We attend a family reunion every other year in Erwin, NC in mid-June. After the reunion, my immediate family takes a small sidetrip. On our last trip, we visited the Outer Banks. At the moment, I'm looking at Charleston. It looks like a very beautiful, interesting place to visit, but my son who will be 3.5 can't do tours all day long. The humidity is also a factor. (We live in CA and have very hot days, but we rarely have any humidity.) I'm also looking into Myrtle Beach....it seems (please correct me if I'm wrong) that it is crazy that time of year and also very commercial. I would love to combine the best of both worlds...Charleston and the beach. Is it possible? We usually spend between 5-7 days on the sidetrip. Any advice would be appreciated. I don't mind doing research; I just need a place to start. Thanks!

Yes it is beautiful and yes you can stay at the beach and see the city. The 2 closest beaches are SUllivans Island and Isle of Palms. Sullivans has few rentals, IOP has more. It won't be as humid in June as it will get in July-August but just plan for it. Do your tour activities in the morning, dress in light clothing and drink plenty of water. Don't forget bug spray and sunscreen. I like to recommend a carriage ride around the historic district first thing. You can learn about different parts of town and see what grabs your interest. You migh want to also tour one of the homes as well. Many people visit plantations too. Do some surfing and let us know what other questions you have.

Another vote for Isle of Palms- nice, quiet beach not far from all that Charleston has to offer.

Another beach option in Charleston area is Folly beach. Accessible to Charleston, with plenty of affordable rental places right on the beach.

IMHO, I would not do Myrtle Beach for the exact reasons you listed in your comment. Charleston is much more family oriented. Also, just walking along battery park is very nice in the summer if you don't want to be strapped to a tour with a 3.5 year old.

Many love Myrtle. I'm not one of them. I remember it back in the day and I don't recognize it anymore.

Folly is great. All the surfers go there and that pier is great. IOP is a little closer. You can't go wrong with either.

Thanks so much! I'll definitely start investigating. I looked at a couple of IOP rentals last night. It seems that most rentals will only do a Sat. to Sat. rental and that won't work into our plans. Our side trip would start on a Monday. Any advice on places to stay that don't require a Sat. to Sat. rental?

No, they're pretty strict about the 7 day thing in the summer. There may be some that rent Sunday - Sunday. Any of the big rental places can tell you which ones are Sun-Sun. Try that and see. Good luck.

I'm thinking that you want a little more space than a hotel room with a toddler???? In that vein, you might check vrbo to see if there are options for less than a week. Just a thought, though, the nightly rates might be high enough that renting for a week is the same price as 5 days and you could just make arrangements for early/late check in.

In addition to Folly, IOP, and Sullivan's, there are Seabrook and Kiawah Islands to the south. It's a longer drive to Charleston, but there are lots of rentals and great beaches. You should definitely be able to rent a place through the Kiawah Island Resort for less than a week if you can't find anything on vrbo. There are lots of activities in the summer, a nature center (free) on the island and quite a few dining options if you don't want to cook. The Sanctuary Hotel is gorgeous, btw. Pool access on Kiawah can be an issue depending on where you stay and who you rent through. The pool complex on Seabrook has just been completely redone. I think most everyone renting on Seabrook has access.

Depending on your child, you might find that spending a lot of time in houses or touring in Charleston might be difficult and more beach time might work out better. That said, the Aquarium is great, a carraige ride might be great and there's a children's hands-on type museum in Charleston. Battery Park is fun, too; your son would probably love to climb on the cannons. I have to tell you, my DS and my neices and nephews all love the Serpentarium on Edisto Island, but this is quite the drive from Charleston.

There is also the possibility of hotels in Charleston, and then going to the beach for the day. There is lots to do in Charleston for your little one, as has been shown above. Another possibility for a day would be to go up to Georgetown (about an hour north) and take the "pirate" ship tour out of that port. It is a tall ship, the crew dresses as pirates, tells stories, lets the kids pull the ropes, etc. It is about 2 hours long, nice "air" out on the water.
Poke around Georgetown for the day. Georgetown dates from Revolutionary War times, has a lovely historic district.

Thanks again for suggestions. I spent a loooong time last night looking at VRBO IOP rentals. I also sent quite a few inquiries. I'm still waiting for a few, but most of them said weekly rentals only and many of them said Sat. to Sat. only. At least I tried!The Palms Hotel has availability. Anyone know anything about it? I looked at Tripadvisor and some of the reviews were mixed. There aren't too many hotel choices on IOP. I think Folly Beach only had one hotel choice.

I think you should call the rental companies and ask about Sun-Sun.

I don't know about the Palms. There are 2 on FOlly I think: Holiday Inn (newly renovated and really neat) and Holliday Inn. Pick the first.

After sending many inquiries, there is a lady on VRBO who is willing to rent for less than a week. The rental is on IOP. I have to send all the info. to my family (mom and her DH;bro and his DW) and find out what they want to do.
Thanks for the advice!

That is GREAT!

If you can get a rental in June for less than a week, book it now! Having said that, do protect yourself. Make sure you have a contract and know whom to call if a problem arises while you're visiting. I'd pay with a credit card if possible (some owners have the capacity to take cc, some do not). As a final precaution, you can always check the property records to be sure you are dealing with the real owner.

Very wise words, GreatEscape! I'll definitely look at the fine print and ask questions. I believe the owner lives in Mt. Pleasant. She actually owns 2 houses right next to each other on IOP. She's good about answering my questions and getting back to me in a timely manner. The house isn't beachfront, but an easy short 2 block walk. We'll see what my family says. I'm sure I'll be back with more specific questions about Charleston. Thanks everyone!

Another possibility may have opened up...this house is in the Wild Dunes area. What would the advantage be to staying in that area rather than regular IOP? The rental does include a Sportcard which gives access to the resort amenities. I'm guessing things like pool and gym access? Any other advantages? Thanks for your help!

Wild Dunes is a gated community at the north part of IOP It's nice. My criteria would be ocean proximity.

Agree w/ suewoo. the fact of being within Wild Dunes does nothing for me, but I wouldn't considere it a knock either, just select the nicest house,closest to the ocean. WD would be a longer walk to the small commerical district (a couple of beach bars, a surfwear shop, a Ben and Jereys, etc.)

Folly Beach is actually a shorter drive to downtown Chas than IOP, and it's usually cheaper.

Also , i had an email today from Island Realty. 15% discount if you book soon. No idea if they would work with you on the time frame or not.