Haunted and evening carriage rides
When the day carriages head back to their barns, two companies send out a different kind of ride. Old South and Palmetto both run haunted tours at twilight and after dark, a little shorter than the daytime hour and full of old stories. This guide compares the two and explains what a ghost ride on wheels is like. It ends with the private evening carriage for couples and small groups.
Two haunted rides, two barns
Two of the six carriage tours we compare run in the evening, and their barns stand a short walk apart near City Market. Old South Carriage Co. sends its haunted ride out from 14 Anson Street, while Palmetto Carriage Works uses the Big Red Barn at 8 Guignard Street. Both keep to the oldest part of the peninsula with certified guides, and both trade the architecture talk of the day tours for tales of the people who lived and died here.
| Evening ride | From | Length | Ratings | Starts at | In bad weather |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Old South haunted tour | ~$45 | 40 min | 4.7 from 4,411+ (Viator), 4.6 from 478+ (GetYourGuide) | 14 Anson Street | Closed for the day if long rain or storms are forecast |
| Palmetto haunted history tour | ~$50 | 45 min | 4.7 from 322+ (Viator), 4.5 from 61+ (GetYourGuide) | 8 Guignard Street | Runs in all weather |
| Palmetto private evening carriage | ~$275 per group | About 30 min | 4.8 from 67+ (Viator) | 8 Guignard Street | See the listing |
Old South's 40 minutes of rogues and pirates
Old South's haunted carriage tour, from ~$45, is the better known of the two, with 4,411+ reviews on Viator averaging 4.7 and 92% of riders recommending it. It rolls through what the company calls the 15-block core of the old city, and the guides, members of the Palmetto Guild, tell of prisoners and rogues, with a pirate or two among them. The listing names possible stops such as City Market, the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon, St. Michael's Church and the graveyard of the Circular Congregational Church. The city sets carriage routes in the evening too, so read those as examples rather than a promise. Viator travelers book it about 12 days ahead on average.
Three things count against it. The ride is the shortest of the public options at 40 minutes, and the review summaries say traffic and hoofbeats sometimes drown out the guide, so sit near the front if you can. The company also closes the evening ride for the whole day when extended rain or storms are in the forecast. Finally, the Viator listing says the tour is not wheelchair accessible while its own overview says it is, so ask the barn before you book if that matters.
The most reviewed ghost ride
Old South's haunted carriage leaves 14 Anson Street at twilight for 40 minutes of old-city stories told by a Palmetto Guild guide, from ~$45. Free cancellation runs up to 24 hours before the start.
Palmetto's 45 minutes inside the old walls
Palmetto's haunted history ride, from ~$50, starts and ends at the Big Red Barn and runs five minutes longer. Its listing names the Four Corners of Law at Meeting and Broad, stretches of the old walled city, Waterfront Park, the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon, and City Market among the possible stops. Loading and unloading are accessible, with restrooms at the barn. One booking can take up to 14 people, which suits a wedding party or a reunion. It goes out in all weather, so bring a poncho rather than an umbrella.
The weaker points are small ones. It has far fewer reviews than Old South's ride, its GetYourGuide score of 4.5 from 61+ sits below the rest of Palmetto's tours, and one rider felt the stories deserved a full hour.
Why go out after dark
In summer the evening is simply the cooler time to sit in an open carriage. The city stops tour carriages on the hottest afternoons, and Palmetto has told reviewers that mornings and evenings suit the summer months better; how the carriage horses are cared for explains the heat rules, and the best time for a carriage ride goes month by month. After sunset the lamps come on and fewer cars share the narrow streets, so the clip of the hooves carries further.
Per minute, the evening costs more. Both haunted rides are priced close to the daytime hour at ~$50–50, yet they last about two thirds as long. You pay for the stories and the lamplight rather than the distance, a trade that what a Charleston carriage tour costs sets out in full.
How spooky the stories get
Think of it as history with a shiver. Charleston is an old port with old churchyards and a long, often violent past, and the guides draw on it freely. The Provost Dungeon under the Old Exchange held prisoners, and the tale goes that not all of them left. The Circular Congregational Church graveyard, the oldest in the city, gets its share of stories too. A few buildings along the way are said to be haunted, and the guides tell those tales with a wink rather than a scream. It is storytelling from the front of the carriage, not a fright show. Children who like a scary book usually enjoy it, and carriage rides with kids helps you judge your own.
Carriage or walking ghost tour
Charleston has plenty of walking ghost tours, and the choice comes down to your feet and the ground you want to cover. A carriage covers more streets in 40–45 minutes and lets you sit the whole time, which helps after a long day of sightseeing. A walk can slip down alleys and stop at graveyard gates that a carriage cannot reach. For a daytime alternative, the Walks of Charleston history tour, from ~$30, scores 4.9 from 7,024+ Viator reviews. Its catch is twofold. It covers history rather than ghosts, and it means two hours on foot, which feels long on a humid day. Carriage, walking tour or trolley? weighs the options side by side.
A carriage for your party after dark
Couples and small groups can have an evening carriage to themselves. Palmetto's private evening tour, from ~$275 per group, reserves the guide for your party and may pass the Powder Magazine, the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon, the Circular Congregational graveyard and parts of the old walled city. It scores 4.8 from 67+ Viator reviews, with 96% recommending it. The catch is the clock and the price. It lasts only about 30 minutes, and its route still follows the city lottery like every other carriage. Private carriage rides in Charleston compares it with the daytime private hour.
Booking an evening ride
Both haunted rides are booked about 12 days ahead on average, so a weekend in spring needs more notice. Check in 15 minutes before the start, and plan on tipping the guide a few dollars a person, since no listing includes it. If the forecast turns, both rides cancel free up to 24 hours ahead. Where the carriage tours start shows each barn and the nearby parking.