First, because it is a grand Palladian building made of red brick with a 2-storey white columned portico. Can one use their own transportation to the venue and pay a lower fee? To learn more about the plantations around South Carolina, this website is a good resource on finding historical information on South Carolinas plantations. Private tours are also possible. If you dont want to rent a car in Charleston, we recommend taking a day tour to visit the area plantations. 2.1 What to do in Atlanta. Brick making was also an important source of income throughout much of the 19th century. The social distance requirement in Magnolia Plantation and Gardens is 2 metres. Original Date of Main Plantation House: Drayton Hall was established in 1738, and construction of the house was likely completed circa 1750. No, although a limited selection of snacks and drinks are available for purchase in gift shop. For local events, Id check the Charleston CVB and other websites for Charleston events in September 2021 and you can put in your specific dates. Boone Hall has a small cafe with sandwiches, snacks, ice cream, and drinks. This is probably the best plantation for those who enjoy nature, as you can also take the Nature Tram Tour, boat tours, and/or wander along the Audubon Swamp Garden. It was overall a very nice way to spend 4 and a half hours. So, I really appreciated the way you addressed this re: the plantations. The Gullah Theater, garden center, and gift shop are wheelchair accessible and there are wheelchair accessible bathrooms on site. My only tip would be to ditto your recommendation of staying at the Inn at Middletown Place. Hope this helps! The estate has been around since the late 17th century, and the property changed hands several times during the 18th and 19th centuries. The house has been owned and run by the. If you have your own car, you could theoretically visit multiple plantations in a full day. - to help you get the most out of your next trip. Working plantation today? In June 2020, the Charleston Tea Plantation changed its name to Charleston Tea Garden. They can also sometimes do tours in a golf cart for those who are not able to walk the grounds for the tour, but they recommend contacting them in advance to be sure a staff member can accommodate. The plantation was bought by the Drayton family in 1676. As a former teacher, she used a variety of techniques to hold our attention. Most of the objects date from the 18th to 20th century. The Horlbeck family owned the plantation from 1817 until 1935, and they greatly expanded the plantations brickyard and planted pecan trees. Charleston is a year-round tourist destination, but its wise to avoid the area from June to August, when stifling hot temperatures and heavy humidity can make it unpleasant to be outside for too long. Visitors can take a tractor tour to explore the farm at Boone Hall and learn both about the historical workings of the plantation as well as the current farming operations. more. So if you are mainly interested in the gardens, then the basic admission ticket is for you. COST: $10 per person with paid garden admission, Children 5 and under are free. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 48614P1. Most Unique: The focus on African American history, Gullah culture, and land cultivation. Am I allowed to travel from Charleston to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens? A new museum is also being built in Charleston, the International African American Museum. As usual, children 5 and under can enjoy everything for free with their parents or guardians. But, between that and the house tour there was not enough time to simply walk around and enjoy the property on our own. The distance between Charleston and Magnolia Plantation and Gardens is 18 km. The original main plantation house was built circa 1705. It takes approximately 2h 10m to get from Charleston Historic District to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, including transfers. We personally saw several species of birds, squirrels, turtles, and alligators during our visit at Magnolia. Like Drayton Hall, it is unfurnished inside. Magnolia Plantation is one of the most well-known and frequently visited plantations in Charleston. Youll want to spend at least half a day here, although you could easily spend a full day here. We havent found any tours that include a visit to McLeod, but the plantation is easy to reach by public bus from downtown Charleston. To the best of our knowledge, it is correct as of the last update.Visit Rome2rio travel advice for general help. Magnolia Plantation and Gardens (464 acres, 187.77 hectares) is a historic house with gardens located on the Ashley River at 3550 Ashley River Road, Charleston County, South Carolina. The portico was added to the rear facade, and the rear is now used as the front of the house. The tour leads you through two floor of the home and NO Photography is allowed! Website: https://charlestonteagarden.com/ Follow Long