I loooove Charleston!! If you know me personally, you probably already know this since I’m always talking about it. If you read the blog, you probably know this, too, since its my third time chatting about it on the blog. My boyfriend and I headed to CHS on our first stop on our summer east coast tour, which was our *big* trip of the year! It was his first time in the south, so I loved showing him my favorite places and also trying out lots of new spots!

J. Crew Factory Dress, J. Crew Heels 

Where We Stayed 

We stayed at the stunning Zero George. There really isn’t a hotel that screams southern charm like this ultra luxury boutique hotel. I stayed here a few years ago when it was fairly new, and it was even better than I remembered the second time around. I’m now worried my boyfriend will hate every other hotel we stay at now that we’ve been to the ZG, we were in love! You feel like you’re staying at someones special home, and the property actually used to be someones private compound. The cozy breakfasts in the courtyard were the best way to wake up every morning and the complimentary wine and cheese hour on the southern style porch was our favorite part of each day. Also – their restaurant is world famous! You must try their truffle burger, they only make five a day and are highly sought after. It is certainly a hotel thats worth the splurge if you’re looking for a true Charleston experience. Look out for their special 4-night stay deals that they often offer on their website.

Where We Played:

We biked everywhere! Charleston is very bike friendly, and the drivers are extremely nice to bicyclist. The Zero George had bikes out front for guests to complimentary grab and go! We met friends at the hotel that would bike around with a mini bluetooth speaker, so fun, obviously we became fast friends with them. 🙂

Visit Folly Beach for the day. We rented a 24 hour car rental a few blocks from the hotel, and they ended up giving us a Mustang convertible, ha! You do not need a car when visiting CHS, but we wanted to see the beach towns and this made it easy, plus the rental was under $100 for a full day. Folly Beach is honestly a bit touristy/cheesy, but we loved being able to hang at the beach all day. We rented chairs through Folly Beach Chair Company and they were there waiting for us at the beach, couldn’t have been easier! Make sure to journey down the beach and check out a few beach bars. My favorite is at the Tides Hotel.

Explore Sullivan’s Island and Isle of Palms all morning. Another great area to explore if you have access to a rental car. Sullivan’s Island has a huge, sprawling beach and is much quieter than Folly. Be sure to stop at The Co-op right in town for frozen rosé to-go (yes, you heard me right, Frosé to-go!) or The Obstinate Daughter for fabulous cheese plates and pizza. My girlfriends and I loved this spot for lunch when we came during my last visit.

Bar hop at the local rooftop bars and beer gardens. Charleston has so many rooftop bars and restaurants. We biked around all day on our last afternoon in town and had a blast!

Try a new workout class or run along Battery Park. I love staying on track with my workouts while traveling. The first few days we took morning jogs along Battery Park. Running is one of my favorite ways to get to know a new city. I also used my ClassPass membership and took a HIIT class called The Class, needless to say, Charleston knows a good workout class! It was so challenging in the best way.

Schedule a boat ride along the Charleston Harbor. We booked ours through Geechee Girl Charters via Airbnb Experiences. So fun, thank you Captain Jay! Click here for $30 off your first Airbnb booking.

J. Crew Factory Dress (sold out) similar here, J. Crew Sunnies, Headband 

Where We Eat: 

The Daring Oyster Bar: I came here on my last trip and it still stands as my favorite restaurant in Charleston. The menu is full of low country fair, yet healthy and diverse. The cocktails are delicious and the vibe is fun. Request to sit at the raw bar counter if you’re a party of two!

Zero George Restaurant + Bar: This famous restaurant is known for their multi-course dinners, high end wine, and cooking classes. We didn’t originally plan to eat here, but after snacking at happy hour and grabbing a few drinks around town, we ended up back at the hotel a bit hungry. We split their famous truffle burger that they only make five of per day. It. was. life. changing. The porch at The ZG also became a favorite spot of ours for an after dinner glass of wine.

Tavern & Table: Although this is technically in Mt. Pleasant located in Shem Creek, it is a seven minute, $6 Uber ride from the Zero George and I HIGHLY recommend coming here for one night of your trip. Come early and bar hop at the bars next door to the restaurant and enjoy the beautiful waterfront. The food was outstanding and very fairly priced here, and the sunset view cannot be beat.

The Watch Rooftop at The Restoration Hotel: We split a light lunch here with a few beers. The food was fantastic and the views are stunning. I noticed a lot of groups here, so would be fun for a bachelorette brunch.

Fleet Landing: The only waterfront restaurant in the city of Charleston. I’m sure most locals consider this a “touristy” spot, but its one of my favorite lunch stops while I’m in town. The service is always friendly and nothing compares to being out on the water sipping rosé on a hot Charleston day! Try the hushpuppies and the fried green tomato sandwich. Also a fun spot to grab afternoon drinks.

*On my girls trip to Charleston last summer, we dined at many other amazing restaurants in the city! 

Where We Sipped:

Amazon $23 (!!) Jumpsuit, Sam Edelman Slides 

The Ordinary: We enjoyed pre-dinner cocktails in their courtyard – so romantic. This is definitely on my dinner list for our next visit.

Stars Rooftop: A fun place for late night cocktails and views! Definitely a fun young crowd.

The Rooftop Bar at The Venue Hotel: Perfect for pre-dinner drinks. I love the low key vibe of this rooftop, its always at the top of my must-visit list when I’m in town.

The Citrus Club at The Dewberry Hotel: A high end cocktail bar atop one of the most beautiful hotels in Charleston. They don’t accept reservations unless you’re staying at the hotel, so I suggest going on a week day. The aperol spritz (not on the menu) was the size of my head! A great place to watch the sunset.

Saltwater Cowboys: Right next to Tavern + Table in Shem Creek. This bar was hopping and so much fun! We grabbed bar seats right on the outdoor deck and enjoyed a local beer with “trash can” nachos. Vacation diet..right?

Oyster House: $5 Moscow Mules & $1 oysters/shrimp 7 days a week. Need I say more?

 

Can’t wait to be back in sweet South Carolina. 🙂