Today, I’m so excited to share all the details of our Charleston girls trip! I have been wanting to do a summer vacation or a long girls weekend in Charleston for years! There are so many things to squeeze in for a girls trip to Charleston! Here, I am going to share with you our Charleston itinerary – where to stay in Charleston, where to eat in Charleston, and how to plan for up to 4 days in Charleston, North Carolina. (At the end of the post, see my link for ideas on Charleston outfits.) Stock up on ideas ahead of your girls weekend in Charleston.
You’ll be scheduling your Charleston spa appointments, scheduling a day trip from Charleston to Mount Pleasant, packing for a day trip to Folly Beach, and narrowing down Charleston plantations to visit and other Charleston historic sites in no time!
This post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to buy something, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you. I use various programs to include affiliate links in my blog posts – such as the Amazon Associates Program and various travel partner programs – to earn from qualifying purchases. Also, some of the attractions we visited were sponsored during my visit to Charleston in exchange for my honest thoughts.
Our Charleston girls’ trip was in July. It hovered in the upper 90 degrees the whole time we were there. But we didn’t let that slow us down! Also, there were supposed to be three of us on this trip – the same three from our last girls trip. Unfortunately, on our day of air travel, one of my friends wound up with a canceled flight and no reasonable flight reschedule options. She wound up having to fly back home from her layover airport. It was a bummer for all of us, but my other friend and I had no choice but to press on since we were already on our way there on our respective flights.
I began planning this trip several months in advance, and I had a lot of help and pointers along the way. The helpful staff at Explore Charleston offered great dining recommendations and ideas for excursions. My friend Lauren from Lauren LaRowe Interior Design lived in Charleston up until recently. She offered great tips for all of her Charleston favorites. Additionally, a sweet Charleston local who sat beside me at the airport had many helpful tidbits to add to my Charleston itinerary. And, of course, I can’t leave off our Uber drivers who gave us lots of tips for our girls trip to Charleston once we were belted into their backseats.
Speaking of Uber drivers…do you need to rent a car to visit Charleston? That all depends on you. I don’t like driving in new places so I’m Team Uber. But for what we spend on our Ubers throughout the time, having a rental car in Charleston would have probably been just as affordable when split between my friend and myself and saved us some stress – as detailed below when we got stuck at one of the plantation’s after closing time.
Girls Weekend in Charleston: Where to Stay in Charleston? – The Ryder Hotel
If you want a truly organic experience during your Charleston weekend getaway, I recommend The Ryder Hotel, 100 percent! No doubt, this little chic boutique hotel packs a big punch!
The Ryder Hotel gives true minimalist boho vibes with its minimalist lobby and its laid back vintage sitting room.
Little Palm Bar at The Ryder Hotel
Little Palm is the poolside bar and restaurant at The Ryder Hotel. With its fun floral wallpaper and vintage furnishings on the inside and its boho style patio set up on the outside, this is the place to be when you are relaxing at the hotel!
Our Charleston Itinerary for a Charleston Girls Trip – 4 Full Days, 5 Nights
Best Things to Do in Charleston – Arrival, Night 1
- Check into the The Ryder Hotel. Check in is at 4 p.m.
- Stop into Little Palm for happy hour from 4 – 6 p.m.. Maybe there will be a live band a little later in the night as there was for us (check the website for live music events).
- Head to Husk Restaurant for a late dinner reservation. The menu changes daily and much of it is farm to table. Through the Husk website, set up reservations weeks in advance and ask for a table outside on the upstairs porch. It is so nice out there! The skillet cornbread appetizer is a must, and the drinks are locally brewed.
Girlfriend Tip #1: For most of the dining reservations and attractions in Charleston, you will want to set up reservations weeks in advance of your girls weekend in Charleston. Weeks, not days! Most reservations can be set up through the individual restaurant or attraction websites.
Girlfriend Tip #2: On the first night of travel (especially if traveling by plane), make your dinner reservations for as late as the restaurant will allow. This will help greatly if you have flight delays – as we did. Luckily, I made our Husk reservations for 9:30, and the timing worked out perfectly after our long day of travel delays.
Best Things to Do in Charleston – Day 1, Night 2
- Make yourself a cup of coffee down in The Ryder lobby so you can caffeine up as you get ready.
