Day 4:Exploring Downtown Charleston & Shopping
On Tuesday we went into downtown Charleston to explore some more and do a little shopping. Some locals told us about the best little donut shop called Glaze. So we went in to taste their notorious bacon-topped donut. They didn't disappoint. We were planning on only getting one donut each but ended up getting a whole box of them to snack on later. After we scored some seriously yummy rings of deliciousness, we ate breakfast at a quaint restaurant called Toast. Once we filled our bellies, we wanted to shop a little. King St is the place to be! Everything from Anthropologie and Louis Vuitton to boutiques and antique shops were on this street. We also booked a Carriage Tour and we took a ride around Charleston in a horse-drawn carriage. There are so many companies that do this here. If you go during a busy season, you should make reservations. We learned some fascinating history on this tour. The kids fell asleep, ha ha, but Ty and I enjoyed it. Of course I found the movie theater that The Notebook was filmed at. Check that off the list!
On our way back to Mt. Pleasant, which is where our resort is located, we stopped at Tavern and Table to eat. I had fried deviled eggs and cornbread for starters. I cannot tell you how amazing these were!! Not only was the food awesome but we got to sit outside over the water. I highly recommend this spot also.
Day 5: Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum
On this day, we anticipated some rain in the morning so we decided to do something mostly indoors. We got lucky and this was the only morning we had that had some rain showers on our trip. Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum is the old USS Yorktown (a WWII aircraft carrier) that sits in the harbor, next to the Harbor Resort, and is now a museum. I wasn't too thrilled to do this until we actually got there. It was extremely interesting and I ended up enjoying this a lot, as did the kids. Do this if you visit here with kids or if you are interested in that sort of thing. If you saw my Instagram stories this week, then you know what I'm talking about. We got to explore the entire ship including the captain's area, where the soldiers ate, slept, brushed their teeth and got medical attention or hair cuts. The top wasvwhere the aircrafts were displayed as well as some inside of the ship. There was even simulators and NASA experiences inside. Really cool stuff! You can also do helicopter tours here really inexpensive! I was ALL about doing this but there was a 3 person maximum and we didn't have anyone to watch one of the kids so Ty said he would make it up to me ;) I'll be waiting for that one.
After that we went back to have dinner, swim and hang out in the hot tub at the resort. We roasted marshmallows and made s'mores by the fire pits. We also visited with one of Ty's childhood best friends who moved to this area.
On this day we visited 2 more plantations: Middleton Place and Magnolia Plantation and Gardens. All of the plantations are unique in their own way. Magnolia Gardens had miles and miles of land to roam and of course gardens and animals galore including a feeding/petting area. We went in with Scarlett to feed the animals and made sure to stay clear of the peacocks that were in mating season. They tend to be aggressive during this time but so beautiful with their feathers all spread out! We spotted them in the trees all over the plantation. We also took a boat swamp tour and saw more alligators than I cared to see! I was a little freaked out by this but the tour guide explained they hadn't had an alligator attack in Charleston for over 90 years!
Middleton Place had a lot of historic features and a gorgeous view overlooking the property. In the stable area, you could visit each area where a re-enactor would walk you through what they did their back in the day. Scarlett was amazed with all of that. She helped them smash corn and watched the wood worker carve all sorts of neat items. We decided to do these 2 plantations in one day. We also had it on our agenda to go see Angel Oak Tree, the oldest tree around with quite the presence! But the kids were extremely tired and crabby after the plantations so we skipped this.
Day 7:Beach Day!!
There are quite a few beaches to choose from in this area. Our last day here we chose Isle of Palms Beach. I can't compare them to the others since we only got to see one. Sullivan's Isle is close to Isle of Palms and these 2 beaches are low key, which is why we chose them. On the other side of Charleston are Kiawah Island and Seabrook Island. Also Foley Beach which tends to be more of a mature beach because of all the bars in the vicinity. There is no lack of beautiful beaches in this area. We saw dolphins not far off the shore of the beach and had lunch on the strip before heading back to listen to live music on the rooftop of The Fish House. We had drinks, food and watched the beautiful sun set of the harbor. We spent a few nights up on this amazing rooftop lounge. The kids would dance to the music and sometimes catch their vaca buddies while the grown ups enjoyed cocktails and the ocean views. For our last night, we took a walk around harbor to pick out which yacht we want next ;)
Day 8:Good Bye Charleston!!
We said good-bye to this wonderful place. It was great to explore the history and color of Charleston. We could have spent longer here but we are thankful for a week here. When I got home, I added a few more places to my "Go See" list. Every time I visit a place I've never been, I get this urge to see more...I didn't get a chance to travel much when I was young and so now I'm taking advantage of that. Anyhow, if you are ever looking for a fun place to vacation...Charleston is a great choice!!
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