In 2016, Charleston was ranked the "World's Best City" by Travel + Leisure. Charleston is the oldest and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. Known for its rich history, wellpreserved architecture, distinguished restaurants, and hospitable people, Charleston is a popular tourist destination. It has received numerous accolades, including "America's Most Friendly City" by Travel + Leisure in 2011 and in 2013 and 2014 by Condé Nast Traveler, and also "the most polite and hospitable city in America" by Southern Living magazine.

The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline and is located on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean formed by the confluence of the Ashley, Cooper, and Wando rivers. Charleston had an estimated population of 134,875 in 2017. The estimated population of the Charleston metropolitan area, comprising Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester counties, was 761,155 residents in 2016, the thirdlargest in the state and the 78thlargest metropolitan statistical area in the United States.

Charleston was founded in 1670 as Charles Town, honoring King Charles II of England.

Economy

Charleston is a popular tourist destination, with a considerable number of hotels, inns, and bed and breakfasts, numerous restaurants featuring Lowcountry cuisine and shops. Charleston is also a notable art destination, named a top25 arts destination by AmericanStyle magazine.

Commercial shipping is important to the economy. The city has two shipping terminals, owned and operated by the South Carolina Ports Authority, which are part of the fourthlargest container seaport on the East Coast and the thirteenthlargest container seaport in North America.

Charleston is becoming a popular location for information technology jobs and corporations, and this sector has had the highest rate of growth between 2011 and 2012, due in large part to the Charleston Digital Corridor. In 2013, the Milken Institute ranked the Charleston region as the ninthbest performing economy in the US because of its growing IT sector. Notable companies include Blackbaud, SPARC, BoomTown, CSS, and Benefitfocus.

In June 2017, the mean sales price for a home in Charleston was $351,186 and the median price was $260,000.

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