Lowcountry Biz Boil Here’s a list you won’t find Charleston’s beaches on, and be grateful for it as you don’t have to wait as long to find a place to put your soft-drink-filled cooler or drag your kids away from the gigantic elephant spouting pink water from its trunk… and other business briefs, news items and interesting asides from the Business Journal staff. To submit an item, idea or complaint, click here.

We’re making up our own list this time

There are a couple of ways we could go on this, and since we’re not on the list for the most-crowded beaches, and since it’s summer, we’re going to class it up with a St. Patrick’s Day parade pic from North Myrtle Beach to show you all the fun you’re missing by not going to the nation’s 21st most-crowded beach. (Photo/TheDigitel Myrtle Beach)

If you pay even a little attention to the news, you know that travel pubs just love the Lowcountry. It’s almost like they look at Charleston to see if they can build an idea around one of our many awesome attributes … such as being beautifuler than everyone else in the universe.

So we must admit that we were surprised when Travel + Leisure decided to put together a list of the world’s most crowded beaches because we knew we wouldn’t be on it.

Now it’s a good idea on the surface. You’re looking at the places where lots of people go, which necessarily makes them great, right? Wrong. It makes them congested, expensive and downright … well, let’s just say it … stanky.

But then we paused at the genius that is Travel + Leisure’s editorial brain trust. Because all you have to do is think, “Hey, if my beach isn’t on this list, then it must be on the other list: America’s Top Uncrowded, Non-stanky Beaches.

You have to go a bit deeper to get South Carolina on the most-crowded list, but you’ll find nearby Hilton Head at No. 27 with 2.2 million beachgoers a year. Less surprising is North Myrtle Beach at No. 21 with 3.5 million annual visitors. We don’t mind if you go up to North Myrtle Beach and gawk. We did that too … when we were 12 and thought that a giant elephant spouting pink water on Ocean Boulevard’s multiple miniature golf courses was cool.

Today, we know better. Less, is without a doubt, more. Here’s that list of places to avoid.

America’s 10 Most Crowded Beaches

Beach               1. Venice Beach, Calif.   2. Miami Beach, Fla.       3. Coney Island, N.Y.       4. Newport Beach, Calif.   5. Daytona Beach, Fla. 6. Huntington Beach, Calif. 7. Hollywood, Fla.     8. Waikiki Beach, Hawaii   9. Jones Beach, N.Y.       10. Brevard County, Fla.

Annual visitors 16.0 million 13.3 million 11.2 million 9.4 million 8.0 million 7.9 million 7.7 million 7.5 million 5.1 million 4.8 million

Source: Travel + Leisure

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People in the News

Kimberly Smith

Kimberly Smith has been named Netchex payroll sales representative at the David Gilston Insurance Agency. She helps businesses in South Carolina simplify payroll processes with a Web-based solution that can integrate payroll with time and attendance, human resources, employee benefits, self-service and reporting.

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