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Travel Matters | by Stephen & Andie
  • Planning

What To Do In Charleston, South Carolina

August 3, 2021

If you’re planning a trip and wondering what to do in Charleston, South Carolina, you’ve come to the right place! We’ve recently visited for the first time ourselves, and would like to share our experience with you. 

Charleston is a beautiful and historic city, with cobblestone streets, incredible Georgian and neo-Classical architecture, and the beautiful coastline. There is so much to do and see when you visit this Southern city. 

It also happens to be a paradise for foodies! Be sure to watch our food tour of Charleston’s French Quarter to see where and what Lowcountry cuisine to eat when you visit.

sitting outside of the Customs House in Charleston, SC

So without further adieu, here are 6 things to do in Charleston. All of them are conveniently located in or near the French Quarter (see what we did there?). 

1. Support Local Vendors At Historic Charleston City Market 

Established in the 1790s, the City Market is one of the most visited attractions in Charleston. Located downtown in the heart of the city, it is one of the oldest public markets in the country. Spanning four city blocks, from Market Hall to East Bay Street, it is home to over 300 vendors. You’ll find everything from food, arts and crafts, souvenirs, and plenty more, all with an emphasis on ā€œlocally made.ā€ Keep an eye out for the ā€œCertified Authentic Handmade in Charlestonā€ seal! A point of note: do not confuse City Market with the Old Slave Mart (where slaves were sold). These are completely separate entities, and slaves were never sold at the market. A visit to the City Market is a wonderful way to meet locals and learn about the culture first hand. 

2. Stroll Down Rainbow Row

Rainbow Row is a stretch of historic, pastel-colored Georgian Homes located on East Bay Street (between Elliot Street and Tradd Street). This is the longest cluster of Georgian row houses in the United States. ā€œRainbow Rowā€ was coined after the restoration in the 1930s and ā€˜40s, when the homes were painted in their now-famous pastel colors. It is one of the most photographed areas in Charleston and is a very popular tourist attraction. 

3. Take A Selfie At The Pineapple Fountain In Waterfront Park

Waterfront Park consists of eight acres and stretches approximately one-half mile, overlooking the Charleston Harbor and the Cooper River. It’s a perfectly romantic and relaxing way to slow down and take in the Chalreston scenery. The park has an ample amount of walkways, trees, grassy areas, benches, and flora to unwind with, but the Pineapple Fountain is a focal point. Pineapple motifs are common in Charleston and represent hospitality. The fountain draws many selfie-seekers, so just be sure to be patient and return the sentiment to others. Chances are, you’ll even find someone to take your photo for you! 

4. Learn The History Of Charleston At The Old Slave Mart Museum

The Old Slave Mart Museum is the first African-American slave museum, and it is often staffed by individuals that can trace their history to Charleston slaves. Little known fact: at one point, up to 40% of slaves entered the United States through Charleston. While somber in tone, this building is extremely significant in Charleston’s history. There is much to read and many lessons to be learned here, and it is well worth the couple of hours we recommend you spend visiting. 

along the Battery; what to do in Charleston, South Carolina

5. Enjoy A Walk Down To The Battery

The Battery was originally built as a coastal defense artillery battery, and with its scenic promenade and historic parks, it is one of downtown Charleston’s top tourist attractions. It is lined with historic homes and has incredible views of Fort Sumter, Castle Pickney, and Sullivan’s Island Lighthouse. Stretching along the Charleston peninsula, it is bordered by the Ashley and Cooper rivers and this confluence forms the Charleston harbor. Even if you’re not so easily impressed with ā€œAntebellum thisā€ and ā€œCivil War that,ā€ a walk along the Battery is still a very enjoyable thing to do while visiting Charleston.

6. Designer Shopping On King Street

With all of the historic architecture, small town vibes, and old-timey charm around every corner, Charleston is not lacking in modern, high-end designer shops along its famous King Street.  L’Occitane, Kate Spade, and Louis Vuitton – they’re all there. But there’s also plenty of local shops mixed in as well, like the cozy and intimate Blue Bicycle Books. Many of the other establishments have been in business for decades, if not a century or more, and are no less high end than their modern-day counterparts. 

In conclusion, Charleston personifies the romantic notion of ā€œthe old South.ā€ To some it is trapped in that history, and to others it has transformed into one of the most popular travel destinations in the states despite it. With its constant flow of horse drawn carriages, waterfront views, well-preserved historic homes, churches, and landmarks, there’s more than enough to explore help you form your own opinion. We hope we’ve given you some fun ideas of what to do in Charleston, South Carolina!

And if you’re looking for more itineraries, we’ve got you covered:

  • Asheville
  • Los Angeles
  • Chattanooga

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Tags:citiesNorth AmericaSouth CarolinaUnited States
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Our Latest Vlog:
Today we explore the Amazon jungle by night. Our flashlights reveal plenty of creepy crawlies, including unusual insects, cute frogs, a variety of spiders – including a bizarre one that looked like a robot, and Andie got her wish when we saw not one, but two tarantulas! Stephen was relieved to not run into any snakes, but later that night he was jolted awake by an an uninvited ā€œguestā€ in our bed!

