Power Hour Guide to Charleston

Your team is having a meeting in Charleston, South Carolina this year and you’re pumped. You’ve heard so many great things about this Southern gem of a city and now you’re on your way, on the company’s dime no less! There’s only one problem. Your agenda is completely full with meetings and off-site activities that you’ll have no time to actually experience the city you’re in.

I’ve got your back. Charleston is too amazing of a place to miss or to leave to tourist trap chance. So I’ve put together a Power Hour agenda for you to get a truly local experience of the city if you can just escape for 60 minutes. So skip the breakfast, pop out at lunch, or forget checking emails during the break before dinner. Instead, get the local flavor of the #1 City in the World in the most efficient and effective way possible.

Here is your Charleston Power Hour agenda:

5 minutes: HISTORY

Drive or Uber down the Battery, past Rainbow Row (starting on Lockwood, ending on East Bay). Get your beauty and history fill looking at the gorgeous homes on Charleston’s most famous street. Hop out to look at a plaque or two for some bonus Civil War history.

10 minutes: ART

Stop at Queen Street and pop into Robert Lange Studios, the best art gallery in the city. The walls represent contemporary paintings from the most talented local artists who also happen to be wonderful human beings. Meet some of them painting in the space, take in the welcoming vibe, and enjoy a quick load off your feet in the hanging swing.

15 minutes: DRINK

There’s one bar for every four people in Charleston, so you can’t go too long without a drink. Walk up the street two blocks to the Husk bar (note: this is a separate building from the restaurant, which gets all the national hype, but the bar is where it’s at). Let them know you’re on the clock and order any bourbon drink from their list of 150+ bourbons.

30 minutes: EAT

The best thing you can do in Charleston is eat. I’m a huge foodie and will boldly say that we have the best restaurants in the country that easily rival anything you’d find in New York or San Francisco. It pains me when business travelers who are here for such a short time eat at a bad place. There are so many amazing spots to choose from, but for this Power Hour agenda, I’m going to suggest you drive or Uber up the Peninsula a few miles and get the Double Tavern Burger with Garlic Truffle Fries at Little Jack’s. You don’t need a rezzie (although you can call ahead to be extra efficient). Locally loved, valet parking across the street, and rightfully written up in all the national press…this one checks all the boxes!

There you go. One hour in Charleston. The best way to get a true local experience when your business agenda is full. And of course, most importantly, at least four glorious instagram posts to make everyone who didn’t make it insanely jealous.