shop the look

a new post in the #lisstravels series! if you missed the first one, you can read it here! over 4^th of july weekend, we planned a trip to both savannah and charleston. after 24 hours in savannah, we rented a car and drove to charleston. we had heard so many amazing things about charleston and it definitely lived up to the hype.

i would recommend at least a weekend here. maybe 3-4 days if you plan on doing a lot of historic tours. if you’re like me and you like just staring at houses and eating, a long weekend is a perfect amount of time!

charleston weekend itinerary:

A SOUTHERN BRUNCH

we arrived in charleston and checked-in to the king charles inn. this hotel is the absolute perfect location in charleston. it is easy to walk everywhere and very centrall locations. the manager shalee gave us a tour of the newly-renovated hotel when we arrived. it is gorgeous! our room wasn’t ready yet, so she recommended lunch at jestine’s, which was just a block away.

at jestine’s, the line was wrapped around the block so we knew it was good! we ordered the fried chicken and pimiento cheese sandwich, and of course, sweet tea. no meal in the south is complete without sweet tea. the food is definitely worth the wait, and i think we ate every single crumb. i have also heard great things about the hominy grill if you are looking for a southern brunch spot. their “charleston nasty” is legendary!

WALK THE BATTERY AND WHITE POINT GARDEN

we left brunch and “pounded the pavement” as we like to call it. tony was very excited to see the ocean so we headed straight for the water. we walked through white point garden, a nice park by the battery. we also walked along the battery, reading historical facts as we went. the battery is the large wall around charleston that at one time was used for defense. there are also gorgeous homes and views of fort sumter. 

CHECK OUT RAINBOW ROW

a trip to charleston is incomplete with a trip down rainbow row. this is the most crowded and touristy part of charleston, but it’s a must. snap a few cute photos and keep on your way. if you wait until later in the day, the buildings will be more in the shade (better photos) and the crowds will have died down.

SHOP THE CITY MARKET

we wandered through the historic city market next. the market is open air and literally huge. you could spend hours just walking through the shops. there are also food vendors if you are hungry for a snack. maybe a hot little biscuit? more on that later! tony picked up a straw hat and we also purchased some souvenirs. this is definitely a tourist spot, but i recommend if you like to do souvenir shopping.

SHOP KING STREET

king street is the main drag in charleston. there are bars, restaurants, and shops. there are a number of cute boutiques that i browsed through. to be honest, it was so hot that i couldn’t get myself to try anything on! we were just dripping, so i thought hmm better not put these clothes on…  

DINNER AT HUSK

i absolutely love to watch top chef. any other fans out there? this past season took place in charleston and featured so many charleston restaurants and chefs. top chef is one of the things that got me so excited for this trip!

anyway, one of the frequent judges last season was sean brock, the chef and owner of husk in charleston. i knew we had to eat at husk in charleston. just knew it! when i tried to get reservations, they were all booked up. we did the next best thing and ate at the husk bar.

if you know me, you know i am a burger connoisseur. this one is excellent! tony had the fried chicken and we shared the pimiento cheese appetizer. we could not get enough pimiento cheese in charleston. ate it everywhere! the bar also just has good vibes, so even if you are eating somewhere else, i would stop in for a drink. or two. i hope to make it to the actual restaurant next time. #goals

EAT A HOT LITTLE BISCUIT

the next morning we walked over to callie’s hot little biscuit for some fresh hot biscuits. this was one of the highlights of the trip. we loved it so much… we went here twice. they had the most delicious biscuits with different fillings. i highly recommend! there is one on king street and also one in the city market also. i think it may be a chain? not sure, but definitely hit this up!

A DAY AT THE BEACH

after biscuits we drove to sullivan’s island for some beach time. there are a few beaches in the charleston area, but we decided on sullivan’s island because it’s more residential. we like to look at real estate while traveling, so we thought it would be fun to go and see beach houses.

after a few hours on the beach, we went to the downtown area of sullivan’s island. we stopped at home team barbeque for some drinks. i had one of their famous ‘gamechangers’ which is like a painkiller. i loved the vibe of the bar and the town, and would definitely go back!

HAPPY HOUR AT THE KING CHARLES INN

we arrived back at the king charles inn and got ready for the evening. the king charles inn has a happy hour with complementary appetizers. tony had a beer and i had a glass of wine, and it was a great way to start our evening. we got to talk to the sales director ________ who was a pleasure to talk to. he really showed us southern hospitality!

DINNER AT THE DARLING OYSTER BAR

for our final dinner in charleston, we went to the darling oyster bar. i had been wanting to get seafood for days at this point, but because tony is allergic to shellfish i try to stay away from it. but the last night i was craving it! i ordered local oysters from south carolina and the ‘salty gal’ oyster was so delicious. tony had fried chicken (again!) and he enjoyed it (again!) he ended up eating 11 pieces of fried chicken in 36 hours. he counted. i didn’t hear him complaining though!!

we can’t wait to visit charleston again. it was such a fabulous trip!!