Beyond Town Hall

The Charleston Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, dba Explore Charleston, is organized as a 501-C-6 not-for-profit destination marketing organization (DMO). DMOs are organizations charged with representing a destination and supporting the long-term development of communities through sustainable tourism marketing and management strategies.

Explore Charleston's primary purpose is to market the greater Charleston area as an overnight destination. This mindset resulted in 7.43 million visitors, job earnings of over $3.43 billion, and an economic impact of over $9.7 billion for the region in 2019.

Explore Charleston is also a regional tourism marketing organization representing ten different funding governments in Charleston, Dorchester, and Berkeley Counties, South Carolina. Funding for Explore Charleston is provided by public and private sources, including membership dues, accommodations taxes, programs revenue, and matching grants.

Explore Charleston maintains a full-time staff of professionals who coordinate marketing, media, communications, sales, and visitor service activities.

The Lowcountry Hospitality Association, Charleston & Resort Islands Golf, and the Charleston Area Sports Commission are affiliate organizations operating under Explore Charleston's umbrella. Each group has independent boards, committees, and/or task forces and budgets.

The Kiawah Island Community Association (KICA) is made up of approximately 2,000 full-time resident members and 10,000 part-time resident members. The Board of Directors leads the association, and a staff of over 100 executes the association's operations.

KICA owns and maintains the island's common property, including infrastructure (roads, bridges, leisure trails, drainage, boardwalks), land, and ponds. The association operates the beachfront Sandcastle clubhouse, Kiawah's main gate and Vanderhorst gate, the Rhett's Bluff boat landing, the Cinder Creek Pavilion, and dock and the Eagle Point kayak launch. KICA offers 24/7 security services, recreational activities, a shuttle transportation service, encroachment permits, and more.