Charleston See-It-All Sightseeing Bus Tour
4.5
Charleston See-It-All Sightseeing Bus Tour
By Adventure Sightseeing
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About
Touring Charleston by minibus introduces you to far reaches of the city that walking tours skip. In a single outing, drive through the famous military school at the Citadel, see Hampton Park, and make it all the way to the Battery at the opposite end of the peninsula. Guided commentary provides insight into Charleston attractions as you drive, making this a comprehensive introduction to the city for first-time visitors.
Lowest price guaranteeReserve now & pay laterFree cancellation
Ages 4-99, max of 25 per group
Duration: 1h 30m
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
Live guide: English
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Highlights
- Charleston sightseeing tour by minibus introduces you to city highlights
- See historic churches, grand homes, and top sights like the Citadel
- Traveling by bus is comfortable any time of year and covers lots of ground
- Live narration from your guide lets you hear stories and ask questions, too
- 90-minute Narrated Historic Mini-Coach Tour of Charleston
- Professional Guide/Driver
- Transportation aboard air-conditioned mini bus
- Photo Opportunity at the Battery with sights of Fort Sumter in the background
- Drive through The Citadel, the south's most famous military academy
- The Old City Market, lovely gardens, wrought iron art, and many of the city's 210 churches are just some of the sights you will see on this tour.
- Bonus: Admission to Charleston Powder Museum is also included with the price of your tour
- Entry/Admission - Adventure Sightseeing
What's not included- Food and drinks
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- With five departure times throughout the day, it’s easy to find a time that works for you to meet your guide at the Charleston Visitors Center and begin your Charleston sightseeing tour. Board a comfortable, climate-controlled minibus with no more than 15 passengers and begin to drive through the streets of the Holy City. Cover more ground on bus than is possible by foot, heading as far out as Hampton Park, the Citadel, and the Battery in a single outing. Free admission to the Charleston Powder Museum is also included. As you drive, your guide shares stories from Charleston’s history from its early days as a colony, through the Civil War, and up to the present. Tour ends back at the original start point.
- Start:
- 375 Meeting St, Charleston, SC 29403, USACharleston Visitor Center
End:This activity ends back at the meeting point. - Not wheelchair accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 48614P3- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- No pets. Service animals are allowed
- Most travellers can participate
- This experience requires good weather. If it’s cancelled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
- This experience requires a minimum number of travellers. If it’s cancelled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 25 travellers
- For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
- If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 48614P3
From
$70.27
per adult
Select date and travellers
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About the operator
Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator:
- dalinadan510 contributionsFun Informative TourGreat tour! Our guide was funny and very informative, he gave us a great tour of Charleston. I recommend this tour.Written 3 November 2024
- jamieis9880 contributionsWonderful guideOur guide was great. He gave us some history as we drive through Charelston and also restaurant suggestions. His enthusiasm for the City was evident. The plantation tour was well organized allowing us to see everything. Don’t miss the Gullah presentation. The house tour was a disappointment but the rest was interesting and worth itWritten 30 October 2024
- Dirk W0 contributionsWe'll worth it!Great tour with Alan. Very informative and interesting. He packed a lot of information in 90 minutes.Written 28 October 2024
- Companion008616024950 contributionsThe Best Tea Party We've Ever Had!My husband and I visited the tea garden because we are both tea drinkers. We go against the norm of being coffee drinkers and we both enjoy our tea every morning. We were greeted by the great staff with an invitation to enjoy an all you can drink tea bar! Sweet, a tea bar! This was one of our favorite places that we visited. It was educational and relaxing learning how commercial tea is made and being out in "nature" to see the tea growing. We were fascinated that this is one of the only tea gardens left in America that produces commercially. Most tea is imported from other countries. We are both patriotic people, so we will be buying more tea from them via their website once we're home. We also learned that a well-known national brand that sells tea in supermarkets across America is connected to them and actually commercially packages their tea. If you want to buy great high-quality tea, buy from Charleston Tea Garden via their website, and don't forget to buy Bigelow Tea! They both have great organically grown tea! Thank you to the lovely ladies at the tea shop, and for our great trolley tour guide that drove us out among the "tea fields." We loved it!Written 27 October 2024
- juliebG8922MF0 contributionsMehOverpriced for what you get, but nice scenery and the Peacock Cafe is good. The tram driver is very distracted by the alligators.Written 25 October 2024
- Travel547210327730 contributionsExpensive and not worth itExpensive and not worth the $35 per person. very over rated. Took the shuttle tour of the plantation and in our opinion " nothing to write home about" . Shuttle tour guide was very good, thoughWritten 24 October 2024
