Be A Responsible Guest

Our family here at Island Realty is so excited for you to visit Charleston and to enjoy its incredible scenery. Taking care of our environment on both a local and larger scale is very important to our team to ensure our community stays beautiful. By following some simple steps you can have a more environmentally conscious stay protecting our Island for all your visits to come.

Respect the Island’s environment.

Please follow designated walkways and roads. Do not walk on the dunes. The dunes serve a vital purpose of protecting the island from the destructive forces of the waves. By walking on them you may weaken and erode the dunes putting the inland at risk during storms.

In addition, do not remove plants, disturb wildlife, or feed the animals. Charleston serves as a resting point during the migration routes of several species of birds. If you see a flock of birds walking around or on the beach do not run up and scatter them. They need to be left undisturbed so they can conserve energy to finish their migration. If they feel threatened or are chased they will use energy that is essential to their survival.

Lastly, we want to keep our island and its beaches clean and trash free. During your visit please do not litter. Help preserve our island’s beauty by properly disposing of trash and recycling plastic and glass containers.

Conserve water.

Try to be conscious of the amount of water you using during your stay. Some simple ways to limit your water use are to take showers rather than baths, drink from a reusable water bottle, and reuse your towels.

Use less energy.

Just like you would do at your primary residence, do not use excessive amounts of energy. Some examples would be not having the A/C constantly running, use limited hot water, and turn off all lights and taps when you leave.

Don’t disturb the sea turtles.

Do not touch or disrupt a sea turtle nest or a mother turtle crawling onto the beach to form a nest. It is also critical that you turn off interior and porch lights at night. Tiny turtle hatchlings emerge and migrate to the water at night to avoid the harsh sun and predators. Artificial lights can make them think it is still light out and end up not finding the water before morning resulting in their death.

Properly dispose of sanitary/hygiene products.

Let’s keep our waterways clean. Do not flush cotton balls, condoms, tampons, and plastic products down the toilet.

Recycle and reduce.

Help keep waste off of our beaches by recycling newspapers, magazines, and bottles. Try to also reduce or eliminate the use of plastic bags, plastic cups, and straws. Those items can easily end up in our oceans and kill our beloved marine animals. The Isle of Palms community has taken that concern very seriously and initiated a citywide ban of plastic bags and straws. Please join our community’s initiative to keep our oceans clean by bringing reusable bags and straws instead.

Leave your car parked.

Isle of Palms is full of natural beauty thanks to its incredible coastline. Try to find ways to enjoy your vacation without getting in a car such as walking or biking to the beach or restaurants. With our concierge department you can easily add a bike rental onto your stay package.