Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
So my wife and 15 month old son just got back from 3 nights in Charleston, we were there to enjoy the city, see the beach a bit, and scope out the area as a potential relocation spot. I'm an ER doc, my wife is stay at home mom, will be done with current contract and free to roam summer of 2014. We're considering southern coastal cities, Charleston, Wilmington, NC, Amelia Island, FL, maybe Virginia Beach... Anyway this was our first stop because "on paper" and from talking with friends who have been it sounded like a special place.
We had the best time (minus flying with the toddler, NEVER AGAIN), we loved the city, the friendliness of the people there was awesome and it was just a really cool, unique city. Thought I would throw out some observations and impressions for those thinking of visiting.
1) Downtown is amazing, restaurants are unparalleled, choice of bars is insane, tons to just walk around and look at, people watching, chilling out at battery park, daydreaming and chasing around a toddler were all fun. You can never even scratch all the shops, bars, or restaurants without spending months, probably years there. I feel like if we moved to the area I would want to live in the downtown area, perhaps the area called Ansonborough, looked so amazing walking through the small winding streets with ivy covered gates and stately homes, plus it's super close to the nightlife. SUPER big recommendation for The Macintosh on upper King St., probably one of the three best meals Ive had in my life. (Fig, Hominy Grill, Tattooed Moose, Glazed, Social and Magnolia's were excellent too! Can't get a bad meal in Charleston it seemed)
2) It feels like a very young city in terms of populace, granted we were there for St Patty's Day weekend, but with the COC so close there were lots of co-eds around (I think thats a good thing).
3) Drove through Mt. Pleasant on our way to Isle of Palms, also drove up to Daniel island for a quick look see. Must say this was the most disappointing part of the trip, from all the research we had done we were VERY high on checking this area out and really targeting it as the place to move. Sadly it looked like s@*t to me... massive construction, TONS of traffic, impossible to turn around, mini strip mall after mini strip mall. Perhaps we didn't have the time or intel on where to check out but the main roads were bunk... I will say the few small side streets we drove through had the beautiful live oaks and neat neighborhood feel, very established suburban (aka Potomac, MD) feel, I'm from DC so everything is sort of seen through Washington lenses. I would be willing to give it another shot if we do end up moving into the area, but would have to see a whole different side than what I did on this trip to even consider it.
Daniel Island felt like a movie set, we drove through and I kept commenting how it seemed like an city themed amusement park, everything looks like office buildings, don't get the impression that anything has been there long or will be around for long. I used to live in Sarasota, FL and there is a master planned area called "Lakewood Ranch" there with ritzy houses and condos, strip malls, a "fake" main st that really has nothing great going for it Reminded me exactly of that. No people walking around, drove through on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, not a single kid playing in the parks, no one walking around except for a random one here or there, etc... No friggin way I'd move cross country to live there, why pay the money, move to any lily white suburban town in the midwest or south and you will have a similar experience minus the live oaks I think. Guess it's just not my thing, not what I want my son to grow up thinking of as reality.
We spent the majority of our time in the downtown area as anyone would on their first pure pleasure trip to the city, never got to see much of anything of West Ashley, N.Charleston, James Island or parts north for what it's worth.
4) The beaches, went to Isle of Palms and Folly Beach, both are acceptable, clean, neither is spectacular when compared to others I've visited or lived near, notably Siesta Key, FL. Overall pretty darn good though, SC is probably as good as you'll get outside of California, Florida or the other Gulf States. What they both did seem to have is vibrant party scene with restaurants and bars to balance the natural side of it. Kind of crowded (albeit there was a huge bar crawl going on @ Folly..., sand is a bit dark, moderate amount of broken shell fragments, but still pretty good, better than Mid-Atlantic beaches for sure. Overall would be an amazing thing to have 30 minutes away if you were living downtown, but doesn't feel like a beach worth moving for alone. Since marine fishing & boating is my favorite expensive pastime, the beach and water is a big consideration for me.
5) Accessibility, except for getting through the clusterf$@k that is Mt. Pleasant on Friday at 2pm, it was super easy to get around the city, get in and out of the city and to/from airport or "big box" shopping. This was a holiday weekend that we were there and was still no big deal. Again probably being from DC I'm used to the excruciating hell that is the beltway traffic, but my blond, blue eyed, small town wife agreed it was no big deal driving around Charleston.
6) Weather, it's money in the bank if you like hot weather which we do.
7) Cost of Living/Real Estate/Job Market, no time for us to really delve into this while on this past trip, ultimately I think there are enough options for any budget and you'd never be that far away from the city. Sadly, as I would definitively want to live in the city, the nice historic places that need some work so you can personalize them still go for over a million... not going to happen with welfare, er.. I mean "Medicaid" being the predominant "insurance" these days.... I digress, hopefully the ER physician job market stays as red hot as it is right now and I'll be able to score a job wherever I want. Plus side there are at least 4 hospitals I counted, St Ropers, MUSC, East Cooper and N.Charleston and commuting from anywhere to those four wouldn't really be that bad at all.
Overall, anyone would be lucky to live in such a city, it's a great place, friendly people, lots to see and do, plenty of natural beauty and resources. We're still gonna check out the other places I mentioned over the next couple of years but it would be hard to top Charleston!
Any comments, flames, or generalized ranting is appreciated and enjoyed, CHEERS!
