Picking presents for friends and family is never a simple task. We at Charleston Place would like to make your holiday shopping a little bit easier this year with our gift guide.

There is something for everyone at The Shops at Charleston Place which include: Anne Fontaine, Bloom, Brighton, Brookstone, Calypso St. Barth, Chico’s, Colonial Candle, Everything But Water, Fresh Produce, Godiva Chocolatier, Gucci, Harleston Shoes, Isabella’s Collection, kate spade new york, Lacoste, Louis Vuitton, Mori Classics, Orient-Express Signature Boutique, Papyrus, Pandora, Sperry Top-Sider, St. John, Sunglass Hut, Talbots, Tommy Bahama, White House/Black Market and Yves Delorme.

To make your shopping a little bit easier this year, we asked Betsy Garrity, Manager of the Orient-Express Boutique and Annette Sandford-Lopez, Director of The Spa at Charleston Place, their top picks for holiday gifts.

For the Spa-lover
If you’re shopping for the spa-lover in your life, The Spa at Charleston Place is the place to go. Give a 1. Spa Gift Card that your loved one can use for a lavish scrub, a pedicure, or a relaxing massage. For those interested in forward-thinking skin care treatments, the 2. Clairsonic Mia2 and 3. NuFace Trinity are perfect gifts. The Clairsonic Mia2 Cleansing System works with skin’s natural elasticity to gently remove the impurities traditional methods leave behind–revealing softer, smoother and more beautiful skin. The NuFace Trinity is a FDA approved device that will help lift and tone the face while reducing fine lines and wrinkles. You can also find many other products at The Spa’s Online Gift Shop.

For the Charlestonian-at-heart
If you’re shopping for the Charlestonian-at-heart, you’ll be sure to find what you’re looking for at our Orient-Express Boutique. The Orient-Express Boutique offers many Lowcountry treasures such as 4. sweetgrass baskets, 5. embroidered pillows featuring the best of Charleston and much more.

For the Fashionista
The 6. Charleston Gate jewelry collection features beautifully crafted pieces inspired by the ornately designed iron gates located in Charleston. Also featured is 7. handcrafted jewelry by local designer Melissa Gray – perfect for any occasion. The 8. Charleston Scarf available at the Orient-Express Boutique is inspired by the architectural and decorative legacy of historic Charleston and captures some of the city’s most memorable and beloved features.

For the Foodie
You will find several recipe books filed with Southern delicacies such as the popular title 9. Charleston Receipts. If your foodie doesn’t want to start from scratch, 10. Geechie Mixes will make the perfect gifts. Available mixes include she crab soup and peach cobbler. Then, grab a few bags of the ever-popular 11. benne wafers to complete your foodie’s gift basket.

For the Art-Lover
12. The Unpainted South: Carolina’s Vanishing World features compelling images of abandoned farmhouses, leaning tobacco barns, and boarded up redbrick towns of another era in Lowcountry South Carolina. Jonathan Green is an internationally recognized artist who was born and raised in the Lowcountry. His book, 13. Gullah Images: The Art of Jonathan Green, features many of the Gullah images he is known for, is available at the Orient-Express Boutique.

With all of the amazing gifts to choose from, you’ll be able to cross “holiday shopping” off of your to-do list after a trip to Charleston Place. It could be as simple as purchasing a Charleston Place Gift Card that can be used for a stay at the hotel, one of our specialty treatments at The Spa, a dinner at Charleston Grill or the Palmetto Cafe, drinks or afternoon tea at The Thoroughbred Club. Or, you can take advantage of our Gift of Giving Package. This holiday season, book your getaway at Charleston Place, and receive a $100 hotel gift certificate to give to a loved one or use yourself for a future visit.

This year, Charleston Place Hotel is sharing some of our favorite holiday traditions. We polled our employees to find out their favorite holiday happenings in the Charleston area. With a variety of events taking place, the holidays are the perfect time to get back to Charleston.

Charleston Place Hotel
For the entire month of December, the lobby of the Charleston Place Hotel comes alive with lavish seasonal decorations. Enjoy the stunning tree and train display, evoking the beauty, lights and magic that surround the entire holiday season.

Marion Square
Marion Square is a buzz during the holidays with a variety of seasonal events. Visit the Holiday Farmers Market, open each Saturday from December 5th-20th, where one can find brightly colored tents with vendors that offer everything needed to deck the halls for the holidays and fill the pantry with baked delights. Marion Square is also home to the magnificent 60-foot Tree of Lights, the official City of Charleston Christmas Tree. Join Mayor Riley and Santa Claus at the City of Charleston Tree Lighting Ceremony, December 2nd, 4:30-6:00pm.