- BeachboyNow0 contributionsMarvelous MagnoliaOur trip to Magnolia Plantation was great! And Marla, our guide, was very friendly and easy to talk with.Written 24 October 2024
- trixxs0 contributionsExpensive, and a biased lecture—I would avoid this placeWe were shocked by the cost—fifty dollars! It was disappointing that the house is not from antebellum times but the 1920s. However, the tour by Rigel was excellent! The gardens are not worth seeing in October as there is nothing blooming. The lecture beside the slave cabins was very disconcerting, as the emphasis on certain aspects of slavery—that other countries were worse, that it was common at that time, that many slaves had “skilled labor” jobs, that a good number bought or were given their freedom, and that some freed slaves went on to own slaves themselves—began to seem very skewed and unbalanced. It matters what you put emphasis on and what you don’t say. No mention was made of the Gullah people, or what sort of lives the enslaved people had here. The answer may be that this property is still owned by the same former slave-owning family. Besides being very greedy, they seem to have an agenda here? This lecture left me infuriated and I regret giving this family 100 dollars. And money for a lousy lunch. (Except for the lecturer at the cabins, the rest of the staff was excellent.)Written 20 October 2024
- welodyw0 contributionsMissed the historical account of the slaves who were at MagnoliaThe tour was shorter than advertised. We were told to expect a talk about the slaves who worked on the plantation. Our tour was short and we didn't get that part of it. The gardens were lovely, ready for fall.Written 13 October 2024
- Q4569WJsimont0 contributionsHighly recommendedThis was one of the highlights of our visit to Charleston. The guides were excellent and the grounds were incredible. Especially recommended if you’re into Spanish Moss or alligators.Written 8 October 2024
- 743kelsit0 contributionsBeautiful!Nice time hearing about the history of the generations of families, exploring the grounds, seeing a crocodile, the beautiful OLD trees.. plan at least a half day to explore!Written 6 October 2024
- I4743IGjoanneh0 contributionsJust an okay tour.The ride to tour was good with our host, Scott. Since we didn't go to the plantation on our own, we weren't able to do both the ride around the grounds and slave tour which was a bummer. The house tour guide, though friendly, was a bit dramatic with her speaking voice which I thought was a bit much. Saw some small alligators on the tram ride. Overall it was an okay tour.Written 5 October 2024
- 344LisaJ0 contributionsBoone Hall PlantationWe enjoyed ourselves very much at Boone Hall. The house is beautiful and learning the history of the house was a extra. There is quite a bit still there to see and the tour of the house is very good. I cannot remember her name the the lady who plays the slave and tells you about the slaves and what part they played at the plantation was great. There was also a woman in one of the slave houses making beautiful baskets that were for sale.Written 1 October 2024
- Odyssey168540396100 contributionsTour Bus not needed for Boone HallWe booked a Magnolia plantation tour and it was cancelled the day before. They gave us the option of booking another day or putting us on the Boone Hall tour. If we would have known that we could have very easily just driven ourselves to the plantation, we would have requested a refund. You don’t need the tour bus to take you to Boone Hall. It’s all self guided and you walk around and see the different places at your own leisure for about 3 hours. Take an Uber/taxi/Lyft to get there. It’s way cheaper. It cost us twice as much to take the bus and it was completely unnecessary. The Boone Hall plantation was great, but I really wish we could have seen Magnolia. They didn’t give us a clear reason why it was cancelled.Written 30 September 2024
- Fizzyfil0 contributionsGorgeous PlantationBeautiful Gardens and a wonderful little trolley ride around the grounds. You can tour the mansion if you like. The flowers and trees were stunning. So much historyWritten 19 September 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinions of Tripadvisor members and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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4.5
560 reviews
Excellent
404
Very good
88
Average
39
Poor
14
Terrible
15
Mary C
San Antonio, TX7 contributions
We were hoping for more history about Charleston - unfortunately our tour guide Alan spent a lot of time talking about inconsequential topics and himself. I would rate this tour as average at best and not worth the money we paid. I also think it’s inappropriate for tour drivers plugging restaurants and theater companies where they are an actor which Alan Sidon our tour.
Written 22 February 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Uraganos17
South River, NJ2 contributions
Mar 2022 • Friends
We came for one day trip to Charleston, we thought that after seeing viewing in Savannah GA with trolley, this would be nice to see the city and get our tour. We got so disappointed on this tour with a bus! Bus was a hot box!!! The bus had no air conditioning all windows closed and microphone off the guide was so low that I couldn’t hear a thing. I couldn’t see anything from the window not enough view out, the entire time I was focusing how hot it is so I did not hear much off the guide, the guide speech was in one tone and it made several passengers sleepy, overall I would not recommend this tour, you be better off walking or choosing another way to get a tour and have better experience.
