A Weekend Guide to Charleston, SC

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Oh, how I wish I could be back in Charleston as I write this post. Sitting on the porch with a cup of Charleston breakfast tea and a biscuit from Callies…ugh! So good! If you didn’t already know, I recently went to Charleston for my sisters bachelorette party. I’ve always wanted to visit Charleston and this was the first opportunity I got to go. It was definitely one for the books, so I thought I’d put together a travel guide for a weekend in Charleston!

We drove down on a Thursday and came back the following Sunday. We really lucked out with the weather – it was 70 degrees and perfectly sunny! A few of us even got a little sunburnt, which was a pleasant reminder that summer is right around the corner! Charleston is a really small town so you don’t need a ton of time to stay there. However since there’s a ton of things to do, I’d recommend visiting in several short trips and doing different things each time. The main activities we did were 1) eating, 2) exploring Rainbow Row, The Battery, and White Point Garden, 3) Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, 4) more eating, and 5) going out to the bars and exploring King street!

Where To Stay

Downtown – by far the best option (at least in my opinion). I researched for days on where to stay, and ultimately decided that downtown was best so we wouldn’t have to constantly worry about getting a ride share everywhere. We were just a few blocks from great restaurants, King street, and several awesome bars. Even though the Airbnb was pricey, it was well worth it because we weren’t stressed about transportation. Plus, we were close enough that we could basically walk everywhere so we were able to burn off a *smidge* of all the fried food we ate! Our Airbnb was so lovely. It was fully stocked with everything you could think of and the property managers were very responsive. We stayed on St. Philip street, and I’d definitely stay there again!

Where To Eat

This is a hard one because there’s SO many delicious places to eat. Restaurant prices are pretty high in Charleston, so you can quickly drain your spending money if you’re not careful. We opted for one nice dinner at Hanks Seafood and ate at less expensive places (or got carry out) the rest of the time. I talked to a few people who have spent a lot of time in Charleston and they all said that some of the popular, touristy restaurants weren’t worth the wait or money, so we took their advice and decided on other places. The one seafood restaurant we really wanted to go to was 167Raw but the wait was wayyyyyy too long and they didn’t take reservations. It’s definitely on my list for my next trip there! Other places we ate that were delicious and reasonably priced were:

• Fleets Landing
• Callies Hot Little Biscuit (get a box since they’re small and go around 12-1 after the line dies down!)
• Carmellas
• Hanks Seafood (best fried seafood I’ve ever had)
• Butcher and Bee (they only do brunch on the weekends but their regular lunch menu is just as good!)
• I wanted to go to Sugar Bake Shop but sadly didn’t get a chance

What To Do

Visiting one of the plantations is a must! The grounds are stunning, but even more important is taking time to acknowledge the history that occurred at these plantations. As I get older, I have learned to view the history of plantations for what they truly are instead of a through a softened, romanticized lens. If you visit a plantation, I encourage you to spend some time learning the true history of them. We chose to visit Magnolia Plantation and Gardens and it was beautiful. To see more pics, check out my instagram. I’ve been on a posting firenzy with this place, ha! General admission was just $20 and we walked around the whole garden. Other great nature places to explore are Boone Hall Plantation and Cypress Gardens (where they shot the famous swan scene from The Notebook!). We also explored King street and saw some neat shops (some are really expensive but still worth a pop in!), walked around Rainbow Row (a basic girls paradise for instagram worthy pictures), and The Battery/White Point Garden which is right next to the row. We also stopped by the Charleston city market which was neat. Even though it was basically a tourist trap it was cool to see the local vendors and their products!

And of course, you must visit the bars! There were a ton of bars in Charleston, and we only went to three, but they were super fun. We went to Henrys, which is a rooftop bar that’s more upscale with a fun indoor dance floor. We also went to Republic, which was smaller than we thought and wasn’t the best for dancing because there was hardly any room to move! Mynt is another great bar we visited that has a nice outdoor area. I wish we could have visited more bars but we were so limited on time. Out of those three, Henrys was by far my favorite!

All in all, Charleston was a fantastic place to visit and we had a blast celebrating my sisters upcoming wedding. Whether you’re going for a bachelorette party, spring break, or any other occasion, I’d definitely spend some time researching activities and restaurant so you can pick the best itinerary for you! Hope you all enjoyed reading this post, I sure enjoyed writing it! Thanks for reading 🙂

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