Travel Blog | Charleston, SC | May 2018

Last year we officially marked Charleston, SC. off of our bucket list!

I had been talking and dreaming of visiting Charleston for years. I wanted to visit this beautiful place of history, it’s gorgeous homes, rainbow row and stunning alleyways more than I could put into words. This trip wasn’t necessarily planned though.

One of my 2018 brides had requested to do a bridal session. I had dreamed of photographing a wedding or bridal session in Charleston ever since I became serious about photography. So, I went out on a limb and asked if she would be willing to do her bridal session in Charleston, SC and she agreed!! I immediately wanted to wrap this girl up in a hug! Not only was I getting to mark this trip off of my bucket list but I was also getting to photograph one of my dream sessions.

As the day of our trip approached I was getting more and more excited. My husband, ehh not so much lol! He was more excited for me than he was excited for the trip, but he ended up having a great time! I had done some research online and on Pinterest of places that I wanted to visit and photograph. We had found some hidden gem restaurants that we wanted to visit as well! Any trip that we have taken we have always used VRBO (vacation rentals by owner) for our condo/place to stay. Which is exactly what we did with this trip.

We decided to stay in Summerville, SC which is about 30 minutes away from Charleston. We arrived late Thursday evening and walked up the steps to where we would be staying for the weekend. We walked in and immediately felt at home. The owners had used decor to incorporate the small town feel and beauty of Summerville, SC. They even had a list of suggestions of things to do and places to eat. Not to mention there was a beautiful claw foot tub!

Friday, May 4th - This was our adventure day! We woke up early enough to grab some breakfast from a little restaurant right down the road (walking distance) from our condo - Eva’s. Eva’s had the BEST sweet tea and was truly a southern home town restaurant! From Eva’s we decided to drive over to Charleston to spend the rest of our day. The instant we parked I instantly knew exactly where I was heading…Rainbow Row. I had googled, researched, followed Instagram accounts and pinterested about this special spot on East Bay Street. We walked along several different streets along the way and we finally made it. I stood across the street from Rainbow Row and just took everything in. The homes that were full of color that held so much history, the horse drawn carriage tours, the sound of the ocean behind me…it was more than what I could have ever hoped for. After taking a few (50-60) images of these colorful homes, our next stop was to visit some of the places I had saved to my “Charleston” Pinterest board: Longitude Lane, Stoll’s Alley (my favorite), Unitarian Church, Tradd Street, Poogan’s Porch and a hidden garden.

Every single location in Charleston is beautiful. Whether you walk down a main road or take a stroll down an alleyway. My photographer heart was over the moon! After we visited the Unitarian Church (which is absolutely stunning by the way) we stopped to eat at Poogan’s Porch on Queen Street for lunch. From everything that I read online this was a local must, and I can easily see why. Everything was great! The food, the drinks and the atmosphere. 10 out of 10 will visit again! The rest of the day we spent exploring different streets, grabbing a couple ice creams and stopping for photos every few feet lol! We ended our day with dinner at The Icehouse. Located in Summerville, walking distance from our Condo, this restaurant was the perfect way to end our day. We sat down for dinner on the back patio and it honestly felt like you were having dinner at your friend’s house. If you are planning to visit Summerville or Charleston you have to make a stop here, I promise you will not regret it!

Saturday, May 5th - Super busy day. Sunrise, walking along the beach, Morris Island lighthouse, the Angel Oak, a short nap and finally the bridal session! We knew that we were going to be right near the ocean when we visited Charleston. So we chose to visit Folly Beach…at sunrise. This was about a 50 minute drive from where we were staying. We woke up, got dressed, I grabbed my camera gear and we headed out the door. As we were driving along the bridge I was biting nails that we were going to miss the sunrise. The sky kept getting lighter and lighter. With camera bag and flip flops in hand as soon as we parked I power walked to the beach. I was determined to catch this sunrise. This was another first for me and was also a first for my husband and I . My toes touched the sand just as the sun peaked across the top of the horizon. I was anxiously trying to find the best spot to photograph what I was seeing in front of me. Sadly, the photos just do not do it justice. There is something about being on the beach at sunrise that is so serene and calming. Definitely a must do at some point during your lifetime. After the sunrise we spent a few hours walking up and down the beach collecting seashells and looking for shark teeth. Once we had gathered all of the seashells we could hold we packed things up and headed over to see the lighthouse on Morris Island. We spent just a short amount of time here before heading to the Angel Oak. From Morris Island to the Angel Oak tree it was a 40 minute drive, from the Angel Oak tree back to Charleston it was about a 30 minute drive. We spent a lot of time on the road this day. But hey, I was ready to see and do all the things! Lol! We wrapped things up on Chelsea’s bridal portraits and called it a day. Once again, we headed to The Icehouse for dinner.

Sunday, May 6th - Our last day…a weekend that went by way too quickly. We woke up that morning and packed all of our things. Decided that we wanted to spend just a little more time in the town of Summerville before we headed back home. We went back to Eva’s for breakfast, walked just down the street to see the world’s largest glass of sweet tea, then said goodbye to the small town that had stolen our hearts. It was just a weekend trip but it has been one of our favorites. From rainbow row to The Icehouse for dinner every night I can’t wait to do it all again one day.