Arts Architecture
History and Local Seafood
The
City founded in 1670, Charleston is defined by its cobblestone
streets, horse-drawn carriages and pastel pre-Civil-War-era houses,
particularly in the bustling French Quarter and Battery areas. The Battery
promenade and Waterfront Park both overlook Charleston Harbor, while Fort
Sumter, a Federal stronghold where the first shots of the Civil War rang out,
lies across the water.
The
Old City is located on a peninsula at the point where, as
Charlestonians are fond of saying, the
Ashley and the Cooper Rivers come together to form the Atlantic Ocean. The
entire peninsula is very low and frequently floods during heavy rains, storm
surges, and unusually high tides. As
Charles Towne grew, so did the community's cultural and social opportunities,
especially for the elite merchants and planters. The first theatre building in
America was built in 1736 on the site of today's Dock Street Theatre. By
the mid-18thcentury, it had become a bustling trade center, the hub
of the Atlantic trade for the southern colonies. Charles Towne was also the
wealthiest and largest city south of Philadelphia.
Rainbow Row's 13 houses along East Bay
Street were the commercial center from the Colonial era until the early 20th
century.
Theater Charleston known for its unique culture, which blends traditional Southern, English, French, and West African elements, Charleston and its downtown peninsula are home to America's first theater and is one the country's top 10 cities for the performing arts as well as the Spoleto USA Festival.
Experiential
Tourism with the Traveler as Protagonist
Experiences designed around multiple
interests that ensure unique emotions; the traveler participates alongside
local cooks, artists, craftsmen, and expert tour guides in activities:
o rooted in the territory; it
can happen only there, and
o with uniquely local events,
experiments, food and wine tastings
o specifically modified and
tailored to your preferences
memorable
unique and unrepeatable!
Know More About It
Tourism
Shopping Food and Shipping Charleston is a major vacation destination
with award-winning restaurants and shopping. Fashion Week is held each spring
in Marion Square brings in designers, journalists, and clients from across the
nation. Charleston is known for its local seafood, which plays a key role in
the city's renowned cuisine that includes gumbo, she-crab soup, fried oysters,
deviled crab cakes, red rice, and shrimp and grits. Rice is the staple in many
dishes, reflecting the rice culture of the Low Country. The city’s two shipping
terminals are part of the fourth-largest container seaport on the East Coast
and the thirteenth largest seaport in North America.
The Charleston
Digital Corridor is Home to an Increasing Number of High Tech Businesses