South Carolina (SC)

Coastal South Carolina

Things to Do in Charleston

Things to Do in Charleston, SC - Charleston Attractions

Things to Do in Charleston

Ways to tour Charleston

Book these experiences for a close-up look at Charleston.

BEST SELLER
Charleston’s Old South Carriage Historic Horse & Carriage Tour
2,984
City Tours
from $45.00 per adult
LIKELY TO SELL OUT*
Charleston Harbor History Day-Time or Sunset Boat Cruise
1,179
Water Tours
from $36.89 per adult
Ghosts of Charleston Night-Time Walking Tour with Unitarian Church Graveyard
701
City Tours
from $35.00 per adult
BEST SELLER
2-Hour Historic Charleston Guided Sightseeing Walking Tour
1,066
City Tours
from $21.06 per adult
Savor the Flavors of Charleston Walking Food Tour
308
City Tours
from $95.00 per adult
Haunted Evening Horse and Carriage Tour of Charleston
835
Private and Luxury
from $45.00 per adult
Charleston See-It-All Sightseeing Bus Tour
316
Bus Tours
from $34.00 per adult
LIKELY TO SELL OUT*
Charleston Marsh Eco Boat Cruise with stop at Morris Island Lighthouse
516
Day Cruises
from $54.00 per adult
Charleston Ghost & Graveyard Night-Time Guided Walking Tour
376
Night Tours
from $39.50 per adult
LIKELY TO SELL OUT*
Middleton Place All-Access Admission & Guided Tour with Lunch from Charleston
122
Bus Tours
from $120.90 per adult

Historical Tours

Top Attractions in Charleston

1. Middleton Place

Historic Sites • Points of Interest & Landmarks

These are said to be the oldest landscaped gardens in America.

2. Joe Riley Waterfront Park

Points of Interest & Landmarks • Parks

This award "recognizes a distinguished landscape architecture project completed between 15 and 50 years ago that…

3. Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge

Bridges

The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge replaced Charleston's former Cooper River Bridges, and forever changed imagery of our…

4. Fort Sumter National Monument

Historic Sites • Military Bases & Facilities

The Park Rangers provide insight into the assault upon the fort which triggered the bloodiest war in our nation’s…

5. McLeod Plantation Historic Site

Historic Sites • Points of Interest & Landmarks

McCleod is a microcosm of the history of race relations in the south - from pre-Civil War to the 1990s.

6. Battery & White Point Gardens

Gardens

Charlestowne

By firstladyluv

The Park itself tells stories of Charleston's History and the Civil War through the statues and monuments.

7. Nathaniel Russell House

Historic Sites • History Museums

Charlestowne

By DeanMurphy2020

Amid formal gardens, NRH is one of America’s most important neoclassical dwellings declared a National Historic…

8. Old Exchange & Provost Dungeon

History Museums

Charlestowne

The Exchange (built in 1768) is one of the last formal structures Britain constructed in Colonial America.

9. South Carolina Aquarium

Aquariums

The museum has aquatic wildlife native to South Carolina swamps, rovers and coastline from alligators to seagoing…

10. Magnolia Plantation & Gardens

Historic Sites • Gardens

This is the 500 acre remnant of the original 2,000 acre Drayton plantation, founded in 1676, and it’s now being run by…

11. Pineapple Fountain

Points of Interest & Landmarks • Fountains

French Quarter

By TreeHugger54

It has a unique design and welcomes visitors to the City of Charleston.

12. Charleston City Market

Points of Interest & Landmarks • Flea & Street Markets

By V6437QPfrankk

It is the Cultural Heart of Charleston since 1804 and a National Historic Landmark.

13. Old Slave Mart Museum

History Museums

French Quarter

The museum located in the historical district of Charleston re-enforces the major role this city had in the promotion…

14. Aiken-Rhett House

Historic Sites

A house which is being maintained and kept to illustrate the life of people in Charleston back in the nineteenth…

15. Charleston Visitor Center

Visitor Centers

This modern well lit center houses a host of readily accessible information about Charleston's history, helping you…

16. Drayton Hall

Historic Sites • Points of Interest & Landmarks

Admission tickets from $23.98

By evamariacampo

Known as the only real authentic preserved plantation, Drayton Hall is actually on major restoration process.

17. Charles Towne Landing State Historic Site

Historic Sites

This park preserves the original site of the first permanent settlement in SC.

18. The Black Fedora Comedy Mystery Theatre

Theaters

This unique interactive theater is nestled in the heart of Church street a stones throw away from the famous Market.

19. Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist

Architectural Buildings • Religious Sites

They tell the stories in the life of Jesus and cause one to think upon faith.

20. The Charleston Museum

Historic Sites • Natural History Museums

By HaveSuitcaseWillTrvl

The collections at the oldest museum in the United States span local, national, world and natural history.

21. The Citadel

Universities & Schools

Originally founded in 1842, this State college is one of the few remaining full time Corps of Cadets institutions in…

22. Rainbow Row

Points of Interest & Landmarks

Charlestowne

By ashleydS3630ZP

The heart of every Charleston image captured in recent history, rainbow row tells the story of the spirit of the city!

23. St. Michael's Church

Historic Sites • Religious Sites

Charlestowne

By travelgalAvon

This is the oldest surviving religious structure in Charleston circa 1751 and George Washington worshiped here.

24. Magnolia Cemetery

Cemeteries

By Navigator15385

This is majestic cementery located about 1/2 mile from the East Bay and Meeting Streets convergence.

25. College of Charleston

Universities & Schools

An ambudance of historically significant buildings and architecture nestled in the heart of downtown Charleston.

26. Heyward-Washington House

Historic Sites • History Museums

Charlestowne

The Georgian-style double house was acquired by the Charleston Museum in 1929 and opened the following year as…

27. Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim

Religious Sites

Downtown

This is the home of the oldest Jewish congregation in the south (third oldest in the country), and it's history is the…

28. Edmondston-Alston House

Speciality Museums

Charlestowne

Remaining within, and still occupied by, the original Alston Family, this exquisite mansion showcases historical…

29. Dock Street Theater

Theaters

French Quarter

We visited America's First Theater and bought tickets to watch Steel Magnolias.

30. Circular Congregational Church

Churches & Cathedrals

French Quarter

By 748courtneyn

Learned about this on the carriage tour.

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City Tours

Walking Tours

Cruises, Sailing & Water Tours

Food, Wine & Nightlife

Private & Custom Tours

Cultural Tours

Ghost & Vampire Tours

*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.

Frequently Asked Questions about Charleston

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