This SC city is most worthy of being a place for a Hallmark Christmas movie, survey shows

If you could pick one South Carolina city or town for the setting of a Hallmark movie, what would you pick?

Charleston. Could be a shoe in. Or Greenville, a place that’s gotten more press than Taylor Swift (probably an exaggeration). Beaufort, Aiken, Abbeville is quaint with its town square.

Well, the folks at Exoticca travel company polled 3,000 people about which real-life towns in each state deserve to be the setting of a Hallmark Christmas movie.

“The results offered more than just a feel-good list — they doubled as a snapshot of the places people most enjoy escaping to during the holidays,” the travel company said.

Making the list for South Carolina is Camden, the Kershaw County town of about 8,000 people 30 miles northeast of Columbia.

It is South Carolina’s oldest inland city, rich in Revolutionary War history, horse culture and arts and entertainment.

Jenny Parrish, director of tourism for Camden, said “Camden is a very special place during the holidays – we like to think we have that Hallmark Movie feeling.”

The city hangs decorations downtown and in city facilities and parks, including wreaths, bows, banners and wrapping lit garland on lamp posts. It also displays multiple Christmas trees, including one large one in Broad Street Park and two smaller ones at the Revolutionary War Visitor Center and the Town Green.

There is a magical snowfall every Friday between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

“Being a small town, many of our merchants extend their shopping hours on select evenings and weekends to coincide with the tree lighting night, or the snowfall evenings, or parade days,” she said.

Kershaw County has an annual parade on the second Saturday in December, Dec. 13 this year, the town of Lugoff has the only nighttime, lighted parade in the county, also on Dec. 13, and the town of Boykin has an annual parade on the third Sunday in December, Dec. 21, known as “the world’s most unique Christmas parade,” with floats and entries of all shapes and sizes, including tractors, horses and more unconventional modes of transportation.

Parrish said there are also traditional candlelight tours of homes, many of them historic, holiday markets for locally grown and hand-crafted items, wine tasting brunches and a holiday cookie trail.

“It truly is the most magical time of year in Camden and the small town charm is at peak performance during the holiday season,” she said.