, Maryland

Ocean City averages $150 a night, $1,050 a week, but it has the widest swing of any town here. August runs $273 and October drops to $101, with January at $102. That is a boardwalk town that empties out completely, which is either the appeal or the problem depending on your family. October highs sit near 68F, so it is sweater weather on the sand rather than swimming weather. Our Ocean City beaches guide and activities list both hold up in shoulder season.

7. Virginia Beach, Virginia

Virginia Beach averages $153 a night, $1,071 a week, and October is the pick at $127 with highs around 72F. The boardwalk is the reason to bring kids here, because it runs three miles flat and turns a stroller into a viable way to spend an entire afternoon. Peak summer is $218, so the shoulder season saving is real. See the Virginia Beach beaches guide and the full cost breakdown.

8. South Padre Island, Texas

South Padre averages $153 a night, and its October week is the one worth circling. At $113 a night with highs at 84.8F, it is the warmest October week in our index that still comes in under $150 a night. If you want mid-eighties weather without paying a peak summer rate, this is as close as the numbers get. The island is also small and flat enough that a week there involves very little driving. Our guides cover the beaches and what families actually do there.

9. Amelia Island, Florida

Amelia Island has an August price only, because October, January and March each had too few hotel rates for a median. August comes in at $143 a night with highs near 90F, fourth lowest of the 15 towns ranked in the cost index that week. If school holidays lock you into summer, put it on the shortlist. Amelia is quieter than the Florida beach towns most families default to. Start with the Amelia Island beaches guide.

10. San Diego, California

San Diego averages $177 a night, $1,239 a week, which makes it the most expensive town on this list. It still comes in below Coronado and Santa Monica in every week where all three are priced. In October that means $167 a night, against $196 in Coronado and $225 in Santa Monica. January is the low point at $159, and San Diego in January still means highs in the mid sixties, which is the whole argument for going. Our San Diego family hotels guide is the place to start.

When to Go if the Price Is What Matters

Winter is the lowest price in raw terms. Five of these ten towns hit their lowest priced week in January, and Gulf Shores at $74 a night is the single lowest figure we recorded. The catch is obvious once you look at the temperatures. January in Gulf Shores means highs around 61F and in Ocean City it means 45F, which is a beach holiday in name only.

October is where low prices and warm weather overlap. Seven of the ten towns here have an October median under $150 a night with highs above 70F. A family who can travel outside school holidays should look at fall before anything else.

Summer is the premium season nearly everywhere. Galveston in August runs $136 at 92F, and Amelia Island runs $143 at 90F, fourth lowest of the 15 in our index that week. If the school calendar fixes your travel weeks, those two have the lowest August prices on this list.

FAQs About Affordable Family Beach Vacations

What is the most affordable beach town in the U.S. for a family?

Gulf Shores, Alabama, which has the lowest average of the ten towns across the three weeks we can price it. October runs $97 a night, and in January it drops to $74, the lowest figure in our index, though at 61F highs that week is better suited to a quiet off-season trip than to swimming.

When is the most affordable time to take a family beach vacation?

October, for most of the country. In seven of these ten towns, the October median is under $150 a night and highs are above 70F, and shoulder season prices in places like Myrtle Beach run close to half of what the same room costs in August.

Is it more affordable to rent a house or book a hotel?

It depends on the town, and the difference is bigger than most families expect. On Hilton Head, two-bedroom rentals beat the island’s own hotels in three of four seasons. In most other towns on this list the hotels win, so it is worth checking both rather than assuming a house is always the better value.

How much should a family budget for a week at the beach?

Lodging alone averages between $889 and $1,239 for seven nights in the eight towns here with prices in all four seasons. Gulf Shores and Amelia Island have too few priced weeks for a yearly figure. That range covers the room and nothing else, so food, fuel and activities sit on top of it. Our full cost index tracks the same measurement across every town we cover.