Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Charleston: Boat Cruise & Seeing Sights


Two weeks ago today we took off for South Carolina to celebrate our second anniversary.  The first stop was Charleston and second stop was Kiawah Island.  I'd been to Charleston for my bachelorette party but never to Kiawah and it was Derek's first time to both.  It was an easy flight and we loved both the places we visited - having two days to enjoy each.

We stayed at The Restoration, a boutique hotel just off of King Street.  We loved the hotel because it used to be condos so we had a spacious amount of room to work with - the balcony was my favorite part for sure.  Another plus was that they brought you complimentary breakfast in a picnic basket each morning at the time of your choosing.


Derek had a few anniversary treats waiting in the room and I loved them all.


We got into town just in time for an anniversary dinner.  After a little time at the hotel we walked down King Street over to Grill 225 for a delicious steak meal.


For our first day we decided to do a boat cruise to see Charleston from the water the do a little wandering around on our own.


After the cruise we stopped off for lunch at The Vendue Hotel Rooftop - we can never pass up a good rooftop and seeing the city from up there was perfect.


To finish off the afternoon of sightseeing we explored the classic sights like Rainbow Row and The Battery.


Our hotel had a happy hour each night in the lobby with wine and cheese so we took advantage of that and enjoyed ours out in the little courtyard area.


For our meals we went with all places that we could walk to so dinner was at Hank's Seafood then went to the Market Pavillion Hotel to enjoy a drink on that rooftop (see a trend?!)  


We finished the night at Kaminsky's for some adult milkshakes which were delicious.


21 comments:

  1. Loving all the Lilly you rocked on your trip- it's the perfect city for it :) your hotel looks gorgeous- I will have to check it out for my next trip!

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  2. It looks like a great time! Charleston is one of the best cities! We are going back in February for a friend's wedding and we're totally looking forward to it!

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  3. Your hotel looks and sounds amazing! Sounds like you hit all the hot spots - I love being able to walk to meals when vacationing!

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  4. Charleston is such a neat city. I love all of the history there. We were there for a day while on vacation over the summer. We spent a week at Seabrook Island and loved it. My husband rode his bicycle on Kiawah Island and said it's a pretty place.

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  5. I wouldn't mind an apartment decorated like that hotel room! Glad you could make a trip to Charleston together. My husband and I have never been as a purely romantic trip (only for family visits); I hope we can go soon.

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  6. Charleston is one of the best cities! So glad you had a great time- and can never go wrong with happy hour + rooftop bars :)

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  7. Happy Anniversary! Looks like a wonderful weekend :)

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  8. Hey Christina! I'm new here and love your blog :) I'm headed to Charleston with my husband for our 2 year anni as well in November. What was the name of the boat cruise you guys did? Also did you need to rent a car to get to Kiwah island?

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    1. Hi Tara - we were on the Carolina Belle - if you just google Charleston Harbor Tours it'll come up. Yes, we did rent a car - it's a very nice 40 minute drive away!

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  9. happy anniversary you two! i LOVE that hotel - what amazing attention to detail too. and rooftop drinks for the win! and ending with milkshakes - perfect :)

    xoxo cheshire kat

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  10. I hear Charleston in amazing. It looks like you guys had a great time. I really enjoyed your pictures. Happy Anniversary!

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  11. Umm... that hotel? Pretty sure that I'll be booking our January trip to Charleston in that place! It looks so nice! Glad that y'all enjoyed Charleston (and my favorite rooftop Vendue bar) while you were there... but you know I'm more excited to read about your stay on Kiawah :)

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  12. Complimentary breakfast in a picnic basket?! Yes please, super cute! I can't believe I still haven't been to Charleston, and it's only a few hours away by car. Hoping that'll change in 2017 <3
    Green Fashionista

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  13. This looks so fun!! The views are beautiful & I'm glad you all had a great time!
    Kelsey
    www.thepeacockroost.com

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  14. Charleston is so much fun! Love the place you stayed!
    Sarah at MeetTheShaneyfelts

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  15. Charleston is amazing. One of my favorite places! That hotel you guys stayed in looks so nice. We will have to check that one out the next time we go. I would love to leave the kids and B and I have a weekend there together! It's such a romantic place!

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  16. How fun!! And that hotel looks amazing- the picnic baskets are too cute. I'll definitely have to check it out next time I go :)

    xo, Kristina

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  17. How much fun!! Your hotel looks soo cool! Glad y'all had a fun time - Charleston is the absolute best :)

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  18. Adult milkshakes?! Sounds fabulous. We're going to Charleston in November, so I'll definitely be referencing this post when planning our trip! Glad you had a good anniversary trip!

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  19. Um, how awesome is your hotel?! Glad you had a fun first part of your trip - it looks like you had beautiful weather!

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  20. Love all there rooftop meals. Sounds delicious! We're talking about going to Charleston in the next couple weeks to tour Fort Sumter.

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