Does anyone have any suggestions on things to do in Charleston that are off the beaten path? I am phrasing it this way because we have visited Charleston many times and feel like we have hit all of the major sites (Magnolia Plantation, Middleton Place, Boone Hall, Cypress Gardens, Ft. Sumter etc.). As you can tell, we enjoy historic sites. We do not mind driving an hour's drive or so. We were thinking of visiting one of the barrier islands but are not sure which one.

The same holds true for restaurants. Our favorites include Jestine's, Blossom, Hominy Grill, Cru Cafe, and Poogan's Porch. We will have a 7 year old with us so nothing super fancy. We prefer american and southern cusine.

Take a drive south on Rt. 17 to Beaufort, SC. Another fine little coastal town with a scenic, historic downtown area. Perfect for a day trip. you can visit Lady's Island and stop for lunch. I was going to recommend Ollie's, but I believe it is closed.

For eats downtown, I liked SNOB very much -- well worth it if you haven't been. Bessinger's is arguably the best place locally to get BBQ with a mustard-based sauce -- it's generally pretty good, with the pulled pork the best of their mains.

The Citadel (a local military college) has an unusual and fairly attractive campus -- apparently, there's a small college history museum on-site and in season there's a precision-drill parade on the quadrangle at 3:45pm (haven't experienced these last two). Haven't been to these, but other tourist attractions that I didn't see in the OP's post outside of the downtown area include the H.L. Hunley Submarine, Charles Towne Landing, and Ft. Moultrie.

Those are great ideas. I can also recommend driving up Highway 17 to Awendaw. Visit the Center for Birds of Prey, walk the Shell RIng and eat lunch at the Seewee Restaurant.

Oh and since you enjoy history visit Ft. Moultrie on Sullivans.

Thanks everyone! I like the Beaufort idea. I also checked out the Center for Birds of Prey but it looks like it will be closed while we are there.

Take the little one to the Aquarium. If you want to go up the coast to Georgetown, it is a nice town with some homes dating from the Revolutionary War. Nice river walk. And there is a pirate ship tour from there that is cute for that age. It takes 3 hours. The crew dresses like pirates, the kids get to pull the ropes, they tell stories, etc. Cute. Nice trip for adults too.
Sue, how about Hunting Island? Bird Island? I get those mixed up.

I love Hunting Island. It's a state park so there's no development and the beach there is beautiful. Where's Bird Island? Sounds like I need to find out!

Well, it turns out it is in NC. I guess our boys camped at Hunting Island.
http://www.nccoastalreserve.net/Abou...Island/87.aspx

Have you tried Charles Towne Landing? Not that it's off the beaten path, but I didn't see it mentioned. It has an animal forest (our version of a zoo) that might appeal to a 7 year old. Plus, it's historical.

We love the Charleston area and visit there about twice a year. Something I've always wanted to do is take a boat or kayak tour. I've always thought one of these looked like fun! http://nature-tours.com/