Charleston Boat Tours

Narrated Harbor Tours

A narrated harbor tour is the classic Charleston boat tour: live narration from a licensed captain, with Fort Sumter, Fort Moultrie, the USS Yorktown and the Ravenel Bridge seen from the water. The pick is the Charleston Harbor History Cruise on the Carolina Belle at $47.50 for 1.5 hours. The 80-foot boat passes more than 75 sights and carries up to 185 people, so it is the largest boat in the catalog.

It leaves from the Charleston Maritime Center at 10 Wharfside Street, and there is no parking at the dock, so plan on the Aquarium Garage at 24 Calhoun Street at $1 per 20 minutes up to a $24 daily max. The ticket covers the cruise only, alcoholic drinks are bought on board, and there is free cancellation up to 24 hours out. It suits anyone who wants the whole harbor story in one morning or afternoon.

Fort Sumter Ferry

Unlike the loop cruises, this ferry lands you at a fort. It takes you to Fort Sumter National Monument at the harbor mouth, a ride of about 30 minutes, with roughly an hour on the island and a National Park Ranger talk. The Fort Sumter Ferry and Fort Entry costs $43 for adults with the fort entry included, and senior and active military tickets run $39 while children 4 to 11 pay $26 and ages 3 and under ride free.

The whole trip takes about 2 hours 15 minutes on the daytime schedule. Departures run from Liberty Square at 340 Concord Street downtown or Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant. Full details, schedules and the seasonal timetable live on the Fort Sumter ferry page, which owns that topic.

Note that Fort Sumter itself charges no entrance fee, the ferry ticket is the cost, and food is not allowed inside the fort museum.

Eco Boats to Morris Island and Folly's Creeks

Eco boat tours trade the harbor skyline for tidal creeks, wildlife and a beach stop. Two listings cover this type. The Morris Island Lighthouse Eco Boat Cruise is a 2.5-hour naturalist trip from Bowens Island Road at $56, capped at 21 guests, with an hour on the Morris Island beach by the 161-foot lighthouse.

There are no restrooms on board. The Folly Beach Dolphin and Estuary Boat Tour is a 1.5-hour skiff trip for up to 12 guests, also $56, rated a perfect 5.0 from 211 reviews, leaving from a yellow office in the Crosby's Fish & Shrimp Co. parking lot. Both have a captain who narrates, and neither includes snacks or drinks.

These suit travelers who have already seen the harbor or who care more about marsh and wildlife than history.

Dolphin Tours

Several tours put dolphin watching in the name, though sightings are not promised on any of them. The Charleston Harbor Tour and Dolphin Watch Cruise from SpiritLine at $50 for 1.5 hours pairs live narration about Fort Sumter, the USS Yorktown and the Battery with a dolphin watch, and up to two children ride free per paying adult. It leaves from Patriots Point or Aquarium Wharf.

On the Folly side, the Folly Beach Dolphin and Estuary Boat Tour at $56 looks for bottlenose dolphins in the tidal creeks behind Folly Beach on a small skiff. The all-day pass lists a dolphin cruise on every trip, with sightings frequent but not guaranteed. A dolphin-focused tour suits families and wildlife watchers who want to look for them from a boat rather than a seawall.

Sunset Cruises

Sunset has three listings. The Charleston Harbor Sunset Cruise from Sandlapper is a 2-hour, 45-foot power catamaran for up to 49 guests at $60, sailing from the Charleston Maritime Center under the Ravenel Bridge. The Catamaran Sunset Cruise with Music and Bar from Palmetto Breeze is $65 for 2 hours from Shem Creek on a 55-foot open-air boat with a card bar, no narration, and no under-6s or wheelchair users.

The Shem Creek BYOB Sunset Cruise is the budget pick at $45 for 1.5 hours, bring your own drinks, with shared coolers, ice and water provided. None include food, and none include hotel pickup. A sunset cruise suits couples and photographers, and the BYOB option suits groups watching cost.

Sunset times swing from 8:33 p.m. at the latest to 5:14 p.m. at the earliest, so book the season, not the clock.

The Tall Ship

The Schooner Pride Harbor Sail and Dolphin Watch is the sailing option in the catalog: a three-masted schooner docked on the floating dock to the left of the South Carolina Aquarium at 360 Concord Street. The ticket is $56 for a 1.5-hour sail, and guests can help the crew raise the sails. It is not a narrated tour, so you get the wind, the water and the skyline rather than a history lecture, and it stays inside Charleston Harbor.

