Charleston SC Beaches Complete Guide | Top 8 Must-Visit
Part of what makes Charleston SC such a great destination to visit on the East Coast of the United States is its beautiful beaches. You won’t find me visiting Charleston without getting at least one beach day in! This guide to the best Charleston SC beaches tells you everything to you should know about each, to take advantage of the area’s natural coastal beauty. 🌴🐬
- Best Overall: Folly Beach
- Surfing: Folly Beach
- Families: Isle of Palms & Sullivan’s Island
- Nightlife: Folly Beach
- Golfers & A Luxurious Getaway: Kiawah Island
- Nature Lovers: Bull’s Island
- Peace & Quiet: Seabrook Island
Folly Beach : #1 of the Best Charleston SC Beaches for a Casual & Eclectic Beach Stay
- Distance from Downtown Charleston: 20-30 min
- Parking: Plenty of free street parking (incl overnight) and paid parking lots except on holiday weekends when it fills up. Here’s my Folly Beach parking guide for more info!
- Facilities? Showers at the Folly Beach Pier. Plenty of food options and chair + umbrella rentals. Public bathroom info (sometimes these are not open or out of order)
- Highlights: Eclectic community of artists and surfers, with casual beachy restaurants and bars along Center street. Plenty of personality, under a canopy of trees and with the best surf in SC.
Folly Beach, nicknamed the “The Edge of America”, is the most unique of the Charleston SC beaches and a very special place. It can be thought of as more of a complete beach town with its own character, just 20-30 minutes away from downtown. Don’t come here for a polished beach stay – instead expect a laidback, artsy and eclectic little beach town that is always welcoming.
First of all, Folly Beach is the best South Carolina beach for surfing, and some people even say it offers some of the best surfing on the East Coast which I agree with – especially for beginners like me! The Folly Beach Pier is iconic, and is the center of town where you’ll find convenient Folly Beach rentals like chair and umbrella rentals and water sports.
Under the oak and palm trees, you’ll find lots of eclectic beach cottages and indoor/outdoor coastal restaurants and bars, like Taco Boy or my favorite – Chico Feo. There’s also a great nightlife scene, with nightly live music at some of the bars.
At the edge of the Folly Island is the Folly Beach County Park where the ocean meets the Folly river. This is the perfect spot for seeing bottlenose dolphins and the sunset, with plenty of open space.
Folly Beach is a special place for my husband and I. We got engaged at Folly Beach and have considered moving to the Charleston area. I wrote an entire guide on the best Folly Beach hotels. If instead you’re doing a day trip, I also have a guide to Folly Beach parking.
Folly Beach is also my choice for the best of the Charleston SC beaches for digital nomads & backpackers, especially those who are interested in surfing. It just has the laidback backpacker vibe, but also people are so friendly and you’ve got Charleston to explore so close by. I do always recommend traveling with a hotspot as a backup, especially when visiting a beach town or somewhere outside the main city where WIFI could be spotty.
When it comes to where to stay in Folly Beach, you can’t go wrong with the oceanfront Tides hotel at the Folly Beach pier. My personal favorite is the unique rooms & suites at the award-winning and eclectic Beachside Boutique Inn.
Morris Island
Morris Island is the next beach over to the North compared to Folly Beach but it’s not accessible for the average beach-goer as there’s no road that drives up to it. There are strong currents surrounding it, so think twice before wading from Folly Beach to Morris Island.
Sometimes during low tide you can walk it from North Folly to Morris Island, but again, I would caution against this. Instead, maybe take a beach chair and plop down at the North end of Folly with a view of the Morris Island lighthouse where you can keep a look out for dolphins and other wildlife.
Isle of Palms
- Distance from Downtown Charleston: 30-40 min
- Parking: Multiple public parking lots and street parking areas, making parking here relatively easy. More info
- Facilities? Bathrooms, showers and changing rooms at Isle of Palms County Park. Chair and umbrella rentals available
- Highlights: Wild Dunes Resort & golf courses, more upscale atmosphere
Isle of Palms is the second best of the best Charleston SC beaches, and probably the #1 beach for families in the area. It’s just a short drive from downtown, about the same distance as Folly Beach or ~30 minutes.
It’s largely a resort town with the main resort being Wild Dunes, but there’s also Isle of Palms County Park with plenty of space and parking spots for the public, plus restaurants offering fresh seafood.
Isle of Palms has a more upscale atmosphere, which sets it apart when comparing Folly Beach vs Isle of Palms. There’s less nightlife and less live music than Folly Beach, but that being said, the Windjammer is an iconic spot for live music near Charleston.
Last but not least, Isle of Palms is also a great place for golf in Charleston, with multiple pristine courses that attracts all levels of golfers at Wild Dunes resort.
The beautiful Wild Dunes Resort is one of my top choices for where to stay in Charleston SC for a beach vacation. It’s on my list as one of the next resorts I want to try, especially because my husband and I have a little one on the way!