- Take a short walk to the Charleston City Market, you will find Callie’s Hot Little Biscuit. Here, try the multiple biscuits option or try one of the breakfast sandwiches – like the pimento cheese biscuit with blackberry jam.
- Spend several hours shopping in the Charleston market. Be sure to try on enough straw hats until you find the perfect Charleston-esque hat for all your Charleston adventures! Try a freshly-squeezed peach lemonade (if it is on the menu that day) or a regular squeezed lemonade. Be sure to marvel at the work of the artisans making the sweet grass baskets, one of the oldest African handcrafts in the United States today. One artisan told us it takes her around three days to make one medium sized basket.
- As you walk back to The Ryder to drop off your purchases, you might want to pop into some of the cute brick-and-mortar boutiques that line King Street, an upscale and busy street of shops, and other bustling streets in the historic downtown area.
- Freshen up in your hotel room before heading out again for the Charleston Museum which will be the opposite direction from your morning stops. After visiting the exhibits at the Charleston Museum, you will want to go across the street to the Joseph Manigault House and catch one of the guided tours of the property. These tours are held at particular hours. You will need tickets for this which can be purchased at Charleston Museum. In fact, you can purchase a package which will give you a ticket to the museum, the Joseph Manigault House, and the Heyward-Washington House, another historical site operated by the Charleston Museum. (If you are considering take a city bus tour, you might consider this City Bus Tour with Charleston Museum Admission to evaluate if it would save your any money or provide added convenience.)
- As you walk back toward the hotel, stop in at The Grand Bohemian Hotel Charleston right next door to The Ryder. (The Grand Bohemian is managed by the same group – Autograph Collection – that operates many other fabulous properties I have stayed in. Gorgeously artistic hotels! It feels like staying in a modern art gallery! On our next visit to Charleston, we may have to stay at The Grand Bohemian.) Go up to the fourth floor to the Charleston rooftop bar and restaurant called Eleve for a drink and appetizer. If you get there in the afternoon hours, you should not need a reservation. There are a lot of great rooftop bars in Charleston. This particular one really does give great views of the city.
- Go back to The Ryder and freshen up for a late evening dinner. If you time it right, you could pop into Little Palm for another drink before dinner.
- Call an Uber to head to your dinner reservations at Fleet Landing. At Fleet Landing, be sure to order the stuffed hushpuppies as a shareable appetizer. The crab cakes on the entree menu are wonderful, too. Finish it off with house-made key lime pie!
Girlfriend Tip #1: It was recommended to me to switch my Fleet Landing reservation to a lunch reservation so we could better view the water around the restaurant. We were unable to do this, but it might be something to consider on your trip. We enjoyed our evening at Fleet Landing and didn’t mind the darkness of the surrounding water. It is soothing to hear the waves – especially if you eat out on the patio.
Girlfriend Tip #2: Apparently, you can check out bikes from Ryder Hotel for free to ride around town. This is something I didn’t realize until the end of the trip. Take advantage of this perk!
Best Things to Do in Charleston – Day 2, Night 3
- Have coffee and pastries at the hotel as you get ready.
- Visit The Spa at Charleston Place for your pre-scheduled spa sessions at 8:00. (Yes, that’s early, but you have a big day ahead!)
- Request an Uber to take you on a day trip to Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (a town about eight miles out of Charleston). Have the Uber drop you off at Red’s Ice House in Shrem Creek.
- At Red’s Ice House, split a few appetizers – including the jalapeno appetizers. Or try the crab cake platter (yes, crab cakes again…because you can’t have too many crab cakes when in a coastal town!)
- Request an Uber to take you to Boone Hall Plantation which is in Mount Pleasant territory. Optionally, you can take a Boone Hall admission and bus tour which provided air-conditioned transportation with a tour. (Or do as we did and request an Uber to take you back toward Charleston to Middleton Place. But see my “girlfriend tip” listed below.) If you want to avoid the transportation hassles, you can book a self-guided tour with a 3-course lunch and transportation to and from Middleton Place. It will be a 15-20 minute ride so the Boone option is closer to Red’s if you are wanting to spend a longer time in Mount Pleasant.) Whether Middleton Place or Boone Hall, be sure to attend some of the guide-led tours so you can learn about these plantation properties. We attended the historical tour at Middleton, and it gave great insight to the historical significance of Middleton and of Charleston, in general.
