OVERNIGHT IN BEAUFORT, SOUTH CAROLINA

On our drive home from Winter Park Florida, we stopped in Beaufort, SC for an overnight stay. Beaufort seems to be pronounced “byoo-ferd,” which was hard for me to remember because up here in NC we have a Beaufort too, but as far as I know it’s pronounced “bow-fort,” so I said it wrong the whole time and got corrected *every* time. Sorry, Beaufort! 😬 Anyhoo, we didn’t stay as long or see as much of beautiful Beaufort as we probably should have, but what we saw and ate was lovely, and we enjoyed it all very much! Here are some specific recommendations if you ever find yourself stopping in and or passing through Beaufort, South Carolina…

STAY AT the excellent and historic 607 Bay Inn Downtown Beaufort.

Our room was very clean & comfortable, and the amenities were great. Chocolate at check in, free coffee and snacks, plus vouchers for breakfast at two local, very walkable options in the morning. We met the owner, Chris, and he was really nice and down to earth.

EAT CRAB at Panini’s on the Waterfront.

It was recommended to us by a local for crabby things and waterfront breezes. Both were great. We ordered she-crab soup (above) and crab cake salad (below). When the soup arrived I said to Dawn, “This is the soup.” Yup.

DRINK & DO KARAOKE at Luther’s Rare & Well Done.

We stopped in on a Tuesday night and the place was *rockin’* with what appeared to be a very familiar group of locals, who belted out some awesome karaoke while we were there. The atmosphere was loud & friendly and I’m so glad we popped in before retiring back to the inn.

EAT BREAKFAST at Lowcountry Produce Market and Cafe.

In the morning we went to this very cute and contemporary cafe where I got crab cakes eggs Benedict on grot cakes (above), and Dawn got an omelette with a side of fruit and a biscuit (below). Oh. Hell. Yes. All great! Biscuit lovers take note: They make a note-worthy biscuit. Super high recommends.

BUY BAGELS at Rain -N- Bagels.

This was one of our breakfast voucher options, so we got some bagels to bring home. All I can say is: Great bagels! Very NYC style. Beaufort, SC is lucky to have you, Rain-N-Bagels. Not every town has bagels, let alone good bagels, let alone great bagels!

SEE CRITTERS at Cypress Wetlands, Port Royal SC.

On your way out of Beaufort be sure to stop at the bird sanctuary in Port Royal. There you will see birds aplenty, my friends. So many birds. As well as turtles and to my childlike delight, alotta gators! They’re so effin cool. If I could choose to come back as any other animal on planet earth I think I would choose to be an alligator. Closely followed by turtle. Anyhoo, this place was awesome, don’t miss it.

GET COFFEE at Carolina Cider Company & Clockwise Coffee in Yemassee, SC.

We needed some go-go juice for the next leg of our ride, so we popped into this roadside shop and coffee stand and it was one of the cutest cafes I’ve ever been to. They made us two perfect espresso drinks which we enjoyed at the picnic tables. Then we used their very clean restroom and got back on the road.

EAT FISH at Blue Ocean Seafood Restaurant in Clinton, SC.

Before we left the Southern part of the Carolinas, we wanted some more fish, so we stopped into this classic family style restaurant where we got some really nice grilled fish with very tasty hushpuppies and sides. It wasn’t fancy, but it was exactly what we wanted right when we wanted it and I recommend it highly!

And then we drove home to Asheville, got on the bouch, and watched playoff hockey. It’s always fun to do a little road trippin’ together and visit other cities, but there ain’t no place like home, that’s for sure!

MAP OF BEAUFORT

We barely scratched the surface of Beaufort, and since we often travel back and forth from Winter Park to Asheville, maybe we’ll stop there again. I welcome your suggestions for where to eat, things to see, what to know about Beaufort in the comments of course!

UNFUN FOOD FACT: In 2025 Americans ate an estimated 15-20,000 alligators, while alligators typically eat 1 or 2 people a year. Each! Just kidding. It’s just 1 or 2 people total. But be careful out there, Y’all. They’ll getcha.

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