My Travel Guide: 48 Hours In Charleston (With An Under 1-Year-Old)
Where to eat, stay, and walk if you're visiting Charleston with a baby
Yesterday, I crawled from under a bathroom stall at the Charleston airport. In the few seconds between realizing I was stuck and deciding to crawl under the stall, I laughed because it was the perfect cherry on top for a different kind of girls' weekend.
A few months ago, my sister-in-law and I decided to visit Charleston and knew my now 10-year-old niece would be our cute third wheel. I didn't know what to expect of this past weekend. I don't have children of my own yet. I considered how there isn't just a 30-year age gap between me and my tiniest fellow traveler; we also have different likes and dislikes. She likes Ms. Rachel; I like The Bear, she likes yogurt puffs, and I like creamer with a side of coffee. But as we went through the weekend, I realized we had much more in common than I initially expected.
Here's a breakdown of where we ate, stayed, and played. Everything was baby friendly, but also very adult oriented. I think this was possible because she’s only 10-months-old.
Friday Itinerary
We got into Charleston in the early afternoon. I requested an UberX (a mistake I learned from quickly because when you’re riding with a baby, it’s UberXL or bust), and we were on our way.
Hotel check-in
We checked into The Dewberry. This is when I learned it doesn’t matter how old you are; everyone loves a luxury hotel. Every hotel staff member was so sweet and accomodating. We had a pack-and-play set up in our room before even walking in. In addition to adult toiletries, the hotel also provided travel-size baby toiletries of the same brand Baby already uses. (A really lovely touch.)
Happy hour
After decompressing, we went to the hotel’s rooftop bar, Citrus Club, for an appetizer. It’s hard to say who loved the chips and dips more, us or baby. Fun fact: The Dewberry’s Citrus Club is the tallest Charleston rooftop bar. Their menu is expertly designed (if you’re a fan of mocktails, get the Dewberry Tea Spritz. It’s a mix of their proprietary tea blend, sparkling water, and agave, so delicious). I can also confirm they have more than enough room to navigate a stroller.
Tourist time
Once we finished our chips and drinks, we took towards King Street to get a lay of the land. We didn’t have much time between our walk and our 5:30 dinner reservation, so we prioritized window shopping, knowing we would go back to shop the next day. I know what you’re thinking, “5:30 reservation, it must be because of the baby,” and you would be mistaken. I love an early dinner reservation, especially when traveling, because they’re always easier to get at coveted restaurants.
Dinner
Our first dinner for three was at Magnolia’s. Baby fell asleep during our walk, and the restaurant staff didn’t fuss about accommodating her stroller. Once she woke up, they helped us easily swap her to a high chair. Feel free to explore the menu for your main, but as a starter, you need to get the fried green tomatoes. They serve the tomatoes over white cheddar and caramelized onion grits with country ham, tomato chutney, and perfectly creamy tomato butter. We ended up ordering an extra side of the grits and tomato butter for the baby because she was obsessed.
Saturday Itinerary
Brunch
We started the day later and had brunch at the hotel. Over the weekend, The Dewberry actually got its first Michelin Key, which is well deserved. Their Smashburger was phenomenal, and I had too many cheddar biscuits to count.
Afternoon exploring
This time, we took a slow walk down King Street. The streets are well paved for the stroller, but there were times we had to go single file to all fit, which is fine, but of note if you’re traveling with a double stroller.
Here are some of the stores we went inside. We started at Bodega for coffee, Sewing Down South (which is big for Craig/Southern Charm lovers), and went into Jeni’s for baby’s first ice cream. I bought some new fall pieces at Harvest Moon Home. My sister-in-law scored some really sweet baby clothes at Pink Chicken New York. We popped into Candlefish (which I’ve loved since my last Charleston visit) and LoveShackFancy. After all the shopping, the baby was pooped, so we went back to the hotel to reset before another 5:30 dinner reservation.
Dinner
Our last reservation of the trip was a table at Southbound, a live fire dining experience. From the moment we walked in, we had an impeccable time. They greeted us with champagne to celebrate my engagement and my sister-in-law's first girls' trip since giving birth. They gave us a beautiful corner table on the patio to accommodate the baby's stroller. My favorite part is the thought and creativity Southbound pours into their menu. Their drinks menu is a bounded book with the Beverage Director's why behind each pairing. Their food menu is reimagined daily and printed with the date atop, adding a beautiful personalized touch.
Off the menu that night, I had a passion fruit tequila drink that was so delicious. We shared grilled oysters, a vertical roots greens salad, grilled halibut over rice, potatoes, and brussel sprouts. Each dish was more exquisite than the last. The baby munched on bites of almost everything, too.
This dinner really underscored for me what breaking generational realities looks like: what took me 20+ years to experience took her ten months, a true blessing.
After dinner exploring
We still had a bit of daylight when we wrapped dinner, so we ventured to Rainbow Row so my sister in law and niece could experience a quintisential Charleston tourist must. The sun was setting when we got there, making for some frame-worthy pictures. The only negative of the experience was all the mosquitos that also visited Rainbow Row at the same time.
Sunday itinerary
Repacking and Brunch
We had a midday flight, so we didn’t venture far. After packing our bags, we had a full spread brunch downstairs to hold us over until dinnertime. This was our second full meal at the hotel, and we savored every bite. We got lobster benedict, buttermilk pancakes, a classic egg sandwich, and biscuits, plus we stowed a few in our bag to bring back to our boys.
Airport
On the way to Charleston, I carried the baby through TSA Precheck, and it was a complete breeze. On the way home, my sister in law took her through regular TSA, which only took about 10 minutes longer than my precheck line. The airport has no nursing rooms or dedicated family bathrooms, but we made do. During one of my bathroom breaks is when I had to shimmy from the bottom of the bathroom stall. I don’t recommend having to do this, but if you do, it’ll make for a great story. I’m happy to report that the baby slept through most flights, but even if she didn’t, I learned that the power of Ms. Rachel extends far.
Whenever I think about my love of travel and my future family, I wonder what traveling with a baby can look like. This was an amazing test run that filled me with faith that it’s more than doable, just as long as you’re flexible. I expanded my definition of “traveling,” while this meant fewer coffee shops, bookstore visits, and reservations, it also meant more walks, more fun shared meals, and more baby giggles.