Travel makes my heart whole. Now that our boys are older, I’ve made it a point to travel a few times each year – sometimes family-of-four, sometimes just Ben and I, and sometimes with lady friends. Earlier this month, my gal pal and fellow photographer Samantha Melanson and I jetted out to Charleston for a long weekend. A little winter refresh just before our 2018 wedding season starts up.
As soon as we arrived we had to ask ourselves why we hadn’t come sooner. And definitely agreed we would head down more often. It’s a short two hour direct flight from Boston. We booked through JetBlue Vacations and got an insane deal on flight + hotel. I’m sharing our favorite spots and travel tips so read on if you’re planning a trip to Charleston!
Ok so first, there is an AMAZING little spot called The Daily. If you like bread, make it a priority to go here. It’s on King St, but a bit further down. I have never in my life had toast like this. It was so good that we took a Lyft on our last day in Charleston to go back before we left.
One of my favorite things about Charleston is how strollable it is. Sam and I had our Fuji x100f cameras in hand for pictures just for us. The architecture and colors in Charleston are so charming. We wandered past Rainbow Row (a stretch of colorful houses), down King Street and along Market Street taking in the buildings and stopping in shops. This is a HUGE treat for a mama.
Sam thought it was important that we were present in our travel pictures. As a girl who prefers to be behind the camera, it was a stretch at first, but I’m so glad we did it and I highly recommend. We had little photo shoots throughout the city one afternoon, stopping at any building that inspired us and it was a blast.
I love food. Especially sweets…we stumbled on Byrd’s Cookies and wow am I glad we did. Try their Key Lime Pie cookie. I’m normally chocolate-all-the-way, but in this case, these cookies win everything. So good I came home with a box for the boys, for my mom, and an order form to buy more!
Charleston has several incredible rooftop bars. We visited (and loved!) three: Vendue, The Skinny Dip, The Watch.
Let’s chat about where we stayed for a sec. Our original trip intention was to go somewhere resort and relax by the pool. We managed to find a magical place across the harbor downtown Charleston that gave us the best of both worlds – access to an adorable city AND poolside relaxation. Charleston Harbor Beach Resort. I would definitely recommend and absolutely stay here again. The downsides of this resort are that it is about a 10 minute ride from downtown Charleston – or a 10-minute water taxi – and breakfast was pretty much non-existent. But I think the plusses outweigh the negatives by a lot. Shuttles to Charleston & the beach are included, the coffee is fantastic and you can’t beat the pool scene complete with full-service tiki bar. Order a frose. You won’t regret it.
Favorite restaurants & bars:
Paw Paws – our first stop and it was amazing. Food, ambiance, drinks. On King St
Amen – seafood & ambiance, on King St
The Skinny Dip – cutest secluded rooftop bar with swing, the service was less than friendly which was disappointing because it seems like a total girl-haven, but the ambiance outweighed the icy reception we received with our Froses. 🙂 Oh, also, they’re only open until 6 so plan to head there early.
The Gin Joint – we sat outside and loved it. Met some great people. We ordered specialty drinks and both wished we had gone with the “say 2 descriptive words and we’ll make you a  custom cocktail” option. The drinks were definitely unique but both really sweet.
Husk – this is supposed to be the best restaurant in town. We didn’t make it because we realized sadly that you have to make reservations about a month in advance, no joke. So plan ahead and make those resos!
The Daily – definitely go here. The toast is mind-blowing. I never thought I’d feel that way about toast. The lattes are great too, and the place is adorable.
Carmella’s – dessert & ambiance
The Watch – rooftop bar, food & drinks
Vendue – rooftop bar
Ok, did you enjoy this post? This is my first travel post, and I’m happy to share more if you found it interesting! Leave some love in the comments if you liked!
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