Spring and early summer—it’s one of the most beautiful times of the year to be outdoors in the Lowcountry. Charlestonians make the most of the season with a packed schedule of festivals. Many are annual events that have taken place for decades.
Here’s a sampling of six Charleston-area festivals happening between March and June. All dates are for 2022.
1. 75th Annual Festival of Houses and Gardens
- When: March 16–April 9, 2022
- Where: In and around the Old and Historic District in Charleston
This much-anticipated event is held by Historic Charleston and offers an opportunity to tour some of Charleston’s most significant homes and gardens. Choose from street tours, morning history walks, luncheon lectures, garden tours, and house tours. You can buy tickets for individual events that typically take a morning or afternoon.
This year’s festival includes tours of Anson Street, Church Street, Legare Street, East Battery, and a tour of seven private gardens. March 28 will feature a luncheon lecture on South Carolina’s Liberty Trail. Events on April 5 include a tour of showcase homes featuring small-group tours of four homes in the South of Broad and Old and Historic District. Advance purchase for this event is required.
Explore all events, tours, and ticketing information in the 2022 Festival of Houses and Gardens online guide.
- When: April 1–3, 2022
- Where: Azalea Park, Summerville
At this premier fundraising event for the Summerville YMCA, thousands of people take in the beauty of Summerville’s flowering dogwoods, azaleas, and wisteria. It’s the perfect setting for one of the biggest arts and crafts festivals in the Southeast.
Festival highlights include an art show featuring the works of more than 200 juried artists, a farmer’s market, food trucks, and a children’s jubilee with activities and rides.
Admission and parking is free. Summerville is located about 25 miles north of Charleston.
- When: April 9, 2022, 12 PM to 6 PM
- Where: James Island County Park, Charleston
This one-day festival will bring Zydeco music and Cajun and Creole cuisine to scenic James Island County Park. Main stage performers will be the Shrimp City Slim Swamp All-Stars, Johnny Ace and Sidewalk Zydeco, and C.J. Chenier and the Red Hot Louisiana Band. One of the highlights of the Lowcountry Cajun Festival is authentic Cajun and Creole dishes like jambalaya, etouffe, crawfish, and alligator. Food offerings will also include traditional favorites like seafood and Southern barbecue.
Admission is $15 per person and free for ages 12 and under.
- When: April 24, 2022, 11 AM to 5 PM
- Where: Memorial Waterfront Park, Mount Pleasant
This unique event celebrates Mount Pleasant’s shrimping and fishing industry with a boat parade and a ceremonial blessing of the fleet. Mount Pleasant’s top restaurants will be on hand to provide seafood cuisine. The activity line-up will include a shrimp-eating contest, a shag dancing contest, live music, and a crafts show. Memorial Waterfront Park with its spectacular view of the Ravenal Bridge and Charleston Harbor provides an amazing setting for this event.
Parking is free but limited at Memorial Waterfront Park. Free shuttle buses are available starting at 11 AM. They leave from East Cooper Medical Center, Mount Pleasant Town Hall, and the Cheryll Woods-Flowers Soccer Complex.
- When: May 4–8, 2022
- Where: Multiple venues including the Charleston Area Convention Center and the Olde Village area of North Charleston
This annual festival highlights local and regional artists in the fields of music, dance, theatre, visual arts, and literature. Now in its 39th year, the North Charleston Arts Fest offers a wide array of programming including concerts, children’s programs, workshops, demos, and live theatre. Events are free or modestly priced.
Festival highlights will include the May 4 opening celebration at the Charleston Area Convention Center and the May 6 Arty Block Party in North Charleston’s Olde Village District.
- When: May 27–June 12, 2022
- Where: Multiple venues in Charleston including the Gaillard Center, College of Charleston, Dock Street Theatre, Festival Hall, and St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church
The grande dame of Charleston festivals brings world-class opera, theater, dance, and music to multiple venues over 17 days of performances. The wide array of music genres includes classical, jazz, blues, soul, contemporary, gospel, country, and folk.
Highlights of Spoleto 2022 will include the world premiere of “Omar,” an opera with music by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels based on the 1831 autobiography of Omar Ibn Said, a West African Islamic scholar who was enslaved and brought to Charleston in 1807.
