South Carolina Bed & Breakfast Association

Choose to spend sunny days along the 60-mile stretch of clean and safe public beaches. Beach walkers enjoy the moderate climate year-round. Water sports enthusiasts find comfortable temperatures during many months. Anglers find a great variety of sport from eight piers or on charter boats during most of the year. Look for spectator sports such as soccer or baseball. Find your fill of championship golf on 100 courses or practice on more than 50 entertaining miniature courses. Shop till you drop among the hundreds of factory stores, beach shops or trendy boutiques.

Dining choices include more than 1500 places where you might grab a quick and traditional meal, indulge at a huge buffet or linger over a leisurely candlelit experience. The Myrtle Beach area boasts every type of cuisine ranging from the predominant seafood to the Lowcountry recipes from Southern plantation days or international delicacies of renown. More theme restaurants than any city in the world can be found here. In addition to tempting menu choices, they offer memorabilia exhibits, shopping or entertainment to please any palate. These choices include House of Blues, All Star Café, Nascar Café, Planet Hollywood, Easy Rider and Hard Rock Café, just for starters.

Ripley's Aquarium showcases thousands of sea creatures, and Alligator Adventure is home to a thousand alligators, snakes, exotic crocodile and tortoises. Educational as well as entertaining, these attractions offer fun for every age visitor.

Live family entertainment is staged nightly in a variety of theaters featuring every differing musical taste. Two are dinner theaters where the entire family may feast while being entertained.

Inn-goers will find delightful private accommodations and unparalled service tucked into the hustle and bustle of one of the country's most popular and dynamic yearround beach resort areas.

For a free vacation planning guide with 360 pages of information about the area, you may call (800) 356-3016.

Today in the South Carolina Lowcountry, visitors experience a world of flavor and activities. Stroll along the beautiful waterfront park in Historic Beaufort, play at one of the many community festivals held throughout the year, or bask in the warmth of clean coastal sands at Edisto Beach or Hunting Island State Park. Attend such renowned tournaments as the Family Circle Tennis Cup or the MCI Heritage Golf Classic before you try your skill on the many courts and courses of the pros. Rough it in style at Colleton State Park, or pamper yourself in the luxurious accommodations of Fripp Island, Edisto Beach or the internationally famous resort, Hilton Head Island. Shoot sporting clays, fish for largemouth bass, canoe or kayak the beautiful blackwater rivers, or troll offshore for a saltwater trophy. Then settle back and savor the blue crab, shrimp and oysters gathered fresh from the bountiful waterways and prepared to perfection at one of the many fine seafood restaurants.

From international playgrounds to scenic wilderness, the Lowcountry specks a language of recreation and hospitality you are sure to understand. Whether you prefer golf, tennis, swimming, boating, fishing, shooting, hunting, camping, dining, shopping for unique gifts or factory outlet bargains, seeing sights, touring historic landmarks, or (whew!)... just getting away to a warm and friendly climate, your imagination is the only passport you will need to discover that which the South has always cherished: The Lowcountry... The living is as gentle as the tides, and visitors are always welcome.

For more information about tourism in the Lowcountry please call 1-800-528-6870

Rich in cultural facilities, the Upcountry boasts vibrant theater companies and performing arts groups ranging from jammers to ballet troupes to symphonic orchestras. Festivals, street parties and local singer/songwriters provide fun for all.

Our nationally recognized museums highlight history, culture, technology and art. Woven with heritage, the area is home to more than 500 sites of historic significance. Local historic districts offer a glimpse back in time while an abundance of educational activities look toward the future.

Recreational opportunities abound for sportsmen, athletes, adventure seekers and nature lovers alike. The Blue Ridge Mountains beckon the outdoor enthusiast, as do our many area lakes and rivers. If you're into hiking, hunting and fishing, camping, boating, whitewater rafting or swimming, you've come to the right place. Golfing, cycling, ice skating and horseback riding are popular as well.

For those who prefer sports as a spectator, the Upcountry's college and professional teams--the Clemson Tigers, Greenville Braves and South Carolina Shamrocks, to name but a few compete in crowd-roaring games of football, soccer, baseball, basketball and more.

Jilted or not, the Pee Dee carries a lot of romance in its course and history. One of the South's great river systems, a big, hard-working stream that gives its name to a major agricultural region, Pee Dee begins and ends in exceptional beauty.

