The Holy City is here to charm your socks off
Cobblestone streets, trees that flower in high summer, pastel homes dating to pre-Civil War, lush gardens and greenery, seafood and southern staples. Charleston, South Carolina, oozes charm and quaint sophistication that’s at once dreamy and accessible. Of the handful of U.S. cities I’ve checked off my bucket list in the past year or so, Charleston is my top pick for weekenders. Allow me to break it down.
Logistics & lay of the land
Flying into the Charleston airport, it’s about a 30-minute ride to the heart of the downtown. What I love about Charleston is that once you get to the historic district, you really don’t ever have to leave. The main streets to explore are King, Broad, and East Bay. If you shoot for those, you’ll find plenty to entertain. A good central landmark is Marion Square. We stayed on Cannon Street in a small but perfectly-situated Airbnb. Would stay there again in a heartbeat.
If you’re up for a healthy hike, you could walk from the top of King Street all the way down to the Battery, where stately antebellum homes meet the water. The only trouble with all that walking comes with 90-something-degree days zapping your energy. Luckily, should you need them, Lyft and Uber are always an option to get from one end of downtown to the other.
Things to do downtown
Start on King Street. If in doubt, begin at the centrally-located Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit and walk toward Marion Square, which has a Saturday farmers market that’s worth a trip. The aforementioned Broad and East Bay, as well as Queen Street, are good to aim for and chock full of shops, eateries, galleries, and lovely architecture.
Looking for photo ops? First up, the famous pineapple fountain in Waterfront Park. It's a nifty sight, and the surrounding park and boardwalk are good for a leisurely stroll. That’s the thing about Charleston — the heat gives you permission to slow down. Hurrying simply isn’t an option when it’s this hot. (Or you could just not plan a southern vacation in peak summer like we did!)
Nearby the pineapple fountain is a spot that’s very popular with bachelorette parties: rainbow row on East Bay Street. A fun game is to count how many definitive bachelorette parties you can spy in a day. Are they all wearing bedazzled fanny packs? Matching swim suits (really)? T-shirts with a bad photo crop of the groom’s face? We saw all of the above and then some, eventually losing count.
At rainbow row, the ladies like to snap group photos in front of the house that best matches their color scheme. I made Andrew play the same game. Myself, I prefer a pop of color. Sweaty and awkward, let’s just say neither of us feels especially cut out to be an Insta star.
If historic homes are what you’re after, there are lots to see and tour near White Point Garden (worth a stop) and the Battery. This promenade along the shore enjoys full-sun, so stay away in the heat of a blue-sky day. In this part of town, you’ll see many horse-drawn tours of historic homes — as well as yard signs advocating for humane treatment of carriage horses. In short, we opted to walk.
To get out of the sun, we joined a tour at the Nathaniel Russell House. Our guide was a dear lady with scads of facts and architectural knowledge in brain. We learned about rainy day doors, necessary chairs, and that it was common to only go all-out decorating the rooms that guests would see. Tours of homes come with a price tag in the range of $12–20, but we learned that you can visit the grounds for free. The Calhoun mansion is a good spot to wander through manicured gardens dotted with fountains and sculptures.
For next time: I’d like to do the Gateway Walk. It's an informal trail through the heart of Charleston, snaking through urban gardens, churchyards, and cemeteries in all their gothic glory. However, we learned that many churches shut their gates by late afternoon and some may be closed indefinitely for construction. If you’re interested in exploring this hidden gem, go earlier in the day and keep your fingers crossed that all construction has ceased.
Get out of town
Although historic downtown Charleston is supremely walkable, there are some neat things to see just outside of town, too. You could take a Lyft or Uber to these spots, but each is about 30 minutes one way. In the end, Andrew and I did the math and decided it would be more cost effective and pleasant to just rent a car for a couple of days. Finding a rental was crazy convenient. We booked a car Friday night, then walked to pick it up at noon the following day.
First up, the car took us to Shem Creek Park in the town of Mount Pleasant. We walked along the boardwalk among tall wetland grasses, rubbed elbows with local fishermen, admired the boats, and snapped a pic of one very brave bird. We spied kayaks passing by as well, so if it’s water sports you’re after, give Shem Creek Park a whirl.
During our second full day in Charleston, we packed in two half-day trips. First was a trip to the beach. It was between Sullivan Island and Folly, which we heard was a touristy, party beach. A couple of locals recommended Sullivan and we were glad they did — the breeze felt incredible on that near-100-degree day.
