Historic Charleston City Market in Sumter

Much to do, relaxing atmosphere, beautiful shops, carriage rides with groups or single couple.

One of my top fave experiences while we were visiting Charleston. Really cool market with all sorts of local stuff to buy and eat. Also just fun to look around. They only have certain hours so make sure to check the site. We caught the tail end of the market so a lot of people were already packing up or gone already for the day. Still a unique experience to find touristy or less touristy m/more unique Charleston items. I bought some delicious pecans roasted in cinnamon sugar. I will say roads are really tight and smaller in this part of town so brace yourself and search for nearby parking.

You cant visit downtown Charleston without a stroll through the City market. Spanning several city blocks, it is lively, clean, flooded with natural light, and just plain interesting. Vendors offer locally popular snacks and goodies, standard tourist souvenirs, and some fine, artisan quality hand crafts, most notably sweetgrass basketry. Some artisans pass their time among their displayed artwork crafting a basket while you watch, which lends fascinating authenticity to these most precious souvenirs. Other notably impressive offerings include luxury soaps and candles, many styles of jewelry, uniquely pieced decorative wood wall art, amazing three-dimensional, life-sized animal heads fashioned from tiny glass beads, desktop sculptures creatively designed from metallic hardware, as in nuts/ bolts/bicycle chains and other oddments, and interesting childrens toys. Clean restrooms, friendly people, and the rich variety of pleasing sights, aromas, and sounds make the City Market a pleasure to visit!

I really enjoyed visiting the City Market. There are a variety of goods and so many interesting people. It is kept very clean, with restrooms available. In the evenings, there is live music and some vendors are still there. We had a great overall experience and it is a must-do!

Charleston is a beautiful city with lots of history unfortunately not all history is good. Even in all its beauty there is a dark past of slavery but thankfully that has changed.

If your going into downtown Charleston you should visit this place for the history alone. There are numerous shops and vendors located inside. There are also great shops located just outside of the city market as well. This place can be crowded with people, cars and horse pulled carriages but you wont be disappointed that you visited

Loved this market. Lots of unique wares for sale, very nice vendors, local craftsman. Was such a breath of fresh air after only finding tourist junk in most shops. Bought some photos, jewelry, handmade items, even grits to make later!

Nice market with a lot of history! Great place to visit and get out of the heat! A lot of nice stands to shop at as well as coffee and treats! A must visit when in Charleston.

Lots of things to see and do in Charleston. I do need to go back. We saw a drag show while we were there walking the streets and then we went to the Charleston market. Love this place. Need to go back and spend more time there

Historic building. Not too crowded when we went. it was almost noon. Restrooms are clean. Many souvenir items.

Lots of cool stuff, BUT it seemed like it was the same things over and over. The African woven baskets and bowls were beautiful, however no one was interested in the outrageous price they were asking for them. One very small bowl (maybe 6 in diameterwith handle was priced at $95. If you really want to preserve your heritage then sit where people can watch and appreciate the art.

A must see when you visit Charleston! Packed with something for everyone. I bought a book, a few pieces of art, and post cards. Very welcoming. I felt comfortable with my mask on. I would visit here again. From grits, to baskets, to art there is so much to see! Such a beautiful experience. Truly a place worth stopping and experiencing. You can find parking, there are lots and street parking. Also there is a lot of food in the area. Enjoy!

God forbid you have your phone out in this modern day, air conditioned flea market. For anyone who loves capturing the moment, vendors will hawk you down if they see you with your phone in hand on camera mode even though they want your money.To the Asian vendor who screamed, “NO PHOTOS!!!”, these pictures are for you! 😉Otherwise, dope sock selections!

This is a great place if you love finding unusual, locally made arts and crafts and dont mind paying full retail. We easily spent an hour and could have stayed at least twice that long just admiring all of the offerings from talented artisans and, in many cases, talking to the creators themselves.

A very nice place a little expensive. But its a tourist place with some nice new finds and some souvenirs. Lots of restaurants nearby and dessert made from scratch. I would recommend it if youre in the area.

Wonderful ambience right in the middle of Charleston. Great place for unique shopping. And to watch the horse drawn carriages go by.

