Top Unique Adventurous Things to Do Near Charleston

Have you ever traveled to a place, became lost, and then stumbled into something extraordinary by accident? Perhaps an amazing coffee shop serving the best coffee you’ve ever had or an experience that looked so fun that you had to try it?! That’s what we’re after!

This list focuses on the top adventurous things to do in Charleston but with a twist. This list is comprised of the hidden gems not seen in every other destination magazine.

We’ve done our homework and have listed all the best adventurous things to do in Charleston that are off the beaten path other than skydiving Charleston.

Great experiences are all about creating a connection with people and that seems to be the magic sauce with Tia. This lady has developed a business (almost by accident) on the Airbnb platform as a local experience and it has become an instant hit. Learning how to catch crabs, casting a cast net and pier fishing is something that’s enjoyable and something that anyone can do. Combine the fun in learning something that’s low pressure while meeting someone very cool and authentic… perfect!

• Off the beaten path ✔︎
• Not too touristy ✔︎
• Fun and totally different ✔︎

Easy to see why Tia makes our list of top adventurous things to do in Charleston!

A man who describes himself as a funny talkin’ southern boy passionate about history is a man we’d like to meet. Cooper’s (the company’s namesake) self-deprecating humor and deep knowledge of Charleston’s history makes this walking tour truly unique. With Cooper, you can anticipate the unvarnished truth – the good, the bad, and ugly that some tours may want to gloss over. We scoured YouTube looking for a video of Cooper and came up with nothing, but Cooper makes the list based on his incredible reviews. Sounds like this off the beaten path AirbnB Experiences guide has made learning super fun with humor and a touch of irreverence.

• Learning and Having Fun ✔︎
• Great Value (2 Hour Tour for $35) ✔︎
• Getting your step count up while on vacation ✔︎
• Getting the scoop from a real local ✔︎

Easy to see why Cooper is on our Chucktown top adventurous things to do in Charleston – this guy keeps it real!

Yep, you are reading this correctly – the words “adventure” and “fossil” paired together in a sentence on a skydiving website – stranger things have happened! Who knew that learning about fossils could be so interesting, but not surprisingly, it’s the human connection that makes this tour come to life! The owner of Charleston Fossil Adventures is a Charleston native who has been able to marry his love for Pleistocene vertebrate remains (yep, that’s a thing) with his great personality to make this subject surprisingly interesting!

• Off the beaten path ✔︎
• Educational ✔︎
• Fun and Different ✔︎
• Hanging Out with a Passionate Local Who Loves What He Does ✔︎

This list is about going on nontraditional adventures in Chucktown and this tour definitely fits the bill!

As an entrepreneur-owned business ourselves, we dig other entrepreneurs who take their passion and convert it to a business – it’s what Skydive Carolina’s owner did! Allow us to introduce you to Captain Addison Rupert. Captain Addison is a True Blue Charlestonian who has been fishing the local waters for his entire life. Addison took his love for fishing and made it his business and we’re all about it! Plus, what’s more adventurous (other than skydiving of course) than trying to reel in a 150lb tarpon? Not much!

Once again, the greatness of this list is the people that make up these businesses and there’s no doubting that Cap Addison qualifies. Not only does he take people to the best honey holes in the area, but he also teaches his guests the best fishing techniques which elevates the experience.

• A passionate local who knows the Charleston waters like the back of his hand ✔︎
• Off the beaten path ✔︎
• Super fun and adventurous! ✔︎
• Non-touristy ✔︎

So this sounds interesting!!! This tour’s description hits all the high-notes of what we’re looking for – something different! As described on AirbnB this tour tells the story of women from their perspective. Apparently, Charleston is the matriarchal capital of the western world once controlled by women. We have no idea what that even means, but we’d like to find out!

Another intriguing aspect of this tour is the man who leads it – Larry! We do wish there was a YouTube video of Larry because we just know that he’s a charismatic figure living life on his terms with his beautiful long beard and colorful pants! (Larry must have been a skydiver in his past life). We just know we’d love him and his reviews seem to confirm our hunch.

Curiosity calls – we want to tour with Larry!

• Lovable local ✔︎
• Non-touristy ✔︎
• Uniquely Different ✔︎
• Getting your steps in while learning cool stuff ✔︎

Could there be a better adventure in Charleston? Doubtful.

Know of an entrepreneur doing a cool thing? If so, we want to know about him/her! Our goal is to be an adventure partner to entrepreneurs doing uniquely crafted experiences that are not in the spotlight! Please message us and let us know!

Related Article: Top Outdoor Adventures in South Carolina

Ready for a thrilling adventure? Try tandem skydiving at Skydive Carlina!