Fort Sumter National Monument & the USS Yorktown at Patriots Point

Before dawn on 12 April 1861, a mortar shell fired from Fort Johnson exploded over the pentagonal brick island fortress of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, igniting the 34-hour bombardment that began the American Civil War. Because Fort Sumter sits on a man-made granite island 5 kilometres out in the mouth of the harbour, it is accessible only via the official National Park Service ferry (Fort Sumter Tours).

1. How to Visit Fort Sumter (Allow 2 Hours 15 Minutes Total)

Book your ferry ticket a few days ahead on the official Fort Sumter Tours website; national park admission itself is free, though the round-trip ferry requires a ticket. The excursion includes a 30-minute narrated harbour cruise each way (with wild dolphins and waterfront views of The Battery and Rainbow Row) plus one full hour on the island with National Park Rangers. Passengers on the first morning boat help rangers raise the giant 1861 33-star US Flag over the parade ground, while passengers on the final afternoon boat help fold and lower it. Choose between two ferry departure docks:

• Dock A, Downtown Charleston at 'Liberty Square' (340 Concord St, next to the Aquarium & IAAM): best if you are staying downtown without a car.
• Dock B, Mount Pleasant at 'Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum' (40 Patriots Point Rd): best if you have a car or want to tour the USS Yorktown aircraft carrier on the same day.

2. Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum: USS Yorktown & USS Laffey

Directly across the Cooper River at the foot of the Ravenel Bridge (reachable in 10 minutes by car or via the Charleston Water Taxi from Waterfront Park) floats Patriots Point (allow 3 hours; check the official website for ticket rates):

1. The Aircraft Carrier USS Yorktown (CV-10): follow colour-coded self-guided tours through the Hangar Deck and onto the 270-metre Flight Deck, lined with 28 historic naval aircraft (from WWII Hellcats to the F-14 Tomcat), the Captain's Bridge and an Apollo 8 exhibit.
2. The Destroyer USS Laffey (DD-724, 'The Ship That Would Not Die') & Vietnam Support Base: board the decorated WWII destroyer that survived an attack by 22 kamikaze planes and 4 bombs off Okinawa in April 1945.