Historic Charleston, South Carolina

The major tourist destinations in and around Charleston are:-

1. Mount Pleasant – Home to Patriot’s Point Naval and Maritime Museum and Fort Sumter Cruise
2. Isle of Palms – beautiful barrier island with warm beaches. It is less crowded compared to other neighboring beaches.
3. Folly Beach – Folly Beach County park has dressing rooms and showers. There is also a nice public fishing pier.
4. Sullivan’s Island – home to Fort Moultrie, and Sullivan’s Island Lighthouse. It’s mostly residential with very few public accesses.
5. Kiawah Island – Barrier island with a semi tropical climate. Most of the beach is privately owned by Kiawah Island Golf Resort. Beachwalker County Park is a public access beach located on Kiawah Island.
6. Cypress Gardens – beautiful Black Water Swamp, aquarium and gardens.
7. Magnolia Plantation & Gardens
8. South Carolina Aquarium
9. Audobon Swamp Garden

If you are planning to visit Charleston, you need to stay for at least 2-3 days to enjoy the coastal city.

We spent 2 days during our trip to Charleston. On the first day, we visited Mount Pleasant. We spent the entire day visiting Fort Sumter, USS Yorktown and Submarine USS Clamagore and we still didn’t get time to view a few of the other attractions at the Naval and Maritime Museum. We stayed at a beach front hotel called “Sea Side Inn” on Isle of Palms Beach. We spent the next morning at the beautiful beach. By afternoon, we headed to Cypress Gardens and enjoyed the gardens for half a day. Check out the photos taken during our Charleston trip.

On our next trip, we plan to visit Folly Beach, Kiawah Island and Magnolia Plantations

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1. The primary departure site is from the Fort Sumter Visitor Education Center located in downtown Charleston.
2. The secondary departure site is located at Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant.

The cruise from Mount Pleasant to Fort Sumter is a relaxing 30 minute cruise through Charleston’s historic harbor. The 2 hours and 15 minute tour is fully narrated and explains many points of interest and historic significance. You will learn about the major events which led to the outbreak of America’s most bloody civil war. At Fort Sumter National Park, there is a museum with fascinating exhibits and a small gift shop where you get to spend 1 hour. After one hour at the Fort, you will cruise back to port, enjoying panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean and Charleston’s bustling harbor.

The Tour Rate is $16 for adults.

Visit the website of Fort Sumter Tours for more details.

Here is the gallery view of photos.

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Patriots Point, Charleston is home to the legendary Aircraft Carrier USS Yorktown. It also features other ships like Destroyer USS Laffey, Coast Guard Cutter Ingham and submarine USS Clamagore. USS YorkTown’s hangar deck and flight deck features many fighter aircrafts. The admission fee is $16 for adults and $8 for children.

Fort Sumter Cruise also starts from Patriot’s Point. So be sure to cover both Fort Sumter and Naval Maritime Museum during your trip.

You need an entire day to cover all the attractions. So it’s better to start early and stay as long as you can. We reached Patriot’s Point around 11 am and we covered USS Yorktown and USS Clamagore after our visit to Fort Sumter. This was a truly amazing experience for all of us. It was the first time I was seeing an Aircraft Carrier and it was truly remarkable. This was the best place we visited in Charleston, South Carolina.

Visit the official website for more information.

Here are some photos from our trip.

Here is the Gallery View of all Photos.

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Cypress Garden was the areas largest rice plantation, once upon a time. Now it has been converted to a beautiful garden. The black water swamp and cypress trees offer breath taking views. Cypress Gardens is composed of approximately 80 acres of open swamp. Movies like ‘The Patriot’ and ‘The Notebook’ have been filmed here. The admission price is $10 for adults.

There are boat rides through the black water swamp. Guided boat rides cost $5 and the self guided boat rides are free. We were lucky enough to spot wild turtles and alligators in the swamp, during our boat ride. There are many beautiful trails around the swamp and you can often catch a glimpse of wild life.

Cypress Gardens Butterfly House is open year around and features various species of butterflies, turtles and birds. The Freshwater aquarium at Cypress Gardens features the fish, reptiles and amphibians found at the swamp. The Reptile Center features many native venomous and non-venomous snakes. There is also and exotic Bird Aviary.

Visit the official website for more details.

Here are some photos from our Trip.

Here is the Gallery View of all Photos.

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We visited Isle of Palms during our trip to Charleston. We stayed in a hotel called “SeaSide Inn” right on Isle of Palms Beach. It is a beautiful and peaceful beach. Visitors who come to the Isle of Palms have many options for beach access and parking. The City offers more than 50 beach access paths. Driving on the beach or on beach access paths is strictly prohibited.

Here is the Gallery View of all Photos.

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