I was there visiting for some of the same time you were there. We were apartment hunting for my son and were in Mt Pleasant the same time as you. I felt kind of the same way with Mt Pleasant as you. I didn't feel like it had much of a soul - just like you said - strip mall after strip mall. Now granted, we didn't go though the same neighborhoods as you because we were sticking to apartments, but I kept wanting to find a "central area" and we just didn't see one.
I'm from a bigger city too, so the traffic was pretty much a piece of cake all over for us as well. We intentionally drove during rush hour from areas my son liked to the place he will start work in June just to see if it was tolerable. It was easy going. And we only went downtown once and had dinner and walked a few blocks - we stayed for such a short amount of time that the lady who worked out parking lot got to sell our spot twice. It'll be more fun to do touristy things when I'm with my husband instead of my son.....although I did enjoy being with my son. Since he was trapped with me, he was forced to talk to me all about his life - it was nice.
Although my son will be living 3 1/2 hours away from me, I'm very excited for him to begin his life in such a great place. He's a senior and already had 3 job offers by November, and once he interviewed here, he was definitely decided Charleston was where he wanted to be.
You did hit us on a party weekend, a lot of young amateurs out there, I think it is the second biggest amateur event of the year after New Years eve...
But if you think it was crazy here you should try Savannah on St Patty's day, it is like Chicago all crammed into a smaller space...
We have about a dozen colleges here so you probably saw all of them out blowing off steam before finals start rolling around...
I think the biggest appeal to Mount Pleasant is its location & closeness to downtown and the beach as well as the top notch schools in MP. You visited at a bad time with all of the road construction going on. MP has a lot of tucked in/hidden shopping. You see lots of trees and such, so the stores are mostly hidden. There are some gorgeous neighborhoods in MP. I would definitely give it another try before writing it off. Just my 2cents. You should get a realtor to drive you on a tour. Here is a GREAT MP tour from a locals perspective. I found it very helpful.
I continue to laugh at anyone who complains about a location (any location) because they have current construction going on.
You know the cool thing about construction? It ends at some point.
LOL
I have seen areas where construction never ends. Not saying its a bad thing. Just means growth. Hell I went to a school called UCF, it was joked and called Under Construction Forever, and it was.
I would suggest people to checkout the Summerville area.
I agree the area is developed but they still held onto the historic part of it, and the historic neighborhoods are nice. Lots of 100 year old homes, big porches with trees and azaleas around them.
One of the main reasons I was driven to this place is it had a feel to it. Mt. Pleasant to me felt like typical Florida(I lived in few places in ft. lauderdale and Orlando, my wife and her family are from Tampa, as well as Daytona, oddly Daytona felt like it had the most soul to it)
Don't get me wrong alot of people want that, its new, its shiney, its near the beach and downtown, its "sanitized". Still have to drive to both the beach and downtown, I figure whats 20 min more to my drive since I go to those places on weekends. I like some of the old small town feel that is still around. I know its not a small town but I still get the feel of it.
That and a similar size dwelling is $80-100k cheaper, with a cheaper insurance.
I'm glad you enjoyed your visit. Sounds like you guys had a blast while you were here. Downtown Charleston would be a very fun, hip place to live, provided you save room in your budget for private schools. I know with your little one in diapers that may not even be an issue unless you are considering putting down some serious roots and staying a while.
I live in Mount Pleasant and I don't take exception to anything you've written. With construction things ARE ugly, and traffic is often snarled from one end of the city to the other. Once the new lanes are finished things should be massively improved, but we certainly aren't showing our best face to visitors right now. I do agree it's a little silly to fuss about something that is clearly temporary, but I guess you really can only go by what you see on your visit.
I also think the city is not great to look at from a few blocks off the bridge until you reach Town Center (IOP). In fact, I hate the strip mall look so much when people come to visit me from out of town I send them down Long Point to my house in order to bypass the entire middle section of town.
If you stick to the main roads in Mt Pleasant, it's pretty much like most Southern towns with the shopping strip malls etc. Will have to say that Mt P is making an effort to improve and move away from that look on 17 and especially Coleman. To get a feel for Mt Pleasant, I think you need to get off the main roads. Old Village has always been a favorite for me.
That being said, it will never compare to downtown Charleston and I think it's a bit like comparing apples to oranges. If you're looking for a downtown type of home, you really can't beat Charleston. Generally, Mt Pleasant is popular for those who want the convenience factor of all that the Charleston area offers but is in the suburbs with the requisite safe neighborhoods and good schools. Mt Pleasant is getting too crowded though, in my personal opinion. But I'm a country girl so take that as you will.
As an ER physician, downtown is certainly within your reach but private schools will be an absolute must. The other alternative, for the same price as a downtown house, would be to live directly on the water in Mt Pleasant, since you said you enjoy boating activities. Additionally, James Island has some stunning waterfront properties as well.
I've never liked the beaches here so can't disagree with anything you've said. I'm a bit spoiled in my beach expectations and always go to the Caribbean when I want a nice beach. We used to have a place on Little Abaco; those are some nice beaches. But again, apples and oranges.
Siesta Key -- one of my fave beaches and I grew up in Bermuda...Destin area is another fave of mine. The beaches here aren't the prettiest but they are convenient and it is affordable.
You took the main roads -- of course it is strip mall heaven-- kind of like taking 41 to get to Siesta -- not so pretty.
We hide the real pretty parts <G>............
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
You should get a realtor to drive you on a tour. 
