RV Rentals at Charleston Wine and Food Festival
For 20 years running, the Charleston Wine and Food Festival has highlighted the best of the Charleston culinary scene. It's a gathering of some of the region's best chefs, restauranteurs, winemakers, and culinary authors. It also regularly draws countless illustrious members of the international culinary community. This year's roster includes 337 participants, ranging from artisans and brew masters to farmers and sommeliers. It also encompasses 92 individually scheduled events hosted at diverse local eateries and hotspots. One of the highlights this year is a tribute event to internationally recognized chef Jacques Pépin. It includes a five-course dinner prepared by five award-winning chefs, including Mike Lata of FIG and The Ordinary and Chef Lee Anne Wong of Koko Head Café.
The centerpiece of the festival experience is its Culinary Village. It's the festival's largest single event, taking place this year at Johnson Hagood Stadium. A general admission ticket entitles you to three and a half hours of food and beverage tastings during a single-day session. The sessions include interactive chef demos, a pop-up farmer's market, and a Book Nook with author meet-and-greets. Your ticket even comes with a commemorative crystal CHSWF glass to help you remember your visit. If you wish, you can purchase VIP tickets to access a temperature-controlled lounge, dedicated restrooms, and an hour of extra access to the Culinary Village.
The Charleston Wine and Food Festival group is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to benefit the local Charleston culinary community. In the first 18 years of its operation, the group's events generated $170.5 million in regional economic activity. It also sponsors local workforce development programs like The Culinary High School Scholars Enrichment Program. That pairs custom-developed coursework and experiential learning to foster the next generation of local culinary talent.
ACTIVITIES & ENTERTAINMENT
The Charleston Wine and Food Festival offers plenty to do for food connoisseurs of all kinds. The Culinary Village operates daily during the festival and features food and drink sampling from multiple vendors. There are also individually scheduled events hosted at eateries around the city, each with its own culinary focus. For those interested in improving their cooking skills, there are myriad classes, demonstrations, and workshops to choose from.
ON-SITE AMENITIES
With no central site, the festival doesn't feature much in the way of dedicated amenities. However, the Culinary Village does have restroom and handwashing facilities for attendees. Additionally, as the event takes place within Charleston, ample shopping opportunities exist around every corner.
LOCATION
The Charleston Food and Wine Festival occurs in the historic city of Charleston, SC. Founded in 1670, the city still boasts numerous cobblestone streets and colonial-style architecture. The Culinary Village event takes place at Johnson Hagood Stadium on the city's west side. The other events occur in privately owned restaurants and venues spread throughout the city.
RVING AT THE EVENT
If you're planning a visit to the festival over multiple days, you'll want an RV site nearby as your base of operations. From there, you can attend the festival and explore historic Charleston's notable sights using a car or rideshare. Sights include Fort Sumter, the site of the first shots fired in the Civil War. Unfortunately, there are no RV sites located inside the city of Charleston itself. However, a few are within easy reach of the festival's main event locations and accommodate all types of RVs.
Lake Aire Campground is within a 15-minute drive of downtown Charleston. It features sites for RVs of all sizes, with multiple amenities. These include 84 sites with water, sewer, and electrical hookups and 26 sites with water and electrical hookups. While there, you can use the campground's pool, playgrounds, and private hot showers. There are even laundry facilities onsite to make your stay more comfortable.
Oak Plantation Campground is another RV site within a short drive of Charleston. Known as the largest campground near Charleston, it features over 200 camping sites. RV spots include full hookups and 30- and 50-amp electrical service. The campground is pet-friendly and boasts a laundry facility and a well-stocked onsite convenience store.
James Island County Park is a 643-acre site just a few miles south of downtown Charleston. It has back-in and pull-through RV sites, each with full hookups and 30- or 50-amp electrical service. Perhaps best of all, though, the park features a shuttle service to Charleston. That can make your trip to the festival convenient and let you enjoy it without the need to drive.
RV Rentals Near Charleston, South Carolina
Nearby RV Rentals
WHERE TO STAY
As the event takes place in the heart of Charleston, there's no shortage of places to stay. The event planners even maintain a helpful hotel packages page to help visitors find lodging. The Charleston Marriott is within a 15-minute walk of the festival's Culinary Village. There are also multiple inns and hotels in Charleston's French Quarter for those planning to focus their visit on the downtown food events.
HOW TO GET THERE
Charleston is in South Carolina between Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach. From Columbia, SC, you would take Interstate 26 into Charleston. From Augusta, GA, you would first take Highway 78 and then I-26. From Savannah, GA, you would take I-95 and then Highway 17.
Once in Charleston, you have many options for getting around without your RV. The Holy Spokes bike-sharing program is a great way to move around the city and is a safe mode of travel. The Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority has multiple bus routes and stops in Charleston. Many of the events offer shuttles, and the city also runs a shuttle service.
PARKING
There is ample parking adjacent to the stadium hosting the Culinary Village. To find it, look for green signs with a white "P" that denote available lots. You can also find metered parking on the streets surrounding the stadium and near the restaurants hosting events.
TICKETS & PRICING
You can purchase tickets from the organizer's schedule page to attend any of the Charleston Food and Wine Festival's scheduled events. Sold-out events allow you to join a waitlist that alerts you if tickets become available. Single-day admission to the Culinary Village costs $185 for general access and $295 for VIP access. Other scheduled events feature a-la-carte admission pricing, also listed on the event's schedule page.
WRAP UP
Charleston, SC is a wonderful place to visit that becomes even more appealing during the Charleston Food and Wine Festival. It boasts numerous historic places and is a center of culture in the broader southern US. The festival itself offers a dazzling celebration of the city's food culture and its countless international inspirations. To keep up to date with the festival's schedule and announcements, follow the organizers on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
Please note, this is not the official source of the event information. While we try to be as comprehensive as possible, some details may have changed since the time this article was written. Please confirm final details with the official event page .
Do you manage this event?
Work with RVshare to provide housing for staff, vendors, artists and executives. Earn additional revenue by creating unique VIP/GA turn-key packages for your attendees.
Interested in becoming one of our Corporate and Festival Partners? Fill out the form here.