As markets go, some very nice crafts and art, but also the usual mass produced trinkets.The area carries so much history, good and bad, you feel like your stepping back in time.

Very pretty place a lot history and is a lot to do here and all with it walking distance

First time here. Loved the place. Purchased nice pictures from African artists. Wanted to purchase authentic basket but either it wasnt there or it was super expensive. Wanted to try their $13 grits but it was out of my league. That was cheapest price for the Charleston grits. Many items were over priced. Nothing was priced reasonably other than the pictures. Street parking was decent. We were told they have fast meters so be careful. We arrived 15 minutes early and was good. Cant wait to visit again.

We enjoyed shopping at the market (except for the high temperatures and humidity). Only one of the buildings has a/c. Great selection of products from a lot of vendors. We hadnt been there in many years.

Always make it a point to walk through the market. Tons of great little vendors. Still not a fan of the enclosed air conditioned portion. Like walking through any gift shop anywhere. Took out some of the more historical parts for the sake of political corectness, which also removed some of the smaller shops to make space and more $$$. Got to own history not cover it up. Miss some of the great shops that used to line the sides too, but enough of them are still there to keep it interesting and reminiscent of years past.

A great place to find a little bit of everything. There are a lot of different artisans, so youre sure to find something you like. Its open air, so its best to visit early in the day or late in the afternoon. In July they had music programs on Friday nights. Why not visit the market, eat supper at one of the many local restaurants, and then take a stroll through the historic homes, buildings, and churches right there? It makes for an evening you wont soon forget.

This could have been very cool. The idea is that the market spans across about six city blocks (some indoor, some outwith vendors selling local items/crafts. The reality is that many of the vendors sell the same mass manufactured Charleston-themed items. Would also be nice if there were food vendors but there’s just a bakery at the end and some stalls selling sweets, but that’s about it.My friends and I came by on a Saturday at around 10:30 am, which is when we thought it opened (apparently its 9:30and it was already pretty packed at that time. I bought a cute little Charleston pineapple ornament for $15, which I thought was really unique - until I saw the same one at various souvenir shops on the outskirts of the market for $10. I guess they need to pay their rent somehow since the market is such a prime spot. My advice would be to walk through early, see if there is anything you like, and head to the shops not within the market. Youll likely find it there for cheaper.

My family could have spent hours here because of all of the shops and different items to look at! We visited on a Sunday afternoon and although it was tad crowded, we didn’t expect anything else from such a bustling part of the city! There a variety of different items offered here and even if you’re not looking to buy anything, I’d still recommend walking around because it’s also a way of enjoying the city and what it has to offer at no cost! I’d highly recommend everyone checks out the market as I believe it’s definitely a must see while in Charleston!

Lovely city, full of history and beauty. I suggest riding the motorized bikes through the city streets. It was an awesome way to really tour it.

I had extremely high hopes for this market. And mostly it was wonderful. I gave 4 starts simply because I expected more handmade goods. Custom and unique pieces. There was so of that but there was also a lot of jewelry that was purchased online and then resold.The soap makers were amazing. And those baskets are high quality. Such talent. They need to fill the market with more of that.

Great selection of varied local works and treats. A center portion is air conditioned too. Wished there were a few more food & drink stands as well as dining areas. There were a couple but not many. Still, worth a visit or two!

The market is beautifully spaced with traders selling goods on both sides with a walking space in the middle. There are washrooms. There market is divided into sections and blocks.

We had a really good time out here. Checked out the spot Heaven Scent and purchased a couple of products. Cant wait to come back again.

What great place for walking and shopping.History everywhere. Great food. Great shops.Worth a nice afternoon trip

Walking down the full length of the indoor market was interesting. But I didnt want overpriced photos on canvas or souvenirs. Sorry I came to view the architecture.

Wow, what an awesome shopping experience. Vendors have unusual, hand crafted items. The atmosphere of strolling along and finding items you just have to purchase reminded me of Pike Street Market in Seattle. Parking is everywhere!

