Charleston Is the Best Small City in the U.S.

Maybe it’s the cobblestone streets. Or the helpful locals. Or the remarkable foodstuff, charming motels, and endless drinking water views. Regardless of what the motive, our viewers keep on to be totally charmed by Charleston, South Carolina. In simple fact, it was just voted the very best tiny town in the United States in our 2022 Readers’ Selection Awards.

Now in its 35th calendar year, our once-a-year Readers’ Selection Awards carries on to capture the vacation ordeals our audience adore most effective, from motels and airways to cruises and islands. The quantities prove what we presently knew: Enthusiasm for vacation has by no means been increased, as demonstrated by the approximately quarter of a million of you who filled out this year’s study. The greatest cities in the world (large and small) are a testament to the staying power of perennial favorites, as a result of thick and thin—with some newcomers to contemplate. 

Charleston is no stranger to accolades. Our readers named it the greatest little city for an outstanding 10 consecutive decades right until it was edged out by Aspen in 2021—not surprising, with most vacationers trying to find out large open spaces all through the pandemic. But the Holy Metropolis took again its crown this yr, and all the things feels fairly ordinary as soon as yet again.

Although there are plainly a lot of motives to enjoy this Southern city, you definitely simply cannot converse about the desired destination without quickly calling out its dining scene. “Excellent restaurants” and “delicious food” have been mentioned in a great number of survey responses, with unique attention paid out to seafood, sweet tea, and hearty breakfasts.

The metropolis excels at Southern cuisine, of study course, but really do not rest on Charleston’s a lot more diverse dining alternatives. Be sure to consider the escargot at Maison, the tender agnolotti and veal scallopini at Wild Olive, the gazpacho at Malagón Mercado y Tapería, and the fried smelt with garlic skordalia sauce at Stella’s. We would not dare convey to you to skip the Southern classics, however: If you are fortunate more than enough to find an empty parking place at The Glass Onion, crack any moderate targeted visitors regulations to get it. The shrimp po’boys, fried grouper cheeks, and lemon meringue pie are the things of legends.

Luckily for us for any calorie counters out there, Charleston also boasts an very walkable downtown spot and a plethora of out of doors activities. You can hop onboard one of the renowned horse-drawn carriages (“carriage rides each day and night are a ought to,” writes one reader), or acquire a self-guided going for walks tour earlier Waterfront Park, the dwell oaks at White Issue Gardens, Legare’s attractive homes, and additional.

There are several wonderful seashores to choose from in the spring and summer time, with “water as heat as a tub,” but we’re individual lovers of the stretches of sand on Sullivan’s Island. These beaches are huge ample to fit the crowds, have gentle waves, and are surrounded by normal walking paths as a result of lush vegetation. Get out on the water with a kayaking tour—one of Charleston’s trademark outside activities—and you could even spot a pair of surfacing dolphins or an elusive summer time manatee.