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Charleston: Where To Stay, What To Do

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 15, 2009

Charleston is a walker's paradise, with narrow streets winding past 250-year-old mansions, sassy Southern restaurants and antique shops. At the Market, stroll through an open-air collection of small shops and flea market-style booths hawking everything from she-crab soup mixes to photographs of the Holy City's famed decorative iron gates designed by renowned African-American blacksmith Philip Simmons.

STAY: If you have access to a car, Mount Pleasant and Patriots Point offer hotels with room rates nearly $100 less than in Charleston proper. (I found two.) If you're hoofing it, the city is packed with options from bed & breakfasts to major hotels.

DO: The Market is an excellent bet, as is the Battery. Visit at least one plantation, such as the Magnolia Plantation at 3550 Ashley River Road ( www.magnoliaplantation.com). Check out the garden blog by Tom Johnson, the director of gardens, at www.magnoliaplantation.com. Click on "Horticulture 'Ask Tom'" then scroll down to link to his blog.

We enjoyed a horse-drawn carriage tour by Palmetto Carriage Works at 40 N. Market St. It may look cheesy, but after walking all over town you'll relish sitting back and hearing about Charleston's history from skillful tour guides - ours was an unemployed construction worker who spent months training and testing for this coveted position. The cost is $20 for adults; $12 for children.

The ghost tour offered by Bull Dog Tours is also fun. We strolled through graveyards learning about the undead, the snippets of white smoke caught on film that were supposedly ghosts, and a girl who was accidentally buried alive in the 18th century. My favorite story was about the spirits that screech in the middle of the night from inside the old jail. Across the street is a public housing complex where every door and window jam is painted light blue to ward off "haints." Surprisingly, there were a lot of children on this evening tour that begins at 7. Some kids seemed a bit spooked. Annabelle slept. Cost: $18.

For a bit of the quirky, stop by the humongous Angel Oak Tree on Johns Island. The 65-foot-tall live oak with an impressive circumference of 25 1/2 feet is thought by some to be 1,500 years old. The gift shop cashier said it was only about 250 years old. (For the record, my brother didn't believe her).

EAT: The Wreck of Richard & Charlene at 106 Haddrell St. in Mount Pleasant is the real deal for delicately fried shrimp and oysters; fat, grilled scallops and, of course, she-crab soup. No frilly drinks here, just beer and wine, and no time to fuss with credit cards or reservations. Ask a local how to find the place, and the owner about how the eatery got its name.

I have a local to thank for recommending me to Cru Cafe at 18 Pinckney St. in Charleston. No room for a stroller in this busy lunch spot, but great sandwiches like the shrimp B.L.T. with pepper jack cheese served on a crusty French loaf with a side of Asian slaw.

Another good choice: Hank's Seafood Restaurant in the Market district at 10 Hayne St. Yep, it's pricey, but you're worth it. Try the Low Country Bouillabaisse, a concoction of fresh fish, clams, oysters, mussels, shrimp and scallops in a light tomato, leek and garlic broth.

Or go for one of the specials; I passed on the shrimp and grits, opting instead for the grilled swordfish served with slow-simmered white beans, sundried tomatoes and capers. It was good, but I never got another chance to sample the Holy City's famous shrimp and grits. Next time. Annabelle's almost walking.

CONTACT the visitors bureau at www.charlestoncvb.com or call (843) 853-8000.

Sherri Ackerman

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