Yippee! I am slow to catch on, but when I do, I am ON! The downtown trolley really is free! I had had the question put to me if it was true. I could not imagine it was. Today I went to the Meeting Street Visitors Information Center to get some Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Guidebooks. The wonderful staff there told me the map has the route and the trolley stops of the FREE trolley bus service. This service is a gift to Charleston residents and visitors. I think that means we do not have to buy our teenagers a car! Isn’t that right?
The other good news is that my vacation rental, which you can stay in this summer, is a one minute walk from one of the stops on the corner of Ashley and Cannon Streets. This service saves you either gas money, time, or your feet. Save your feet for the streets you do not want to miss. I tell you those on my tour that are musts, where the streets of Charleston have something to give those who walk them in a receptive mood that will make life forever richer.
Scroll down a few articles to read about my launching a vacation rental. It has been booked solidly since I started it in March. I do have openings late this summer and early fall. I have a big pot in the full kitchen for boiling up a mess of crabs. We had some last night ourselves with our daughter home from college and a cousin graduating from the College of Charleston. My vacation rental is also around the corner from a bakery called Sugar. Warning! It is addictive, heavenly, and better than your imagination. You can take tarts, etc back to your own home away from home and have a tea party! I have a tea pot and tea and a tea strainer and of course cups and saucers.
Do not miss Spoleto in late May-early June when Charleston comes alive at this world renowned arts festival. The buildings the oligarchy of Charleston built are still the landmarks used today to make this city have a sense of place and authenticity. The trolley system will really help during Spoleto and the HCF Spring Tours andPreservation Society fall tours as there are not enough cabs for all going in different directions for the many tours, cultural, visual, and performing arts events. The CARTA trolleies run from 8am to 8:30pm daily.
Our friend Mariana Ramsey Hay of Croghans Jewel Shop on King, whose picture welcomes all on the back of the trolley bus, says she hops on and off all the time, zipping up and down King St and to her home, which saves her time and money. I love it! Tomorrow is the first day of the rest of my life!
Charleston Tea Party Private Tour 843-708-2228 
May 31, 2012
I am a Charlestonian born and bred, but have been an Army wife since 1972 when my husband graduated from the Citadel. During 30 years of raising our sons and moving every three to four years, we always made a trip
HOME. Everyone we ever told that we were from Charleston always exclaimed how beautiful our city is and how wonderful the “locals” are. As a “local” myself, I was always proud and thanked them kindly. I spent a week with friends for a mini vacation on Ashley Avenue and was treated royally by our wonderful hostess and tour guide, Laura. I can truly say, it was one of the best weeks I have spent in a very long time. From the mess of live crabs she stopped by with on our arrival to the fresh baked bread, eggs, WONDERFUL Calamondin preserves….handmade by Laura herself……..and a beautiful magnolia blossom on the table, we were truly welcomed. I enjoyed being tour guide to my friends who had never been to Charleston. We stayed busy shopping at The Market, a tour of Middleton Plantation, Fort Sumter, of course, The Citadel, The Nathaniel Russel House, The Pineapple Fountain, Rainbow Row and on and on. The highlight of all of our time in Charleston, I must say, was our Charleston Tea Party Tour given by our hostess Laura Wichmann Hipp. From the beginning at the Palmer House for breakfast to Laura’s home at the end for a Tea Luncheon….as a Charlestonian myself, I learned more in those five hours about my own hometown than I have ever known. From Laura quoting lines from very old diaries to her telling stories handed down to her from her Charleston family and friends….every word was a sneak peak into the REAL history of Charleston and a joy to hear. This step back into home and history has made me proud to be from The Holy City. Thank you Laura, for making my Heart Happy…..as my boys use to say…..!!!! Phyllis Nolan…..I’ll be taking your mother’s tour next time….see ya soon!!!