Tips and drinks bought on board are extra. Free cancellation runs 24 hours before departure. This type suits travelers who want the feel of a real sail, families with older kids, and anyone who has already done a narrated cruise and wants a different mode.

The Ghost Cruise

The Charleston Harbor Ghost Cruise from Sandlapper Water Tours puts a haunted-storytelling spin on a harbor loop. It runs 1.5 hours on the same 45-foot power catamaran used for sunset trips, carries up to 49 guests, and costs $45 with South Carolina sales tax included in the ticket. Check in at the blue and white booth on the far left pier at the Charleston Maritime Center at least 30 minutes before departure.

Children under 3 are not permitted, drinks are bought on board, and food, alcohol and gratuities are not included. Free cancellation applies up to 24 hours out. This type suits families with school-age kids, groups looking for an evening activity that is not a bar crawl, and anyone combining it with a downtown ghost tour on foot.

It is an evening cruise first and a scare second, so expect stories rather than terror.

The Dinner Cruise

The Charleston Harbor Dinner Cruise from SpiritLine is the only tour in the catalog where the meal is included. The $120 ticket buys a 2.5-hour cruise with a 4-course dinner made to order from local seasonal ingredients, live music, and sunset views in the summer months. Boarding is at 6:30 p.m. with sailing from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m. from outside the Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum in Mount Pleasant.

Tables seat 4 to 6. Drinks from the bar are extra, and parking at the lot is paid, with one reviewer reporting $27. The kitchen is not a nut-free, shellfish-free or gluten-free facility, so diners with severe allergies should call ahead.

Free cancellation runs 24 hours before. This type suits anniversaries, birthdays and visitors who want dinner and a harbor tour in one evening without a second reservation.

Private Charters

Private charters price the whole boat, not the person. The Private Yacht Charter for Up to 6 from Blue Life Charters is $525 for 2.5 hours by sail or motor yacht, captain and crew included, bottled water and sodas on board, bring your own anything else. The Private Morning Sail on the Mystique is also $525, for 2 hours on a 43-foot yacht with two crew.

The Private Party Boat Charter is $700 for 2 hours from Ripley Light Marina with a Bluetooth stereo and ice, and $1,000 for 3 hours. Gratuities are extra on the two yachts, customarily 18 to 20 percent on the Mystique. Gratuities are not stated for the party boat.

Most run from downtown marinas, and the Blue Life dock has no on-site parking, so you park next door at 17 Lockwood Drive and walk 4 to 5 minutes.

The Water Taxi

The Charleston Water Taxi All-Day Pass is the cheapest boat ticket on this page. An all-day pass costs $17, one way is $13, kids pay $15 all day and children 3 and under ride free. Boats run hourly between Waterfront Park, the Aquarium and Maritime Center, Patriots Point and Charleston Harbor Resort and Marina, so it works as transport, and the listing includes a dolphin cruise on every trip, with sightings frequent but not guaranteed.

Downtown departures leave Waterfront Park at :15 past the hour from 9:15, and Patriots Point boats leave at :45 from 9:45. Times can shift during special events such as July 4th and concerts. Two honest caveats: admission to attractions like the USS Yorktown is not included, and all sales are final, so there is no refund if plans change.

This suits budget travelers, families stretching a day, and anyone who wants the water without a tour format.

Where the Boats Leave From

Downtown docks are on the Charleston side of the harbor. Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant sits across the Cooper River beside the USS Yorktown. Folly Beach is about 11 miles south of downtown, and the Folly area tours serve the creeks and Morris Island.

Boats that offer two departure points, like the Fort Sumter ferry and the SpiritLine dolphin cruise, let you choose the side of the river that matches the rest of your day.

Parking at Each Dock

Downtown parking costs extra. There is no parking at the Charleston Maritime Center, and the nearest garage is the Aquarium Garage at 24 Calhoun Street, which charges $1 per 20 minutes up to a $24 daily maximum. City garages in general run $1 per 20 minutes with a $24 daily max, and the Visitor Center garage at 63 Mary Street drops to a $7 flat rate after 3 p.m.

Parking at Liberty Square and Patriots Point for the Fort Sumter ferry is paid, though the exact rates are not stated. The Patriot Point lot near the dinner cruise was reported at $27 by a reviewer. At Shem Creek, the park lot has 35 free spaces plus spillover on Shrimp Boat Lane and fills at busy times, and parking is an extra cost flagged on the Palmetto Breeze listing.

On Folly, the Castaway tour includes parking in its $56 price.