- Once you have taken your pre-scheduled Uber or taxi back to The Ryder Hotel, take a few minutes to rest because you still have a big evening ahead!
- Call an Uber for your 8 p.m. dinner at Stars Rooftop and Grill Room. Either before or after your dinner, have a drink on the Stars rooftop bar and enjoy another high view of the city. For dinner at Stars, the steak frites with chimichurri is amazing!
- Call an Uber to take you from Stars to your pre-scheduled 9:30 p.m. haunted carriage ride. You have already paid so arrive on time or a bit early so you don’t get left behind! Be sure to have your selfie made with the majestic horse after the ride is over! (If you aren’t interested in the haunted carriage ride, you should definitely take the Old South Carriage Company historical carriage ride during the day. Those gorgeous Belgian Draft horses are incredible!)
- Walk a short distance to Henry’s on the Market, the oldest restaurant in Charleston, for some late evening drinks. If you schedule this right, you might arrive to an awesome band playing like we did! According to the website and Facebook page, there is a live band most every night. Go upstairs to visit another popular rooftop bar in Charleston.
- Call for an Uber to take you back to the hotel.
Girlfriend Tip #1: If you would rather just go out to the plantations on your own rather than taking a tour, you will want to use the scheduling tool on your Uber app, pre-schedule your Uber pick-up from Middleton Place or Boone Hall hours in advance. Because these locations are further out, Ubers can be hard to come by. We waited until the last minute and could not get an Uber. The nice workers at Middleton said we should have started trying to request at Uber no later than 3 p.m. (and we waited until 4:30 p.m.) Luckily, they handed us a paper with some local taxi services, and Paradise Taxi Service came and got us about 30 minutes later (which was 30 minutes after Middleton closed since we waited so late to call).
Girlfriend Tip #2: Wear a hat to the plantations. The sun and heat are fierce if you go during summer!
Girlfriend Tip #3: It has been highly recommended to us dinner at the Nico restaurant at Mt. Pleasant. Everyone from friends back home to our Uber driver recommended this place. Unfortunately, we had to leave the Mount Pleasant area well before Nico opened at 4 p.m. The owner also owns two other restaurants in the area – Bistronomy by Nico in Charleston and Laura in Summerville, South Carolina. Our Uber driver said he loves all three – especially Bistronomy.
Best Things to Do in Charleston – Day 3, Night 4
- Have coffee and pastries at the hotel as you get ready. (If you have time, you can also grab breakfast at Little Palm.)
- Call an Uber to take you to the Folly Beach Pier. Remember to arrive early so you can get good pictures before the sun rises too high in the sky. Check out my separate post on what to do in Folly Beach when you finish this post!
- Spend a half day or so at the beach before requesting Uber to take you back to the hotel.
- Rest up at the hotel for a while before having the front desk attendant call for a rickshaw from Charleston Rickshaw. You can also reserve through the company’s website. This is basically a Charleston pedicab or bike taxi.
- Ask the rickshaw driver to take you to The Battery, a seawall that stretches along the shore of the Charleston peninsula, and Rainbow Row, a street of historical colorful homes just near The Battery. Ask the driver to let you out on Rainbow Row so you can get pictures. Do the same when you get to The Battery. (Our driver told us his meter runs and charges $7 per person for every ten minutes. He said he didn’t mind waiting for us to get out and take pictures because the meter would run even when we were out of the cart. We were with our rickshaw driver for over an hour.)
- When finished, have the driver drop you off at Church and Union, just in time for your dinner reservations. This restaurant, once a church for sailors back in 1906, has evolved into many types of businesses over the years, finally landing as this amazing restaurant! Your mind will be busy taking in all the expressions of words and art around the building. We had the scratch-made ravioli with sausage at Church and Union, and it was phenomenal!
- Request an Uber to take you to your next reservation at The Honey Hive – a late night dessert and dessert cocktails restaurant. This place is gorgeous with so many fun touches, and we were impressed by the super friendly staff. (My friend and I each tried something different. Ultimately, we decided we should have shared one signature Kinsey cake with chocolate mousse.) No girls weekend in Charleston can be complete without fancy dessert!
