Governor's House Inn

Governor's House Inn is an eleven-room inn in a 1760 Charleston mansion South of Broad — the home of a colonial governor, on the National Register, designated a National Historic Landmark, and run as a small inn at a price point that reflects the address as much as the building. It's one of the historic mansions that anchors the South of Broad streetscape; you've probably walked past it on a Charleston walking tour without realizing it had rooms.

The South of Broad address is the entire premise. This is the most architecturally consistent residential neighborhood in any American city, and Governor's House sits inside it rather than near it. Stay here when you want the Charleston walking experience to begin at the front door rather than after a five-minute drive.

The setting

South of Broad is the southern tip of the Charleston peninsula — a few blocks of antebellum and colonial houses, walled gardens, and Battery views, bracketed by the Ashley and Cooper rivers. The inn sits on Broad Street in the heart of this neighborhood, walking distance to White Point Garden, Rainbow Row, and the King Street restaurant corridor a few blocks north.

The rest of historic Charleston spreads from here: the City Market is a ten-minute walk; Sullivan's Island and Folly Beach are twenty minutes by car; the Ashley River plantations (Magnolia, Drayton Hall, Middleton Place) are twenty to thirty west.

The building

Built in 1760 for the governor of the Province of South Carolina, the house is a textbook colonial Charleston mansion — wood frame on a brick base, a side-hall plan with deep porches (called "piazzas" locally), period millwork, and the kind of interior proportions that don't really exist in newer construction. Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1971; the millwork, fireplaces, and structural fabric are largely original.

Public rooms include the formal parlor, the library, and the piazzas overlooking the garden. Materials are heart pine, brass, plaster, and the appropriate textiles.

The rooms

Eleven guest rooms across the main house and the dependencies, each one different in shape and decoration. Beds are four-poster or canopied; bathrooms are private and updated to a current standard; the decor leans neo-Victorian over the colonial bones. Several rooms have private piazza access; ask if the south-facing piazza is available.

Food & drink

A continental breakfast is included, served in the formal dining room or on the piazza in season. There's no dinner restaurant; Charleston's restaurant density makes this the obvious move. The inn's afternoon tea or wine reception runs on most days, depending on season.

On the property

A small historic inn — the building is the amenity.

• Continental breakfast
• Afternoon refreshments
• Two piazzas (porches) with garden views
• Walking distance to White Point Garden, the Battery, and King Street
• Open year-round

Who it's for

• Architecture-minded travelers who want to sleep inside a Charleston Single House
• Couples doing a Charleston anniversary weekend
• Repeat visitors who've outgrown the bigger downtown hotels
• Anyone with a soft spot for piazzas and live oaks

Who it's not for

• Families with small kids in a National Historic Landmark
• Travelers who want a hotel-grade restaurant on premises
• Visitors who specifically want a beach-side base; this is downtown peninsula

Nearby

White Point Garden and the Battery are a few blocks south. Rainbow Row, the City Market, and the Aiken-Rhett House are within a fifteen-minute walk. King Street's restaurants — FIG, The Ordinary, Little Jack's, Rodney Scott's BBQ a bit further — are walkable. The Ashley River plantations are twenty to thirty minutes west by car. For a beach day, Sullivan's Island is twenty minutes east.