What's on in Charleston, United States through the year

Busy — Winter / Christmas break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Lowcountry oyster season (1 Oct – 30 Apr)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Festival

  Charleston Wine + Food

  4–8 MarMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  Five days in early March built around the Culinary Village in Marion Square, and the restaurant tickets sell out long before the festival ones do. It is the week the city's kitchens are at full stretch. Source ↗

Still on: Lowcountry oyster season (1 Oct – 30 Apr)

Peak crowds — Charleston Wine + Food, Azalea and garden season

• Nature

  Azalea and garden season

  10 Mar – 20 Apr · usuallyWildflowers & bloomsCrowded

  Azaleas, wisteria and dogwood go over in late March and early April, and Middleton and Magnolia plantations are the reason the shoulder season is not cheap here. Book the garden tours before the flights.

• Festival

  Cooper River Bridge Run

  28 MarMajor festivalCrowdedClosures

  Around thirty thousand people walk and run the ten kilometres over the Ravenel Bridge from Mount Pleasant on a Saturday morning. The bridge and the approaches close from dawn, so leave the car. Source ↗

Still on: Charleston Wine + Food (4–8 Mar), Lowcountry oyster season (1 Oct – 30 Apr)

Busy — Azalea and garden season

Nothing new starts in April.

Still on: Azalea and garden season (10 Mar – 20 Apr (usually)), Cooper River Bridge Run (28 Mar), Lowcountry oyster season (1 Oct – 30 Apr)

Busy — Spoleto Festival USA

• Festival

  Spoleto Festival USA

  22 May – 7 JunMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  Seventeen days of opera, theatre and chamber music in the historic churches and halls, with the free Piccolo Spoleto fringe running alongside it. Rooms in the peninsula are the year's dearest. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Spoleto Festival USA, Summer break in United States

• Hazard

  Atlantic hurricane season

  1 Jun – 30 Nov

  Officially June to November, with the risk concentrated between mid-August and early October. Direct hits are rare; the routine cost is a storm offshore pushing water into the peninsula for a day. Source ↗

Still on: Spoleto Festival USA (22 May – 7 Jun)

Busy — Summer break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Busy — Summer break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Busy — Summer break in United States

• Hazard

  King tide flooding

  1 Sep – 15 Nov · usuallyFlood seasonClosures

  The highest autumn tides put salt water over the Battery and into the lower peninsula streets on clear days, no storm required. It lasts an hour or two either side of high water and closes the odd road. Source ↗

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov)

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

• Season

  Lowcountry oyster season

  1 Oct – 30 AprForaging season

  Cluster oysters come out of the creeks through the cool months, and the winter roast — a shovel of steamed oysters tipped onto a plywood table — is the local social event. The state closes most beds through the summer spawn. Source ↗

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov), King tide flooding (1 Sep – 15 Nov (usually))

Busy — Thanksgiving break in United States

Nothing new starts in November.

Still on: Atlantic hurricane season (1 Jun – 30 Nov), King tide flooding (1 Sep – 15 Nov (usually)), Lowcountry oyster season (1 Oct – 30 Apr)

Busy — Winter / Christmas break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: Lowcountry oyster season (1 Oct – 30 Apr)