First-Timers

If you have one boat tour in you, make it a narrated harbor loop. The Charleston Harbor History Cruise on the Carolina Belle at $47.50 covers more than 75 sights in 1.5 hours and gives you Fort Sumter, Fort Moultrie, the USS Yorktown and the Ravenel Bridge with the story attached. Alternatively, the Fort Sumter ferry at $43 swaps narration for an hour standing inside the fort where the Civil War began, and it is the better pick if history is your reason for visiting.

Neither includes food, so eat before or after. Both leave from downtown docks, though the ferry can also leave from Patriots Point.

Families with Small Children

The child rules decide this one. The Fort Sumter ferry charges $26 for ages 4 to 11 and carries children 3 and under free, and the same under-4-free rule applies on the water taxi, where a kids all-day pass is $15. The SpiritLine dolphin watch lets up to two children ride free per paying adult, so a family pays for fewer tickets at the $50 base fare.

Watch the exclusions: the Palmetto Breeze sunset catamaran takes no one under 6, and the ghost cruise bans children under 3. The eco cruise has no restrooms on board, which matters with toddlers on a 2.5-hour trip. For the youngest families, the water taxi at $17 all day has the lowest ticket price, but all sales are final.

Dolphin Seekers

Three tours lean into dolphin watching. The SpiritLine dolphin watch narrates a 1.5-hour harbor loop at $50 with the free-child rule. The Folly Beach skiff tour at $56 looks for bottlenose dolphins in the tidal creeks behind Folly Beach, and it holds a 5.0 rating across 211 reviews.

The water taxi lists a dolphin cruise on every trip for $17, with sightings frequent but not guaranteed. Ashore, dolphins are most often seen from Waterfront Park pier, the Battery seawall and the Folly Beach pier, best at dawn, 10 a.m. to noon, and 2 p.m. to sunset.

Sunset and Romance

Three sunset boats fit three budgets. The BYOB cruise from Shem Creek is $45 for 1.5 hours and lets you bring your own drinks, with coolers and ice provided. The Sandlapper power catamaran is $60 for 2 hours with taxes and fees included and room for up to 49.

The Palmetto Breeze catamaran is $65 for 2 hours with a card bar, music and a 55-foot deck, though it excludes under-6s and wheelchair users. For a bigger occasion, the private Mystique sail at $525 for the whole boat gives you two crew on a morning sail, and the dinner cruise at $120 adds a 4-course meal. The earliest sunset of 2026 is at 5:14 p.m., so check the departure time for winter dates.

A Group or Party

Private charters are priced per boat, not per person. The Blue Life yacht charter is $525 for 2.5 hours for up to 6 guests under USCG rules. The Sip and Sea party boat is $700 for 2 hours with a Bluetooth stereo and ice, or $1,000 for 3 hours.

Bring-your-own drinks rules apply on the yacht and party boat, water and sodas included on Blue Life. The largest shared option is the Carolina Belle at up to 185 passengers, which suits reunions that do not want to charter.

Accessibility

Wheelchair notes vary by listing, so confirm with operators before booking. The Carolina Belle is listed as wheelchair accessible, with a flat pier, a boarding ramp of about 30 feet, boarding on the top deck and restrooms on the top deck. The Fort Sumter ferry is listed as wheelchair accessible.

The Morris Island eco cruise is listed as accessible too, but the island stop may be a problem and travelers can stay on board. The Schooner Pride is not suitable for wheelchair users and the Palmetto Breeze catamaran is not for wheelchair users. The water taxi listing states nothing on accessibility.

If accessibility is the deciding factor, the honest advice is to call the operator, compare the water taxi against the Carolina Belle, and ask each about boarding before paying. None of the listings state hotel pickup, so plan your own transport to every dock.

Sunset Times

The latest sunset of 2026 falls on June 29 at 8:33 p.m., and the earliest comes on December 3 at 5:14 p.m. The June solstice day runs 4 hours 19 minutes longer than the December solstice day. Check the actual departure time against the sunset date of your visit rather than assuming a fixed evening slot.

Hurricane Season and Rain Rules

The Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30 and peaks around September 10, with mid-August to mid-October accounting for 96 percent of major hurricane days. Watch forecasts in peak weeks. Cancellation policies differ by listing: the Fort Sumter ferry refunds in full if you cancel 2 or more hours before departure, most other tours offer free cancellation at 24 hours, and the water taxi is all sales final with no weather flexibility stated.

Shem Creek rentals, a separate product, issue a rental credit rather than a refund if the operator cancels for weather. Book the refundable tours if your dates fall in hurricane season, and read the full comparison on the homepage before locking in a non-refundable fare.