Festival of Wreaths
A great opportunity to view the magnificent Charleston Place decorations while enjoying savory hors d’oeuvres, bubbly champagne and live holiday music and bidding on wreaths made by local artists.  All proceeds will benefit the MUSC Children’s Hospital. Thursday, December 13th 6:00pm-9:00pm in The Palmetto Cafe.

Yuletide in Charleston
Experience the feasts, festivities and local traditions of Christmas’ past. At the Historic Charleston Foundation’s two museum houses, Yuletide in Charleston will take you on a journey through Christmas’ past, from the Federal to Antebellum era. Learn how the families and enslaved African Americans at the Nathaniel Russell (c. 1808) and Aiken-Rhett (c. 1820) Houses celebrated the holiday season. This exhibition will be on view from November 23rd through January 6th.

King Street Shop Walk
This is a great way to turn a potentially hectic task into a fun outing. Sip hot chocolate and sample complimentary appetizers while walking down beautifully decorated King Street and receiving savings from local retailers. Friday, December 7th. Check in begins at 5:00pm.

Charleston Boat Parade
The parade begins along Mt. Pleasant at 5:30pm on Saturday, December 1st. Viewing from the peninsula begins at 6:30pm; fireworks begin at approximately 6:45pm

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Holiday Decorations at the Joseph Manigault House
Every year, the Garden Club of Charleston decorates the Joseph Manigault House for the holidays. Visit December 8th-31st and see their creative arrangements, using only live plant materials that would have been available in the Lowcountry during the 19th century.

Chanukah in the Square
A festive party for everyone featuring music, dancing, lighting of the nine-foot Menorah by Charleston’s Holocaust survivors, crafts and many treats including latkes and other traditional Chanukah foods. Sunday, December 9th, 4:00-6:00pm in Marion Square.

Annual Spirituals Concert at Drayton Hall
On Saturday and Sunday, December 8th and 9th, Drayton Hall presents African-American spiritual music with three concerts by Ann Caldwell and The Magnolia Singers. These concerts are a rare opportunity to gather in the atmospheric-raised English basement of Drayton Hall to hear music that could have been heard centuries ago in the surrounding fields and praise houses.

Located just eight miles from downtown Charleston is one of America’s oldest working plantations. On the National Register of Historic Places, Boone Hall Plantation is famous for its three-quarter mile lined avenue of oaks dating back to 1743. The 90 live oaks create an enchanting canopy leading to the plantation’s main building. Bordering the avenue of oaks are nine original slave cabins, which housed servants and skilled craftsmen. This cluster of cabins, known as Slave Street, is one of the few remaining intact in the Southeast and the only brick slave street in the U.S. Touted as “America’s Most Photographed Plantation,” Boone Hall was established in 1681 by Major John Boone and is located just north of Charleston in Mount Pleasant, SC. The present Colonial Revival-style house dates back to 1935, and combined with the lawns and gardens, provides the perfect stage for many popular seasonal events.

During the month of October, Boone Hall Farm hosts its annual Pumpkin Patch. After finding the perfect pumpkin, try to make your way through the 8-acre corn maze for some great, family fun. It is open from 9am until 6pm Monday through Saturday and from 12pm to 6pm on Sunday.

Also, there are plenty of thrills to go around during Boone Hall’s Fright Nights. Featuring four frightening attractions, Fright Nights promises to continue its tradition of Halloween horrors. Attractions include the Asylum, Chaos and Quarantine “The Outbreak”, the Terror Trail Haunted Hayride and Little Amy’s Nightmare in 3D. The fun continues through the end of October.

This year commemorates the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Secessionville. November 10th and 11th Boone Hall will host its annual Re-enactment of this famous battle. This will be a fun and educational experience for families to experience the lifestyle of the antebellum era at Boone Hall.

On Sunday, December 2nd from 1pm to 5pm, Boone Hall will be hosting “Wine Under the Oaks”. At this casual and elegant affair, food samples will be provided by a diverse group of some of the Lowcountry’s finest restaurants. The event will also provide the opportunity for holiday shopping with retail vendors offering a unique selection of gift ideas. The Plantation will be decorated in holiday décor, and it is the perfect way to kick-off the holiday season.