I have to say that this trip to Charleston and Savannah was a last minute thing, but I am so glad that we went because both cities were absolutely beautiful. My travel buddy, Collins, and I were wanting to go somewhere new that we both hadn’t been before and she mentioned Charleston. Once we started talking and planning Charleston we decided to just add a day trip to Savannah on the itinerary since it’s only about an hour and a half away. At first we were going to fly, but we generally tend to overpack and we love a road trip, so we drove the 13 hours from Memphis. Looking back, I’d probably fly over driving as the drive was so long and boring, but it did give us the ability to have our car and go wherever we needed to on the trip.
Where We Stayed
Since there were three of us, it was kind of hard to find a hotel room with enough space in the older historic parts of Charleston. A lot of the cute bed and breakfast type places only had a double or king bed and while we all love each other, we don’t love each other that much! Ultimately we decided on an Air BNB in Mt. Pleasant right near the water. The Air BNB was a carriage house above a garage and had two bedrooms and plenty of room for all of our stuff. Plus it was decorated so beachy and coastal shabby chic so we felt like we were in a Coastal Living catalog.
Mt. Pleasant is located just across the bridge from Charleston so it was really easy to head over there ever day to explore. Plus the old town of Mt. Pleasant was adorable and the houses were insane. We spent hours just driving around and stalking all of the beautiful homes. The Air BNB is right by the water as well so if you wanted to walk to the docks and check things out you could easily be there in a short 5 minute trot.
Where We Ate
Tradd’s Charleston– Tradd’s was definitely one of the nicer places that we ate during our trip to Charleston and the food definitely did not disappoint. This restaurant serves traditional American classic food but what I thought was most cool about Tradd’s was the decor and the ambiance.
Coastal Crust Mt. Pleasant– we had the BEST pizzas from this little hidden gem in Mt. Pleasant. To be honest, we would have never found this if it weren’t for one of Julia from Gal Meets Glam’s posts. I am still dreaming about the veggie pizza that I devoured from here. There are plenty of outdoor seats if you are looking for somewhere casual to grab a bite to eat.
The Citrus Club at The Dewberry Charleston– Collins’ aunt was staying at The Dewberry and we met her here for drinks one night. Apparently this spot is very hard to get into as it is a reservation only bar and they save a large number of those reservations for people who stay at the hotel. It was a really cool vibe and had great views of Charleston from the terrace.
Basic Kitchen Charleston– Basic Kitchen was probably my favorite place that we ate during our entire trip. The vibe was so chill and the food was delicious. I got the kombucha to start and we all shared several appetizers. After our lunch we went out back where they have their own herb garden. The whole experience was great and I’d highly recommend this restaurant if you’ll be in Charleston.
The Grey Savannah– The Grey was so cool because it’s actually an old Greyhound bus station that has been transformed into a restaurant and bar. We dined in the front bar for lunch during our day trip to Savannah and had several appetizers. My favorite appetizer by far was the Ricotta Toast which consisted of buttermilk, rye, and satsuma marmelade.
What We Did
Carriage Tour– we took a carriage tour with Old South Carriage tours which took us around the historic areas of Charleston. This 40-minute evening carriage tour focuses on the settlers who built Charles Towne from 1680-1770 and defended it against the Spanish, French, Native Americans, and pirates.
Ghost Tour– one of the coolest things we did on our entire trip was to take a walking ghost tour with Ashley on the Cooper Tours. I would say this is more of a historical tour than an actual spooky ghost tour, as you walk around and learn stories of hauntings and happenings. We didn’t see anything paranormal on our tour, but our tour guide showed us pictures that past guests had taken that captured orbs and creepy things.
Shem Creek– Shem Creek flows through the heart of Mt. Pleasant and it was cool to park and explore in this area since it was so close to our Air BNB. We also really enjoyed walking the board walk. You will find several waterfront bars and restaurants as well as fishing, boating, kayaking, and paddleboarding.
Pictures
Perhaps one of my favorite activities to do in any city is just to walk around and explore with no agenda. We did plenty of this in both Charleston and Savannah where there were several parks, attractions, and things to do. We went looking for the Forest Gump Bench in Savannah and after googling we found out the actual bench from the movie had been moved to a museum, but we were still able to find a bench in the park for a photo. We really wanted to go on The Notebook tour and a Plantation tour, but we ran out of time.
Have you been to Charleston or Savannah, and if so, what were your favorite things about each city?