Historic, charming and boater-friendly Charleston, South Carolina, was just voted the number one city to visit in the United States by readers of Travel + Leisure – again. Charleston won the top spot in the magazine’s 2023 World’s Best Awards competition this year, for the 11th year on a row.
For anyone who’s been there, Charleston’s repeat performance is easy to understand. It offers a mixture of history, Southern charm, great restaurants, hotels, and antebellum homes almost all within walking distance of each other. And it’s always been a favorite stopping point for anyone cruising on the ICW on the Atlantic offshore, with large, welcoming marinas that also are not far from everything else in town.
Right now, Charleston’s restaurant scene is thriving, offering Southern cuisine including fried green tomatoes, shrimp and grits and she-crab soup. Foodies are writing about the biscuits from Callie’s Hot Little Biscuits and the deviled crabs from Dave’s Carry Out.
And some old favorites are still going strong. Magnolias still has such favorites as Lowcountry Bouillabaisse, and the Glass Onion is still serving its popular shrimp po boy and braised pork belly.
Some favorite visitor destinations include the Fort Sumpter National Monument, the Historic Charleston City Market, the Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum, and the Magnolia Plantation and Gardens.
For boaters, Charleston is an easy destination. From the Atlantic, you come in on a long, well-marked channel where the city’s skyline gradually emerges and you end up with a clear view of the Battery district at the juncture of the Ashley and Cooper Rivers that flank the town. You’ll pass Fort Sumpter on your port side where confederates fired the first shots of the Civil War on April 12, 1861. By that time Charleston was already one of the most important ports in the United States.
Charleston was founded in 1670 by English settlers who started the Carolina Colony at Charles Towne Landing. Today the city’s history is kept alive on its cobblestone streets, horse-drawn carriages and pastel antebellum houses in the Battery and the French Quarter.
The city is a natural stopping point for snowbirds or anyone else cruising in that part of the world. The airport is only about a 20-minute cab ride away, so crew changes are easy. The Safe Harbor Charleston City Marina (pictured) is at ICW mile marker 465, just past the Coast Guard station on the Ashley River. It’s a large, full-service marina with transient docks for boats up to 455 feet. And just a bit farther up the river, the Harborage at Ashley Marina has slips for boats up to 120 feet.
Read more: http://charlestoncvb.com
