Travel back in time to discover one of America’s most historic cities—Charleston, South Carolina—on this guided walking tour. Visit points of interest including Charleston City Hall; the Dock Street Theatre, America’s first theatre; the Old Exchange Building, South Carolina's most historic building; White Point Garden, in the heart of Charleston’s historic district with a spectacular view of Fort Sumter, and many more.

Take a walking tour of Charleston, South Carolina
Visit many of the city’s historic points of interest
Enjoy a great view of Fort Sumter
Fun for the entire family

What's Included

2-Hour Sightseeing Walking Tour of Historic Charleston
Professional & Licensed Local Guide
Stroll through the quaint and charming streets of the historic district
Learn about the history and events that shaped Charleston
Explore notable sites in the French Quarter
Several popular points of interest including Rainbow Row
Explore the residential area "South of Broad"
Admission to the Powder Magazine Museum is included with the price of your walking tour

Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

80 Broad St, Charleston, SC 29401, USA
Please arrive 15 minutes prior to tour start time. All tours begin on time. Because there are multiple tour guides leaving from this location, please contact us directly if there are members of your group booked under a different name that you need to be together with.

End point

South of Broad, Charleston, SC 29401, USA
The end location will vary depending on the guide and route taken, but they will always walk you back to the start if requested.

What To Expect

This Charleston sightseeing experience takes you on a thorough tour of the city’s historic district, which would be difficult to cover if you were on your own with a guidebook. Plus, this is a group tour, so you can meet a few new folks along the way, too.

This Charleston tour is only around two hours, so that leaves plenty of time left in the day to organize other activities.

Aim to meet your group and guide at an easy-to-find location in the Charleston Historic District around 15 minutes before your departure time to keep things running smoothly. Make your way, on foot, to explore its hot spots, bursting with stories of the past.

Since you have a live guide, listen to anecdotes and some Charleston secrets along the way. Pass by several important sites, making stops at several. Specific locations will change, depending on the day.

Do bring a water bottle, since there aren’t many places to purchase water. Also, wear weather-appropriate clothing, since this tour runs rain or shine.

Your Charleston walking tour ends and leaves you in the city's South of Broad neighborhood.

Charleston City Hall

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

French Quarter

45 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Rainbow Row

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Battery & White Point Gardens

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Wheelchair accessible
Comfortable walking shoes and a water bottle are strongly advised
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed
Near public transportation
Not recommended for travelers with back problems

No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
Most travelers can participate
This tour operates in all weather conditions. Please check the forecast prior to the tour.
Please contact us directly if members of your group are booked under a different name so that we can assign you all to the same tour guide.
Please arrive 15 minutes prior to tour start time.
Water is not provided and there are very few places to purchase water along the tour, so please bring a water bottle especially during the summer months
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.

Frequently Asked Questions

The answers provided below are based on answers previously given by the tour provider to customers’ questions.

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Q:Is there parking available near the departure point for the 2-Hour Historic Charleston Guided Sightseeing Walking Tour?

A:There are several “pay as you go” parking garages and open-air lots scattered throughout the downtown area. If you are joining us for the Charleston History Tour, we recommend the parking garage at 85 Queen Street.

Feb 2021

Q:What happens if it rains on the day of my 2-Hour Historic Charleston Guided Sightseeing Walking Tour?

A:We generally have a “rain or shine” policy but may cancel tours in potentially dangerous weather conditions. If we must cancel your tour, we will notify you by email, phone, or both and a reschedule or full refund will be offered.

Feb 2021

Traveler Photos

Reviews

5.0

4,239 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

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Showing 1-10 of 4,239 reviews

The historical...

Denise_R, Apr 2024

The historical architecture is amazing! Our guide explained very well and was very knowledgeable about both the history if the city and its architecture!

Excellent, Would Recommend

Kenney_W, Apr 2024

Our tour guide Evans was excellent, he gave insightful stories and talked about Robert Smalls and the various flowers we walked past. He brought the history of Charleston to life.

