On our way down to Florida, we spent a weekend in Summerville, South Carolina where Brian had a real estate conference with My First Million. This was our second weekend near Charleston, which is quickly becoming one of our favorite cities!
Charleston is a beautiful, quintessential Southern town, just brimming with Southern Charm. (Pun intended, as we also love the show, Southern Charm, which is filmed down there!)
You simply cannot go wrong with a visit to Charleston. Here are some of our favorite things to do there.
Middleton Place
Middleton Place has beautiful, expansive manicured lawns with historical buildings, beautiful gardens, views of the water, and--my favorite--sheep roaming around the grounds!!
Once you finish roaming the front lawn and ahhh-ing over the sheep (or maybe that's just me), there is a restaurant on site if you want to get a bite to eat or a drink to help you cool off from the hot sun.
As you continue around the grounds, there are beautiful bodies of water, from ponds surrounded by manicured lawns to swamps. All of it is absolutely beautiful.
There are old slave cabins filled with information about the slaves who lived and worked on the grounds. It is hard to reconcile the beauty of the grounds with some of the inevitable horrors that occurred there.
Middleton Place is one of the top-rated things to do in Charleston on TripAdvisor and it's easy to see why. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen, and was absolutely worth the money to spend a day touring the grounds.
As of today, an adult ticket is $32 if you buy it on site. Note that the base ticket only covers the grounds, and if you want to go into the main house and view the museum inside, there is an additional fee, which we chose not to do when we went.
For more information about the history of Middleton Place or how to plan your visit, go here.
2. Horse Drawn Carriage Rides
A visit to downtown Charleston isn't complete without a horse drawn carriage ride through the city.
When Brian and I went, we used the Palmetto Carriage Works company, which we LOVED. The barn was very conveniently located downtown, the guides were wonderful, and the tour was absolutely perfect!
To book your own tour with Palmetto Carriage Works, go here.
This photo is of another tour that was going by as we were walking and not the tour that we took. There are several carriage companies located throughout Charleston.
3. The Pineapple Fountain
It's a quick visit, but a visit to downtown Charleston wouldn't be complete without seeing the iconic pineapple fountain!
The Pineapple Fountain was unveiled in 1990 and has since become an integral part of the Waterfront Park, featured in countless photographs and pieces of artwork.
4. Rainbow Row
At least as iconic as the Pineapple Fountain is Rainbow Row, a street full of historical and very colorful houses. Most of the horse drawn carriage rides will take you down Rainbow Row and tell you about the history of some of the homes. While that is definitely my preferred way to see Rainbow Row, it is a beautiful walk as well and just a short walk from the Pineapple Fountain.
5. Magnolia Plantation and Gardens
It was off-season when I went, so the gardens were fairly limited. Nonetheless, the Magnolia Plantation and Gardens is worth the visit, if you have an afternoon to spend. (If you can only go to one place, then I would definitely recommend going to Middleton Place and leaving the Magnolia Plantation for another time!)
There are plenty of trails to walk, as well as a small but nice store selling local wares. Like the Middleton Place, the grounds are well-kept and there are trails near the water with good views.
For more information about the Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, visit here.
6. Children's Museum of the Lowcountry
While Brian was in the real estate conference, Lauren, Brady, and I walked around downtown Charleston and, at the end of the afternoon, went to visit the Children's Museum of the Lowcountry.
The Children's Museum is in downtown Charleston--several blocks away from the waterfront. While it's definitely walkable from the waterfront (I did it alone with my two kids), it is a little long and on a hot day (it was in the mid-80s the day that we were there), it feels longer than it is. I'm pretty sure my kids wished that we had taken a car!
The Children's Museum is comprised of several different and unique sections, including areas for art, a castle (where kids can dress up and run through the secret tunnels of a castle), air (where kids can make balls and air planes fly), a pirate ship, grocery shopping, and wood working (where kids can build things out of wood).
There is also an outdoor area with additional toys and picnic tables. Families are welcome to bring their own lunch and eat outside, which is what we did!
Lauren and Brady absolutely LOVED the Children's Museum. They both rate it a perfect 10 and would love to go back! We spent a few hours there, and the kids were begging to stay longer. If you have young kids, this is definitely worth checking out!!
For information about tickets and hours, visit here.
Lauren and Brady playing in the grocery store.
Brady painting a picture in the art area.
We cannot wait to return to Charleston again and continue touring more of this incredibly beautiful city!!
If you think we missed any must-see parts of Charleston, email us and let us know!
Safe travels!!
.
Comments