Photos: Alia Akkam

I’m that girl who watched Gone with the Wind one too many times and ended up at the University of South Carolina (but hey, they do have a good journalism school). While I was crushed that girls didn’t actually wear hoop skirts anymore in Columbia, I was seduced by the fabled coastal town of Charleston. Horse-drawn carriages, cobblestone streets and rambling mansions justified my romantic vision of the South. Ten jaded years later, Charleston still seems magical to me. Most visitors stick to downtown—it’s compact and easy to navigate by foot—but rent a car instead, and explore some offbeat spots away from the tourist-clogged City Market, where sweetgrass baskets and other overpriced bibelots abound.

Each of the comfortable 40 rooms at The Indigo Inn (1 Maiden Ln, 843-577-5900, from $110) features 18th-century flourishes like bedside step stools—and most face an inner courtyard complete with a gurgling fountain. If you can splurge, stay at The Planters Inn (112 North Market St, 843-722-2345, from $225), which feels like a hushed European guesthouse. Heavy gold keys lead to one of 64 recently renovated, grand rooms. As a bonus, they serve famous seven-layer coconut cake at the Peninsula Grill downstairs.

Charleston’s food crawl begins at La Fourchette (432 King St, 843-722-6261), where the taste of the heavenly fries, twice-fried in duck fat, justify the impending heart attack. Continue the assault on your organs at Oak Steakhouse (17 Broad St, 843-722-4220), which is housed in an old bank. Appropriate, because the food isn’t cheap, but chef Brett McKee, a tattooed, sarcastic Brooklyn native, turns out juicy filets that warrant the $30 price tag. Order one with a side of rosemary-and-Parmesan potatoes au gratin.

There’s no better place to be on Saturday morning—particularly if you arrive before 9:30am—than the Farmers Market at Marion Square, where potato, sausage and cheddar omelettes, and butter and cinnamon sugar crêpes are bestsellers. Don’t leave without sampling the pickled okra and plump little doughnuts.Just a short stroll away, stop off at Kudu Coffee (4 Vanderhorst St, 843-853-7186), where they serve unique African coffee blends like the potent Nguvu, which you can drink in the tree-adorned courtyard. Upstairs, Kudu Kitu (843-853-8255), sells handmade African goods such as a chess set from Kenya.

The burgeoning King Street shopping district is lined with shops including B’Zar (541 King St, 843-579-2889), good for colorful earrings and bags, and the fair-trade, well-priced Global Awakening (499 King St, 843-577-8579), which is packed with Peruvian vases and silk scarves from Bangladesh. Linger at Blue Bicycle Books (420 King St, 843-722-2666), a quaint shop brimming with rare and used books. The literature room—bedecked with white lanterns and wafting opera music—will inspire you to spend hours.

Refuel midspree at Cupcake (433 King St, 843-853-8181)—before the heart-wrenching sorry, sold out sign appears in the door. Saturday is chocolate-almond day.

Come evening, take a 20-minute drive to the rustic John’s Island for dinner at The Fat Hen (3140 Maybank Hwy, 843-559-9090), where whisks hang on the wall and chef Fred Neuville creates French-inspired Southern classics like a truly memorable meatloaf, served alongside collard greens and a tomato salad topped with boiled peanuts. Head back downtown for a nightcap at Muse (82 Society St, 843-577-1102), a Mediterranean restaurant tucked away in an old house. Its intimate bar, with glorious red walls and pillow-festooned windows, also houses an affable bartender named Will.

Even though it’s heavily trafficked, it’s worth waiting for a table on Sunday morning at Tristan (55 N Market St, 843-534-2155). While crab cake Benedict is a classic, consider the pulled-pork flatbread with cheddar and red onions. Burn off the calories with a stroll to Waterfront Park—where you can see Fort Sumter in the distance—and the adjacent Battery.

End the afternoon with a car trip to Sullivan’s Island—one of Charleston’s most stunning beaches—and where Edgar Allen Poe penned The Gold-Bug. While you won’t see any hoop skirts, it’s still dotted with locals, even in the fall.

THE TAB
Two nights, two people
Flight $500
Car rental (with gas) $160
Hotel$440
Meals 300

TOTAL $1400

TRAVEL TIME 2hrs 30mins

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