Best way to see historic Charleston.

Linda_L, Apr 2024

Al was a fabulous tour guide and brought Charleston history to life through his extensive knowledge of landmarks, architecture, social influences and natural disasters, all with a very wry sense of humor. Our time in Charleston was limited and this was absolutely the best way to see historic Charleston.

Love Charleston

Pamela_P, Apr 2024

Seeing the architecture and the beauty of Charleston. The flower window boxes are stunning and I am pretty sure I took a 100 pictures of them.

Mark Jones was...

Chris_B, Apr 2024

Mark Jones was personable, knowledgeable, and had a great sense of humor. He made the tour very enjoyable with all of the local color and perspective of the residents throughout the history of Charleston

Charleston flavor

Scott_B, Apr 2024

Charleston experienced with Al was better than expectations. Came away with a better appreciation of the place. Thanks for the walk, the conversation, the immersion of the architecture, the history, and the Charleston vibe..You got us walking in the right direction… Bravo

A must do when visit historic Charleston, SC

Dexter_B, Apr 2024

Our tour guide was so well informed, knowledgeable, sharing the history of Charleston. We felt the time with Dennis was well worth our time and money!

Cursory

Debbie_W, Apr 2024

Our guide was on auto pilot. I felt like it was a sales pitch. He didn’t cover a lot of the history.

Great tour

julie_s, Apr 2024

Al was a great guide, personable, informative. It was a great experience. I am on vacation with my adult daughter looking to spend quality time and this tour really gave us the history and layout of Charleston. Highly recommend it.

Historical tour

Doug_J, Apr 2024

Mark was a great tour guide, very informative and entertaining! Would highly recommend this tour to learn more about Charleston.

Friends trip

Courtney_B, Apr 2024

Amy did an awesome job! I have done a walking tour of Charleston before and I learned more from Amy! Very enjoyable!

Fun Interesting Tour of Charleston

Joanne_M, Apr 2024

Our tour guide, Dennis, was very knowledgeable about the city and history of buildings, people and places. He kept the stories flowing as we walked around the historic area of the city. We learned about events and people that we could not have learned on our own. The pace and length of the tour was appropriate and included stops inside the theater and the Gun Powder Storage to give us a break from the sun and get drinks if needed.

Charleston’s Lost History

Sherry_S, Apr 2024

I love the story of Robert Smalls . Carney and the flag stories . I like learning about how they build houses… Earthquake, having them add still rods, but that some bolts showing which are then covered decoratively. Houses sit sideways, the blue paint on the porch ceilings and doors. The blacksmith work, the trash house, the alleys, love to hear how the women came forth and help save Charleston’s history for the rest of us. Declaration independence or constitution read here first and the tea party story

Highly recommended! Excellent overview.

Vivian_S, Apr 2024

Our guide Dennis was informative and highly entertaining. He provided a very interactive experience. Great tour!!

Our guide was extremely...

Sally_C, Apr 2024

Our guide was extremely knowledgeable about the history of Charleston and slavery. We thoroughly enjoyed this tour.

Fun walking tour

Karen_P, Apr 2024

We enjoyed our tour with Amy who was very informative regarding the history of Charleston. Walking tour was a good pace with plenty of stops for photo opportunities.

Highly recommend!

Mary_I, Apr 2024

Our guide, Dennis, was excellent, very informative and quite pleasant! We covered a lot of ground and history!

Perfect Charleston Tour

Karen_C, Apr 2024

Evans was a fantastic guide. He was very knowledgeable, entertaining, and gave a wonderful tour. If I could hand-pick him for another tour, I would.

It was our first time...

Pat_H, Apr 2024

It was our first time visiting Charleston. We really enjoyed learning more about this beautiful and historic city Dennis was extremely knowledgeable and engaging We thoroughly enjoyed the experience

Great tour, informative, friendly, fun!

natasha_b, Apr 2024

Wendy, our guide, made this tour a great introduction to Charleston. We learned a lot about the history, architecture, religions and people of this charming city.

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