Point Road and the entrance to the site will be on the right. The plantation has a number of ponds and lakes, swampland, and is next to the Ashley River so changes of seeing waterfowl and other water critters are very high. Middleton Place is well known for its 65 acres of lush gardens, and they are the oldest landscaped gardens in the United States. We booked with another company and was cancelled last minute! This is a beautiful time of year to visit the plantations, but expect more crowds and higher prices on accommodation. The McLeod Plantation Historic Site can be visited as part of a guided tour (included with admission) or can be done as a self-guided tour if you prefer (there is a phone app and signs to guide visitors). Days Tours Available from Charleston: This small grouptour includes a visit and trolley tour of the Charleston Tea Garden, a stop at Angel Oak, and a visit to the local winery and a distillery. On balance, Magnolia Plantation & Gardens ranks slightly higher than Drayton Hall. In the summer of 1990, Magnolias ignited a culinary renaissance upon opening in Charleston, S.C., paving the way for a new generation of Lowcountry cooking in the city and across the entire South. Harris and Nancy McRae purchased the plantation in 1955 and the McRae family still own the plantation. No formal gardens. Millie took us on our tour of the house. This place is a dead giveaway for being a fun place to take kids (it's got Children in the name, for god sakes) and is located in downtown Charleston. We're working around the clock to bring you the latest COVID-19 travel updates.This information is compiled from official sources. It is possible to arrange a golf cart for those with limited mobility to see grounds, but this should be arranged in advance of your visit to guarantee availability. Finally, in 1865 after 4 years of brother fighting brother, the American Civil War was won by the Union and slavery was abolished forever. In 1995, an act was passed making South Carolina-grown tea the official state hospitality beverage in South Carolina! There are wheelchair accessible paths in the gardens (ask for a map at admission); however, many of the paths are compacted sand and gravel and can be difficult to navigate, especially in inclement weather. The plantation was bought by the Drayton family in 1676. Youll also see the beautiful 3/4 mile long Avenue of Oaks leading to the house. Prices start at 7,500 per night. No food is served here, but you can purchase packaged snacks such as cookies, popcorn, and trail mix. There are 399+ hotels available in Magnolia Plantation and Gardens. Be sure to be keep children within eyesight when exploring. Also, no photos allowed inside the house! Lenhardt Courtyard Garden was planted in 2018 and features a 200-year-old oak tree as well as plants that would have been at Drayton Hall in the 18th and 19th centuries. Magnolia Plantation includes furniture, household objects, art, and antiques from the Drayton family who have owned the plantation since 1676. Boone Hall Plantation was founded in 1681 by John Boone and the Boone family lived here until 1811. Tours/Tour Guides: The main house can only be visited with a guided tour, but the grounds, gardens, and stableyards can be explored on ones own. Rudis Cafe offers European-style sandwiches, meat and cheese plates, snacks, coffee, and drinks. You can find many of the transcripts online for free, or can buy them as a printed book online (some plantation gift shops also sell copies). None of the plantations are located in downtown Charleston, as plantations by definition require a lot of space. Visitors today can still see the working farm, and at certain times of the year can even help pick the fruit and vegetables. Each plantation has its own website that will offer all you need to know about admission prices, tour times, whether tickets can be booked in advance, closure dates, restaurant openings, contact information, etc. A staple in Charleston for over 30 years, Magnolias remains a forerunner in upscale Southern cuisine . Not recommended. The only plantation house that is currently open to wheelchair users is McLeod Plantation Historic Site. Days Tours Available from Charleston: This half day tour visits Boone Hall and includes a guided tour and all plantation entrance fees. An interesting array of animals are found in the nature center. There is a path from the Inn to the Plantation, which we took to have dinner at the restaurant and then wander around the gardens without anyone else around. If you want to visit more plantations in one day, we recommend looking at the plantations situated along the Ashley River as these are the most geographically close together. A rushed visit here is sure to feel overwhelming as youll be forced to choose between tours and have limited time to explore the grounds. Most do not allow drones or tripods on site. In 2020, the name was changed to Charleston Tea Garden. The McLeods grew cotton until 1922 when the crop was