Low-Country Charm

This 341-year-old city welcomes cruisers with true Southern hospitality.

Waterways are an integral part of life in Charleston, South Carolina. Home to the East Coast’s fourth largest shipping port as well as a growing cruise ship port of call, the busy harbor is also home to tour boats, shrimp boats, and innumerable recreational boats. Cruisers are frequent and welcome visitors.
Charleston is located halfway between the Chesapeake Bay and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on the Intracoastal Waterway. Its many marinas and several boatyards make it a handy stopover point. Entry to the port from offshore is straightforward since there is a well-marked ship channel through stone jetties. There are some shoals in the harbor but they are well marked.
But it’s almost impossible to experience Charleston to its fullest in only a day or two. Many transient cruisers find themselves leaving their boats in town for a month or so, using them as private B&Bs while they check out the local attractions. (Boats may stay in South Carolina for 180 days before becoming liable for property taxes.) Days can be filled with tours…carriage rides, boat tours, walking tours, pirate tours and ghost walks. Visitors often limit themselves to the historic district but there is so much more to explore.

Start at the Charleston Visitor’s Center at Meeting and John Streets for a wealth of information about the entire area. You will learn that the English arrived by ship to settle Charles Towne in 1670, followed soon after by French Huguenots fleeing religious persecution at home. These early settlers melded with the Spanish, Indians, and African slaves to form the vibrant culture unique to the local “Low Country” called “Gullah”. While at the Visitor’s Center, you can watch a short film to acquaint yourself with the history and layout of the city.
Downtown Charleston lies on a peninsula between the Ashley and Cooper rivers. A boat tour along the Battery on the Cooper River side gives a unique view of the antebellum mansions built by merchants for easy access to arriving ships. Return to walk the cobblestone streets built from the rocks used as ship’s ballast and peek into hidden gardens. You can explore some of the old homes that are open to the public south of Broad Street and along The Battery. Another downtown site worth a stop is the newly renovated Dock Street Theatre, the first building in the U.S. designed specifically for theatrical performances.
Charleston is known as the “Holy City” because of its many historic churches. Across Dock Street from the theater is the French Huguenot Church, also known as the Church of Tides because the plantation and farming families upriver used to come to church on the outgoing tide and return home on the incoming tide.
You can also visit the Old Exchange Building, which used to house a prison, and the old Market, which is the best spot to see sweet-grass weavers at work. Stop into the Spice & Tea Exchange to smell its heavenly scent. The new Liberty Square houses the South Carolina Aquarium, shops and restaurants. Tour boats run from there to Fort Sumter, where U.S. Park Service Rangers lead an interesting tour of the resilient fort. Cadets from The Citadel (the Military College of South Carolina) fired on the fort in the opening salvos of the Civil War.
Do take time to venture beyond the Peninsula.  At Charles Towne Landing, on the west bank of the Ashley River where the English first settled, visitors can glimpse life in the 1670s, and experience a day in the life of a sailor on the Adventure, a replica of a 17th century ketch docked in Old Towne Creek.
Farther up the Ashley River are the great plantations. Magnolia Plantation & Garden is the oldest public garden in the country. Try the Nature Boat Tour to see the old flooded rice fields and wild wetlands. Middleton Plantation is much more formal but well-worth seeing. A number of companies also offer eco-tours by boat and kayak.
Marinas are plentiful. The Isle of Palms Marina (iop.net) and Charleston Harbor Resort and Marina (charlestonharborresort.com) offer dockage on the Mount Pleasant side of the harbor. A water taxi can take you from there to downtown Charleston. On the peninsula, choices include the City Marina (charlestoncitymarina.com) and the Harbourage  on the Ashley River (theharborageatashleymarina.com), and the Charleston Maritime Center (843-853-3624) and Seabreeze Marina (843-853-0932) on the Cooper River. The Cooper River Marina (ccprc.com) is farther upriver on the Old Navy Base.
Cruisers who like a quieter berth might consider docking in St. John’s Yacht Harbor  (stjohnsyachtharbor.com) on the Stono River, just beyond Elliott Cut.
If your boat needs a little more attention than just dockage, several boatyards are in the vicinity, including the City Boatyard on the Wando River, Pierside Boatworks on the Cooper River in the Old Navy Base, and Ross Marine on Johns Island on the Stono River (which is the ICW at that point). Numerous marine services are also available in town, from canvas and sail repair to engine repairs and propeller work.
Provisioning is easy. City Marina has a shuttle to the downtown Harris Teeter grocery store and is within walking distance of Crosby’s Fish Market. On Saturdays, from April to Christmas, check out the Farmer’s Market in Marion Square for fresh produce, interesting artwork and crafts, and food vendors whose wares include beignets (French doughnuts) and crêpes. Besides history and hospitality, Charleston is justly known for its restaurants. It’s too hard to narrow the list down to just a few, but some don’t-miss spots include the Hominy Grill with its modern take on traditional Low Country dishes like shrimp & grits. Sailors at the recent Charleston Race Week were thrilled with the hearty breakfasts. Fleet Landing is fun for lunch and dinner with tables looking over the Cooper River—a great spot to watch the Fourth of July Fireworks and the Christmas Boat Parade.
Festivals are an ongoing part of Charleston life, starting with the Southeast Wildlife Expo in February and the Wine & Food Festival in early March, then continuing with Historic Charleston’s House & Garden Tours from mid-March through mid-April, Charleston Race Week in April, Charleston Harborfest in May, and Spoleto Festval USA (a music and performing arts series) in late May through mid-June. For anglers, the South Carolina Governor’s Cup Billfish series takes place from May through July.
As you can see, a visit to Charleston can be as relaxing or as bustling as you want to make it.