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Magnolia Plantation & GardensvsDrayton Hall
Both are endorsed by those who travel for a living. On balance, Magnolia Plantation & Gardens ranks slightly higher than Drayton Hall. Magnolia Plantation & Gardens comes in at #5 in Charleston with recommendations from 7 publications such as Frommer's, Travel + Leisure and Lonely Planet.
Magnolia Plantation & Gardens
Travel + Leisure
Fodor's
Afar Magazine
Michelin Guide
Where
Condé Nast Traveler Travel + Leisure
Frommer's
3550 Ashley River Rd, Charleston, SC 29414
From $0/night
Travel + Leisure "This 1676 spread has welcomed visitors since shortly after the end of the Civil War." Full review
Fodor's "Pick and choose from a variety of entertainments at Magnolia Plantation, established in the 1670s by Thomas Drayton." Full review
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And be sure to visit the 19th-century plantation house, which originally stood near Summerville.
Afar Magazine "Beautiful! Petting zoo... house tours, swamp tours, boat tours, bus tours." Full review
Michelin Guide 1 Star
"This popular, partly wild botanical garden (200ha) is renowned for its spring-blooming azaleas, and a plantation house, Magnolia Plantation, that was part of Thomas Drayton's estate in the 17C." Full review
Where "Tour a pre-Revolutionary War Plantation House and experience ten rooms filled with antiques, quilts and family heirlooms from the 19th century." Full review
Condé Nast Traveler "With its roots dating back to the 1680’s, Magnolia Plantation was one of the first ancestral homes of the Draytons, a prominent Lowcountry plantation family." Full review
Travel + Leisure "The centuries old plantation, the oldest public gardens in America, is home to thousands of beautiful flowers and plants creating a tranquil landscape"
Charleston Travel Guide
March 1, 2021
Frommer's "The house is filled with museum-quality Early American furniture, porcelain, quilts, and other Drayton family heirlooms." Full review
Drayton Hall Travel + Leisure Fodor's Michelin Guide Where
Atlas Obscura Condé Nast Traveler Frommer's
3380 Ashley River Rd, Charleston, SC 29414
From $0/night
Travel + Leisure "A 1742 plantation on the Ashley River run by the National Trust for Historic Preservation." Full review
Fodor's "The only plantation house on the Ashley River to have survived the Civil War intact." Full review
Michelin Guide 2 Stars
"The only plantation house on the Ashley River to survive the Revolutionary and Civil Wars intact, Drayton Hall was occupied by seven generations of the Drayton family." Full review
Where "Circa 1738, Drayton Hall is the oldest unrestored plantation house in America still open to the public, and it's the nation’s earliest example of fully executed Palladian architecture." Full review
Atlas Obscura "Oldest unrestored plantation house in America that is open to the public. " Full review
Condé Nast Traveler "A commanding piece of 18th century architecture if ever there was one
Zoom out." Full review
i
House tours begin on the hour, so be sure to allow yourself time for the 13 mile drive west of Charleston, for parking (free), and for orientation at the visitor’s center where you purchase tickets.
Frommer's "Framed by majestic live oaks, the Georgian-Palladian house and its hand-carved woodwork and plasterwork represent New World craftsmanship at its finest." Full review