wiped out by the boll weevil. I certainly knew the plantations and gardens and have visited some of the great houses in the historic district. Remember that all of the plantations are located outside of Charleston, so you will need to either drive or arrange transportation. The plantation was owned by the Drayton family for seven generations. It doesnt have the history of the other plantations, but its interesting to see how a real tea farm operates. Yes, tea is grown and processed here on the tea farm. However, there are services departing from Mary St / Meeting St and arriving at Dorchester Rd / Reserve at Ashley River via N. Charleston SuperStop on Rivers Ave. Magnolia Plantation & Gardens is ranked #11 out of 26 things to do in Charleston, SC. 375 Meeting St, Charleston, SC 29403, USA, Confirmation will be received at time of booking. She was a delight! Address: 6617 Maybank Highway, Wadmalaw Island, SC, 29487 That two-storey house was demolished and the current house was built in its place in 1936 by former Canadian ambassador Thomas Stone and incorporates materials from the plantations old farm structures and salvaged historic bricks from the area. Some also include lunch or a winery visit, such as this one. Nearby is the Boone Hall Farms Market (2521 N Hwy 17, Mt Pleasant, SC 29466) which sells produce from the plantation farm and has a cafe where you can get hot meals. There are 9 brick slave cabins (built between 1790 and 1810), a cotton gin. Back in the Holy City, your deluxe, climate-controlled shuttle will take you for a 1.5-hour tour of the city's historical highlights. You might also consider checking out books about South Carolinas plantations and historic homes. Magnolia Plantation Website:www.magnoliaplantation.com Go approximately 7 miles and turn left onto Long Point Road. A number of Lowcountry plantations continued to grow the prized Sea Island cotton; however, a boll weevil infestation in the 1920s virtually wiped out cotton crops throughout the southern United States. Owners: The plantation has had a number of owners, the most significant being the Boones, Horlbecks, Stones, and McRaes. Magnolia Plantation is known for its well-preserved Romantic Style garden, which is designed to be an oasis away from the city. These include Charles Pinckney National Historic Site, Hampton Plantation State Historic Site, and the Grove Plantation House at the Ernest F Hollings ACE Basin. Below is a map of the Charleston plantations. Rome2rio also offers online bookings for selected operators, making reservations easy and straightforward. I look forward to seeing where else you have traveled! On February 22, 1865, Union troops plundered the plantation and set fire to the Middleton Place home. You can sometimes get a small discount by pre-purchasing tickets, but note that most of these tickets are non-refundable. for over 30 years. See theirlistings for Charleston here. John Drayton, who had Drayton Hall built, was actually born on nearby Magnolia Plantation, but would move down the Ashley River to establish his own residence in 1738. Crowds: Moderate The tea is now owned by the Bigelow Tea Company but Hall is still very much involved with the plantation. The first floor of the house is furnished with antiques and period sympathetic pieces to resemble an antebellum planters home, but the furnishings are not from the original antebellum house. There is also an introduction to Gullah-Geechee culture. Charleston to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens bus services, operated by CARTA, arrive at Dorchester Rd / Reserve at Ashley River station. The lives of the enslaved and their culture is now the main focus at some places like McLeod Plantation Historical Site in Charleston and at Whitney Plantation near New Orleans, LA. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews. Charleston Plantation Tour: Magnolia Plantation Take a tour of the Drayton family home founded in 1676. Thanks for letting me know about the name change from Charleston Tea Plantation to Charleston Tea Gardens, I will add that to the article. We look forward to your next visit to Charleston! Magnolia Plantation Address and Map Magnolia Plantation 3550 Ashley River Rd Charleston SC 29414 (843) 571-1266 Magnolia Plantation Website Current and Upcoming Events at Magnolia Plantation The two others places families might consider are Boone Hall and Charleston Tea Garden. Original Date of Main Plantation House: N/A, there is no plantation house 390-acre Magnolia Plantation & Gardens was where several hundred enslaved people and their descendants were abused and forced to work the lands, primarily growing Charleston rice imported from Western Africa. Food: There are two year-round places to get food here. Costs for some plantations with all the add-on tours and attractions can be over $50 per person. The plantation was founded in 1676 by the Drayton family and is the oldest public tourist site in the Lowcountry. You can roam the grounds as you like