Charleston Walking Tours: the 15 Best Guided Walks

1.Historic Charleston Guided Sightseeing Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 6,216 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $30Our pick

Start at Charleston City Hall and walk through the French Quarter, past Rainbow Row, and into South of Broad. Guides such as Evans, Al, Dennis, and Duggar bring architecture, slavery, war, and local stories to life. Expect a flat, moderate walk for groups of up to 20.

“EVANS was a great tour guide would definitely recommend taking the tour told some very interesting stories about Charleston”

Check availability →Read our full review

2.Ghosts of Charleston Night-Time Walking Tour with Unitarian Church Graveyard

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 2,835 reviews · 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.) · from $35

Walk Charleston’s old city for 90 minutes with guides such as Simon, Jerry, Liz, or Jake, hearing historical ghost tales before entering the 1772 Unitarian Church Graveyard after dark. Expect storytelling, cobblestones, hanging moss, and a choice of full tour or graveyard-only visit.

“Jake was a great tour guide! Super fun and very knowledgeable on each place we went to! Definitely doing it again!”

Check availability →Read our full review

3.Hidden Alleyways and Historic Sites Small-Group Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 2,335 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $34

Walk Charleston’s South of Broad and French Quarter with a licensed local guide such as Dennis, Duggar, Evans, or Al. In two hours, you’ll visit four to six alleys, Rainbow Row, Philadelphia Alley, St. Philip’s, and other historic sites. The tour stays outdoors and ends where it starts.

“Very interesting tour. History, beauty and life. Lovely two hours in downtown Charleston with lots of stories.”

Check availability →Read our full review

4.Highlights of Charleston Guided Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 2,206 reviews · 2 hours (approx.)

Walk Charleston’s French Quarter and South of Broad for two hours with a guide such as Bill Harris or Vanna. Expect a history-focused route through St. Philip’s Church, the Old Slave Mart, the Old Exchange, Rainbow Row, and lesser-seen corners, with plenty of outdoor walking and storytelling.

“Great tour. Bill Harris was great, his compassion for history was infectious. Highly recommend this tour.”

Check availability →Read our full review

5.Charleston French Quarter or Brunch Food Tour with 7+ Tastings

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,853 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $108

Spend three hours walking Charleston with a local guide such as Robin, Perry, Nathan, or Crystin while sampling Lowcountry favorites. Choose French Quarter tastings of she-crab soup, shrimp and grits, and benne wafers, or an Upper King brunch with biscuits, quiche, fried green tomatoes, and a secret dish.

“Awesome food tour with multiple stops and plenty of great tasting food. Fantastic tour guide who was extremely knowledgeable regarding local history.”

Check availability →Read our full review

6.Charleston Haunted Booze and Boos Ghost Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,569 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $39

Walk Charleston after dark with a costumed pirate guide such as Vannah, Jo, or Blakey. Hear ghost stories tied to the Powder Magazine, City Market, churchyards, and Four Corners of Law, while stopping at local bars for drinks you buy yourself. Expect up to 14 people, a souvenir cup, and plenty of walking.

“Jo is fantastic! Great tour; she is entertaining & very knowledgeable about the history of Charleston.”

Check availability →Read our full review

7.Charleston’s Pleasing Terrors Night-Time Walking Ghost Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,345 reviews · 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.) · from $29Best value

Walk Charleston after dark with Mike Brown, host of the Pleasing Terrors Podcast. Over 90 minutes, you’ll hear ghost stories, local folklore, and unsettling history at Poogan’s Porch, the Charleston Library Society, Philadelphia Alley, and a historic church downtown. The group is capped at 20.

“Our guide Mike was a fantastic and made the experience enjoyable. He made the stories feel real and tied a lot of history in it to make it believable”

Check availability →Read our full review

8.Charleston historical walking tour with a Professor of History at The Citadel

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,284 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $40

Walk Charleston’s historic center with Citadel history professor Eric Lager, in a group capped at 12. Over about three hours, you’ll connect churches, theaters, civic buildings, the French Quarter, and a Battery view of Fort Sumter through detailed stories and open questions.

