Cheers from Charleston

Caroline
Jul 2
3 min read

Charleston had been on my bucket list for years, and this past November, I finally made it happen! My parents and I took a road trip to explore the Holy City — from historic landmarks to southern brunch spots... Here’s what we loved most, plus a few places still on my list for next time:

STAY

We stayed at The Mill House Hotel, which is a Curio Collection by Hilton. It was the perfect location next to multiple restaurants, King Street, and a close walk to some of the landmarks! This hotel is would be the ideal place to stay for a girl's getaway or bachelorette. Rebecca Illustrated, an artist I have followed for years has her flagship store inside the hotel! My mom and I stopped in there multiple times and did not leave empty handed. The hotel also has a cute coffee shop called The Black Door.

SHOPPING

King Street is known for shopping and restaurants! Most of the shops are within a mile. My two favorite stores on King Street were Millie & Lynn and Harvest Moon. I bought a Charleston sweatshirt in Harvest Moon. A couple other stores near our hotel that I liked were Franklin & Rose and Holst + Lee. I made a beach theme charm necklace at Holst + Lee, which I had wanted to do for a long time! We also walked through the Charleston City Market. I was so excited to see Dawn’s book, This is Charleston. I love her Nashville children’s book and love to give it as a gift. There were so many local artists and vendors.

FOOD

First of all, the service was great everywhere we went! Charleston is the true definition of southern hospitality. We had brunch at Church & Union, which is in an old church. I have been to the one in Nashville, but this one was better!!

The nicest restaurant we ate at was Halls Steakhouse. I made this reservation a few weeks before our trip. There is also one in Nashville, but this is the original location. The owner was standing at the front greeting everyone and everything was great!

We also ate at 82 Queen and Husk. Both were right beside our hotel! Husk is a nicer restaurant, but they have a bar and patio with a more casual menu. We ate there and really enjoyed it! It was also easier to get in without a reservation.

Before we hit the road, we had brunch at Poogan’s Porch. It was just a classic southern breakfast. In my opinion Church & Union was better!

SIGHTS

The highlight of our trip was Cypress Gardens. It was about a 40 minute drive from our hotel in Charleston. This is where the iconic scene in the movie the Notebook was filmed out in the boat! It's $10 a person to get in and the boats are first come first serve. We went in the morning and it wasn’t very crowded. The loop is about 45 minutes. It was so peaceful and quiet! I can’t recommend it enough!

We were also walking distance to the famous Rainbow Row, Pineapple Fountain, Charleston Harbor, and The Battery. I loved seeing all of those sights especially the houses on the water!

SULLIVAN'S ISLAND

There are 3 beaches close to Charleston! We decided to visit Sullivan's Island. This time of year, we couldn't spend a day on the beach, but we did get to walk on the beach. I really wanted to visit Abovo. It's a boutique owned by a girl in my sorority! I also really wanted to try at the Obstinate Daughter. I read somewhere it was one of Kelsea Ballerini's favorite spots. We didn't have a reservation, but we were able to find a spot at the bar! I had a pizza and it was great! A Maker's Post and Beachkrew were also two other cute stores we went in on Sullivan's Island!

DRINKS

The only two bars we visited were the Blind Tiger and Vendue. I absolutely loved Blind Tiger. It was a speakeasy and it was already decorated for Christmas before Thanksgiving. We sat outside on the patio and listened to some live music.

Vendue is a hotel we looked into staying at. I believe it is one of the only rooftop bars!

SWEETS

The only dessert place we tried was Carmella's dessert bar! It was a very popular place. It was good, but I thought we had better desserts at some of the restaurants we ate at!