but not through the house. The Magnolia Plantation is a historic house and former plantation in Charleston, South Carolina. Main House Furnishings: The house is largely unfurnished and has been conserved and preserved rather than restored to allow visitors (and researchers) to be able to see the original construction, materials, and architecture. Am I allowed to travel from Charleston Historic District to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens? Rome2rio displays up to date schedules, route maps, journey times and estimated fares from relevant transport operators, ensuring you can make an informed decision about which option will suit you best. The quickest way to get from Charleston to Magnolia Plantation and Gardens is to taxi which costs 5-7 and takes 22 min. How to get from London City Airport into central London, Centers for Disease control and prevention (CDC), Charleston SC USA to Georgetown Georgetown County SC USA, Charleston SC USA to Henry Township House, There is a social distancing requirement of 2 metres. Tripexpert score: 9 / 10. Before it was a tea plantation, it was a large potato farm. 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The group now organizes living history programs, education, and sleepovers in slavery-associated sites across the country. Most of the buildings continued to be used into the 21st century so some contain modern materials and features. Accessibility: The welcome center, factory tour, restrooms, and gift shop are wheelchair accessible and require no steps to visit. Original Date of Main Plantation House: The first plantation house was built in the 1680s by Thomas Drayton and his wife Ann Drayton. We focus on those that are open year-round to the public, offer regular tours and other tourist services, and are of greatest interest to visitors. Charleston Tea Garden offers a short video-guided factory tour and a trolley tour to see the tea plantation. Magnolia Plantation & Gardens is ranked #3 in Charleston with endorsements from 6 reviewers like Lonely Planet, Travel + Leisure and Fodor's. Middleton Place. The antebellum era plantation is located in Mount Pleasant, Charleston County, South Carolina, U.S.A., and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Further resources about Charleston plantations? A small percentage of the plantations continued on, many relying on tenant farming and the use of cheap labor from former slaves. Visitors can also explore a self-guided black history exhibit, front gardens, and butterfly pavilion on their own. Memorable and Beautiful Garden with plenty of options to capture Photos. The slave cabins each have 2 to 3 steps to get inside and the trolley requires 6 steps to get inside. and these links are all included below in this post. The Garden Market is a causal spot to eat, selling sandwiches, snacks, ice cream, and drinks. It contains lots of antiques and family heirlooms, but may not be as lavish as some visitors expect. Days Tours Available from Charleston: We havent found any tours that include a visit to McLeod, but the plantation is easy to reach by public bus from downtown Charleston. Crowds: Moderate to large; this is a popular spot. Let us guide you along the paths first laid out by the Reverend John Grimk Drayton and his enslaved garden superintendent Adam Bennett in the 1840s. The gardens were first opened to the public in the 1870s, making them the oldest public tourist attraction in the South Carolina Lowcountry. Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum is located in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, at the mouth of the Cooper River on the Charleston Harbor, across from Charleston. Tour guides in most cases can not provide special assistance to guests (in terms of carrying walkers or wheelchairs, assisting people up stairs) during tours or walks, and it is strongly recommended that guests who need assistance visit with a companion. The best was saved for last! Magnolia Plantation Admission & Tour with Transportation from Charleston 227 Bus Tours from 6,393.47 per adult Private Chauffeur & Admission to Middleton & Magnolia Plantation + Box Lunch Bus Tours from 72,141.95 per adult (price varies by group size) LIKELY TO SELL OUT* Middleton Place Admission with Self Guided Tour and Lunch 161 Recommended Unlike antebellum plantations in some other areas of the country, such as the Louisiana plantations along the River Road, very few of the original antebellum grand plantation homes remain. one of the most beautiful native trees, evergreen leaves, very fragrant, very large white flowers. We would recommend Magnolia Plantation for those who are interested in seeing nature and wildlife. 4 of the Best Charleston Plantations. The trolley tour takes you around the fields and you get to see how tea is grown, picked, processed, and brewed. Drayton Hall is the oldest plantation house left in Charleston, and one of few plantation houses along the Ashley River to survive intact after the Civil War.
