Charleston History Walking Tour With A Citadel History Professor

Our 3+ hour tour of the French Quarter in Charleston, SC was the most informative tour of the many we have taken over the years. Our guide, Eric Lager, took our small group (12) on a journey through time of Charleston's vast historical record. He is personable and kept the group engaged. The walking on the tour is approximately 2 miles through a beautiful area of the downtown area.

Eric gave us a passionate and thorough picture of Charleston’s history and its place in U.S. and world history. He also explained its unique architectural heritage through wonderfully preserved examples. I would gladly take his tour again on another visit and wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone visiting Charleston.

Eric’s tour is excellent. He has a Ph.D. in history and is an expert in various areas of US history, including the histories of the city of Charleston, the state of South Carolina, the Civil War, and the Revolutionary War. He is currently a professor of history at the Citadel and has been the owner of his own tour company for many years. The maximum number of participants in his tours is 12. There were only 8 on my tour. In addition to his vast knowledge, Eric is also a good story teller, humorous and engaging. He welcomes questions and input from the tour participants. His tour covers a wide array of Charleston history from architecture to the fires and earthquakes affecting Charleston to notable anecdotes of famous and infamous South Carolinians. There are other tours in Charleston that focus on specific topics, such as the history of slavery or the civil war. Eric’s tour is unique in the sense that he covers a wide variety of Charleston history. I highly recommend Eric’s tour.

My wife and I just returned from our Charleston Historical Walking Tour with Eric Lager, a Professor of History at the Citadel. Eric was an exceptional tour guide who brought Charleston's rich history to life. You will not find anyone giving tours in Charleston with more knowledge than Eric. In addition to being a Professor of History at the Citadel, where he specializes in South Carolina History and the Civil War, Eric has a B.A. in History, M.A. in History and a Ph.D. in 19th century American History. His depth of knowledge and ability to explain the stories behind the city's historical buildings, churches and architecture gave us insights that we simply wouldn't have gotten from an ordinary tour. After Eric's tour my wife and I now have a deeper appreciation for Charleston and its fascinating past. If you are visiting or live in Charleston and want more than just a typical sightseeing tour, we highly recommend Eric Lager's walking tour of Charleston.

Fabulous tour - wide ranging, hidden gems, background stories, historical guru!

This is a well scripted historical tour of Charleston provided truly by a historian, teacher and Professor of History, Eric. He did a great job and kept us captivated for over 3 hours. The details he proved were spot on and validated true during further historical museums that we read since our tour along with other tours we attended. We would consider this tour a must if you want a well rounded tour of Charleston SC.

Dr. Eric did a great job. How he remembers Al the dates and statistics is amazing. Well worth the expense.

It was a real treat to be guided for 3 hours by this PhD from the Citadel. He is an eloquent wealth of knowledge and shares much more the usual history from your high school history book. He shared many interesting stories and he had an incredible knowledgeof the local architecture. The group is small and Eric barely takes the breath. You will come away so enlightened. This one is well worth your money.

My wife and I had an absolutely wonderful afternoon today with this informative tour. Dr. Eric was a wealth of information, and an extremely pleasant host over the 2+ hours. We have done other great tours, but this tour has been our best in Charleston. We cannot recommend this enough!!

Eric is a fabulous guide and professional. While we were doing our tour, we saw some large walking group tours. Charleston sidewalks and alleys do not lend themselves to large groups - especially those that are interested in hearing what the guide is telling you.

We had an awesome time with Eric in this tour! He keeps the group to no more than 12 people which made it better in my opinion, as he was able to connect with all of us more easily. He was so full of knowledge about Charleston and brought so much out in regards to the revolutionary and civil war periods. We are from the area and still learned so much! We will be going again! Great job!

Very entertaining and history filled tour. Eric relayed detailed information in a fun and engaging way. Highly recommend this tour!

Our tour was excellent. His knowledge of Charleston and all the European history gave context to the tour in a way I’ve not experienced before. He took time to speak with each family to understand where we came from and our interests. This was by far the best walking tour we have ever taken! Highly recommend!

Absolutely the best walking tour. We covered the complete history of Charleston in a fun and informative walk around this beautiful town. 5 big ⭐️ stars!

What a great tour! Eric had so much knowledge of the city and history. We really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone visiting Charleston.

You'll get lots of historical info and how it all fits into the development of Charleston. Our guide who also teaches at the Citadel was so knowledgeable and gave some personal insights to current life in Charleston. I'd definitely recommend!

