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I first visited South Carolina with my family when I was about fourteen years old. I had not returned for a while until recently. Then, for three years in a row, I traveled to South Carolina with my in-laws. Each trip was a great time, producing great memories, and I hope to return many more times.
I truly love the Philadelphia area, but if I had to live anywhere else, it would be Greenville, SC. If you have read the About Me page, you know I cannot easily be placed into one categorical box. There really is something for everyone to enjoy in Greenville, and that is why I enjoy being there so much.
- Lively downtown, homey suburbs, and wide-open mountains
- Highways and hiking trails
- Family friendly events throughout the year and a notable nightlife scene
- Restaurants featuring every type of cuisine
- A citywide appreciation for arts and culture
- Home to small businesses and national headquarters
It’s a nice, clean little city. I like the aesthetic a lot.
My husband’s reflection on Greenville.
A Few of My Favorite Experiences
Artisphere
Artisphere is the yearly art festival that transforms Greenville into a miles-long, open air art gallery with artists from around the country and live demonstrations. It is a three-day event during Mother’s Day weekend, and it may very well take you three days to experience it all. Artisphere is the reason Greenville came onto my in-laws’ travel radar a few years ago. My sister-in-law was in a graphic design program at college, and they thought it would be a fun experience. Philadelphia has an abundance of art and culture, including a number of festivals and shows, but there is currently nothing the size and scale of Artisphere. It was worth the trip, and we returned the next year!
There are many other annual, semi-annual, and weekly events that I am excited to check out during future trips to Greenville. Be sure to follow my Instagram for updates!
Falls Park on the Reedy
I love being around water and greenery. I also have an appreciation for architecture. I’m not sure if this was a cause or effect of my time spent at a college with such a strong architecture program on a park-like campus. Either way, Falls Park on the Reedy River with its prominent Liberty Bridge is my happy place.
Eclectic Dining Options
Food is one of the quickest ways to disqualify a potential travel destination for my husband and me, so it is important to have a variety of options to please us both. I prefer health-conscious, reasonably priced, plant-based options. My husband enjoys flavor-over-nutrition, higher priced, out of the ordinary options. The middle of our Venn diagram is most often a farm-to-table restaurant with a not-too-tiny menu. Roost has never disappointed. After a good meal and a walk along the Reedy, we often seek out ice cream. We may have visited Spill the Beans coffee house and ice cream shop several times last time we were in Greenville. Don’t judge! Finally, while I’m not much a brunch person, the brunch scene is also on point in the Greenville area.
There are also a number of breweries, wineries, and distilleries in and near Greenville. I am not a beer drinker, but Birds Fly South Ale Project had a modern, relaxed atmosphere with indoor and outdoor seating. Groups of twenty-somethings and their dogs happily coexisted among middle-aged parents with their young children. We brought quite a bit of their beer home to PA in a cooler, so it’s probably safe to say the beer was pretty good, too!
Surrounding Areas
Surrounding towns and nature areas are also worth a visit if you’re in the area for longer than a weekend. Travelers Rest (or “TR” as the locals call it) is accessible via a short drive or a bike ride on the Swamp Rabbit Trail. We stayed in an Air BNB last time we were in the area. The lodging options throughout the area are endless. There are also more options than I can count if you’re interested in lakes for paddling or mountains for hiking. If anyone wants to sponsor a month-long vacation for me to visit them all, I will gladly write a more in-depth post about my experience!
Shopping
The shopping scene is worth mentioning, as well. Shopping is not the highlight of any trip of mine, but I do enjoy browsing and learning what types of goods and services are popular with locals. The downtown area has an abundance of small businesses, and they block traffic along the main stretch of road in the middle of town for a weekly farmer’s market in the warmer months.
I really love a meaningful souvenir to remind me of a fun experience. That is one of my favorite reasons to shop when traveling. One website I recently discovered allows you to create a customized map print to display in your home. I have an idea for a wall collage of my favorite places. I’m sure some of you have traveled to non-touristy areas that would never sell prints like this, and this is an opportunity to create a unique memento. Check out Maps of the World and choose the city, layout, font, color scheme, and frame! If you click through from this post or our Instagram link in bio, you will receive 10% off your order plus free shipping for a limited time!
I could go on and on about Greenville. In lieu of my rambling, I would absolutely encourage you to check out the official visitor’s website. Because Greenville is a quickly growing area, there is always something new in the works. To keep up with the news and events, I also follow their Instagram for updates.
Food is one of the quickest ways to disqualify a potential travel destination.
If you live in or have visited Greenville, South Carolina, what is your favorite thing about the area? If you’ve never been to Greenville, what do you want to know before you go? Let us be your guide!
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