Spring has arrived, Charleston travelers! You know what that means – sunny days, flowers in full bloom, and oh so many events. Beach days are plentiful and activity options are endless. Take advantage of all the springtime opportunities Charleston has to offer. We’ve compiled some of our favorite things to do this spring, including new popular food and drink spots around town as well as some of the most anticipated April 2024 events.
Rides, a petting zoo, acrobatic dog show, a playground and strawberry pie-eating contests are all part of this family friendly event. Plus, there are plenty of strawberries ripe for the pickin‘ in the U-Pick Fields. Click here for details and tickets.
The Credit One Charleston Open is the largest women’s only professional tennis tournament in North America, welcoming nearly 90,000 tennis fans to the state-of-the-art Credit One Stadium for nine days of tennis excellence every spring. Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur will return to the Lowcountry in 2024 to defend her 2023 title against a host of the game’s top players. Click here for details and tickets.
Get a rare glimpse into the art and architecture of several private homes on Kiawah Island. Five homes in the gated community will be open for public viewing, each with their own unique style.
Summerville Family YMCA is hosting and celebrating their 51st year of the Flowertown Festival this year. This event is one of the largest arts and crafts festivals in the Southeast. During this three-day festival, take in the beauty and charm of Summerville while enjoying 300 arts and crafts exhibitors, food, children’s activities and more.
Thousands of people will gather for this annual event. It’s not just a race, it’s an experience. The 10K race starts in Mount Pleasant, crosses the Ravenel Bridge and finishes near Marion Square in downtown Charleston. Visit Cooper River Bridge Run for more details and to register.
Live like a Local through a variety of Tours & Events, with exclusive access to some of the most beautiful private houses and gardens in Charleston, SC. A number of special events are also part of this springtime event, including morning history walks, educational luncheons, musical concerts and more. Visit the Charleston Festival for more details.
Small town St. George welcomes visitors to enjoy all things grits. Get ready to eat grits, buy grits, learn how grits are made and even dive into a vat of grits for the Grits Rolling Contest.
Louisiana comes to the Lowcountry for a full dayof Zydeco music, Cajun and Creole foods plus kids’ activities, live music and a crawfish-eating contest. Event is noon to 6 p.m. at James Island County Park.
Pay tribute to Mount Pleasant’s local shrimping and fishing industry at this event with a boat parade, live music, craft show and lots of free activities at Memorial Waterfront Park in Mount Pleasant.
Rancho Lewis pulls influences from West Texas, Chihuahua, Mexico, and New Mexico. This is the food famed pitmaster John Lewis and his family grew up eating. Classic fare like enchiladas, burritos, and tacos are there, along with combo plates dedicated to items favorited by Lewis’ grandparents Cora and Lloyd.
Carmella’s Cafe and Dessert Bar combines generationally tested, gourmet recipes with a regional flair. They have a vast array of continually changing desserts, gelato, and sorbet, as well as fresh, organic coffees, sandwiches, pizza, wine, beer, and cocktails.
Leon’s Fine Poultry & Oyster Shop is a comfortable Southern joint serving fried chicken, oysters, lots of salads, cheap beer, soft serve, Rose on tap, tons of grower Champagne, and good cocktails.
Stroll Through Some of Charleston’s Most Beautiful Parks
Visit some of the area’s most beautiful parks for springtime blooms, walking trails and playgrounds.
Riverfront Park: 1061 Everglades Ave. in North Charleston
Brittlebank Park: 185 Lockwood Drive in Charleston
Palmetto Islands County Park: 444 Needlerush Parkway in Mount Pleasant
TourPass allows Visitors to take advantage of Charleston’s top attractions and historic sites while saving time and money. Tour Pass includes an easy to use mobile pass and is 5 star rated.
Choosing a hotel and where to stay in Charleston all depends on your budget and goals. Do you want to stay Downtown, at the beach or in the outer areas such as North Charleston where you have to drive to get everywhere? For more help on deciding: https://travelerofcharleston.com/articles/hotels/
Charleston has 3 main public beaches which are: Folly, Isle of Palms and Sullivans. Each beach has it’s own atmosphere. The most common beach that people visit is Folly Beach and then Isle of Palms followed by Sullivans Island. For more info on Charleston’s beaches visit: https://travelerofcharleston.com/guide-charlestons-beaches/
There are many things that will keep the kids and family entertained and educated in Charleston. There are historic sites such as Fort Sumter, a Children’s Museum, Aquarium and the USS Yorktown…a WWII era aircraft carrier you can tour. For more info visit: https://travelerofcharleston.com/charleston-family-fun-activities/
Summer in Charleston is a great time to visit. There’s plenty of things to keep you busy and visiting the beach will probably….or should be on your short-list. Also water-based activities and tours are popular. Checkout this summer guide to Charleston for more info:
Fall is one of the best times to visit. The weather cools down a bit and the skies are typically blue and clear. In addition there are many great events, festivals and the large crowds of summer have gone back to school or work. For more info on visiting in the fall, checkout this article: https://travelerofcharleston.com/charleston-12-things-to-do-fall/
There are so many great things to do that it’s difficult to narrow the list down. This article does a great job with figuring out the must do things to do in Charleston
The consensus is a minimum of 3-days is needed to settle in and experience Charleston. For instance, many people take 2 days exploring downtown and another day visiting sites outside of downtown such as the plantations, Angel Oak Tree or beaches. Checkout this page for a list of tours and attractions:
Downtown Charleston was made for walking and for sure one of the best way to soak up and experience the history first-hand. This article goes over getting around Charleston with and without a car as well:
We’re of course partial to Charleston, but here’s the truth. There are many similarities however there are some differences in our opinion:
Both cities are historic and beautiful.
Both cities are extremely walkable. Savannah, with it’s park-like squares maybe more walkable than Charleston.
Charleston has a more established and food scene with many more options.
Charleston has better hotels and shopping.
Both cities have equally good tours.
Charleston has better beach options. Savannah has Tybee which is great, however it’s 1 beach vibe versus Charleston which has 3 beaches with different vibes. Checkout this Charleston beach guide article: https://travelerofcharleston.com/guide-charlestons-beaches/
In Savannah you can walk with alcoholic beverages on the street. This is not allowed in Charleston. This can be good or bad depending on your stance.
There are always great and world-class events happening in Charleston. For a calendar of events and things to do in Charleston, checkout our online calendar of events: https://travelerofcharleston.com/events/
Charleston has some fantastic can’t miss tours such as Fort Sumter, carriage, ghost, harbor, historic and culinary tours. For a full list with more info visit: https://travelerofcharleston.com/attractions/