Its birth is a geographic curiosity. High on the Eastern Continental Divide, two notable springs rise just a few yards apart. One flows north, as the New River, to the Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico. The other, heading ultimately south toward the Atlantic, is the Yadkin, which becomes the Pee Dee. Dammed repeatedly for recreation and electric power, it is a mighty stream as it cuts through vast timberlands and farms on its way to Georgetown and Winyah Bay.

The earliest explorers met Indians of the Pee Dee tribe who lived and hunted in its broad valley. Unspoiled groves of tall trees flanked its passage. So clear of underbrush was the forest floor that a man could be seen half a mile away, wrote one adventurer. Natural, meadow-like clearings bloomed with exotic species of wildflowers. Big game abounded.

The river was named for its native people. And of course the word of such a place spread quickly. English gentry, encouraged by the Lords Proprieters, came early to Winyah Bay, to the mouth of the Pee Dee. Early also came creative and industrious French Huguenots. Soon after the English Crown assumed the land in 1729, settlement swelled.

Plantations neaar the Pee Dee's mouth grew rice; upriver grew indigo and later tobacco. At the end of the 18th century King Cotton was displacing the rice culture to command, for several generations, much of the Pee Dee basin's splendid cropland. Today soybeans grow here, and pecan groves supply nuts for far-flung confectioneries. Corn is a money crop, not only for feed but for ethanol, a gasoline alternative which is manufactured near Kingstree.

While tobacco and cotton remain major commercial crops today, indigo left a whimsical mark: it provided the blue dye used to paint around doors and windows of cabins to keep "Ol' Plat-Eye", the coastal boogie-man, from entering. A similar tradition lay behind the blue trim on some "Dutch" (German) houses up the Savannah and the Congaree, and perhaps unconsciously lives on in a decorative trait that still turns up today. Happily, "Ol Plat-Eye" still lives and lurks in some of the state's best folk tales.

Florence, born with the coming of the railroad in the 1880s, is a bustling modern city, a center of commerce and burgeoning mecca of the performing arts. Hartsville, home of Coker College, thrives on culture. Tobacco spurred the growth of Mullins, Lake City, Hemingway, Pamplico and Timmonsville.

And then there is Darlington, home of the roar of the stock car engine and the thunder of the crowd. Who could imagine stock car racing without Darlington?

Through this land of vigorous small cities, retirement communities,sprawling farms, quiet villages, excellent golf courses, and record-breaking race cars, the leisurely dark waters of the Pee Dee still roll, an Upcountry river on the

The Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame is located in Hopeland Gardens, the gardens to a former Winter Colony estate in downtown Aiken. The city once was famous as a healthful resort for wealthy Northerners who built "cottages," or magnificent summer homes. Hopeland Gardens contains beautiful traditional gardens, the Hall of Fame in the former stables, a wetlands garden, an open-air stage, and a fountain at the former foundation of the house. Another of the Winter Colony "cottages" now houses the Aiken County Historical Museum. Because many of the other Winter Colony homes are still privately-owned, one of the best ways to learn of Aiken's history and equestrian lifestyle is to take a tour with Aiken Tours on a Saturday morning. These tours are arranged through the Aiken Chamber of Commerce.

Just outside of Aiken are two treasures -- to the west is Redcliffe Plantation State Park, the home of James Hammond, former governor of South Carolina, and to the east is Montmorenci Vineyards, which offers wine tastings of its many award-winning wines made from their own home-grown grapes.

Thoroughbred Country is also an integral part of the new South Carolina Heritage Corridor, which spans fourteen counties on the western side of South Carolina. One of the regional Discovery Centers is the Agricultural Heritage Center in Blackville, slated to open in 1998. This center will offer a look at the influences of and to agriculture in the history of the state as well as the South as a whole. Blackville also features an active Mennonite community, and Miller's Bread Basket Restaurant is owned and operated by one of these families. Just outside of Blackville is Healing Springs, whose waters are reputed to cure all types of maladies. In nearby Barnwell can be found the beautiful Church of the Holy Apostles, which once acted as a stable for Sherman's horses as he marched through South Carolina, and the mysterious Vertical Sundial at the city's downtown Circle.

Continuing further south you will find the quaint small towns of Bamberg County. Olar and Ehrhardt will take you back to yesteryear with old-fashioned general stores and antiques dealers. Nearby is Rivers Bridge State Park, the only state park to commemorate the Confederacy and the site of a major resistance to Sherman's march through South Carolina. The town of Denmark is a full shopping destination featuring an antique store in a historic AT&T building, an old-time five-and-dime, a hardware store that is truly a modern-day general store, and the art gallery of nationally renowned Jim Harrison, all within a two-block stretch of the main street.

