Beachwalker County Park

Located on Kiawah Island, is a wide sandy beach front with pristine sands and numerous attractions and excellent amenities.

For more information contact Beachwalker Park, 861 Riverland Drive, Charleston, SC 29412, phone (843) 768-2395 or 795-4FUN(4386) or go to www.beachparks.com/beachwalker.htm

Festival of Lights

his annual holiday festival at James Island County Park, Charleston, is a wonderfully exciting event with brilliant attractions for children and adults alike, is held from November to January. With such star attractions as Santa’s Village, Winter Wonderland, and Festival Train Rides, and not to forget the Enchanted Forest Walking Trail, it is a time for fun and excitement.

For more information, contact Charleston County Park And Recreation Commission, 861 Riverland Drive, Charleston, SC 29412. Phone (843) 762-2172 or go to www.ccprcevents.com/

Charleston Waterfront Park

Located in the historic downtown of Charleston, on the Charleston Harbour, this green park with beautiful fountains, old-fashioned park benches, and palm trees lining the walkways, is a perfect place to watch the ships coming and going. Children can splash about in the huge fountains, or play on the family-sized swings in the pavilion, while parents take a load off their feet and relax.

The Historic Homes Walk

The architecture of Charleston is a blend of early American and English style, and a number of these well-preserved homes were built in the mid-eighteenth century. The Historic Homes Walk is 1.5 miles long, and your guide will inform you of the lives and events surrounding the houses. Adult tickets are $25; tickets for children ages 7-14 are $20.

For more information phone (+) 1 800 729 3420, email info@charlestonwalks.com, or visit www.charlestonhousetours.com

Classic Carriage Tours

At Classic Carriage Tours, Inc., 10 Guignard Street, Charleston, SC 29401, you can take a ride in a carriage drawn by award-winning Percheron Draft Horses in a tradition that has lived on in Charleston for 300 years. Classic Carriage specializes in the restoration and the construction of 19th and 20th century carriages, surreys and wagons, and the horses are South Carolina and Georgia State Grand Champions. Private fares are $75 for 2 people, $85 for 3, and $95 for 4.

For more information phone (+) 1 843 853 3747, email bjc@classiccarriage.com or visit www.classiccarriage.com

Civil War Walk

Chris Phelps, author of ‘The Bombardment of Charleston’, will take you on a two-hour tour of places, people and events that were an integral part of the history of Charleston. Adult tickets are $15; tickets for children ages 7-14 are $8.

For more information phone (+) 1 800 729 3420, email info@charlestonwalks.com, or go to www.civilwarcharleston.com

Aiken-Rhett House

Located at 48 Elizabeth St., this historic house was built by the merchant John Robinson in 1818, and extended by Governor William Aiken and his wife, in the 1830’s. The property and its elegant furnishings and decor have been carefully preserved and look just as it did in 1858. Admission is $7.

For more information phone 843/723-1623, email lhandal@historiccharleston.org, or go to www.historiccharleston.org

Boone Hall Plantation

Located at Long Point Rd., Mt Pleasant, and open Apr-Labor Day Mon-Sat 8.30am-6.30pm, Sun 1-5pm; day after Labor Day-Mar Mon-Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 1-4pmAdmission $13 adults, $10 seniors 55 and over, $6 children. This unique plantation in Mt. Pleasant is approached by the majestic Avenue of Oaks that were planted in 1743 by Capt. Thomas Boone. Visitors can wander about the elegantly furnished first floor of the plantation house, see the circular smokehouse and see the slave cabins on the property.

For more information contact Boone Hall Plantation and Gardens, 1235 Long Point Road, PO Box 1554, Mt. Pleasant, SC 29465, Ph: (843) 884-4371, Fax: (843) 884-0475, Email: bhpsara@aol.com or go to www.boonehallplantation.com

Spoleto Festival, USA

Held in May/June, this massive annual celebration of the arts is an extravaganza of opera, music, theatre, dance, and visual arts, and brings over 20,000 people flooding in to Charleston, bringing the streets of the historic, old city to pulsating life. For more information phone the organisers at (+) 1 843 722 2764, fax (+) 1 843 723 6383 or write to PO Box 157, Charleston, SC 29402-0157.

Go to www.spoletousa.org

Charles Towne Landing

This is the original site of the first permanent English settlement in South Carolina, and was opened in 1970 to commemorate Charleston’s tricentennial.

The state park is home to indigenous animals that would have lived in the area in 1670. There is also a 17th century village showcasing the lives and types of buildings the original settlers might have constructed, and a 53ft replica of the trading ketch “Adventure”, that visitors may board and explore.

Located on Hwy. 171 between I-26 and Hwy. 17, about 3 miles from Downtown, the park is open 8.30-5.00 p.m. 7 days a week, and the admission fees are $5 for adults, $2.50 children 6-14. Children 5 and under are admitted free.

For more information phone (843) 852-4200,

go to www.discoversouthcarolina.com/stateparks/

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