Growing up in NC I remember going there as well. Even in it's best days it was a cheesy tourist trap. Honestly the best thing were the countless road signs on I95 counting you down to South of the Border.
I felt really bad for Jay - I have experienced this sadness before, there was a park in AZ called BedRock (Flintstones) - it was great, colorful, fun, and great for kids... I went back a few years back it was very run down, similar to this place in the video. People just do not stop by the roadside attractions anymore, maybe this will change if people start road trips again with friends and families. Take Care Jay
It is sad how South of the Boarder has fallen into such disrepair. As Jay citied, they used to have a small trolley/roller coaster that took you around the area. They also had a swell mini-golf course (it was also a great place to buy whoopee cushions). I must confess that the longest amount of time I spent there was back in 2002 when I had car trouble at Exit 2 along I-95. I bought several sodas from the vending machine at South of the Boarder while waiting for my folks to arrive with our truck and a U-Haul trailer to tow my car back home. Also sad to hear the elevator to the top of the tower is no longer in operation. :(
My last time here was 1966… The place was fabulous at that time, my sisters and I loved it. We got fireworks there. It’s sad to see it declined so much.
Stopped there a couple times 22 years ago when helping some friends move to FL, and then moving down there myself. It was definitely different back then. This is depressing.
Remember my parents, neighbors, me and my brother including luggage driving from upstate NY to Ft. Lauderdale Fl. in my dad's '79 Bronco around 1983. We were sardines in that truck. The stop at SOTB and reading the signs was the high point of the drive.
Told my mom about this cause she takes the grandkids down there sometimes and then head down to Carolina Beach and she was shocked cause last year when they went it wasn't this bad but the rides were gone due to the Hurricane that blew through. Personally never cared for South of the border but used to stop there in the 2000s on the way home from the beach.
Every 4th of July vacation during grade school (mid 80s - mid 90s), SOB is where we would get off I-95 and start heading to Myrtle Beach. My parents always stopped there for gas and snacks before entering the slow moving parking lot that was Highway 501 East. I also remember SOB being packed with vehicles and giving off its own unique vibe back then. You would start seeing billboards as soon as you got through the toll booths in Richmond. It is sad to see what it has declined to. Honestly, I now prefer stopping at Buc-ees in Florence.
Buc÷ees just opened about 10 miles away. It is fantastic and was packed with travellers.. I stayed at the South of the Border motel in 2021. It wasn't horrible but it certainly wasn't luxurious. At check-in they were giving a vibe like I was lucky they had availability, but the place was empty.
Time to put a fork in this place. My 1st time there was summer 1972 on way to Disney from NJ. I was 11. The place was hoppin! The amusement park was called Amigoland. There were lines to get on the rides. No I-95 yet or the sombrero tower.
Jay ive been watching your videos for a long time and feel bad never helping out with the work you do. Which would you prefer...or which is best to join? I watch your 3 channels. Is there one you want more support in?
“You’re always a wiener at Pedros!” “You never sausage a place!” Probably saw those signs about a dozen times in my trips from VA to FL. Dad never wanted to stop on those long hauls, so I never actually saw the hallowed destination. When I finally did stop there as an adult about ten years or so ago, I remember it being what you see now. I only remember that store, thinking how cheap everything looked, how dismal the atmosphere was, and how depressed it felt just being there. I was glad dad never stopped, ‘cause boy was it not worth it. It’s good to know that at one time, many years in the past, it was actually a special place.
"Tequila Ze Time". "Weather Report: Chili Today, Hot Tamale". My family took many trips down I-95 from New Jersey to Hilton Head, SC, when I was a teenager in the late 1970s, and I remember those billboards. It got so when we saw the first one, my father would announce, "South of the Border!" Same as you, we never stopped there. So not my parents' kind of place. And like you, I finally did stop there as an adult, in 1982. I remember very little about it other than my husband and I stopped there and that there was almost nobody else there.
it's beeing going down for atleast 10years, really finished it off though. Not much was open though 8years ago. Normally drive by it 2 or 3 times a year.
South of the Border is a dead tourist trap. The land is right on I-95 and should be repurposed to something more useful. Lumberton, NC is the best place to stop nearby for food and hotels.
Go back now…. They are remodeling south of the border is known as the one night stand it is halfway between New York and Miami but if you go back today you’ll see some improvements I drive a truck for a living I go by there all the time
Awwww... Man, that is so depressing 😔. I've never heard of this place, but it sounds like it was AWESOME back in the day. I'm sorry sorry that it's no longer what it was, but the bright side is that you still have the memories and that's not something they can take away from you
Aawww, I'm so sorry Jay :(, that really stinks. But, to your defense, I thought it was cool, a but run down yes but it still looked cool but I do need to correct just one thing. No every Mexican is named Pedro. Just sayin' lol.
