Charleston, the South Carolina port city founded in 1670, is defined by its cobblestone streets, horse-drawn carriages and pastel antebellum houses, particularly in the elegant French Quarter and Battery districts. The Battery promenade and Waterfront Park both overlook Charleston Harbor, while Fort Sumter, a federal stronghold where the first shots of the Civil War rang out, lies across the water.

The zenith of old-world charm, Charleston whisks you into the nation's tumultuous past and nourishes your mind, heart and stomach in roughly equal measure.

This lovely city will embrace you with the warmth and hospitality of an old and dear friend – who lived in the 18th century. We jest, but the cannons, cemeteries and carriage rides absolutely conjure an earlier era. Here, signers of the Declaration of Independence puffed cigars and whispered of revolution in the withdrawing rooms of historic homes, and the first shots of the Civil War rang out over Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. The city itself was built on slave labor, and several related sights are among the nation's most important educators on the long-standing oppression of African Americans.

Its chefs are regular contenders for James Beard awards. Its restaurants and dishes frequently get the nod from magazines like Bon Appétit. And with culinary roots in Europe, the Caribbean and West Africa, is it any wonder that every year millions of people pack a toothbrush just to eat in Charleston? But reading or hearing about delicious things never quite satisfies the way, say, slurping a raw oyster can. Or tearing into a fried green tomato. Or swirling the cream and sherry in a bowl of she-crab soup…

The good people of Charleston have seemingly stepped from the pages of a Victorian romance novel and settled in the South for the sole purpose of welcoming visitors. Conversation flows more gracefully than the Coop-ah Ri-vah, as they'd say it, and whether it's their elegant drawl or the refined (but never stuffy) manners, the locals land themselves squarely in your good graces without a shred of effort. Similarly, the kindhearted and easygoing Gullah people are the sort you'd hope to pass a day with roasting oysters or fishing, and the unhurried cadence of their well-preserved language is thoroughly enchanting.