Palmetto Dunes Security and Pass Office

Who Needs a Pass to Enter Palmetto Dunes

Most visitors do. The gates are run by the Palmetto Dunes Property Owners Association, and a car without a pass or a decal can be cited. The exceptions are the places the resort has opened to everyone: Alexander’s Restaurant, the General Store, the Welcome Center, the Tennis and Pickleball Center, the Robert Trent Jones course and pro shop, Big Jim’s, Hilton Head Outfitters, the Hilton beachfront hotel and the Pass Office itself. Drive straight to any of them along Queens Folly Road.

Property owners do not use guest passes. They keep a decal on the windshield, which the Palmetto Dunes POA issues.

How to Get a Palmetto Dunes Guest Pass

It depends on why you are coming. Staying in a rental the resort manages, your car passes are issued when you check in, and they are required at the gates. You are responsible for every pass issued for your stay, and extra passes carry a surcharge, so order the ones you need before you arrive. If a different company manages your rental, ask it how your passes are arranged.

Everyone else picks a pass up at the Pass Office, at 16 Queens Folly Road, before driving in. Guests of the Omni and golfers with tee times at the Fazio or Arthur Hills course collect theirs at the South Gate instead. Owners can also request a pass for a guest ahead of time through the association’s guest pass page.

The Pass Office lobby is open on weekdays, and the drive-thru runs every day into the evening. The resort says the hours vary by season, so call before making a special trip. Visiting the Leamington Lighthouse works a little differently. That page has the pass rules.

Rules Inside the Palmetto Dunes Gates

The speed limit is 25 mph. Personal golf carts, motorcycles, RVs and motorhomes are not allowed, and you must park in designated spaces, because a car parked anywhere else can be towed at the owner’s expense. The Dunes Buggy, the resort’s courtesy shuttle, is the way to get around without a car. The beach itself is public, but reaching it through the gates takes a pass unless you are going to one of the open destinations above.

Leamington Has Its Own Gate House

The private Leamington neighborhood has a gate house of its own. The association says authorized visitors to its residential side can check in there between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m., and must go through the South Gate outside those hours.

Reaching Palmetto Dunes Security

The department’s non-emergency line is (843) 785-1120. Call 911 for anything urgent. The Pass Office and the security office share the building at 16 Queens Folly Road with the association’s administration. Owners who rent out a home are asked to answer a call from security about their property within one hour.

The association behind all of this, and how to reach it as an owner, is on the Palmetto Dunes POA page. Gate locations and the rest of the resort are on the Palmetto Dunes map, and the Palmetto Dunes guide covers where to stay, play and eat.