My 80-year-old parents weren’t up to the climb, so they contented themselves with perusing the ground-level museum that chronicles the history of coastal Georgia and the keeper’s dwelling that only requires navigating one set of stairs to the second level.

Credit: Atlanta Senior Life

Credit: Atlanta Senior Life

St. Simons Island is the largest of the four barrier islands off the Georgia Coast known as the Golden Isles. Sea Island, Jekyll Island, Little St. Simons and the mainland city of Brunswick stretch between Savannah and Jacksonville, Florida, attracting travelers drawn to their serene beauty and historic attractions.

The Golden Isles are among the highlights of a nine-day Southeast Sea Islands cruise on American Cruise Lines that departs from Charleston, South Carolina, and ends in Amelia Island, Florida.

The new 100-passenger American Liberty is part of a fleet of 21 small ships and riverboats that sail only on American waters, in this case, the Intracoastal Waterway.

The cruise appeals to those seeking a low-key experience without the smoky casino, gargantuan waterslides and howling toddlers at the buffet — the scene on many oceangoing ships carrying thousands of passengers.

Many American cruisers are baby boomers looking for vacations close to home. Unlike international cruises, there are no long flights, which can be rough on arthritic joints, and no jet lag. The cruise line is attuned to passengers’ varying levels of physical fitness and mobility, so it offers a variety of ways to see the attractions at each port of call.

In Beaufort, a sleepy South Carolina seaport, I embarked on a guided walking tour that emphasized the town’s cinematic history, while my parents saw many of the same sights via horse-drawn carriage.

Credit: Greater Beaufort-Port Royal CVB

Credit: Greater Beaufort-Port Royal CVB

The historic architecture rivals that of Charleston, Beaufort’s glamorous big sister to the north. In Charleston, house museums seem to be on every corner, fossilizing antebellum history for eternity, but in Beaufort most of the historic mansions remain privately owned. The oak-lined streets feel more authentic and less like a meticulously designed movie set, which is ironic, because Hollywood has filmed here many times.

Tidalholm in the Old Point neighborhood is the imposing Neoclassical mansion with double wraparound piazzas featured in “The Great Santini,” the 1979 film based on the eponymous novel by Beaufort’s adopted son Pat Conroy. Many of the disturbing family scenes instigated by Robert Duvall’s character Bull Meechum were shot there.

The house also appeared in “The Big Chill,” the 1983 movie about a group of disillusioned college pals reuniting for a friend’s funeral.

Another notable grande dame is the “Prince of Tides” house on Bay Street. Some of the most riveting scenes from the 1991 film, also based on a Conroy novel and starring Barbra Streisand and Nick Nolte, were filmed in this Greek Revival gem.

On the way back to the ship, we paused to admire the natural beauty that surrounds all that grand architecture. The late afternoon sun cast an ethereal orange glow over the Beaufort River, and the tableau was framed by tentacles of Spanish moss silhouetted against a waning winter sky.

Hollywood couldn’t have created a more breathtaking scene.

Even travelers who have visited the area many times may discover something new on this cruise. Maybe you’ve been to the bustling Charleston Market and seen Gullah artisans making sweetgrass baskets, a handicraft that has become a cultural icon. But have you been to St. Helena, one of the Sea Islands the Gullah have called home for centuries?

Gullah refers to the descendants of West African slaves who labored on South Carolina rice and indigo plantations. Because they were mostly isolated from the outside world, they were able to preserve more of their African language and heritage than most other African American communities in the country. (Similar cultures, called Geechee or Gullah Geechee, can be found in other parts of the Southeastern coast.)

Credit: AJC staff

Credit: AJC staff

A shore excursion to St. Helena illuminates the history of a once marginalized people, reminding visitors that their heritage goes well beyond sweetgrass baskets.

The Gullah are a deeply spiritual people, and the island was once dotted with praise houses — humble, one-room structures that served as places of worship.

Coffin Point Community Praise House is one of three that remain on the island. Our Gullah guide Inda read from the Bible, first in English, then in Gullah, an English-based Creole language with African roots.

The tiny praise house has no piano or organ, instruments central to most traditional Christian churches, but music is still a key part of the service.

“We are our own instruments,” Inda explained, demonstrating how clapping, stomping or banging a walking stick on the wood floor kept the beat for a religious ritual called a ring shout.

“When you put all of (these sounds) together, it’s going to rock the house,” she said.

To the group’s delight, she broke out into song, crooning “Do Lord Remember Me,” an 18th-century spiritual commonly sung as a call-and-response hymn. Centuries of human suffering and the promise of eternal peace in the next life are behind the sonorous lamentation.

The cruise runs the gamut of rich Southern experiences. One minute, passengers are hearing about Gullah traditions, and the next they are learning about the Civil War history of Fort Clinch on Amelia Island or sipping Chatham Artillery punch at Savannah’s Prohibition Museum. Nature lovers often opt for excursions to see Atlantic bottlenose dolphins cavort in the tidal salt marshes and alligators sun themselves on the banks.

There’s also much to see from your stateroom balcony. You may observe brown pelicans dive bomb into the water and emerge triumphantly with a wiggling mullet or catch sight of a massive osprey nest.

To learn more about the history, culture and ecology of the region, attend a lecture by a local expert, part of the cruise line’s onboard enrichment program.

My parents are less active these days, but they didn’t miss a thing. Those who aren’t up for walking tours have the option of sightseeing by bus, boat, trolley or golf cart.

Dad said one of the things he liked best about the cruise was meeting other travelers “enjoying their golden years like us.”

IF YOU GO

Southeast Sea Islands Cruise. Hosted by American Cruise Lines. $6,500 and up for the nine-day Southeast Sea Islands cruise. Meals, snacks and beverages including alcohol are included. Excursion options included; premium and signature excursions cost extra. The line has 21 small ships visiting 125 American ports of call across 35 states. 800-460-4518, www.americancruiselines.com