I Took a CosmoTrip to Charleston, and It Was Filled With Coastal Grandmother Vibes

2022-08-15

Charleston is HOT right now, and I’m not just talking about the temperature. A literal record-breaking number of tourists came to the Holy City in 2021, and it’s easy to understand why: The food, the drinks, the food, the architecture, the food, and the weather are so on point…and did I mention the food? Whether you prefer oysters, shrimp and grits, or lobster rolls—or, yes, even if you don’t like seafood—Charleston has your next favorite meal. And your next favorite cocktail. And your next favorite ~adorable~ hotel. And your next favorite cobblestone street.

Basically, Charleston is charming as hell and has your next favorite everything….which is why we had to make it one of the destinations for CosmoTrips, our new travel-booking biz where we plan trips for you and your friends and you do absolutely zero work (you can even book through Klarna and pay in four installments, so you don’t have to worry about throwing down $ all at once). The city is made for cute and fun girls’ weekends that will help you live out your coastal grandmother dreams, a fact I can 100% confirm based on my own recent trip there to help vet the CosmoTrips itineraries.

Here’s what I loved the most while I was down there…aka what you’ll likely do if you book your own CosmoTrip to Charleston. A quick FYI, though: There are multiple itineraries based on which themed trip you book, so don’t expect your trip to look exactly like mine below, which is basically just a mash-up of all of them.

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Where You’ll Stay

Depending on your itinerary, you’ll either stay at Hotel Emeline or The Ryder Hotel (both adorable boutique spots). I stayed at Hotel Emeline, and it did NOT disappoint. Most of the decor is either green or wooden, and honestly, it’s so pretty that I wanted to buy all the furniture for myself, even though that giant green velvet headboard definitely will *not* fit into my tiny apartment.

There are lots of ways to eat, drink, and soak up the sun without ever leaving the hotel, too. Stop by the in-house Italian restaurant Frannie and the Fox—which has a super-cute outdoor courtyard, as well as indoor seating—for breakfast, dinner, or ~~happy hour~~ aperitivo, or grab a coffee and a breakfast sandwich at the in-house café Clerks Coffee Company before heading out to explore.

BTW: Emeline is super centrally located, basically right next door to the Historic Charleston City Market, so you can go your whole trip without taking an Uber. Just make sure to pack shoes you can walk in!

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What You’ll Do

Ride a bike around historic Charleston

The Emeline offers bike reservations, and I definitely recommend taking them up on that (The Ryder offers them as well). Be sure to take a few photos/videos of yourself riding the cutest bicycle you’ve ever seen (complete with a giant basket, of course) around historic Charleston. There are plenty of other great photo opps along the way, too, like the giant Pineapple Fountain (literally exactly what it sounds like: a fountain shaped like a pineapple) or the pastel-colored homes of Rainbow Row.

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Take a Secret Food Tour of Charleston

Bring an empty stomach so you can try tons of local dishes on this guided Secret Food Tour, where you’ll visit lots of local restaurants and shops like Queology, Crab Shack, Byrd’s Famous Cookies, Well Hung Vineyard, and Savannah’s Candy Kitchen. Food highlights include pulled pork sliders, she-crab soup, and turtle gophers (don’t worry, it’s chocolate). You’ll also learn a thing or two about Charleston’s history and culture, like how the recipe for bene wafer cookies has been passed down from the Gullah people for hundreds of years.

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Enjoy a sunset sail on the Schooner Pride

You can’t leave Charleston without spending some time on the water, and a sunset sail through Charleston Harbor is probably the chillest way to do so—especially since CosmoTrips will hook you UP (the 84-foot Schooner Pride is very sweet). Chat with your friends and look for dolphins as you sail (yes I saw one, yes it moved too fast for me to catch on camera). You can sip a canned rosé, beer, or hard seltzer as you go.

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Learn about wine at Vintage Lounge

Level up your wine knowledge at Vintage Lounge, a glam and cavernous space that will make you feel très chic. The activity comes with a blind tasting lesson where you try to guess a wine’s grape variety, country of origin, and vintage (and no, “This is a red” doesn’t count), and you also get to learn about cheese pairings (aka snack on fancy cheeses as you learn which cava pairs best with Saint Angel fromage).

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Where to Eat

Basic Kitchen

Don’t be fooled by the name—Basic Kitchen is basic only in the “uses local produce to create delicious meals that aren’t overly complicated” kind of way. Although there are some meat and fish dishes, the menu is plant-focused, offering creative items like the “corn ribs” (“slices” of corn on the cob with a dry rub and vegan white sauce).

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The Darling Oyster Bar

Whether you’re a proud oyster girl or you prefer scallops or crab cakes, the Darling Oyster Bar offers all the fresh seafood you could imagine. I am not an oyster girl, but the server let me order a single oyster so I could check…and decide that I would much prefer a lobster roll.

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The Watch

Found at the rooftop of the Reservation Hotel, the Watch offers fancy versions of Southern staples like deviled eggs, pimento cheese, and watermelon salad. My fave: the shrimp tacos. Don’t forget the cocktail list, either!

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