After my last trip to
Charleston a couple weeks ago I have finally made time to put together a travel
guide. Fun Fact: I went to Charleston for the first time last April 2017, and
have been 4 times since! It’s a beautiful city with so much to do; TONS of great
food and bars/nightlife. If you’ve never been, I highly suggest planning a
trip. If you need help on what to do when you get there see below.
Things to
do:
·
Charleston City Market- This is a must. There are tons of great things
in the market like soaps, jewelry, art and tons of other great items. The main
thing they are known for is hand woven baskets. There are a lot of different
places to purchase them in the market and sometimes you can even see the ladies
weaving them.
·
Rainbow Row- This is an iconic place in Charleston. I love all the
different colors and it’s very gram worthy. I highly suggest making a quick
stop to at least snap a photo.
·
The Battery- We walked along Battery Street, which is right on the
water and looked at all the beautiful homes. It led us to a park at the end
with different statues and a gazebo.
·
Pineapple Fountain- I am obsessed with pineapples so this was a must
for me on my first trip. (And every other trip since.) It’s another gram worthy
photo and a cute little area to walk around. (You actually see pineapples ALL
over Charleston… they are a sign of hospitality in The South.)
·
Tipsy Tour- I did this when I went with some girlfriends in December
and it was a blast. There’s two options for the tour: Option 1 is a public tour
that leaves from Downtown on Friday’s at 2pm. Option 2 is a private tour that I
believe you can do any day. They will come and pick you up and it’s just you and
your friends. You can drink on the bus, and they take you to a winery,
distillery & brewery. You get 4-6 samples at each place. The public tour is
$60 and I believe the private one is $75. (Call for rates and to schedule if you decide to do the private one.)
·
Fort Sumter & Fort Moultrie- If history is your thing this is right
up your ally. My mom loves history so when we went last April we toured Fort
Sumter. I would definitely recommend it, especially if you are traveling with
kids.
·
Plantations- There are TONS of plantations outside of downtown. There
are too many to name but definitely something I would check out. My cousin got
married at Magnolia Plantation and Gardens and we got to see the Gardens for
free and decided to tour the plantation house while we were there. Another great option is Boone Hall Plantation. Any Notebook fans out there?
·
There’s also tons of shopping all over downtown. There’s cute local
boutiques and shops as well as big names chain stores.
Eat:
·
Poogan’s Porch- I’ve technically been here twice although the first
time I was way too hung-over to eat. The food looked amazing so I made sure to
go back the last time I was there. I’m so glad I did because it did not
disappoint. The biscuits they bring you to start are out of this world. I got
the veggie quiche and grits that were both really tasty. We also split the
chicken and waffles and those were AMAZING! They also have some fun brunch
cocktails, but we just stuck with mimosas.
·
The Darling- They are known as an oyster bar but have tons of other
great options. I got a fried shrimp basket but I think I envied my friend that
got the pasta because it was really, really good! (The interior is also really
cute!)
·
Eli’s Table- This is another place I went for brunch. This is a farm to
table concept, which is always fun to try. I got the shrimp and grit benedict
and it was sooooo yummy! We also got an order of beignets for the table;
because you gotta balance savory with sweet!
·
The Watch Rooftop Kitchen & Spirits- This place is known for their
sunsets. When I went with my girlfriends we had reservations for drinks outside
at sunset and then dinner inside after. It literally rained our whole trip. L Needless to say we skipped the sunset and just had dinner. Their menu
is a little on the smaller side but I got truffle fries and the Caesar salad
and it did not disappoint. (They also have an amazing coffee bar right outside this hotel. It's called The Rise and it's totally gram worthy. I wish I could have their vanilla almond latte everyday!)
·
82 Queen- This is a great restaurant if you are looking for a really
nice dinner. The restaurant is huge with a couple different buildings and lots
of outdoor seating. It’s a la cart, but probably one of the best meals I had.
We all had the she crab soup and it was really good. I got the bouillabaisse
for my entrée and the table shared grits, potatoes and asparagus. I was so full
after this dinner, but I just couldn’t stop eating. Hah
You will be hard-pressed to find somewhere with bad food in Charleston.
I personally love southern food so it was a struggle to pick things out at each
place. Almost everywhere you go they will have fried green tomatoes, shrimp
& grits & she crab soup, however, they all put their own spin on it. **I HIGHLY suggest making reservations for meals. Every time I go we make sure to have all our meals planned out with reservations. I'm normally not one to stick to a schedule, but it's pretty necessary here!**
Nightlife:
·
Republic- Any Southern Charm fans out there? They frequented this club
a lot in the first couple seasons. If you are looking for a very club big city
scene this is your spot. They have VIP, a small inside area, and a very large
outside area. It’s a good time if you are looking to party!
·
Ink N Ivy- This bar is the best of both worlds. When we walked in
downstairs it was pretty low key. There was a bar, some tables and even thought
there was a lot of people everyone was just talking/hanging out. My friend and
I noticed a line to go upstairs and thought we would check it out. It was a
complete 180 from the downstairs. Loud music. Lights. TONS of people dancing.
This is great if you want to have a crazy time but just aren’t on that level
yet.
·
The Vendue Rooftop- This is a rooftop bar located inside the Vendue
hotel. There are so many rooftop bars in Charleston and this is one we hit up
for afternoon drinks. They have a ton of seating but they were also very
crowded. There were 2 or 3 bars, which made it a little easier to get drinks.
·
Pavilion Bar- Another rooftop bar. This one is located on top of the
Market Pavilion Hotel. We went here after dinner one night and it was really
pretty. They have a pool on the roof, which I’m assuming you can use if you go
during the day. I really liked the vibe of this one and it wasn’t nearly as
crowded as the Vendue. We also went at night, which might have had something to
do with it.
·
Husk Bar- This is located next to Husk restaurant (I’ve never eaten
there but the menu intrigues me because they change it daily.) Husk Bar is
technically a whiskey bar but they obviously have wine and other liquors. The
vibe was very casual and they actually have seating upstairs and I believe you
can get bar bites up there.
·
Warehouse- We went here on a Thursday and it was super chill. A pretty
big space and I liked the décor. It wasn’t the speed we were looking for since
it was a Thursday but we went back on Friday and it was much more lively.
·
The Commodore- Again any Southern Charm fans out there? This is Shep’s
bar and it is interesting to say the least. We went at a really random time so
it was SUPER dead but I’ve heard it gets pretty lively. We are all Southern
Charm fans so we went for that reason alone.
Stay:
I’ve only stayed in Airbnb's and a Marriot right outside of downtown. I
would highly suggest going the Airbnb route because hotels can be very
expensive. If you are set on staying in a hotel, here are a few I’ve heard good
things about or have been in at least the lobby:
There are also TONS of smaller local hotels. (Almost like Bed &
Breakfasts)
I hope you enjoyed this travel guide. If you are planning a trip and
want more recommendations in any of the sections above shoot me an email or
leave your questions in the comments below. (There’s a handful of places/things
that I have left out of this guide since it’s already so long.)
