22 Charlotte

The daily breakfast had a new and amazing variety, and with Dixie around it was even better. It kept us going until dinner and was a great start to the day. 22 Charlotte is a charming old Charleston house with history, and Vaughn is one of a kind. You stay in her home and share the building, so there are house rules. Locking the door, arriving on time or contacting her in advance if you can’t, and following the breakfast table seating rules were all easy enough. It makes sense to have rules to help maintain an old house, especially since this isn’t a regular hotel. We loved our stay, and free parking was a nice bonus.

Vaughn welcomed us outside, gave us a tour of the beautiful historic house, and explained the few simple rules, like locking the door and recycling. She was warm and knew a lot about the area. She’s an outspoken Southern lady, which was part of the unique experience, and we had a great time in a beautiful home. My amazing boyfriend surprised me with this for my birthday and did very well!

The whole stay was stressful. I felt like I had to watch what I said and did, with the innkeeper always nearby. At breakfast she assigned our seats, then sat on the sofa just beyond us, listening and chiming in with her opinions. We also heard her in her office, right outside our room, admonishing a guest who had checked out days earlier for not giving the inn a 5 on Trip Advisor. Our first morning, there was cat barf on the stairs on the way to breakfast. We don’t dislike cats, but it was disgusting. Later, a sticky note appeared on my husband’s small, fully packed 8-ounce dop kit, which he’d hung on the bathroom towel bar, telling us not to hang it there in case the bar pulled out of the sheetrock. There was also a demonstration in our room about putting away the many bed pillows each night. The house rules were a lot. We had to show Vaughn we could lock the back door, then listen as she read us all the sticky notes around the house and got us to agree to follow the rules. Much of this came with a nonstop account of how much she hates her neighbors. From the moment we arrived that afternoon, we got an immediate hostile tongue lashing. We’d planned to fly and had arranged to drop off our luggage on arrival for a prepaid $25 fee. We later changed plans, cancelled the flight, and drove, but I forgot to call and report the change. That was the reason for her outburst. We would have left then if not for the deposit and our Spoleto tickets.

Ms. Vaughan’s knowledge of Charleston and its activities made our trip so enjoyable. She’s full of great information and a joy to talk with, and she treated us like family. The location was excellent too. The easy, slow ten-minute walk to the main drag takes you along Charlotte Street, past Victorian-style houses with trees providing some shade. If you’re looking for a place in Charleston, book with Ms. Vaughan at 22 Charlotte. She made our stay more wonderful than we could have imagined.