Weekend in Beaufort, SC

As most of you know, John is the travel planning guru in our family. He does most of the legwork on our trips, as I prefer to be surprised when I show up to our destination! So when he suggested Beaufort, SC when we needed a one-night stay close to Bluffton two years ago, I was game, but didn’t really know what was in store. I think it’s fair to say that we were both blown away by this quiet Southern town – it captured us in a way few other places have. We’ve been eager to return ever since, and this past weekend, we got the chance to!

Beaufort is not Charleston or Savannah – it’s much smaller than both. I think I love it because it seems like a place people lead normal lives – but in a beautiful, idyllic way! The streets are quiet and draped in Spanish moss. The houses are absolutely gorgeous but have people puttering in the lawns or sitting on their front porches. When we ate dinner in the bar of a local restaurant one night, it seemed like everyone knew each other. For any Hart of Dixie fans out there, Beaufort really reminds me of Bluebell – except with slightly weaker accents :)

Like last time, we stayed at City Loft Hotel, and continue to be huge fans of the way the owners have transformed an outdated roadside motel into a chic boutique motel! You can read my much more thorough review of CLH here.

After checking in, we immediately hopped on City Loft’s complimentary cruisers and pedaled toward the Point, the beautiful historic district right next to downtown. I was in my happy place – there are few activities I enjoy more than biking or walking around an old neighborhood with John at my side. We even chatted up a few of the residents!

I could go on and on…

…but I will stop there! Aside from biking, we also ate some delicious food. We had lunch in Bluffton, which is between Savannah and Beaufort, at The Cottage. It was good; any place that serves free pimento cheese to start is a-okay in my book. Dinner was at Breakwater Restaurant, right next to CLH. We ate at the bar (celebrating after Duke’s Final Four win!) and I think it was the best meal of our trip. Highly recommended! Finally, we had Easter brunch at Wren. Charming decor and yummy food. We didn’t make it to my store crush, Lowcountry Produce, for a meal, but I couldn’t resist popping in for a quick visit!

Easter was celebrated at First Baptist Beaufort. I will admit I lingered on the front steps after the service, trying to soak in the conversations of the locals around me, imagining what their lives were like! Hopefully that’s not too creepy :)

We are now engaged in an active campaign to get John’s parents to retire in Beaufort, at least for the winter. Fingers crossed!