debimalone

My husband and I are wanting to escape for our 30 year anniversary but have a limited budget. Three places of interest are: Charleston, SC; Charlotte, NC; and Atlanta, GA.
We both love History, Shows, and my husband loves baseball. We prefer to eat at Native "hole in the Wall" places rather than Gourmet Cuisine. I would love to see the Billy Graham Museum, Hubby, probably Atlanta Braves game and any great History "have to see" places. Would love to have some input on some great places to go, eat, and stay.

clarkgriswold

What time of year, are you flexible? And we're not sure what you consider a limited budget, are you flying? How many days will you have all total.

debimalone

Looking at the middle of May. Looking at $1000 for whole trip.

Sassafrass

Are you driving, or flying and renting a car? How many days do you have? Coming from?
You might consider throwing Asheville or Savannah into the mix.

suewoo

Of the three you mentioned, Charleston would be my pick.

It's costlier to stay in the historic district. But you have the convenience of staying where you will spend most of your time. You can stay out in the burbs, but you'll spend time driving in and parking. Chose West Ashley or Mt Pleasant if that's what you wnat to do. Avoid North Charleston. Traffic is slow during rush ours into town from up there.

You can enjoy the HD by just walking around and looking at the beautiful architecture and gardens. If budget allows, take a walking tour or carriage ride so you can learn about what you are seeing.

starrs

Of those three, Charleston. I wouldn't pick Charlotte and Atlanta has history and shows. Here's the schedule for April at the Fox Theater -
https://foxtheatre.org/shows-and-events/

You really need to share where you are driving from. I agree that considering Asheville and Savannah are good additions.

My thought went to relatively inexpensive but nice lodging options and I thought of two in the NE Georgia mountains. There's lots to do in the area - sightseeing, hiking, restaurants, etc. Both are a couple of hours from Asheville and Atlanta so you could do the trip in segments if you wanted -
The Parker Ranch is a newly restored historic lodge where the "tourist rooms" are $80 each. Nice lodge with touches of luxury -
http://www.parkersranch.com/
Another option nearby -
http://lakerabunhotel.com/

You could go to Atlanta for a Braves game or stay in the NE corner of Atlanta and go to a Gwinnett Braves game. The Gwinnett Stadium is only 76 miles and a little more than an hour from the Parker Ranch so you could just drive down if you wanted.

Lots of good restaurants in the area, including the famous Dillard House -
http://www.dillardhouse.com/

One of the top 100 restaurants in the country is in the picturesque mountain town of Clayton -
http://www.fortifyclayton.com/

The chef actually moved from the Lake Rabun hotel. A Fodorite stayed at the Lake Rabun Hotel recently and said the current chef is very good too.

I love that corner of north Georgia. I think it's as pretty of an area as I've ever seen. There are three wineries in the area. Lots to see and do at a very relaxed pace.

http://www.gastateparks.org/TallulahGorge
http://www.gastateparks.org/BlackRockMountain

Not sure when the last time you've been to a drive-in might be, but the tiny Tiger drive-in will be open in April and shows first run movies in a fun environment -
http://www.tigerdrivein.com/

WhereAreWe

Mid-May...the Braves are out of town 5/8 - 5/17 and at home 5/19 - 5/24.

http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/schedu...=atl&year=2015

Gretchen

Still don't know for how long or where coming from.
Charleston for the biggest amount to do.

debimalone

leaving from jacksonville, florida for 1 week.

starrs

Asheville is 442 miles
Charleston is 238. Savannah is closer.
Charlotte is 383
Atlanta is 346
Clayton, GA is 448

$1000 for a week is slim. A couple of tanks of gas costing whatever that costs for your car. $100?
$100/ night for 6 nights is $600.
That leaves $300 for meals for a week.

Personally I'd go to Clayton and stay at the Parker Ranch ($80 /night). It's special and there's lots to do in the area.

In Savannah you could do Sand Gnats baseball.

I don't know how your budget is going to cover Braves tickets, show tickets, etc.

clarkgriswold

There's a Best Western just outside of Savannah on Eisenhower Drive that's approx. $80 per night Sun-Thurs. Newly renovated and complimentary hot breakfast. Pool and free parking. Gets very good reviews. The trolley stop is right next to the hotel taking you to the historic district so that you don't have to worry about parking.

Ackislander

If Savannah isn't too close, Clark Griswold's suggestion sounds very tempting.

I spent almost every vacation of my childhood in the magic area that starrs recommends. Look into a cabin at Oconee State Park in South Carolina or one of the many other state parks. Oconee is very centrally located for day trips as far as the Smokies, is just ever the border from Georgia, and no more than half an hour from Highlands and Cashiers, NC. But the Parker Ranch is tempting , very tempting, at that price.

I think the baseball tickets might have to be outside the trip budget, but I would do them on the way back to Jacksonville (or on the way to your destination) rather than as a trip back to Atlanta. It will be less of a hit that way.

And congratulations on reaching such a significant anniversary! Blessings for many more!

AliciaJ

I would suggest Savannah as well. You can find great deals on hotels as long as they're not in the historic district. Plus you can check out nearby Fort Pulaski and Tybee Island. Congrats on your anniversary!