4 Day Long Weekend in Charleston in the Rain

We just returned from our long weekend in Charleston, South Carolina for a getaway sans kids! This was my first time leaving both boys (we previously went to Washington when Liam was one). As I spend most of my time with them, it feels strange to be without them. Everyone did great though, and it was nice to get away for a bit! Jack and I took the boys for walk after a full day of being back home and he said, “I think I appreciate the vacation even more after coming back”. Anyone with little ones (or bigger kids I’m sure) knows the reality that returns when you’re fixing meals, back to the routine, doing laundry, and playing catch up. Anyways, while we were in Charleston, it unfortunately rained a majority of the time we were there! We’ve had amazing luck with weather and travel in the past, so I think we were due for some not-so-ideal weather. We made the most of it and hope sharing what we did on our long weekend in Charleston can help you if you find yourself in a similar situation!

Day 1:

We landed at CHS in Charleston which is conveniently close to downtown and many of the other sites that we wanted to see. After we got off the plane and got our rental car, we ventured to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens since the forecast was sunny. The plantation and gardens were absolutely beautiful! In the spring time, the pictures look unreal with all of the flowers in bloom. It was still straight out of a fairytale as you can see in the picture below. Side note: this would be a great family/kid friendly place. They had a wildlife center with ducks, goats, and deer walking around, as well as other animals to see. There were also pumpkins everywhere for fall which my kids are really into right now!

After visiting this plantation, we drove to our Vrbo, and it was the perfect place/location for us. There are so many restaurants within walking distance and it was very reasonable priced (which is hard to come by in Charleston as we didn’t want to break the bank!). We ate dinner at Saltwater Cowboys and really enjoyed eating on the dock. The “trashcan nachos” with pulled pork were delicious! Also, Jack and I agreed that they may have had the best piece of toast we’ve ever had- just soaked in buttery goodness. Definitely recommend going!

Day 2

Sadly, it rained most of our second day in Charleston. We spent the morning shopping at a few different places (found a HomeGoods/Masrhsalls close by!). We ate leftovers and made lunch at our house, and once the rain let up a little, we went were able to visit the Boone Hall Plantations and Gardens. Even though it was still misting, this was an easy place to visit with a little rain. We were able to tour the stables and the first floor of the plantation house, visit the slave cabins, walk through gardens and some of the property, and marvel at the beautiful Avenue of Oaks. They are even prettier in person! After our visit, we went back to freshen up for dinner at Crave Kitchen and Cocktails. The gnocchi was good and the atmosphere was nice, but our appetizer, drinks, and main course were all at our table within 10 minutes of ordering so it wasn’t quite the relaxed dinner without kids that we were hoping for.

Day 3

This was supposed to be our “cloudy and not rainy day” according to the weather app, so we headed downtown Charleston to finally explore the city. We visited the Charleston City Market which was really fun to see all of the different vendors and local handmade items. We also walked to the infamous Pineapple Fountain, The Battery, Rainbow Row, and wandered through the streets of beautiful homes and architecture. I could have spent way more time here, but then came the steady rain…so we decided to eat a late lunch at Church and Union. We loved the atmosphere and the food was great. They had just ran out of the cheese when we tried to order, but the “Southern Pimento Cheese” appetizer with “lavash chips” looked amazing.

After lunch we treated ourselves to some Jeni’s Ice Cream which was delicious (actually had this twice on our trip). The rest of the afternoon we went back to the house and played games, had conversations without any interruptions (“hey mom I’m trying to talk to you!”), and read- it was much needed. Some of our favorite two-player games that are easy to travel with are Blink, Skip-Bo and Phase 10, and Qwixx. For dinner, we walked about 100 yards to the Coastal Crust for some yummy pizza. This was another restaurant that would have been great for kids as it was all outdoor seating and had a playground right next to the tables. We would go there again!

Day 4:

Luckily, we woke up and the sun decided to peak through the clouds a bit. We drove to Sullivan’s Island to go for a walk along the beach. The small restaurants around Sullivan’s Island were cute, and the beach itself was beautiful and clean. We then took advantage of the weather and went back downtown Charleston to walk along King Street. The shops range from high end stores to an upscale small Target. One of my favorites stores we went in was Candlefish. This store was beautifully decorated and smelled amazing! I purchased a necklace there and had the fun surprise of picking out a free small candle from the hundreds of scents they have to choose from. They also have a candle-making class there which would be so fun for a girls weekend, mother-daughter trip, or bachelorette party. Then we made our way back to the airport. It was a great short long weekend in Charleston! I hope this gives you some ideas to do on your next trip!

Check out more of our travel itineraries and must haves here!