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One of the most charming travel destinations in the United States, Charleston is the largest city in South Carolina. At one time, Charleston was the richest city in America; nowadays, its rich history is recalled with a bittersweet past with which it has come to terms with admirable candour. Many of the impressive residences along the famous Battery were homes to families whose wealth was based on the labour of enslaved people who worked the plantations where valuable crops were grown. Today, these homes are a testament to the resilience of the enslaved as much as to the elite lifestyle in the American South of the 18th and 19th centuries. Charleston’s entire city centre is replete with well-preserved examples of Greek Revival, Georgian, and Victorian architecture that imbue the city with its historical atmosphere.

: Welcome to Wentworth Mansion

: Wentworth Mansion’s Grand Mansion Suite

Visitors can stay in one of Charleston’s most impressive stately homes. Wentworth Mansion, located in the exclusive Charleston Village district adjacent to the city’s historic French Quarter, was built in 1886 (after the end of the era of enslavement) and is Charleston’s most exclusive place to stay. With a mere 21 rooms, there is never a feel of a hotel in this expansive home, where the impressive entrance hall serves more as a welcome centre than a simple reception area, so attentive are the staff members in ensuring guest satisfaction and happiness. Period decor and furniture harken back to an era of gentility when afternoon tea was served as a prelude to gracious dinners.

Circa 1886 entrance

Both are still served today at Wentworth Mansion, where the living room and enclosed porch welcome guests with complimentary drinks and canapés before dinner at Circa 1886, one of Charleston’s highest-rated restaurants. In a city noted for its outstanding culinary scene, that is no minor accolade. The afternoon tea provides an opportune moment to converse with fellow guests; in a time when people are increasingly isolated by electronic devices or otherwise reticent to speak with strangers, the afternoon tea is a throwback to a gentler era when meeting interesting fellow travellers in the same drawing room took precedence over texting with faceless ‘friends’ in the same chat room.

: Wentworth Mansion, Charleston’s most atmospheric hotel

: Wentworth Mansion, elegant accommodation in a genteel city

A special feature of Wentworth Mansion is its cupola, which rises above the neighbouring buildings, offering a 360° view of Old Charleston and beyond. The Grand Mansion Suite is another special feature. Unusually, the best room in the house is located on the ground floor just off the entrance hall, making for easy access to the suite whose palatial decor certainly presents a noble option for sophisticated travellers—though, truth be told, every guestroom at Wentworth Mansion evokes the spirit of the past in grand style.