From The Blog

Make Your Holiday Deliveries on the Island Easy

Before the stockings are hung, the halls are decked, or Santa climbs down any chimney, you will probably be expecting some packages of your own. The holiday season typically means deliveries of all shapes and sizes to the island. But before you’ve clicked checkout on your dream gift, take a moment to learn about how deliveries work on Kiawah. 

KICA manages all Kiawah Island gate access, including access for commercial businesses like your service providers, contractors, delivery companies, etc. Since Kiawah is a private island, access is carefully managed and all commercial entities must pay a fee to enter the island. These fees augment funding for the maintenance and upkeep of the island’s private roads. 

However, whether an access fee is charged depends on the type of delivery you’re receiving.

• PACKAGES – Packages delivered by FedEx, UPS, and the USPS are exempt from commercial fees and are granted access during commercial hours. Packages delivered by Amazon vehicles are subject to fees.
• SPECIALTY ITEMS – If you purchased specialty items that require individual delivery (think large appliance, furniture or even a vehicle), a commercial access pass will be required for the delivery vehicle, whether its a paid mover or retailer. In this case, be sure to talk to your retailer about how gate access works before they come to the island. You can refer them to kica.us/commercial/ for access rates and vehicle decal forms.
• PEOPLE – Ok, they aren’t technically deliveries but, as the holiday season approaches, you’re likely to have visiting family and friends as well. While you can request guest passes for friends and family visiting in their personal or rental vehicles, car and ride-hailing services are subject to commercial access fees. See the details of commercial access for ride-hailing services, like Uber, and more here.

Most of the time, if a vehicle is coming onto the island to conduct any kind of commercial service, it will require a commercial access pass. The business is responsible for paying for their gate access, although a member can call Security (843-768-5566) or email ([email protected]) in advance to authorize payment for the business’s one-day access to be charged to their member account. Some businesses that aren’t familiar with Kiawah’s gate access policies may be unprepared and unwilling to pay. In this case, the member requesting their services is contacted to see if they would like to pay on behalf of the business. Members have the right to authorize payment and access, or refuse payment and access.

Please also note that commercial access is available only during certain hours and on certain days, typically 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays. Sundays and certain holidays are off-limits, including to deliveries. Upcoming commercial closures include:

• THANKSGIVING – Thursday, Nov. 23 and Friday, Nov. 24
• KIAWAH ISLAND MARATHON – Saturday, Dec. 9
• CHRISTMAS – Monday, Dec. 25 & Tuesday, Dec. 26
• NEW YEAR’S DAY – Monday, Jan. 1, 2024