Seeing The Sights, Doing The Things In Georgia And South Carolina

/ Ally Bean

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Statue of cute cherubs playing music, presumably happy, in Middleton Place Plantation garden.

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“There’s no rush.”

I can think of no better words to describe a fun vacation.  Not that we didn’t do anything while in Georgia and South Carolina.  We did lots, but we did it at our own pace, in our own way.

This was unusual for us because our vacations in the last decade or so have revolved around other people or business obligations or complicated air travel.

But this time, my gentle readers, Zen-Den and I were totally on our own to do what we wanted to do.

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We flew into Atlanta, rented a car, then drove to Savannah, GA, where we stayed for a few nights.  Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Savannah is a charming town made famous by the book and movie, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

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The lovely, inviting beach on Tybee Island.

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As we remembered from being in Savannah years ago, the people who we met were helpful + polite, the nearby beach on Tybee Island was clean + beautiful, and the vibe, everywhere, was mellow.  I loved it all.

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Fancy walkway over a shallow swamp on Hilton Head Island.

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After Savannah, we drove north to Charleston, SC, stopping on Hilton Head Island, SC, for lunch.  Hilton Head has a smooth, upscale, planned feel to it.  Fun to visit, we’ve been there before, but it never calls to me like it does to so many people who live around me here in Ohio, who adore it there in South Carolina.

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Beautifully maintained brick homes in the French Quarter of Charleston.

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In Charleston, SC, we stayed in a hotel in the downtown historic district.  If you like to walk then this is a convenient way to be close to hundreds of restaurants + bars + shops.  My impression of this part of Charleston was that it was almost perfectly Disney-esque, but with panhandlers and uneven walking surfaces.  Looked gorgeous, but watch your step.

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Serene view of wood pilings and the river seen while sitting in Charleston’s Waterfront Park.

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While we were in the Charleston area we went to a fort, a museum, an island, a park.  We ate seafood, drank iced tea, and looked at architecture– everywhere.  The weather was sunny and the people were, as reported, friendly.

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A cute sail boat, seemingly with nowhere to go, floating along the shore of Sullivan Island.

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After Charleston we drove back to Atlanta, GA, for a day.  Because the weather had turned cold and wet, we wanted to be inside so we went to the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library & Museum.  It was fascinating, informative, well-organized, and pleasant to wander through.

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And on that note, we left Atlanta the next day returning home on an easy mid-morning flight that was a little over an hour long.  

A flight on which we both were pre-approved by the TSA, meaning that, for once in my life, there was no fuss + no problems involved with air travel.

Imagine that, if you can.

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An alligator swimming away from me in a pond at Middleton Place Plantation garden, lending credence to the saying: “see you later, alligator.”

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64 thoughts on “Seeing The Sights, Doing The Things In Georgia And South Carolina”

  1. That looks like a good trip all around Ally, and a lot of fun with so much to see. My love of brick homes has me going back to look over that photo you posted…dreaming—

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    • Deb, all the brick homes were to die for! Charleston was every bit as beautiful as I’d been lead to believe it would be. It effortlessly combines old architecture with a new vibrant feel. Great fun to see.

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  4. It sounds like you had a great time! We visited those areas on a road trip several years ago and enjoyed them very much. Not being rushed is a great way to travel. I’ve only been to one presidential library (Harry Truman’s) and was very pleasantly surprised with how informative it was. I will definitely visit others when I have the chance.

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    • Janis, the whole road trip experience was a throw back for us. We usually fly somewhere– and then stick in one place. It was fun to be on our own, rambling around again.

      One of my travel goals is to see all the presidential libraries. I’ve wanted to do that for years, so what better place to start than with Jimmy’s?

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  5. Your trip sounds wonderful. So glad you got to do the TSA precheck. That makes a world of difference when flying! I love Savannah for it’s history and art; just a beautiful place to visit! And Charleston has got to be one of my favorite cities. Our middle son graduated from College of Charleston, so we’ve been there many times and loved it each time. It does get very hot in the summer, though, so it’s much better to visit other times of the year. Living in SC is the best!

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    • Beth, we had a great time on our own. I like Savannah, the people, the beach, the art, the mellow feel to it all. Not at all what I deal with every day here in the big city.

      I enjoyed Charleston, too. I wondered about the weather. In early May it was glorious, in the 80s during the day with endless blue sky. I’d like to go back because there was so much more to see [and eat] that we missed.

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  7. Charleston is still on my List; I started getting the bug after reading MitGoGaE–what a great book! And I’m a fiend for architectural tours, 19th century history, all that stuff. I’ve just never gotten around to it yet. Thanks for the Vicarious Tour, anyway!

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    • nance, I’m sure that you’d like both Savannah and Charleston. They’re charming in a way that oozes history and stories and life lived full. Plus the food and drink is plentiful, and fresh. *yum*

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  8. I’ve enjoyed Hilton Head, but it isn’t my ‘go-to’ beach either. Love Savannah and Charleston has some of the best she-crab soup imaginable (if that’s your sort of thing). Glad you are having a great time!

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    • Allie P, Savannah and Charleston are more quirky and authentic, which calls to me more than Hilton Head. To be fair, I don’t dislike Hilton Head. It’s lovely… just not my thing.

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  9. We went to Hilton Head once on a spring break when it wasn’t busy. I’ve never felt the need to go back. Maybe part of it is because since it was the off-season, there wasn’t as much going on, but I just expected to like it more after hearing so much about it. I wish we’d taken a day trip to Savannah though. Sounds like a nice city.

