We’ll be visiting relatives in Charleston, as we do every summer. We’ve done lots of touristing in the general Charleston area, but I would like to venture a bit further afield. Anyone have a day trip to recommend? We’re a family of 4, with an 8yo and a 4yo. I’d love to do something outdoorsy - anywhere good to go on a not too strenuous hike? Also, is there anywhere along all those beaches with a proper boardwalk? Other suggestions? Thanks!
Boardwalk? Nope, that’s long gone.
Carriage rides, walk the battery, lots of tours of historic homes, the Pride (three masted schooner) is still around I think, the Market, Thriller is a speed boat that seats 20+, Harbor tour boats are casual (at night there’s a dinner cruise), Ft Sumter, lots of walking tours by Ipod or guide.
Almost any street near the Battery is worth a stroll. Magnolia Gardens is a huge, rambling plantation garden (one of the most beautiful places on the planet around Easter time), Middleton Place is more formal, with sculptures and terraced Butterfly lakes. Boone Hall isn’t bad as plantations go (with slave houses and such).
I would pick Magnolia Gardens if it’s not too hot. There is a petting zoo (watch those goats they eat everything they see), peacocks roaming around, a hedge maze, a swamp boardwalk. You could spend all day there.
As beaches go, Isle of Palms is touristy, Sullivans Island is locals, Folly is arrogantly shabby. I would go to Folly, it’s low key, but any are nice. Kiawah and Seabrook are probably off limits to you (gated).
Restaurants downtown range from world class to low key, but almost any will be excellent. If you want to go for a drive, look at River Road / Bohicket Road / Chisolm Road that form a circle around Johns Island. Lots of ancient oaks and shady tree tunnels, but dangerous at night/in rain.
Further out? Edisto Beach is a nice drive if you make the run down Toogoodoo Road and back through Adams Run on the way back. To complete the drive, take the long way home, 165 to 61 (or just head back on 17 if you are tired).
Even further? You could drive to the ruins of Sheldon Church (Old Sheldon Church Road), out in the Ace Basin and take a picnic lunch. On the way back, find White Hall Road a few miles away on the map. You can make a circle of White Hall, Woodland and Combahee. That is way out in the sticks in the old rice fields, where they filmed a lot of Forrest Gump. It is off the beaten path, so you should have reliable transport (my 44 year old car did just fine, but you do have small children. There will not be any restrooms within 30 miles.)
Oh, I forgot Cypress Gardens, although I must confess I haven’t been there since Hugo. They have small canoe rentals in a blackwater swamp and ancient camelias and such. DO watch for gaters, although they are not a menace, just sayin’. It’s a nice drive if you go Redbank to Bushy Park, although 52 to Cypress Gardens road is faster. Bring some bug spray, those swamp skeeters can carry you off.
Go teach someone to read, and buy them some shoes.
I was going to stay don’t leave Charleston or else, but Edisto Beach was pretty nice on my one trip there. I suspect there’s a number of nice beach spots.
Still, my first thought was “leave as quickly as possible.” Been there, done that.
Add99, thanks for the great suggestions I’ll definitely put Cypress Gardens and Magnolia Gardens on the list. Things with critters are always a hit with the kids.
I am sure we will spend a couple of mornings on IoP. It is not my favorite place, but it’s very close to where we will be staying. My niece’s middle name is Seabrook (it’s a family name) but I didn’t actually realize there was a Seabrook Island.
The Old Sheldon Church sounds interesting, too. I’ll see if I can persuade the family to go for a drive.
Rand, you’ve spent too much time in the “I’m a Racist” thread today!
Ignore the guided tour of Fort Sumter if you are from the North. You’ll want to strangle the redneck tour guide about the fifth time he sneers out the word “Yankee” through his teeth.
If you like to tie one on, there’s some great bars in downtown Charleston, not sure which section.
If driving down 95, make sure you make this stop! 
There’s a pretty good aquarium in Charleston.
Run for Congress. Apparently you don’t even need to campaign!
South Carolina is just too easy a target. Shame on you.
I cringe every time this state makes the news. Sex with a horse. Kill your kids. Idiotic beauty contestants. Moronic politicians. Not to mention the general populace being just a bit backward. At least we are polite. And we have grits. And no, I don’t talk like that voiceover in your head. I am proud that many people ask me where I’m from.
It’s like having an Ugly Friend. It’s not hard to look good.
Sorry. And at least you can claim Stephen Colbert as one of your own.
It comes up every time Kentucky is mentioned as well. Sigh.
An hour or so down the road toward Beaufort (‘byoo-fert’), there’s the African Village.
Personally, though, having seen pretty much everything I care to see in Charleston, I just go to eat. If you want a “different” dining experience, check out The Wreck on Shem Creek, Bowens Island out toward Folly, or Fishnet Seafood on 17 heading toward Savannah, which touts “Jesus Crab” instead of “Deviled Crab.”
Yeah, right. As well as Doug Llewellyn and Vanna White.
It may or may not be your thing, but Patriots Point contains some neat ships to tour - the carrier Yorktown, as well as a few others (that we didn’t get to because we dallied too long on the carrier).
Thanks, Earl. I’ll pass these restaurant recommendations along to Mr. Q. I’m not a seafood eater, so a lot of the fun of eating out in Charleston is lost on me. He’s a big fan, though.
One of the things I’d like to do while in the lowcountry is learn a bit more about Gullah culture. Any recommendations there?
I always associated the Gullahs more with the Beaufort area, specifically St. Helena, than Charleston. A good start is the book"The Water is Wide" by Pat Conroy or the movie “Conrack” that was based on it. It was written based on Conroy’s experiences as a teacher in Daufuskie Island (a few islands down from St. Helena). I think that culture, though, is mostly gone now.