The locations of several revolutionary and civil war battles are spread across the five counties of South Carolina now known as the Old 96 District: Abbeville, Edgefield, Greenwood, Laurens and McCormick Counties.

Abbeville Opera House
Built in 1908, performances by the Ziegfield "Follies" and vaudeville stars such as Jimmy Durante and Fanny Brice entertained Abbevillians in this historic building. Located on town square. For Information tickets, play dates call (864)459-2157.

Burt-Stark Mansion
Built in the 1830's, this home was the site of the final meeting of the Confederate War Council with President Jefferson Davis on May 2, 1865. Located on North Main and Greenville Streets, Abbeville. Admission. (864)459-4297.

Bowie Arts Center
On the Erskine College campus in Due West, the Bowie Arts Center contains permanent collections of antique furniture, porcelain, cut glass and clocks and musical instruments. The building houses a museum, gallery classroom and space for traveling exhibits. Monday-Thursday 1-4:30pm, Saturday 2-4pm, first Sunday in each month 2-4pm. (864)379-8867.

Old Edgefield Pottery
Watch resident potter as he revives the tradition of making Edgefield pottery. Items are available for sale. Located at 230 Simpkins Street, Edgefield. Open Tuesday-Saturday 10AM-6PM or by appointment. (803)637-2060.

National Wild Turkey Federation
A national non-profit organizatlon of sportsmen dedicated to helping restore the wild turkey population and prevent their extinction. Located on Hwy. 25, Edgefield. Open Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM. (803)637-3106.

The Museum
Be transported back to the turn of the century with a nostalgic walk down a city street. Return to the gaslight and horse and buggy days as you walk by parlor kitchen, drug store, general store and a one-room schoolhouse. Located at 106 Main Street, Greenwood. Tuesday-Friday 9AM-5PM, Saturday and Sunday 9PM-5PM Free admission. (864)229-7093.

Park Seed Company
Visit the largest mail-order seed company in the world and tour the beautiful test gardens from Spring until Fall. Packages of seed, both vegetable and flower are available for sale at the Gift Shop. Located on SC254, Greenwood. Open for tours daily 9AM-5PM. (864)223-8555 or 1-800-845-3369.

Emerald Farm
A fully operational goatmilk farm which features a delightful gift shop where goat's milk soaps and cheeses are available. Located off Last Cambridge Avenue, east of Greenwood. Free admission. (864)223-9747.

Ninety Six National Historic Site
Site of the first Southern land battle of the Revolutionary War. A Visitor Center features exhibits and a videotape about the event. Located on SC248, Ninety Six. Open daily 8AM-5PM. (864)543-4068.

James Dunklin House
Built ca. 1820, this classic example of South Carolina architecture now serves as a museum filled with many fine antiques. Located at 544 West Main Street, Laurens. Open by appointment. Free admission. (864)984-4735.

Presbyterian College
A 4-year, liberal arts school located in Clinton's historic district, this beautiful campus offers diverse cultural opportunities including theater, concerts and art exhibits. (864)833-2820.

The Keturah
A restored hotel which now serves as home to MACK (McCormick Arts Council at the Keturah), it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Current exhibits on display. Also contains the Gallery Shop. Located on 115 South Main Street, McCormick. Monday-Friday 8:50AM-6PM, weekends by appointment Free admission. (864)465-3216

John de la Howe School and Barn
A state-operated school for children on land donated by French Huguenot immigrant, John de la Howe visitors are always welcome on campus. Monday-Friday 8:30AM-5PM A stone barn serves as the Country Market, a showcase of crafts and foods of the region's unique heritage. Saturday 9am-4pm. Located on SC81 eight miles northwest of McCormick.(864)391-2131.

The Fine Arts Center of Kershaw County sponsors a variety of specialty events and horse themes dominate their art shows in the spring and fall. Visit Historic Camden with its 18th and 19th century houses, gift shops and picnic area. Special events in Historic Camden include horse jumping championships and tours of horse stables.

Other examples of the state's preservation efforts can be found in state parks such as Rose Hill near Union, which safeguards the rose gardens and mansion of William Henry Gist, the last governor to use his home as the official residence.

In Lancaster County, picturesque Andrew Jackson State Park features a campground, museum and a beautiful ampitheater. The theater hosts the annual Carolina Legends Bluegrass Festival, among others.

The Revoluntionary War battle at King's Mountain was the pivotal point when American patriots began to win their struggle. A marked trail, film and exhibits at King's Mountain National Military Park interpret the conflict. Nearby is King's Mountain State Park and its Living History Farm, a frontier homestead. Pioneer Days, with its crafts demonstrations, muzzleloaders competition and folk music is held their each September.