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    • Carrie, so many friends and neighbors adore Hilton Head. They have second homes there or plan to retire there. I hear all about it, and am happy for them. But I prefer a less structured, more eclectic look to my vacation destinations. To each their own, eh?

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      • For sure. It was nice to see once, but I don’t need to return. I prefer Old Orchard Beach in Maine where my stepdad has a tiny (and I mean tiny) condo on the beach. I haven’t been there for a while though. I always feel bad asking to stay there, though he’s super generous with letting people have it for a week. It’s a fun beach resort with a great pier area with lots of shops, restaurants, and carnival rides. Less upscale than Hilton Head which makes it seem more real, if that makes sense. Guess we never really grow up. 🙂

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        • I’ve been to Maine twice. Both trips involved going to LL Bean, of course. [They have retail stores everywhere so not such a big deal now, but back then it was.]

          Old Orchard Beach sounds like my kind of place. I get what you’re saying about Hilton Head– nice but too intense for me. However, a pier with carnie rides would be my kind of mellow fun.

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  10. Beautiful! I’m so glad you had a relaxing vacation! The happiness, I feel it for you!
    Having lived an hour from Savannah, I do agree Savannah proper is beautiful. I prefer Jekyll to Tybee though. Not big on Hilton Head, either.
    But Charleston, ooh, I love Charleston 🙂 That’s a foodie city!

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    • joey, I thought of you as we drove around. I knew you used to live somewhere in GA. Someone Z-D knows through business recommended Tybee Island. Next time we’ll give Jekyll a look-see.

      Charleston is something else, indeed. I liked it there, and hope to go back. So many more versions of crab cakes to try…

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  11. What beautiful pictures! Thanks for sharing your vacation! We have friends who live in South Carolina but we have never visited them. Love TSA when traveling. Congrats on that.

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    • Janet, I enjoyed SC. It’s very southern, from the people to the food to the pine/palm/palmetto trees everywhere. Great place to visit if you like history and gardens. And yes, the pre-check was a win-win.

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  12. Sounds like such a lovely time. Had to smile a bit at the mention of Hilton Head being a big deal to Ohians. Growing up in OH, HH was always the place to go for spring break, not that I ever did. I wasn’t a cool kid. Glad it wasn’t spring break while you were there! Nice for you with the short, easy flight!

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    • Betsy, I don’t know what it is about Hilton Head Island and Ohio, but it screams “come visit me” to many of my fellow buckeyes. I’ve been there twice now, so I’ve seen it… and can move on to visiting other places.

      The problem-free flight home was the cherry on the sundae of this vacation. My experiences with air travel don’t usually end this well, so *yay!*

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        • You get pre-approved in one of two ways.

          1) It’s a random “gift” to you from the TSA because they have, for some reason, deemed you worthy. That’s what happened to us.

          2) You can purchase a pre-approved pass that is good on domestic flights. As I understand it, this requires filling out forms, being interviewed by some bureaucrat at the airport– and paying some money to the TSA. I’ve never done this, but have entertained the idea.

          [Also, fwiw, there’s an international version of this pass that allows you to re-enter the USA without going through customs.]

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  15. Sounds like you had a great time. We went through Savannah when I won a trip to Hilton Head, but I’ve never actually visited there. You’re right, Hilton Head is like a planned community, but it’s pretty nice there, anyway.

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    • John, we had a good time. Overall the weather was great and the cities we visited were interesting. I’m sure I’d like Hilton Head quite a bit if I won a trip there! 😉

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  16. Sometimes I think it doesn’t really matter where you go – as long as you get time away with your main squeeze to unwind and recharge. It sounds like it perfect for you and exactly what you needed 🙂

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    • Joanne, I agree. It was just the two of us doing something different that made this vacation as enjoyable as it was. We could have gone to the middle of nowhere and had a good time of it. Not being home was what we needed.

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  18. Your vacation sounds perfect, and definitely one I would like. SC is one of the few places in the south that I would like to visit. (although I do not like alligators!)Maybe some day I’ll get there!!

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    • Margaret, I think that you’d enjoy seeing Charleston, and maybe Savannah, too. There’s an amazing sense of history in both cities, plus they are 180º different from where you live so they’d be an eye-opener for you.

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    • David, I appreciate you thinking of me, but I no longer do any of the award things. I enjoy reading what everyone else writes, but am too lazy to do so myself. However I’ll be sure to check out what you said. No doubt, it’ll be good.

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      • Hi Ally, No worries and I completely understand! Thanks for the thumbs up – getting the right balance was hard…

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  20. Sounds like a wonderful trip to me! I visited Charleston several years ago and found it warm and beautiful, buggie with amazing food in the restaurants and lots of bars and pretty water scenes. I liked hearing it from your perspective-your photos were great.

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    • Roughwighting, I knew that Charleston would be fun + pretty to visit, but didn’t know what to expect. I imagine that being there in early May was a good idea because there was no humidity and bugs. You said it about the bars– they were everywhere. 🙂

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  21. So many vacations are so crazed, but this sounds perfect. I love Savannah and Charleston for aimlessly walking around, especially with those big drooping Spanish moss covered trees.

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    • Sheila, you said it about crazed vacations. Ours usually are, but this time we moseyed and meandered. I agree about the Spanish moss on the trees, it encouraged aimlessness. I really enjoyed seeing the SE coastal region of the country, and would like to go back again someday.

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    • Kate, both cities were loads of fun. I’d like to go back around Christmastime to see how they do it up. No doubt it’d be spectacular– and think of the food…

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