VP-2 Reunion 2014 - Charleston Tours
Your reunion hosts have
contracted with the professional tour company, "Adventures in
Charleston," to plan and carry out our tours during our stay in
Charleston.
Note: Each tour requires a minimum attendance of at least thirty people or the tour will be subject to cancellation.
Friday,
October 31st:
A historic tour of America’s best preserved city: Charleston,
SC. The cost of this tour is $46 per
person, which includes round-trip
transportation, a private guide, admission to Heyward-Washington
house, a visit to the Citadel, tax and gratuity for the tour guide.
Depart the Crowne Plaza
Hotel at 11:30 am.
11:45 am – 1:15 pm:
Browse through the Market Square area, well known for its unique
shops, boutiques, restaurants and pubs. Enjoy lunch on your own at a
place of your choosing in Market Square.
1:15
– 3:15 pm: Enjoy a privately guided bus tour as you explore
this enchanting and historic city. Favorite sights include: Rainbow
row, cobblestone streets, quaint gardens, hundreds of 18th
and 19th
century homes, buildings and churches, and the Battery overlooking
the Charleston harbor and Fort Sumter. You will tour the
Heyward-Washington house, built in 1772 by Daniel Heyward, father of
Thomas Heyward, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. It
is the only 18th
century house open in the city with an original kitchen house,
carriage house and “necessary” in the courtyard.
The house is furnished with magnificent Charleston-made furniture of
the 18th
century period.
3:15 – 4:30 pm:
Arrive at the Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina.
Enjoy a Full Dress Parade of the 2000 member Corps of Cadets.
5:00 pm: Arrive back at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
Saturday,
November 1st:
A full tour of the Boone Hall Plantation in the morning, lunch on our
own in the Market Square, and an afternoon harbor cruise to historic
Fort Sumter. The cost of this full day’s activity is $85
per person and includes round-trip
transportation, a privately guided tour of Boone Hall, escort to the
Fort Sumter tour, admission to Boone Hall, admission to Fort Sumter,
tax and tour guide gratuity.
Depart the Crown Plaza
Hotel at 8:30 am:
9:00 am – 12:00n:
Arrive at Boone Hall Plantation through the famous three-quarter mile
“Avenue of Oaks.” Boone Hall was granted to one of
South Carolina’s first settlers, Major John Boone, in 1676.
Originally a cotton plantation, Boone Hall spread over 17,000 acres.
Hand-made brick and tile were manufactured on the plantation and are
identified in the mansion, garden walls, slave cabins and many of
Charleston’s oldest and most historic buildings. Enjoy a
guided tour of the grounds followed by a guided tour of the mansion,
a tram tour, and “Exploring the Gullah Culture” of black
history in America.
12:30 – 2:00 pm:
Lunch on our own in the Charleston Market.
2:30 – 4:45 pm:
Board the Fort Sumter sightseeing boat. On April 12, 1861, Fort
Sumter was occupied by Union troops who refused to vacate the Fort as
demanded by the Confederates. All negotiations finally failed and
Confederate batteries in the Charleston harbor commenced a massive
bombardment of Fort Sumter, and America’s greatest moment of
conflict, the “War Between the States,” began. The Fort
is located at the entrance of Charleston’s beautiful harbor. It
is only accessible by boat. The Fort boasts an excellent museum
containing priceless exhibits. Historians with the National Park
Service conduct interesting and informative tours of the Fort. In
addition to a visit to Fort Sumter, you will enjoy a complete tour of
the Charleston harbor, viewing many points of interest.
5:00 pm: Arrive back at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
Sunday,
November 2nd:
Our final day of touring includes a morning spent at the Patriot’s
Point Naval and Maritime Museum with lunch aboard the carrier U.S.S.
Yorktown followed by a visit to the Confederate submarine H.L.
Hunley. The cost of this tour is $72
per person, which includes
round-trip transportation, admission to Patriot’s Point and the
Hunley exhibit, plus lunch in the Yorktown CPO mess.
Depart the Crowne Plaza Hotel at 8:30
9:00 am – 1:00 pm:
Explore Patriot’s Point Naval and Maritime Museum at our own
pace, including the destroyer USS Laffey and submarine USS
Clamagore. Tour the USS Yorktown and view the aircraft on
display on the Yorktown’s flight deck and hangar deck.
Visit the Medal of Honor Museum and the mockup of a Vietnam river
patrol base. At noon, enjoy lunch in the CPO mess on board the
Yorktown.
1:30 -3:00 pm: Tour the
Warren Lasche Center where the H.L. Hunley is preserved and on
display. Learn the story of how the Hunley became the first
submarine to sink a ship in battle when it attacked the warship
Housatonic, and how the Hunley crew became victims of their own
attack.
3:30 pm: Arrive back at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
Tour selection can be made here.