In the afternoon, we set out for Cypress Gardens. The gardens were made famous in The Notebook, but that’s not why we went. I mostly just wanted to get my fill of southern swampland in its all majesty (no really!). Turns out, Cypress Gardens is one part naturally incredible, one part still rebuilding from a devastating hurricane. It also didn’t help that we were there in the most oppressive heat of the day, not a breeze to be had. Although beautiful, our next priority was to sit awhile in the sweet, sweet AC at our Airbnb. Sigh.
Note: There are other Cypress-esque spots you can visit, all about the same drive-time from downtown Charleston. Check out Magnolia Plantation and Middleton Place to see if one of those speaks to you!
Eating & drinking
What good is a vacation if it’s not delicious? For breakfast, we walked up King Street to The Daily twice because we liked it so much. It’s a coffeehouse serving Stumptown brews plus a menu of toasts, salads, and fresh bakery. We went for the whipped feta, smoked salmon, and avocado toast, and also went gaga over a sample of The Daily’s croissant loaf — croissant dough baked in a loaf pan. Imagine the possibilities! The coffee drinks were yummy, too.
Our other breakfast stop was Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit. Worth the hype? Absolutely. Get there early to avoid waiting in too-long of a line. If said line is 10-or-so people deep outside the door, don’t fret — it moves quickly. If it’s longer than that, *shrug*. The egg, sausage, and pimento cheese breakfast biscuit is where it’s at.
We also bopped into Queen Street Grocery one day, an old-fashioned corner shop recommended to us for a quick breakfast. At the time, however, we were simply in need of water after being in the sun for hours on end. But we spied a menu of scrumptious sweet and savory crepes. Noted for next time.
Our one official lunch stop was at a French café on Broad Street called Gaulart & Maliclet. ”Fast and French” is their tagline. Don’t let the outdated website fool you — this place charmed my socks off. The interior is unassuming and seating is largely at the bar. Lunch specials are served with your choice of house wine. We shared an open-faced baguette sandwich topped with goat cheese and green olive tapenade, as well as a plate of cheese and charcuterie. The soundtrack? The likes of Louis Armstrong. Swoony vibes all around.
Ready for dinner? On our first night, we filled our bellies at Xiao Bao Biscuit, a trendy spot set in a converted gas station. It was pretty neat and plenty delicious. Our favorite thing (hands down, highly debated going back to get it again) was the Okonomiyaki, a savory cabbage pancake. Top it with egg and pork candy. Drool.
In search of fresh seafood, we stopped at both 167 Raw on East Bay and The Darling Oyster Bar on King Street. Both are charming and notoriously packed. We did 167 Raw for dinner on Saturday and ended up with an over-two-hour wait. We bopped down the street for a mojito in the meantime. When we finally got inside, we saw why the wait was so long: the dining area is no bigger than your average living room. The Darling, on the other hand, is bigger and more beautiful than rustic. We stopped in for their happy hour deal — a nice way to check another yummy spot off the list.
One of my favorite dinners was at a spot called Leon’s Poultry and Oyster Shop. It’s located on King Street, but a bit of a walk away from the heart of it all. The interior is rustic and cozy, and as I had been craving fried chicken, it really hit the spot. To me, it doesn’t get much better than a really good fried chicken sandwich, sufficiently sauced and topped with pickles and slaw. Washing it down with a Pimm’s Cup? Yes please!
For dessert, wait in line at Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams. And then when your flight home ends up being super delayed, take it as a sign from above that you’re meant to go back for more. See, when you find your perfect ice cream (browned butter almond brittle in a house-made waffle cone), you don’t ask questions. You indulge. Twice in 24 hours.
Specifically for drinks, we stopped at Revelry Brewing, a container-style bar with a killer rooftop and a crowd of the bachelor and bachelorette party variety. It’s a bit out of downtown, so take a car to get there. On Saturday night around 5pm, there was a bumpin’ DJ and wall-to-wall people. We snagged a seat at the bar and really did revel in the shift in energy. The other watering hole we enjoyed was Prohibition on King Street. Any bar with fancy egg white drinks on the menu is all right in my book. The vibe at Prohibition is wonderfully vintage, buoyed that night by live music and swing dancers.
Next time: I’d add The Ordinary (a gorgeous seafood restaurant set in a 1920s bank), Babas on Cannon (an old-world café and bar), and Husk (southern signatures in a restored Victorian home) to my list of places to hit. And I’m sure that list could just keep growing.
As you might have gleaned, Charleston stole a bit of my heart. Although it will be hard to justify going back to the Holy City any time soon, I sure do hope we meet again someday.
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