Touring Charleston Tea Plantation

On your next trip to Charleston, go off the beaten path and visit the Charleston Tea Plantation on Wadmalaw Island. While there are hundreds of tea plantations around the world, it is the only one in North America.

The picturesque plantation is located several miles south of downtown Charleston. The area’s sandy soil, climate and average annual rainfall offer the ideal conditions for growing tea. The Camellia Sinensis tea plant produces both black and green tea leaves used to make the plantation’s nine tea varieties.

The plantation is open 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Monday–Saturday and 12–4 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is free. Once you arrive, enter through the gift shop to sample tea and take a factory tour. Tours run every 15 minutes on the quarter hour. The free tour in the tea production building gives visitors an informative experience of the tea-making process.

For a more in-depth look at the 127-acre plantation, take a trolley tour. The ride takes 35–40 minutes and brings guests through the acres of tea bushes and the on-site greenhouse. Learn more about the process from the trolley tour guide and narration provided by plantation founder Bill Hall over the trolley loudspeaker. Adult admission for the tour costs $12.

The plantation is also available for private events including corporate functions and weddings.