Golf packages with great rates are available in the Olde English District. One features the 18 hole championship golf course at Cheraw State Park in Chesterfield County. One of the largest state parks, Cheraw also offers group camp facilities along with its cabins and recreational opportunities.

Other parks in the OED are Lake Wateree State Park, off US 21 between Columbia and Great Falls, N.R.Goodale State Park, near Camden, and Chester State Park, near the town of Chester-all great for outings and picnics. If you're visiting Chester State Park, make an appointment to visit nearby Cruse Vineyards and Winery for a tour and wine tasting.

For an unexpected treat, head up to Rock Hill and the Museum of York County, where more than 200 mounted animal exhibits from seven continents are displayed. This museum also has an outstanding collection of Indian artifacts and features genuine Catawba pottery on display and for purchase. To learn more about this unique Native American Pottery and the Catawba Indian Nation, visit the Catawba Cultural Preservation Center. Catawba pottery can also be bought here. Take time to visit Rock Hill's lovely Glencairn Gardens, with its terraced lawn and fountain, or discover the pottery and porcelain work of John and Jan Myers at their art studio in Hickory Grove. For a glimpse into the past, visit Historic Brattonsville, a complex of antebellum buildings 10 miles west of Rock Hill.

For more information about tourism in the Olde English District please call 1-800-965-5909.

The entire Charleston area is a never-ending feast for the senses, with history serving as the main course. Visit Charles Towne Landing, where the original settlement was founded in 1670. Explore the Charleston Museum, our nation's first museum; or Patriots Point, one of the world's largest naval and maritime museums and home of WW II's "Fighting Lady," the aircraft carrier Yorktown. Drive to Fort Moultrie, scene of the first decisive American victory of the Revolution, and a mainstay of shore defense until 1947. Take a scenic boat tour to Fort Sumter, the man-made island fortress where the US Civil War began. World-famous plantations and gardens offer visitors a fascinating glimpse into life during the antebellum era. Take the time to discover the small towns and rural communities along the newly-created Heritage Corridor, which runs through Charleston and Dorchester counties. The Heritage Corridor makes it easy for visitors to enjoy the abundant historic, cultural, and recreational opportunities available in Summerville, St. George, Edisto, McClellanville and a host of other communities.

The Charleston area's lush sea islands and sun-drenched beaches offer as much recreation or relaxation as your heart desires. Charleston's relationship with the game of golf dates back to 1786, with the founding of America's first golf course and golf club. More recently, the area played host to the 1991 Ryder Cup and will host the 1997 World Cup of Golf at Kiawah Island's heralded Ocean Course. Charter fishing, sailing, kayaking and other water sports are readily available.

Shopping in the Charleston area is second to none. Marvel at native sweetgrass baskets and handmade crafts, or browse through inviting specialty shops, art galleries and antique shops. When it comes to dining you'll have an almost unlimited choice, including some of the most celebrated restaurants in the southeast. If festivals strike your fancy, you've come to the right place! Spoleto Festival USA, Festival of Houses & Gardens, Fall Candlelight Tours, the Southeastern Wildlife Exposition, Christmas in Charleston and the World Grits Festival are just a few of the varied special events to be enjoyed.

Two lakes, two rivers, two canals, a vast swamp and 450 miles of shoreline, 171,000 acres of land covered by six and a half million gallons of water - Santee Cooper is awesome. Lakes Marion and Moultrie are famous as the home of the landlocked striped bass. Along with stripers, largemouth, crappie, bream and catfish offer an exciting challenge for anglers.

Golf in Santee Cooper Country may well be one of the best kept secrets of the sunbelt. Lovers of the game are well pleased with the variety of courses in the area. Within a 45 minute drive of Santee, golfers can play 15, 18 holes courses.

Sportsmen taking time out from fishing or golf to hunt the prime fields and woodlands will find excellent outdoor adventure stalking whitetail deer, wing shooting or taking plentiful small game.

If you just want to relax and get away from the pressures of everyday life this is the place to do it. Our pace is slow our people are friendly. Dining is an experience. You can sample good old Southern home cooking, traditional barbecue or a local favorite, fried catfish.

History and beauty abound in our five county region (Berkeley, Calhoun, Clarendon, Orangeburg and Sumter). There are museums, parks, breathtaking flower gardens, plantation homes, nature trails, historic battle grounds, lake and river tours and much more.