Girlfriend Tip #1: If you are staying at The Ryder for your girls weekend in Charleston, you can check out beach blankets and a cooler from the front desk the morning of your day trip to Folly Beach. Then, you just check them back in when you return. This is a handy little perk! Occasionally, The Ryder has specials where you can get chairs and an umbrella at Folly Beach for free or for a discount with a particular hotel stay.
Best Things to Do in Charleston – Day 4, Night 5
- Breakfast around 8 a.m. at Another Broken Egg – just a short walk from the hotel.
- Request an Uber to drive you 25 miles out to South Carolina’s Cypress Gardens for a swamp boat tour. (You might recognize this place from the movie, The Notebook.)
- Have your Uber drop you off to your late lunch reservation at 82 Queen or Magnolias. (Both of these restaurants are highly raved about and touted as being “old Charleston.” You need to make reservations in advance!)
- Request an Uber to take you to the South Carolina Aquarium. Stay 1-2 hours – as long as it takes you to visit the all the fun exhibits. Buy tickets online. OR request an Uber to take you to the Gibbes Museum of Art. Enjoy yourself as you read up on the beautiful pieces featured in the museum. Buy tickets online.
- Return to The Ryder (walking from Gibbes or taking an Uber from the aquarium) and relax pool side for a bit before getting ready for dinner.
- Request an Uber to take you to your pre-reserved sunset cruise at 7 p.m. with Charleston Harbor Tours. (You will have paid in advance online so don’t be late!) On this 90-minute cruise, you will see many of the historical elements of Charleston – Fort Sumter, St. Michael’s Church, etc.
- Have Uber take you for your 9 p.m. dinner reservation at Bistronomy by Nico.
- Request an Uber to take you to your hotel area. Pop back into Eleve Rooftop Bar (in the Grand Bohemian Hotel) or Little Palm for one last drink before you and the girls head home the next day from your wonderful Charleston girls trip!
Final Girlfriend Tip: Maybe you do not have enough time on your girls weekend in Charleston, or you don’t have enough travel funds to cover all of these items on the itinerary. If so, I suggest skimming my Charleston itinerary for one casual breakfast spot, one nice lunch spot, one wonderful dinner spot, one museum, one plantation, and one tourist-style activity (ghost tour, rickshaw tour, or harbor cruise).
More Recommended Places to Visit in Charleston on Girls Trips
The bad thing about visiting a cool city like Charleston is you never have enough time to do everything! Here are some more recommendations that came our way while we were planning our Charleston girls trip. I wish we had time to cover them all! This just means we just need another girls weekend in Charleston!
More Places to Eat Around Charleston
The majority of these need reservations well in advance.
FIG (just across from The Ryder; reservations start around a month ahead of time)
Butcher and Bee (does not take reservations)
Chubby Fish (does not take reservations)
Hall’s Chophouse (Try the Sunday brunch with a side of live gospel music!)
Saltwater Cowboys (Mount Pleasant)
More Things to Do in Charleston and Surrounding Areas During Your Girls Weekend in Charleston
Schedule a Charleston tour with a photographer who will photograph your group at multiple stops! How fun!
Go on the Charleston Women and Wine Tour to get a more personalized feel for Charleston – all with a glass of wine in hand!
Visit Drayton Hall (13 miles outside of Charleston)
Look into Evening Walking Ghost Tours
Go on an afternoon dolphin cruise on a huge sailboat
Take Cooking Classes with Bob Waggoner
Sign up for this Cocktail Class in a Speakeasy
Walk and explore all the amazing architecture, doors, and window boxes.
If You Like This Girls Weekend in Charleston Post, Check Our Other Travel Guides
When you finish this girls weekend in Charleston post, move on to our other Charleston post – Charleston Outfit Ideas – before checking out some of our other travel ideas!
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And, there you have it! I hope you enjoyed my girls trip to Charleston itinerary and will find it helpful for planning your own girls weekend in Charleston trip! Would you add anything else?
Ruby
Charleston is in South Carolina. Great suggestions!