Overnight, National & International Excursions (SALT)

Overnight Excursions

To register for the overnight excursions, we ask you to send the registration fee per person to SALT, 1412 Spruce Drive, Surfside Beach, SC 29575 by the deadline established for each trip. Please send your name and contact information (phone and email), the trip that you wish to go on, and a check made out to SALT. Please also email us at wnsalt22@gmail.com once you put your check in the mail so that we will know to expect it. Once we have enough participants who have registered with a deposit, we will book the venues. If the trip does not have full enrollment and is canceled, we will return your check. There are no refunds for overnight excursions unless we are able to fill your spot, so we suggest you buy travel insurance on your own.

St. Augustine, October 5-8, $1060 pp/dbl, with $380 as a single supplement. Deposit $400 due by July 21.

We will take a motor coach from Myrtle Beach, leaving at 8:00 a.m. and stopping for lunch along the way. We will check into our downtown St. Augustine Hotel around 4:00 and enjoy dinner at a nearby restaurant. On October 6, we have tickets on the Old Town Trolley, with admissions to the Old Jail, The Oldest Store Museum, and the St. Augustine History Museum. You are on your own all day, as this is an unlimited shuttle that includes stops at all the main attractions: Lightner Museum, Castillo de San Marcos, Old Senator, Potter’s Wax Museum, Spanish Military Hospital, Ximenez-Fatio House, Gonzales-Alvarez House, Flagler College, San Sebastian Winery, City Gate, Colonial Quarter, Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center, Mission Nombre de Dios, St. Augustine Distillery, Cathedral Basilica, Fountain of Youth. Many of these stops feature museums with admission fees from $10-20 (not included). There is a separate shuttle to the beach that makes a stop at the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum and one to the Alligator Farm. These shuttles are also included in your October 6th ticket. You will get a map for walking tours on the shuttle, so the next day, October 7, we will take you to the downtown area mid-morning and pick you up before our ghost tour that evening. We will check out and leave for home at 9:00 a.m. on October 8. Included: transportation in a 34-passenger motor coach, 3 nights in a downtown St. Augustine hotel, Old Town Trolley ticket for unlimited rides and admissions to three sites, a ghost tour, and three breakfasts at the hotel. All other meals and attractions are on your own.

Camden Southern Gothic Festival, October 9-10, $250 pp/dbl. Pay in full to register by 9/1/26.

We will travel to Camden S.C. by van, leaving at 9:00 a.m. and stopping for lunch along the way. We will take a short tour of the National Steeplechase Museum before checking into our hotel, the Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites. After a short rest, we will go downtown to eat at one of their local restaurants and then enjoy the concert that is featured as part of the Southern Gothic Festival. The next day, after a nice breakfast at the hotel, we will pack our bags and make our way to the Revolutionary War Visitor Center, where there will be author talks, literary readings, investigative panels on true crime and Southern culture, folklore and history programs, and book signings. Alongside these conversations and concerts, you will find books to buy, artisans and craft vendors, and exclusive Southern Gothic merchandise. Check out this link for the speakers that are already lined up for the event. Included: transportation, lodging, breakfast. (7 spots left)

Mountain Getaway, October 18-21, Cleveland, SC, $375. Pay in full to register by 9/1/26.

We will leave at 9:00 a.m. and stop for lunch along the way. After checking into our VRBO, Kelli and Carol will shop for groceries while everyone settles in. The VRBO is near Caesar's Head and Jones Gap state parks, Greenville, and Brevard, so we anticipate visits to all those places along with some hiking as well. We will probably have breakfasts and dinners at the VRBO (with everyone sharing the food costs) and dine out for lunches. The views of Table Rock from the VRBO are supposed to be wonderful and there's a spacious screened-in porch. Single rooms are limited; you may have to share a room, but not a bed! (FULL)

Charleston Holiday, November 16-17, $275 pp/dbl. Pay in full to register by 9/1/26.

We will be traveling to Charleston by van (leaving at 9:00 a.m.) and staying overnight at the Andrew Pinckney Inn. We will leave it up to you to fill your two days with shopping, dining, sightseeing, or just relaxing. You can store your belongings in the van after we check out, and then continue to enjoy the downtown area until 2:30 p.m. Included: transportation, lodging, breakfast on November 17. (9 spots left)

Chinese Lanterns, Kaka Booth Amphitheatre, Cary, NC, November 30-December 1, $275. Pay in full to register by 9/1/26.

We will leave at 10:00 a.m. and travel by van to Cary, NC, checking into our hotel, La Quinta Suites by Wyndham, upon our arrival. Depending on the timing of our admission tickets, we will take the 45-75 minute walking tour of the Lantern festival at Koka Booth Amphitheatre and eat dinner that night. Chinese lantern making began in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD). Cary hosts more than 50 Chinese artisans and performers at this festival, and it takes 15 days to set up the lanterns. Each lantern is created by hand using silk fabric and steel frames. We will check out by 10 a.m. the next day and head home, stopping along the way for lunch. Included: transportation, lodging, admission to the festival, breakfast at the hotel. (3 spots left)

Old Salem and Biltmore at Christmas, December 5-7, $750/$200 single supplement. $300 deposit due by August 31.

We will travel by motor coach, leaving at 7:00 a.m. and arriving at 11:00 a.m. to spend the day touring Old Salem, a historic district and living-history museum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, originally settled by the Moravian community in 1766. It preserves the 18th- and 19th-century Moravian way of life through restored buildings, costumed interpreters, working trade shops, and heirloom gardens. Our tickets provide entry into all the buildings and the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts. Have you ever had Moravian cookies or sugar cake? You’ll love these sweets! There are places to eat in Old Salem, so lunch is on your own. At 4:00, we will check into the nearby Historic Brookstown Inn and after a short rest, dine at either Di Lisio’s Italian Restaurant or Xia’s Asian Tapas & Pho. Those wishing to do the special Christmas night tour (and who are lucky enough to snag tickets) can return to Old Salem that evening. (Note: these tickets must be purchased ahead of time and are not part of the tour we are offering.)

The next morning, we will check out around 10 a.m. and head to Asheville. The motor coach driver will drop us in downtown Asheville so that we can shop and enjoy lunch on our own, and then will pick us up at 4:00 to check into the Baymont Hotel. We will leave for the Candlelight Tour at the Biltmore estate around 5:30 and then have dinner at the Texas Roadhouse next to our hotel. On the morning of the 7th, we will check out, visit the conservatory and Antler Village on the Biltmore Estate and then head home around 2:00 p.m. Included: transportation by motor coach, lodging, two breakfasts, admission to Old Salem and the Biltmore Estate.