Friday, April 22, 2016

Five Kid-Friendly Charleston Favorites

This week, we had Mike's family in town.  His sister, cousin, and her three kids made the 14 hour trip from Connecticut for their spring break.  Since I have such a small family, Mike's family has become so important to me: his sister was my Maid of Honor, and his cousin's kids were our flower girl (and goddaughter!) and ushers at our wedding.  It was so nice to have them here, and it gave us the perfect excuse to play tourists in our own city.  What was awesome for us is that these kids love history and national parks!  They've taken road trips all around the country to see different parks and love the kids' programs where they can answer questions and do different activities through the park to earn special "Junior Ranger" badges.  Leading up to their trip, it was fun to think about all the different things we could do, and while they were here, we narrowed our activities down to these five things, which I think are perfect for any family's trip to Charleston!  Happy Five on Friday:

1. Fort Sumter: The boat ride itself was a blast for the kids.  They loved standing outside and getting blown over by the wind.  This park has a great Junior Ranger program, and the kids ran from sign to sign filling out their packets.  They learned a lot, and the views are fantastic!
2. City Market: We initially planned a quick walk through the market after grabbing a slice of pizza and on our way to free candy samples at Charleston Candy Kitchen (pralines - yum!), but the kids loved it so much that we spent nearly an hour there.  They loved all the different vendors, especially the ones with puzzles, stuffed animals, and tee shirts.

3. Waterfront Park: After our free candy, we took a walk over to Vendue Range to check out the water.  The Park has bench swings on the boardwalk and two fountains that kids can play in.  It was a bit cooler, so the kids didn't run through the bigger fountain, but they loved wading in the Pineapple Fountain.
4. Charles Towne Landing: Click here to check out my full post on the Landing, but for the kids, the best parts were the museum (Crazy, right? It's interactive, concise, and colorful - perfect for them.), Animal Forest Trail, Adventure ship, and gift shop!
5. Eat!  While these kids were great sports and loved all the history and experiences, the one thing they are not adventurous with is food.  We wanted to bring Mike's sister and cousin to places with great Charleston fare, but when the kids tend to stick to hot dogs, grilled cheese, and the occasional chicken finger.  Luckily, we found a good number of kid-friendly places: Sesame Burgers, Five Loaves Cafe, Queen Street Grocery, Callie's Hot Little Biscuit, Waffle House, and Poe's Tavern.
And just because, here are five honorable mention spots that we didn't make it to this time, but are definitely on the to-do list for the next trip: South Carolina Aquarium, Magnolia Plantation, Boone Hall Plantation, Children's Museum of the Lowcountry, and Wild Blue Ropes.

17 comments:

Jenn said...

Charleston is such an awesome city! I'm glad there are so many kid-friendly things to do, too!

Brenda @ Chatting Over Chocolate said...

I love that you are so close with Mike's family! That's wonderful!! Ok, you sold me on Charleston...I'm packing! ;) Fantastic post, Meg!! Thanks for sharing all the family fun and charm of your city!
xo - Brenda // Chatting Over Chocolate

Cara (Kindly Unspoken) said...

Wow, so many fun things to do and see! It looks like a good time was had by all :)

Pamela {Sequins and Sea Breezes} said...

I love and miss Charleston! Especially the food! I didn't know you could wade in the Pineapple Fountain either! Fun! <3, Pamela Sequins & Sea Breezes

BLovedBoston said...

What a fun filled family week! I'm sure being down there helped them realize why you guys want to stay there! xo, Biana -BlovedBoston

Carly said...

Love this post! We usually go to Charleston for a day when we go to Hilton Head, but it would be fun to bring some of our nieces and nephews with us, since we're usually all down there together.

Emily said...

So much fun in one trip! I've heard amazing things about Charles Town Landing---isn't it so fun playing host(ess) in such a fun city?!

Jen said...

How fun!!!! It looks like you guys had a great time with family. :)

Rebecca Jo said...

We are always on the hunt for good kid areas for when the grandkids come. You never know if its a cool place or if they're going to be "SO BORED" there ;) haha

Kelsey @ The Peacock Roost said...

I've heard awesome things about Fort Sumter! Looks like you all had tons of fun!
Kelsey
www.thepeacockroost.com

Christina Lea Loves said...

Enjoy the family visit - I hope you guys have the best time!

Nikki @ makeupHER said...

How fun! I would totally do all of these activities, kids or no kids lol!

Emily @ Martinis | Bikinis said...

I've always wanted to see that pineapple fountain and of course eat all the amazing food that I hear Charleston has to offer. Hopefully I'll make it there soon!

The Lowcountry Mama said...

The children's museum is so cute! We went last week. I've been meaning to check out Charles Towne Landing forever now!

Ashley @ A Cute Angle said...

Such a great city with lots to do. Hope you had a great time with family!

Ashley
acutelifestyle.blogspot.com

arress said...

We enjoyed visiting Charleston, 2 years ago. I would love to return.

Nicole said...

Thank you for this post! Now that we live on the East Coast, Charleston is on our travel list. However, I know nothing about Charleston! This blog post is perfect because we will have kids to entertain :)

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