Eric was a wonderful tour guide and educator. Very knowledgeable, professional and engaging. His grasp of history is vast and we appreciated learning from him. We came from New York and found his tour to be the best one! As a PhD candidate myself, I very much enjoyed the depth of his knowledge and his ability to convey it to everyone on the tour! Highly recommend!!

Eric is a wealth of knowledge about the history of Charleston. We learned so much from our time with him.

We took an afternoon tour with Eric. It was very informative and we enjoyed learning all about the history of Charleston. I would definitely recommend the tour if you like history.

Our walking tour of Charleston, SC with history professor Dr. Eric Lager was outstanding. He was very knowledgeable without being dry. His PhD thesis was on South Carolina history and he clearly loves his topic. He was happy to answer questions and engage with the group. (Small group so more intimate.) You can tell he loves history and what he does! Highly recommended.

Highly recommend this tour if you are curious about the history of Charleston. The guide, a history professor from the Citadel, is a Ph.D. with a personality! Our family (group of 8 with adult children) was hoping to get a lot of detailed history and he did not disappoint. He is well-versed in South Carolina history from its founding as proprietary colony through today. He was a wealth of knowledge and provided depth to all of the questions we had about Charleston's history. The tour group (12) was an ideal size and he was able to give attention to all of us during the almost 3-hour tour.

Eric Lager’s 3 hour historical tour is “PURE BLISS”.Come ready to love this very special city after Eric’s very thorough guided tour of the city. His natural charisma “keeps you glued”and the tour is over too too soon. Charleston is lucky to have this charming tour available !! thank you caren and richard -Oct 10,2026

Eric was highly engaging on this packed three hour trip. The time flew by, even according to my other half who is kinda so-so about these things. Eric taught us, but didn't talk down to us (we shared a new few facts with our friends who live here). We enjoyed it immensely, and would book another tour with him in a heartbeat.

Amazing tour filled with a lot of historical information. Eric is a great guide and kept the tour informative and interesting. If you are really interested in learning the history of Charleston, I highly recommend this.

From start to finish this was an excellent experience. Eric has a depth of knowledge of not only Charleston but the history of the founding of our country that greatly added to the beauty found in the historic district. Eric brought history alive with his stories and insights that he shared along the way. It was clear that this was not a rehearsed presentation but that he tailored the presentation to the questions and interests of those on the tour. This was an amazing tour

Professor Lager was an excellent guide. He has a wealth of knowledge about Charleston, and history in general, and imparted it to us in a very interesting and informative way. I would not hesitate to sign up for one of his tours. I imagine he is one of the best among all the guides out there.

This walking tour is led by a historian, not just someone that has memorized a common list of facts. I learned an amazing amount of history from the founding up to present. Thank you Eric for the unforgettable tour. (Oh, and he maintains a smaller reasonable size group so everyone can hear)

This is an easy walking tour my 78 year old mother had no problems. Eric, is phenomenal. He is an over-flowing fountain of knowledge. The 3 hours went by fast. Take water and wear comfortable shoes.

Our tour with Eric was very informative and interesting. We would highly recommend this tour to anyone who wants to learn about the city’s history and to hear a variety of information while visiting many beautiful sites on foot. Our guide was engaging and kept our attention throughout the tour.

We were most impressed with our tour guide, his knowledge of dates, people, places, social environments, government affairs, local life, ancestry, and current events were amazing. We learned much more than we expected.

We were so impressed the tour last year. We were not able to complete it.last year. So I rescheduled this year and we were so glad we did. We learned things that were interesting and informative.

Simply fantastic. Eric's depth of knowledge is unmatched. He brings to life the political, economic, and social forces that shaped Charleston, from its colonial founding through the American Revolution, the Civil War, and the city's historic preservation movement. This tour is a feast for history lovers, but Eric's passion and charisma make it special even for casual visitors. Highly recommended!

Outstanding. Small group. Really interesting from a passionate, informative guide. Thank you Eric. It was wonderful.

Eric was extremely knowledgeable and informative. Excellent tour

Eric is an amazing tour guide. His historical acumen is probably the best in the city. We learned so much about the history, architecture, movements, and events throughout Charleston’s history. He was conscientious with ensuring our group stayed in the shade, took a bathroom break and get water halfway through, and connected with all 12 people in the group (he keeps the group size 12 so he can connect). If you are looking for a great walking tour about the history of Charleston, highly recommend.

This was the best tour I have ever been on (and we have been on many). It was a small group and Eric was amazing. He knew everything about everything, was personable and never got tired of answering question after question. He knew the history of Charleston from its founding, through the Revolutionary War, and every angle and point of view of the people of Charleston during the Civil War and their very significant influence on the Confederacy. We also heard about many of the most significant and oldest houses in town as well as famous streets. I can’t imagine having a better or more complete tour than the one we had with Eric. It was fantastic.

