As vacationers drive into Carolina Shores RV Resort, the feeling of summer hangs in the air with the Southern humidity.

There are families in swimsuits riding their golf carts to the newly renovated pools, and every breeze brings a whiff of trees. Grandparents sit outside their campers and watch as guests make their way through the park, and families unpack their belongings into camper cabins.

Carolina Shores RV Resort, located at 5403 S Kings Highway, opened officially in February and is ready to kick off the summer season, said property manager John Beecher. The resort is located on land formerly a part of PirateLand Family Camping Resort.

Several years ago, Equity LifeStyle Properties, also known as ELS, bought two-thirds of PirateLand, Beecher said. ELS runs hundreds of RV, mobile home and marina communities across North America. The company operated as PirateLand until this year.

The resort underwent $3 million in renovations and re-opened as Carolina Shores, Beecher said. PirateLand is still open, but on a smaller scale.

Renovations included repainting and resurfacing the pool, adding new cabins and replacing the flooring in several of the buildings.

Similar to PirateLand, Carolina Shores offers camping cabins, RV and camper sites, permanent homes and permanent RV spaces. In total, there are 813 total lodging units.

PirateLand transforms into Carolina Shores

While the large PirateLand sign still sits along Kings Highway, a newer, smaller sign points visitors in the direction of the RV Resort.

Entering the property, the layout is the same. Off to the left sit permanent homes. People can choose to buy the house and lease the property from Carolina Shores. On the right are the amenities.

There’s an arcade and grill located first. Within the arcade are games, while the connected grill serves food like pizza and chicken strips. On the other side of the building, visitors can grab an ice cream cone. Outside the arcade is a handful of picnic tables so people can sit outside and enjoy their food.

Farther inside the resort, the laundromat, front office and quickie-mart offer additional amenities and snacks for those who need it.

Scattered throughout the space are multiple food trucks. On May 22, there were three trucks selling barbecue, smoothies and funnel cakes.

Following the road to the right, sits the most exciting feature of the park: the pool. There are four different pools catering to people of all ages. There’s a regular pool where adults can spend hours lounging and a long lazy river with a choice of single or double tubes to float in.

The pièce de résistance is the kids pool found farther back. Remnants of PirateLand remain as there are two pirate ships along with a handful of other water features. The large pirate ship is open, letting children — or fun-loving adults — enter and live their wildest pirate dreams.

The ship has cannons that squirt out water and can be controlled inside the vessel.

Suzanne and Tyler Guetter drove 16 hours from Ontario, Canada, to spend six days at Carolina Shores with their 3- and 1-year-old daughters. Suzanne Guetter said her 3-year-old loves the pool and has constantly been asking to go back.

“She doesn’t want to leave,” Suzanne Guetter said. “(Carolina Shores) was definitely worth the drive.”

Next to the pool is a mini-golf course with bright green grass and a massive pirate statue — another leftover piece of PirateLand.

Going down the main road, there are spots for RVs on the right and houses on the left for two blocks until the cabins appear. These are camping cabins, as patrons need to bring everything, including sheets, soap and towels.

There are different cabin layouts, but each is able to sleep at least four people. The Sun News toured a cabin with a double bed, a set of bunk beds and futon that pulls out.

The walls and cabinets are made of a warm-toned and knotty wood. Each cabin comes with a kitchen, bathroom, television and air conditioning. While the cabins are small, there are plenty of activities and spaces for families to hang out within the resort.

A new addition farther back in the resort is a dog park. It’s a fenced-in patch of grass with a bench, so dog owners can let their dogs run free.

Julie and Reggy Bost of China Grove, North Carolina, said the renovations had not stood out to them, but they thought the dog park was a good addition. The Bosts have come down several times with their camper, as their daughter owns a permanent home on the property.

All in all, Carolina Shores appears to be a shiny, updated version of PirateLand, offering a memorable space for family vacations.

“If there’s somebody who has been here before, previously, boy, they might not recognize the park now,” Beecher said. “As we continue to take swings at improving things and upgrade the amenity packages, we hope to come into a better standard so that it’s a destination park that people are like, ‘Yes I’m going to Carolina Shores and boy am I glad I did.’”

This story was originally published May 26, 2025 at 6:00 AM.