Had a nice visit, the indoor market was all fully operational, the outdoor market had less vendors. Parking for 3 hours was $20," all day was $40; you have to use you phone and credit car to pay. 💘 Charleston SC

Such a beautiful city the people are friendlyShopping at the market was nice wish there were more vendors with different varieties but overall a great placeVery clean

Definitely a must see in Charleston. Although busier, its probably better to go on a weekend when I would imagine more vendors would be out. But I am not exactly sure how that works. If you are really shopping, it probably takes about 2 hours to get through the entire market. There are plenty of public parking areas. The parking garage we parked at was $4 for 2 hours.

Marvelous public market in the middle of downtown Charleston. The place has different kind of vendors, from arts and crafts to local shoes designers. Even if you don’t buy anything, I encourage people to talk a walk inside to enjoy its architecture.

I went to this beautiful gallery of art. I was told that Jonathan Green was one of the best artist in town. Great Customer Service. Willie was very nice, neat and charming. Great Prices too!!🙂

Super crowded, but very cool. Can’t wait to go back and really look at everything.

I love this place. It is like a bazaar where everyone has their own stand to sell. And surrounding buildings are amazing.I suggest carriage tour to see the see and listen the history of Charleston.Time to time i love to visit Charleston. It is small but lovely place.

Dont really care much for markets like this but City Market is on a different level! Very clean and well put together not all jumbled up. I ended up buying a beautiful keepsake puzzle box and placing an order from the Hat Man booth. Great spot to get some very unique souvenirs.

This place was amazing. I didn’t know it had so many vendors. You have to cross streets to get to the next building with vendors but the amount of variety you can find is amazing. Beware of vendors who buy things online and sell them for a higher price. We saw lots of items we knew from stores that were ridiculously marked up. There is however, truly handmade items and artists here.

Interesting sales booths with a lot of originally made items. The grass baskets are amazing and you can watch them make different things. The market goes on and on for blocks. There are a bunch of kids trying to sell hand made roses which is a little annoying but theyre just trying to make a few bucks. Overall a nice market

In the past, slaves would come to this location to purchase items for their owners. Now, you can support local vendors by purchasing some of their items throughout this 4 block indoor market. Read the history of the location at the Market/Meeting st. entrance, across from Chase Bank. Youll find various forms of art work, individuals creating Sweetwater baskets that depict their Gullah culture (theyre happy and proud to show you their tradition), tea towels, local Charleston non-profit selling several books related to the Charleston area history, local farmers, restaurants, grits and more. Youll so find the usual t-shirts, magnets, glasses, cookies and other souvenirs. Walk outside of the market, along North and South Market streets for additional shops, fudge and candy ships as well as restaurants of all varieties.

Charleston City Market is a must see and do trip while in the Charleston area. You can find everything from fresh produce to household items. There are lots of little stands with artwork as well as jewelry. There are things for children as well as adults. Dont forget to stop by one of the stands with fresh fresh baked goods or pick yourself up a bag of candy.The market really is a must see!

A place that you can buy many different things from local vendors.From paintings made by local artists, to handbags, handmade baskets, jewelry, even puzzle games and Christmas ornaments.Its a surprisingly long stretch of stands, left and right that is fully covered from the elements. Keep in mind though, that most of it does not have air conditioning.

Loved all the original artwork, jewelry and clothing. Much of it is pretty expensive! Lots of cool things to look at and admire.

The Charleston Market was very nice.And to a large extent air conditioned, which was nice in the August weather.Some of the market is open air also.Theres a good mix of merchandise to be had.Hats, leather goods, jewelry, home decorations and artwork. Just to name a few.Everyone was nice, friendly and helpful.Its worth the stop if youre in the area.

Ive lived in South Carolina since 2019, love it here!I took a ride to Charleston and it was amazing! So much history, architectural buildings, French Quarters, felt almost like key west with the pastel colored homes. Cant see everything in one day. Definitely recommend a visit again.

So much to explore. Definitely visit when you have time to spare. I enjoyed walking through to see the various types of vendors. The Market is a must stop on your visit to Charleston.

Awesome, must-visit place. So unique and fun to visit. many little shops exist there, and if you feel warm, there’s always the air conditioned section of the city market. There are many cool items available as well. I grabbed some local coffee and chocolates myself.