Only 2% of the #Amazon Jungle is in Ecuador, and part of that is in the #Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, which is where we visited during our Ecuador trip. It was our first visit to the world's largest rainforest, and we already can't wait to go back and see more!

This is the sixth video in our first-ever international series! Quito, Ecuador was the first international trip we took together back in 2011. Eleven years later, it’s where we filmed our first international series and first drone footage for our channel! 

We spent two weeks in Ecuador this time, including Quito, day-trips to Mindo and Cotopaxi National Park, the Amazon, and one of our top-3 bucket list destinations: the GalƔpagos Islands! 

If you’ve missed our previous Ecuador videos, you can catch up on the series here:
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VLOG no. 69

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šŸ“LOCATION: Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, Ecuador, South America

✦ PLACES VISITED IN THIS VLOG: 

Cuyabeno Dolphin Lodge
https://www.cuyabenodolphinlodge.com/

**this video is not sponsored, nor have we received any product or in-kind consideration. We just like to provide the info and especially shout-out the small businesses we patronize.

PREVIOUS VIDEO ā–¶ The Amazon Rainforest | Travel Vlog | Ecuador Series, ep. 5
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CHAPTERS:
00:00 Intro
00:28 Lagoon Swimming
01:00 Caiman Search
01:38 Baby Snake
02:30 Claustrophobia
02:43 Night 2
03:58 Venus & Sunset
04:18 Nightwalk in the Jungle
04:54 Big Creepy Spider(s)!
04:29 Nocturnal Bird & Frogs
05:57 Tarantula!
06:27 Another Tarantula!
07:03 IT WAS IN OUR BED!

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Follow Our Mission to See ALL 50 STATES! šŸ‡ŗšŸ‡ø 🚐

Stephen & Andie | Travel Stuff
Oregon’s got #mood for days! Oregon is state no Oregon’s got #mood for days!

Oregon is state no. 22 in our mission to see ALL 50 STATES (plus DC & Puerto Rico)! Our first sleep and first morning of #vanlife was in Astoria, then we headed to Cannon Beach and were bowled over by the foggy views of majestic Haystack Rock. 

šŸ‘‰ LINK IN BIO šŸ‘ˆ to see more of the beautiful Oregon coast in our latest vlog, ā€œFirst Night In Our Van!ā€

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#traveloregon #cannonbeach #oregoncoast #cannonbeachoregon #oregon #haystackrock #travelmatters #all50states #vanlife
We fell in love with Oregon! Swipe šŸ‘‰ to see why We fell in love with Oregon! Swipe šŸ‘‰ to see why!

After buying our Sprinter in Portland we headed for the Oregon coast to spend our first night in her in Astoria. The next day we explored town and also made our way to Cannon Beach. Both were nothing short of stunning! Our drives through the state just got more and more beautiful and we couldn’t stop thinking how grateful and excited we are to be new #vanlifers. 

This is going to be an amazing year!

šŸ“· Our first coffee on our first morning after our first night sleeping in our campervan. šŸ“Astoria.

šŸ“· Isn’t she lovely? šŸ˜ That’s Haystack Rock behind Andie. You might recognize it from movies like Point Break and GOONIES! šŸ“Cannon Beach.

šŸ“· Having too much fun watching a pile of giant sea lions sleeping peacefully. šŸ“Astoria

šŸ“· Loving our lives! šŸ“ Cannon Beach

šŸ‘‰ Link in bio šŸ‘ˆ to see all of this and more in our latest vlog ā€œFirst Night In Our Van!ā€

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#oregon #oregoncoast #astoria #cannonbeach #haystackrock #lewisandclarkrvpark #vanlife #sprintervan #sprintervanlife #all50states
Hello #vanlife! 🚐 We’re so excited to finally Hello #vanlife! 🚐 We’re so excited to finally share this news with you – we bought a camper van! *Join us at 12:15pm EST today (Monday)* for a live chat during the Premiere of our new vlog, where we spill the tea.

After months of behind the scenes planning and hunting, we settled on this beauty at the end of October: a 170ā€ wheelbase, high top Sprinter, located in Portland, OR. In this video we fly to the Pacific Northwest to make the purchase and begin our two and a half week, cross-country journey from Portland back to North Carolina. But not before grabbing a rainy day lunch at one of Portland’s food cart havens – Cartlandia. Some hot grits from Grits Gone Wild warm us up to send us on our first outing in our new home on wheels.

We couldn’t be more excited, and this trip already kicks off our mission to see all 50 states (plus DC and Puerto Rico!). You’ll be seeing this cross-country trip, plus another month-long run in her over the holidays –  all in our upcoming vlogs!

