Charleston South Carolina and the Surrounding Area

We had such a great time exploring Charleston and the surrounding area. There is so much to see and do here, and these ended up being some of our favorite adventures. We barely scratched the surface, so I have no doubt we’ll be back again someday.

One of our favorite low-key afternoons was spent walking the Pitt Street Bridge. This bridge used to be the only way to get from Mount Pleasant to Sullivan’s Island, but today it’s been turned into a park with a walkway and green space. It no longer goes all the way across, instead ending at a fishing pier. The walk along the water was peaceful and made for a really nice way to spend the afternoon.

No trip to the Charleston area feels complete without visiting at least one plantation, and we lucked out with Boone Hall Plantation being less than five miles from where we were camping. While the plantation house isn’t the original, it was rebuilt to reflect how it would have looked. My favorite part of the visit was the Gullah culture presentation. It was fascinating to learn about how this unique culture, developed by enslaved Africans, took root and continues to be preserved today.

Another standout was the Charleston Tea Garden, which is much bigger than the name suggests. The garden covers 127 acres and cultivates more than 320 varieties of tea plants. It produces nine different tea flavors and is the only tea in the world made entirely from U.S.-grown leaves. The tour was incredibly informative, covering everything from how the plants are grown and maintained to how the tea is processed. We learned a lot and really enjoyed it.

After the tea garden, we decided to make a quick stop at the Angel Oak, since we were practically driving right by it. The Angel Oak is the largest live oak east of the Mississippi and is estimated to be between 300 and 400 years old. We had originally taken it off our list, figuring that one oak tree was probably much like another. Turns out, we were very wrong. Seeing it in person was incredible, especially knowing how much care is being taken to preserve it.

Food and waterfront views are always a must for us, so a visit to Shem Creek was non-negotiable. We walked the Shem Creek Boardwalk before eating. It was a fantastic stroll over the water, with lots of birds and even a few dolphins hanging around the shrimp boats, clearly hoping someone might toss them lunch.

We saved downtown Charleston for the end of the trip when cooler weather rolled in. We started at the visitor center and took the free DASH bus to The Battery. Walking along the Battery had beautiful water views and plenty of historic homes to admire. Some of our favorite stops downtown included the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon, the Old Slave Mart Museum, and the Postal Museum. We wrapped things up at the Charleston City Market before walking back to the visitor center.

All in all, Charleston gave us a wonderful mix of history, nature, food, and just plain enjoyable wandering. It’s one of those places that feels both rich in stories and easy to explore, and we left already talking about what we’d like to see next time. Until then, we’re happy to have a lot of great memories from this stop on our journey.