Built in 1886 to house a wealthy cotton merchant, Wentworth Mansion is like the estate of a long-lost rich Southern relative whose will you were mysteriously (and gratefully) swept into: incredibly glamorous, a touch conservative, and whose goods are worth a squabble with your siblings. From the hotel, take a 10-minute stroll on cobblestoned roads over to King Street, a shopper’s mecca, where there are repurposed boutiques, bookstores, and chocolate shops as far as the eye can see. Speaking of things we may not need (but desperately want), the hotel’s Historic District neighborhood is also home to the legendary George C. Birlant & Co., one of the largest antiques dealers in the American southeast, and peddler of more sterling silver candelabras than you can wrap your head—or your wallet around.

Up at the hotel, red and gold rooms are swaddled in gilded-age charm—see the regal inlaid mahogany armoires lining the walls, the detailed parquet floors, and the Tiffany glass pieces perched above doorways. But the place isn’t a total relic; modern amenities, like marble bathrooms with two-person whirlpool tubs, and minifridges stocked with complimentary beverages, bring the place up to speed. There are also the renovated stables, now a luxury spa, where you and your better half can indulge in a couples’ massage. Have a proper sit-down dinner at the Circa 1886, where the staff deftly serves up such mouthwatering plates as rainbow trout doused in cinnamon-spiced pecans and fennel, and strawberry shortcake stacked with Grand Marnier mascarpone mousse—all served with a heaping helping of Southern charm.