Old Town Bluffton and the May River

Old Town Bluffton is the antidote to resort life, a small historic district of shaded streets, galleries and river views twenty minutes from Hilton Head's bridges. Bluffton began in the late 1700s as a summer retreat for Lowcountry planter families escaping the heat and fever of their plantations, perched on a high bluff above the May River where the breezes blew. Union troops burned much of the town during the Civil War, but a handful of antebellum buildings survived, and the old town grid, with its live oaks and cottages, has been lovingly preserved. Start at the Heyward House, the town's official welcome center, at 70 Boundary Street. It is one of only eight antebellum homes in Bluffton to survive the Civil War, and the Bluffton Historical Preservation Society offers guided tours of the house and grounds for a nominal fee, plus guided walking tours of Old Town by appointment on weekdays; the visitor bureau lists hours as Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm and Saturday 10am to 4pm. From there, walk down Calhoun Street, the old town's main street, lined with galleries, boutiques and cafes, to the Church of the Cross, a Gothic Revival Episcopal church built in 1854 at the edge of the bluff, its rose-tinted wooden interior and river views among the most photographed scenes in the Lowcountry. Then head to Wharf Street and the Bluffton Oyster Company, run by the Toomer family and described as the last remaining hand-shucking oyster house in South Carolina. Oysters, clams and mussels are in season roughly mid-September to mid-May, which makes November prime time. Free to wander, and best on foot.

The May River is the soul of the place. It is a short, tidal river of exceptional water quality whose oyster beds have supported Bluffton families for generations, and the community fights hard to keep it clean; the annual River Sweep, held for the thirty-seventh time in 2026, brings volunteers out to clean its banks. Walk down to the water at the small parks along the bluff, including Pritchard Pocket Park and the riverfront at the end of Calhoun Street, to watch the tide move through the marsh. The Bluffton Oyster Company sells fresh South Carolina shrimp, oysters, clams and mussels from its small market, with soft-shell crab in spring; the Toomers also run the Bluffton Seafood House restaurant nearby.

Art is the other draw. The Society of Bluffton Artists runs a gallery at Church and Calhoun Streets showing the work of dozens of local artists, and the old town is full of independent studios and galleries, from potters to painters working in the blues and browns of the Lowcountry. Calhoun Street's boutiques sell clothing, jewelry, books and gifts, and a farmers market sets up on Calhoun Street on Thursday afternoons for much of the year, with local produce, seafood dishes, baked goods and live music. Check current hours and seasons before you go.

Plan a half-day. Arrive mid-morning, get a map at the Heyward House and take its tour, stroll Calhoun Street to the Church of the Cross (a docent is often on hand around midday when the church is open), browse a few galleries, and finish with oysters or shrimp by the river. Bluffton is also a gateway to Daufuskie Island: water taxis run from the May River during daylight hours. Pair it with a morning at Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, which you pass on the way from Hilton Head, or with a stay at Montage Palmetto Bluff a few miles downriver.