Now — any guesses what we named her? 
Hint: any fans of the movie Role Models? 😜

PLACES VISITED IN THIS VLOG:

@gritsgonewildpnw 

#cartlandia

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#sprinter #sprintervan #sprinter2500 #campervan #vantravel  #vanlifers #roadtrip #roadtrippers #travelmatters #travelvloggers #UStravel #USAtravel #youtubers #DIY #Ace #kissmyvanthia #vanlifeusa
$150 train ticket from New York to… New York? $150 train ticket from New York to… New York? 

We REALLY loved our first time doing some train travel in the U.S. together! We rode the Hudson River Rail aboard the 20th Century Limited – the last two remaining, fully restored, 1940s train cars from what was ā€œThe Most Famous Train In the Worldā€ in its day. 

Our journey took us from Penn Station in Manhattan up to Albany and back. 

Sit back and enjoy the views! šŸ‘‰ Link in bio šŸ‘ˆ to see the vlog!

šŸ“· 1: on the platform in Albany

šŸ“· 2: Penn Station, NYC

šŸŽ„ 3: enjoying the VIP lounge at Penn Station pre-boarding

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#newyork #traintravel #hudsonriverrail #20thcenturylimited #1940s #vintagetrain #hudsonriver #travelmatters #travelvloggers #youtubers
California sunsets just hit different. šŸŒ… We we California sunsets just hit different. šŸŒ…

We were Angelenos for literal decades and we still can’t believe how many iconic places in California we took for granted and never visited! Morro Bay is just one of them, and we’re SO STOKED that a recent cross-country road trip (big announcement on that front soon!) took us right past the area. Naturally, we looked at each other, said ā€œMorro Bay?,ā€ and turned the 🚐 around to head back just in time for a gorgeous sunset. 

Now we’re even more determined to hit all the spots that we took for granted and we’ll always find excuses to make our way back through Cali! Yosemite, Redwoods, Death Valley – we’re talking to you! 

What other spots do we need to hit? Shout ā€˜em out in the comments!

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#morrobay #sunset #centralcoast #SLO  #SanLuisObispo #california #southerncalifornia #daytrip #roadtrip #californialandmarks
We saw ALL THE MANATEES today! This was our second We saw ALL THE MANATEES today!
This was our second attempt at @bluespringstatepark within a couple weeks. We saw zero manatees the first time, and committed to returning after spending some time in Southern Florida. Turns out, we happened upon some manatees in the marina @evergladesnps, but the water was so murky we could only see parts of them… if they surfaced. 

Today was the day we got to return to Blue Spring. The weather was much cooler this time (great conditions for spotting manatees in the springs), and when we pulled up to the entrance, the sign read ā€œMANATEE COUNT *288*ā€ For context, there was no count on the sign for our previous visit, so… YAY! 

Can’t say exactly what OUR manatee count was, but we easily saw dozens in a short amount of time – from adorable little babies to giants! The water was crystal clear. It was so serene – watching them graciously glide through, only occasionally making a splash. Hearing that beautiful sound when they surfaced for air. Today was an AWESOME day, and we’re so thankful that we had the flexibility to come back and spend some quality time with these beautiful, unique creatures. 🄰

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#manatees #bluespringstatepark #centralflorida #orlando #florida #therealflorida #wildlife #statepark #bluespring #bluesprings #manateestatepark #bluespringmanatees #travelmatters #travelvloggers
Is this seat taken? Nothing says ā€œclassic New J Is this seat taken? 
Nothing says ā€œclassic New Jerseyā€ like Asbury Park! We visited the boardwalk for the first time this summer as part of our DIY food tour of New Jersey. 

A killer coffee roastery? āœ…
Cereal pancakes? āœ…
Disco fries? āœ…
$27 milkshake??? āœ…

LINK IN BIO to see all that, plus a unique Jersey twist on ā€œthe slusheeā€ in our latest vlog, now live on YouTube! 

This is state #20 in our mission to visit all 50 states (plus DC & Puerto Rico) - join our adventures! 

PLACES VISITED IN THIS VLOG:
@buddysjc
@roastd.coffee
@thetopsdiner
@coneywaffleasburypark

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#newjersey #asburypark #newjerseyfood #foodtour #jerseycity #fortlee #jerseyshore #travelvlog #travelmatters
As you set your goals for 2023, don’t be afraid As you set your goals for 2023, don’t be afraid to be the orange fish. If an idea or dream scares you or feels too different, it’s probably the one you should go for!

We spotted these guys while snorkeling in the GalƔpagos Islands. See the full vlogs on our YouTube channel. LINK IN BIO!

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#fish #schooloffish #galapagos #galapagosislands #ecuador #travelmatters #travelvloggers #wildlife #conservation #underwatervideo #snorkeling🐠 
#newyeargoals #lifegoals
We saw so much cool wildlife in the Galapagos! See We saw so much cool wildlife in the Galapagos! See the full vlogs on our YouTube channel. LINK IN BIO!

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#galapagos #galapagosislands #ecuador #travelmatters #travelvloggers #wildlife #conservation #sealion #bluefootedbooby #tortoise #frigate #iguana #crab #fish
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