Sullivan’s Island
- Distance from Downtown Charleston: 20 min
- Parking: Easy public parking lots and free street parking
- Facilities? Bathrooms at Fort Moultrie
- Highlights: Natural beauty, Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park
Sullivan’s Island is the my choice for the #3 best beaches in Charleston, but if a more secluded beach is what you’re looking for, this could be #1. It’s a quieter beach with less to do and no big resorts, which makes it less popular than the other area beaches and much emptier.
Sullivan’s Island is right near Mount Pleasant and the Charleston Harbor. It’s also home to the Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park, so there’s lots to see here between the natural beauty and historical sites.
If you’re in Sullivan’s Island make sure to stop by Poe’s Tavern for a burger in a cool laidback spot with a bit of an Edgar Allen Poe theme, and the Obstinate Daughter for local seafood.
Kiawah Island & Seabrook Island : Best Charleston SC Beaches For Golfers
Kiawah Island
- Distance from Downtown Charleston: ~1 hour
- Parking: Beachwalker Park has a public parking lot, which does fill up by about 10:30am on summer weekends with no great back up parking available. More info
- Facilities? Showers and bathrooms at Beachwalker Park
- Highlights: Pristine natural beauty, world-class golf destination
Kiawah Island is a resort town home to the world class Kiawah Island Golf Resort and one of the most beautiful barrier islands in the United States.
Kiawah is the most upscale of all the Charleston SC beaches, with pristine beaches on the Atlantic ocean and the best of Southern hospitality. It’s absolutely one of the best beaches near Charleston, although it’s a little further – about an hour’s drive.
Kiawah Island is known for being home to some of the East Coast’s best golf courses, including the championship Ocean Course. Find more info about all the best Kiawah Island golf courses here.
Outside of the gorgeous resort there’s the Kiawah Beachwalker Park, offering the only public beach access on the island and ten miles of pristine beach. There’s also Freshfields Village, which is a premier dining and shopping destination.
If you’re interested in visiting beautiful Kiawah, you can use this guide on where to stay on Kiawah Island to find the best option for you and your group.
Seabrook Island
- Distance from Downtown Charleston: A little over an hour
- Parking: During the day, parking on the road is permitted in the direction of traffic in front of undeveloped lots. More info
- Facilities? Private-only bathrooms and showers for Seabrook Island Club members and vacation rental visitors
- Highlights: Pristine natural beauty and privacy. Seabrook Island Club
Seabrook Island is the next beach over beside Kiawah and the farthest beach on my list from Charleston, which is about an hour’s drive away.
It’s private and only accessible for its residents and those who are renting vacation homes there, which keeps it quiet and beautiful and one of the best Charleston SC beaches for those seeking seclusion and peace. Seabrook Island is also the home of the Seabrook Island Beach Club, with restaurants, golfing, pools and more.
Edisto Beach on Edisto Island
- Distance from Downtown Charleston: 1 hour 15 min
- Parking: Paid public parking at the beach access points. More info
- Facilities? Public restrooms and showers at the state park which requires entrance fee
- Highlights: Natural beauty a little farther from Charleston. Camping available
Edisto Island is a barrier island and the farthest beach from Charleston that I have on my list, about a one hour and 15 minute drive from Downtown. It’s another great beach for seclusion and natural beauty. You’ll find lots of shells to collect and birds to watch.
To visit, there are plenty of parking spots and trails to walk at Edisto Beach State Park, and even a campground you can stay the night at for a great rate. Keep in mind the state park requires a small daily access fee, while the public beach access points do not.
Bull’s Island at the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge : Best Charleston SC Beaches For Nature Lovers
- Distance from Downtown Charleston: 40 min drive, then a 30 min boat ride
- Parking: N/A
- Facilities? Public restrooms
- Highlights: Secluded natural beauty and wildlife explorations, Boneyard Beach
Bull’s Island is an uninhabited island which is part of the stunning Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge where you’ll find lots of natural wildlife like dolphins, sea turtle and over 250 species of coastal birds.
It’s reachable by taking the Bull’s Island Beach Drop, which takes about thirty minutes. Bull’s Island is one of the most unique beach on the list, and the best for nature lovers.
Boneyard Beach is other-worldy, where the skeletons of ancient live oaks and palmettos, once part of the island’s forest, are left on the shore for a strange display of nature.
Charleston SC Beaches Map
Now that you know all about the best Charleston SC beaches, check out my other blogs on the best things to do in Holy City –
Free Things to Do In Charleston
Romantic Things to Do in Charleston SC
Lauren Kessel
Lauren Kessel is the author of this blog post and the creator of the Inspired Backpacker travel blog. She is a passionate digital nomad, with the mission to make slow travel a more accessible way of life for everyone. Lauren believes travel is an important means of education and more importantly, a way for people of different cultures to come together and understand each other better. She has a BS in Tourism and has planned countless domestic and international trips for herself, her family and friends, having visited over 12 countries and 30 states so far.
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