Charleston History, Homes, and Architecture Guided Walking Tour

Badge of ExcellenceCharleston, USA

2 hours
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Travel back in time to discover one of America’s most historic cities — Charleston, South Carolina — on this guided, 2-hour walking tour. Visit points of interest including Chalmers Street and the Old Slave Mart; the Dock Street Theatre in the historic French Quarter neighborhood; Rainbow Row, the longest cluster of Georgian row houses in the United States; the Old Exchange Building, South Carolina's most historic building; plus St. Michael's Alley, Washington Square and White Point Garden, in the heart of Charleston’s historic district, with a spectacular view of Fort Sumter and many more.

Visit one of America’s most historic cities
Enjoy a walking tour of Downtown Charleston
Visit many popular points of interest
Learn about Charleston’s role in American history
An educational and entertaining tour for the entire family

What's Included

2-Hour Charleston Historic Downtown Guided Walking Tour
Explore Charleston's Historic District, including the French Quarter
Hear the tales of historic churches and view the city architecture
Professional & Licensed Local Guide
Learn about the history and events that shaped Charleston
Several popular points of interest including Rainbow Row
Explore the residential area "South of Broad"
Stroll through the quaint and charming streets of the historic district
Admission to the Powder Magazine Museum is included with your ticket. Visit at your leisure.

Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

80 Broad St, Charleston, SC 29401, USA
Please meet your tour guide outside City Hall on the corner of Meeting St and Broad St at the "Four Corners of Law"

What To Expect

This guided educational tour of historic Charleston, South Carolina begins at the designated meeting spot.

Visit points of interest like the Old Exchange Building, South Carolina's most historic building and the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon, a colonial building with a 300-year history featuring pirates, patriots and presidents alike.

Also, see the Pink House, one of the oldest buildings in South Carolina and the oldest building in Charleston; St. Michael's Episcopal Church, the oldest surviving religious structure in Charleston; the secluded, 1-block stretch of Philadelphia Alley — plus a plethora of historic homes, churches and other landmark locations.

Along the way, learn about Charleston’s pivotal role in American history, from the American Revolution to the Civil War and beyond.

Charleston City Hall

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Washington Square

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

St. Michael's Church

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Rainbow Row

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Old Exchange & Provost Dungeon

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Battery & White Point Gardens

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

The Powder Magazine (Pass By)

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Children must be accompanied by an adult
Wheelchair accessible
Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately
Stroller accessible

Service animals allowed
Near public transportation
Most travelers can participate
Water bottle and comfortable shoes recommended
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.

Traveler Photos

Reviews

5.0

184 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 184 reviews

Charleston 2024

Sue_B, Apr 2024

Very interesting history of Charleston told while we walked through the streets. Rainbow row and many historical homes!!

Wonderful walking tour , not to be missed

Craig_S, Apr 2024

Lawrence was an exceptional guide that had in-depth knowledge of the history and details of Charleston we sought. Professional and friendly, highly recommended

Excellent

Robert_U, Mar 2024

Very informative and knowledgeable!!excellent interesting and lovely perspective and personality! Answered questions well

Educational and interesting

DAVID_M, Mar 2024

Historic homes and waterfront and history of the city. Lawrence was very knowledgeable with a good personality.

A must see!

MaryJo_W, Feb 2024

Evans' tour was fabulous. His knowledge of Charleston and its history was exceptional. We've been to the city many times and took two tours, but nothing compared to this one.

Evans Terrific Tour.

joneslynn, Feb 2024

The knowledge of the tour guide tour guide Evans. Enjoyed his specific stories of people and places as it related to Charleston history.

We had Evans for the...

Nicole_S, Feb 2024

We had Evans for the second time and he was incredible!! Had alot of new great things to share about our favorite little town!

Well worth your time!

NanS_M, Feb 2024

Dennis, our guide, was excellent! His presentation method was delightful, full of history, included incidentals, humorous at some points all while keeping your attention. He asked questions and allowed time for questions. Tour was well paced.

Must see tour

Kim_R, Feb 2024

We had a wonderful guide who was really passionate about Charleston history and talked about other bit as famous historians, which was great.

Excellent Charleston walking tour

Bev_K, Jan 2024

Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and did a great job of talking about the history and architecture of the city.

Excellent tour guide!

Keith_H, Jan 2024

Excellent, personable tour guide! Knowledgeable and engaging. Provided many opportunities for questions and interaction.

Dennis is the best!

appy, Dec 2023

Dennis was an amazing your guide. Lively, funny and engaging. We come to Charleston 2-4 times a year and this tour took us through areas in the French Quarter and SOB where we still discovered and learned about new things, including Chalmer street attractions.

Perfect way to learn about the city

Suzette_P, Dec 2023

Did a tour with Dennis Mardis and loved it! He was super knowledgable and took the time to talk about all the interesting details about the areas we walked through, highlighting history, architecture, and all the beautiful homes. You cover a lot of ground in 2 hours so I would highly recommend doing this tour, especially on your first day so you learn about everything early on!

Evans was a superlative...

Catherine_P, Dec 2023

Evans was a superlative historian providing not only the relevant facts of the Civil War, Revolutionary War but also the contributions of the women of Charleston through history as well as several interesting stories of unknown, but important figures of Charleston history. Further, his knowledge of botany was terrific as we toured the houses, buildings of the city.

Great Guide!

James_T, Dec 2023

Dennis, our tour guide was great, very knowledgeable and great sense of humor. I would not visit Charleston without taking this tour. You get a much better appreciation for the history and some context around some of the sights you see.

Great experience

Elina_B, Nov 2023

Mark is a great tour guide, we enjoyed Charleston, thank you! Mark shared with us not only stories from the history, but from today‘a life!

Excellent

Denise_c, Nov 2023

Jimmy was so nice and so knowledgeable and had a lot of good stories to tell. I really felt like I got the highlights of historic Charleston!

Great Tour! Great

Brian_h, Nov 2023

Dennis was an excellent guide. He was knowledgeable and entertaining. He showed us many of the sites in historical Charleston. We highly recommend this tour!

Meh

Wendy_H, Nov 2023

Waaaaay too much talking and not enough walking and seeing. We spent a lot of time standing around while Evans talked.

History lesson

Anonymous, Nov 2023

Very informative -learned a lot about the city. Our tour guide was very invested and had a lot to say. He was passionate.

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