This was the best tour I have ever been on (and we have been on many). It was a small group and Eric was amazing. He knew everything about everything, was personable and never got tired of answering question after question. He knew the history of Charleston from its founding, through the Revolutionary War, and every angle and point of view of the people of Charleston during the Civil War and their very significant influence on the Confederacy. We also heard about many of the most significant and oldest houses in town as well as famous streets. I can’t imagine having a better or more complete tour than the one we had with Eric. It was fantastic.

This was the best way to learn about Charleston’s rich history! Eric is incredibly knowledgeable, personable, and well spoken. He covered a wide range of topics and did a wonderful job connecting the beautiful areas we saw with the historical topics he spoke about. We appreciated the small group size and Eric’s effort to connect with each guest. We highly recommend!

Eric gives a jam packed, shade filled, walking tour that ranges from the Charleston Tea Party in the lead up to the American Revolution to the historical restoration efforts in the 20th century. His enthusiasm, rich and detailed knowledge base, and broad range of topics kept us engaged for the whole 3 hours! There wasn't a question he didn't know the answer too- and he makes sure you get a bathroom, drink AC break half way through!

We were delighted with Eric Lager's small group walking tour of historic Charleston. - His knowledge of Charleston's people, history, and architecture is encyclopedic. - No worry of getting a disinterested sup-contracted guide -- Eric IS the guide. - He is a an experienced and polished tour guide who knows how to keep his group engaged and energized. - He is easy to communicate with ahead of time, and very open to answering questions and giving recommendations. - The price is a bargain.

This was the highlight of our trip. Our guide was so very knowledgeable and enjoyable to travel around Charleston with. He did a fantastic job of keeping us in the shade while checking out all the historical sites. I loved the extra pictures he carried with him to share more accurate picture of what Charleston was like.

If you want a walking tour that goes way beyond a generic tourist script, book the Charleston History Walk immediately. Our guide, Eric Lager, is phenomenal. As a Ph.D. historian and professor, his knowledge is unmatched, and his transitions between historical subjects were seamless and incredibly easy to follow. Our group was tiny—just 3 people. Eric was so generous with his time that he even extended the tour to over 3 hours, but he thoughtfully planned the route so we could find shade and sit on ledges along the way. This made the walk physically comfortable and not exhausting at all. We often book private tours that sometimes come with a high cost; this time we did not, and yet Eric easily ranks among the top four guides we have ever had anywhere. We highly recommend him—he made our entire trip to Charleston, and we are a little smarter now!

Absolutely wonderful walking tour, informative in so many aspects of the history of Charleston, fascinating, engaging presentation!

Eric was fantastic!! He took us to great locations and shared an impressive amount of information. He is both entertaining and incredibly smart. I would definitely do his tour again.

The Charleston History Walk with Eric was nothing short of amazing! My husband is a history buff, so it was a treat to learn the history of Charleston from someone with a PhD in History, rather than just an employee reading from a script. We appreciated that Eric also planned the route around shade and provided a short water break. All in all, highly recommend. We'd do another tour with Eric in a heart beat.

Eric did an amazing job with the tour - very knowledgeable! It was a hot day but most of the tour was in the shade so very nice!

Wow, Professor Lager knows Charleston by heart, literally and figuratively! We booked a private tour and even at the three hour mark we were left captivated for more. Prof. Lager made the tour fun and his navigation through the city and some buildings kept us in the shade which helped to manage the heat. As we were walking, we passed other tour groups and could not help but notice that we seemed to be enjoying our time more so than many people in the other groups. The information flowed such that themes/neighborhoods/people transitioned seamlessly or built upon each other so as to increase the effectiveness of knowledge retention, which was significant. Prof. Lager was courteous in a way that would likely appeal to tourists of all levels of knowledge from those with no previous background of Charleston to those with quite a bit of understanding. If you are looking for a tour of Charleston, look no further… Prof Lager’s tour is it!

The best tour one could possibly imagine in Charleston. Eric is as knowledgeable as it gets, and can go as deep as you like on any topic related to Charleston history. Your appreciation for this amazing city with grow in proportion to the huge download of knowledge you’ll receive from Eric. Don’t miss it.

Eric was exceptional, a great communicator, knowledgeable, interesting. Anyone who visits Charleston should definitely take this tour. We saw a great portion of the historic district which gave us a good introduction to the city. Eric definitely met our expectations.