I would like to offer a rather long-winded (that’s how I roll, lol) review of Southern Charms tour, as well as a few tips for anyone interested in taking this tour (in a somewhat post-COVID era). After trying to post this once, I can see I'm too long winded, so I'll have to break this up into separate posts.
Before diving too far into my review, I want to state we discovered “Southern Hospitality” is for real, and not just a trite cliche. To a person, from locals we encountered on the street, to drivers stopping for pedestrians to cross the street – everyone was extremely polite, friendly, and helpful. The most striking example we encountered occurred at Reynolds Square on our first day in Savannah. Two older female tourists were clearly struggling to find their bearings while trying to get to a downtown restaurant. Two__ homeless people observed their confusion, approached them, and pointed them in the right direction, giving block-by-block landmarks so these women could be sure they were going the right way (with the clarity of a local tour guide). We fully expected the homeless to shake these women down for some spare change – but were surprised when the homeless only bid them an enjoyable stay in Savannah and walked back to where they had previously been sitting. Certainly not what we would have observed back home in Los Angeles.
For anyone with mobility concerns, this may not be the tour for you. Many of the tour sites involve old, historic locations (not at all ADA compliant). These locations often involve narrow, and very steep staircases – with no elevators. You will encounter some cobblestone, brick, and paver streets from time to time, and sidewalks are frequently uneven due to roots from large trees uplifting the sidewalks. We saw a number of people tripping in roadway crosswalks due to tree roots lifting the pavement as well. I had knee surgery several years ago, and caught myself from falling a few times. I would therefore characterize it as a wheelchair and/or walker unfriendly tour.
Insofar as dress code is concerned, touring is largely pretty casual (country-club casual). For the included dinners in Savannah, and Charleston (and I’ll also include the welcome dinner and farewell dinner into this category), men wore sport coats (some with just a nice collared shirt – no ties) and slacks; women wore dresses or skirts with nice tops). This formality would also hold true for the nicer dining venues in both Savannah and Charleston, which you may visit on your own.
As far as insect activity is concerned (our tour was in October), my wife and I typically consider ourselves to be a smorgasbord for insects. We didn’t encounter a single bug bite on the entire tour. I didn’t hear any bug related complaints from any of our fellow travelers either. Perhaps we were just lucky this trip.
And last, we were fortunate to experience fair weather our entire journey – no rain at all. But, it’s always best to plan for inclement weather.
Back to the trip, we’ve been interested in taking this tour for a number of years, and have noticed it’s been pared-down a bit over those years (fewer days and fewer cities/venues visited). Despite the removal of stops, we believed the itinerary was still worthy of our time.
We decided to add a little excitement to our tour by scheduling it during hurricane season. And true to our luck, hurricane Ian blew thru the Caribbean, across Florida to the Atlantic, and made landfall just north of Charleston a few days before our tour began.
Given all the issues with air travel, especially over the past year, we decided to add a pre-date to our journey in case we experienced any hiccups. Thankfully, our flight to Savannah (from Los Angeles via United) had no issues.
We arrived in SAV mid-afternoon. By the time our driver got us out of the airport, the nearby Gulf Stream Aircraft plant was changing shifts. The anarchy occurring on the roadway in front of the plant as workers were entering and exiting the property was a sight to behold. As a retired law enforcement officer, I could have easily killed a book of citations without much effort given what we observed. It probably took us 20 minutes to drive ¼ mile.
Upon arriving at the Perry Lane Hotel, we were greeted with champagne as we were checking in at the lobby (don’t miss it!). Our room was in Tower-1 (there are two towers at the hotel). It appeared our room (and much of the hotel) had been recently renovated (as of late 2022). The room was well appointed (but, not much of a view from our room windows). The Perry Lane is centrally located, making walking anywhere within the central historic district very easy. The Emporium Kitchen is located on the first floor of Tower-1, with a small coffee shop adjacent to the hotel lobby. Additionally, there is a roof-top bar and dining venue on the roof of Tower-1, as well as a small pool – both offering great views of the city (especially at night).
For the remaining hours of our pre-date, we walked to several of Savannah’s historic squares. Chippewa Square, where the “Box of Chocolates” scene from the movie "Forest Gump" was filmed is only a block away from the Perry Lane. Forsyth Park is also only a few blocks away, as is the Riverfront District. There are beautiful historic homes lining historic Jones Street, and great shopping on Bull Street. Colonial Park Cemetery (rich in history) is only steps away, as is The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist (spectacular architechure). And of course, beautiful old oak trees covered in Spanish moss are everywhere.
A little known benefit at the Perry Lane, is a vehicle they maintain for short guest trips. Should you feel tired, not have great mobility, or perhaps the weather is inclement – a driver (who will always be close to the front doors of the hotel) will take you to and from any location within 2 miles of the hotel (at no additional charge). Just call the front desk when you are ready to return to the hotel.
There are many great locations to dine in Savannah. On our first evening, we dined at “The Olde Pink House” – a short distance from the hotel. If you plan on dining anywhere within the historic district or the riverfront district – plan ahead and make dining reservations well in advance of your visit. We heard visitors outside The Olde Pink House complaining they tried to make reservations 4 weeks prior to their arrival in Savannah, and found they were completely booked. You can also dine in The Tavern (basement) of The Olde Pink House without a reservation (same dining fare as the restaurant above) – however, wait times can be quite lengthy depending upon the time of day when you place your name on the waiting list (BTW, the fare is FANTASTIC!).
The following morning, we had the complimentary breakfast at The Emporium Kitchen (the hotel ground-level restaurant), and met a few of our fellow travelers. The menu was somewhat limited, and some of the menu pairings seemed a little odd to us, but it was fuel and got us going each morning. For anyone looking for snacks; fresh sandwiches; pastries; and other goodies – there is a small grocery store next to Tower-1 (on Drayton St).
As the official start to the tour, the meet/greet mixer and dinner, wasn’t scheduled until the early evening, we previously booked a tour thru Kelly Tours to fill our day. A benefit of booking with this company is that they will pick you up (and drop you off) at the hotel. The tour included an open air guided bus tour thru the historic district, as well as a short guided riverboat tour down the Savannah River on the Georgia Queen (a paddle-wheel boat). The bus tour was a great value and well worth the money… but, we felt the riverboat tour was little more than a time filler (and we didn’t learn very much about the city). If you take the riverboat tour, go straight to the top deck for the best views before all the seating is taken.
(cont.)