Written 28 March 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
travelchica0
New Jersey87 contributions
Dec 2019
I went on the bus trip around the city on Monday morning. It was a perfect way to get a good overview of the city. History does not interest me a lot however Shawn was able to keep my interest during this 90 minute tour - hats off to him! I would recommend this tour on one of your first days in Charleston and if you are lucky enough to have Shawn as a guide you will enjoy it!
Written 1 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lorie
Clarksville, IN9 contributions
We were fortunate to have Shawn Matticks as our guide; he was extremely knowledgeable about this beautiful city’s history, he was entertaining which made for a fun time, and bonus points for being a safe driver (hey, those streets are narrow, crowded, and some pedestrians are smart enough to look both ways before crossing the street… my words, not Shawn’s). We plan to bring our daughter back to the lovely city & will schedule a tour and I will specifically request Shawn. If you are looking for a cool way (air conditioned, relaxing) to see the city, look no further - this is it!!!!
Written 24 June 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Drew H
Kill Devil Hills, NC45 contributions
We took a 1.5 hour city tour with Shawn as our driver guide. Anyone who can drive a bus on the tight streets and provide a informative and entertaining narrative should automatically get 5 stars! Shawn was very knowledgeable and passionate about introducing his guests to his city. I would highly recommend this tour if you want to get a good overview of the city and what you want to
explore more.
explore more.
Written 27 January 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
jackrabbit26
Raleigh, NC11 contributions
Jan 2020
The tour and the driver were both great. he was very knowledgeable of the history and current events in the city. We saw and heard about things you cannot find on your own. However, the bus was a disappointment. Although very clean and in excellent repair, it was way too tight with seats. Hard to see everything he talked about. A larger bus with seats more spread out would be better.
Written 9 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Joe1234665
Weston, CT329 contributions
Mar 2020
We did this tour as well as the horse tour and found they worked to gether well.
The bus tour covered more places quickly and was fine on a rainy day. Would be great in heat too. The driver knew his stuff and made it informative and pleasant.
The horse tour in more restricted and less control where you are going that day but up close and personal
There is a senior discount on the bus tour
The bus tour covered more places quickly and was fine on a rainy day. Would be great in heat too. The driver knew his stuff and made it informative and pleasant.
The horse tour in more restricted and less control where you are going that day but up close and personal
There is a senior discount on the bus tour
Written 27 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Becky V
1 contribution
Jun 2021 • Friends
Shawn was an excellent tour guide. Very knowledgeable and engaging. They packed a lot into 90 minutes and provided a good overview of the city and its history without “whitewashing” it. Totally recommend as an option to the horse drawn carriages. I do not support their use of horses in this way.
Written 7 June 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BeenThereDoneThatToo
Bluffton, SC24 contributions
Mar 2022
The tour itself gives a good overview of the city, especially for first-timers to Charleston. Our tour was on a small bus, which I much prefer, but you need to get there early if your party wants to sit together. My major complaint: the company offers a discount code on their ad page in the current Official Visitors Guide to Charleston. However, online bookings wouldn't accept the code, the phone rep didn't know what I was talking about, the in-person rep said I had to talk to the company and the company acknowledged receiving my complaint but won't call me back. So go enjoy, but don't expect a discount.
Written 23 March 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dana I
5 contributions
Jul 2022 • Couples
Our first introduction to Charleston was the bus tour. It was a nice way to start our visit. The bus was comfortable (not a lot if legroom but still comfy enough), the AC worked well, and the speakers were neither too loud or too quiet. The bus leaves from just outside the Visitor's Center where all the busses gather. We parked in their lot which was a couple of dollars an hour paid via an app that you text. Our tour guide was friendly. The tour itself was just ok. There were too many minutes dedicated to hearing about the hospital and the local college, as well as the Citadel. I actually feel like comparing lengths of what was talked about- these were the lengthiest! I came to Charleston to hear about the history and the architecture and maybe more of an overview. This had small pieces of that but nothing like I was expecting. I feel like we now need to go to a museum to learn about Charleston's history. That said, Charleston is such an architecturally beautiful city and it was enjoyable to watch it in one drive through their large, clean windows.
Written 2 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is Rainbow Row one of the attractions we’ll see on this Sightseeing Bus Tour?
Written 20 August 2022
Yes it is. Toward the end of the tour
Written 21 August 2022
Hello,
Are kids under 4 free? We have a 2 year old and a 1 year old who would come with us and just want to know if I need to buy the children’s tickets. Online the kids tickets are 4-11, so just wondering what to do.
Thanks!
Written 16 December 2021
There is a phone number you can call to ask . We were just adults do I really don’t know.
Written 17 December 2021
I paid for 2 tickets for Oct 26, 2021 10 a.m.
for Charleston See it all bus tour.
Have not received my confirmation email
Diana Erickson
Written 26 October 2021
Can I get a ticket at the visitor center? I am not sure what time we can get to Charleston.
Written 9 September 2021
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