“Highly recommend this tour. Our guide was a rare combination of hugely knowledgeable, highly engaging, humorous. We learned lots - historical and otherwise.”

Check availability →Read our full review

9.Charleston Ghost & Graveyard Night-Time Guided Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 1,100 reviews · 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.) · from $40

Join a licensed Bulldog Tours guide for a 90-minute evening walk through Charleston’s Historic District. Hear stories of ghosts, voodoo, dueling, and premature burial, then enter the city’s oldest cemetery after hours. Guides such as Sarah, Drew, Jim, and Kevin bring different styles to the route.

“Guide was knowledgeable, ambience was fun, stories was good but too long. Would have enjoyed a few more stories and stops instead of 2-3 very long tales.”

Check availability →Read our full review

10.Savor the Flavors of Charleston Walking Food Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 881 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $110

Spend about 2.5 hours walking Charleston with a guide such as Diane, Jade, Fran, or Faith, stopping for generous tastes of grits, barbecue, benne wafers, pralines, and more. The small group is capped at 12, with stops around the City Market and French Quarter.

“This was phenomenal! Our guide, Andrew, was so knowledgeable and entertaining . This is a must do. The restaurants and bakery we visited were spectacular, and the food samplings werr great !”

Check availability →Read our full review

11.Old Walled City Historical Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 705 reviews · 2 hours · from $30

Spend two hours walking Charleston’s cobblestone streets with a local English-speaking guide such as Al, Bruce, or Eric. See churches, colonial homes, Rainbow Row, Waterfront Park, and the Old Exchange while hearing stories about piracy, rice planters, fires, epidemics, war, hurricanes, and the great earthquake.

“Our guide gave us so much information it was almost too much. I wish he spoke a little slower but his enthusiasm and passionate delivery were much appreciated.”

Check availability →Read our full review

12.Historic Charleston Walking Tour: Rainbow Row, Churches, and More

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 691 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $40

Walk Charleston’s Historic District with guides such as Gordon, Diane, Eric, or Graham, seeing Rainbow Row, antebellum homes, churches, graveyards, the Battery, and Fort Sumter from afar. The two-hour route includes Powder Magazine admission and suits first-time visitors who want history, architecture, and local stories without transportation.

“Keith did an excellent job sharing the history of Charleston. This tour was very interesting and we enjoyed walking through the historic district.”

Check availability →Read our full review

13.History and Architecture Guided Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 349 reviews · 1h 30m · from $29

Walk about one mile through Charleston’s Historic Downtown, South of Broad, and the French Quarter with guides such as Jeff, Emerson, Paige, and Jackson. See three private-feeling alleys, Rainbow Row, iron gates, and interiors of St Michael’s Church, Dock Street Theatre, and the Old Exchange when open.

“Jeff gave an excellent tour, interesting and engaging - a great storyteller clearly in love with his adopted home city.”

Check availability →Read our full review

14.90-Minute Ghost and Dungeon Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.2 · 266 reviews · 1h 30m · from $40

Walk Charleston’s historic streets with an English-speaking guide such as Jerry, Emma, or Puckett, then enter the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon. Expect ghost stories, Lowcountry superstition, church history, and a leisurely pace over uneven streets. The tour runs rain or shine.

“Sarah was a great tour guide. Dungeon was super super spooky… you get your moneys worth. Makes you see Charleston in a new way. Great experience!”

Check availability →Read our full review

15.Charleston walking tour with a Citadel history professor

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 105 reviews · 3 hours · from $40

Spend three hours walking historic Charleston with Eric Lager, a Citadel history professor specializing in South Carolina’s colonial, Revolutionary, antebellum, and Civil War eras. Expect a small group of no more than 12, thoughtful storytelling, old alleys, graveyards, churches, and plenty of time for questions.

“Tour was amazing. Our guide was exceptionally knowledgeable and presented the information in an exciting and detailed way. I would definitely do it again.”

Check availability →Read our full review