The Cooper: Charleston’s Waterfront Luxury Redefining Southern Hospitality

Charleston’s skyline is about to gain a new, shimmering anchor on the water. The Cooper, a forthcoming 191-room luxury hotel perched along the Charleston Harbor, is preparing to redefine what it means to stay in the Holy City. Slated to open its doors on March 1, 2026, The Cooper is not merely a place to rest your head; it’s a complete waterfront experience designed to blend Southern warmth with cosmopolitan refinement, all set against a back patio of the city’s most enduring scenery.

A Waterfront First, An Urban Retreat

The Cooper’s location is a deliberate choice and a statement. Downtown Charleston is a city of streets, gardens, and gaslit charm, but its harborfront has long hinted at a broader horizon. The Cooper embraces this horizon, offering guests a rare opportunity to wake up with harbor views, steps away from Joe Riley Waterfront Park, and with instant access to a promenade that invites daily strolls along the water’s edge. It’s an urban retreat that acknowledges Charleston’s maritime spirit while inviting guests to imagine something more expansive than a conventional city hotel.

The architecture and interior design tell much of this story. Champalimaud Design, in collaboration with Atelier Kim, has crafted interiors that evoke the elegance of a coastal Southern home. The palette leans toward serene neutrals, complemented by wide-plank light oak floors and shiplap wall paneling, elements that bring warmth and texture to every room. Many guest rooms feature private balconies, opening onto harbor or city views that frame the rhythm of Charleston’s waterway life—boats gliding by, the gulls circling, the horizon blurring into a dusky edge as the sun dips behind the city’s skyline.

With 191 rooms and 20 suites, The Cooper aims to offer a residential-like atmosphere within a luxury hotel framework. Guests can expect a level of comfort that feels intimate yet polished, as if staying in a refined coastal home rather than stepping into a traditional city hotel. The design choices—soft textures, curated art, and a sense of place that honors Charleston’s heritage—are meant to invite guests to linger, to unwind, and to feel a part of the harbor’s ongoing story.

Four Destinations, One Experience

The Cooper doesn’t lean on a single concept to define its hospitality; it embraces a quartet of culinary and social experiences that together create a complete lifestyle destination.

The Crossing, the hotel’s signature restaurant, is a culinary centerpiece designed by Meyer Davis. It draws on Mediterranean coastlines and Charleston’s own pantry to present a dining program that feels both worldly and distinctly local. With 196 seats, The Crossing offers waterfront views, a private dining room, and a chef’s table. A large circular bar and a raw bar anchor the space, making it a social hub where guests and locals can mingle over superbly prepared dishes that honor both land and sea. The leadership under Executive Chef Nick Dugan—also at the helm of Sorelle—signals a kitchen that values both technique and regional ingredients, with a menu that can satisfy refined palates while remaining approachable.

CurrentBurger brings a playful, modern twist to the harborfront dining scene. Located at the edge of Joe Riley Waterfront Park, this concept reimagines the classic soda shop for a contemporary audience. The all-day menu features smash burgers, fries, fountain sodas, hand-spun milkshakes, and soft serve ice cream. The interior nods to retro design—patterned terrazzo floors, custom ceramic wall tiles, and channeled leather banquettes—while offering a walk-up window for guests on the go and counter seating for slower, sun-drenched lunches. It’s a space where nostalgia meets modern cravings, a casual counterpoint to the more formal dining options within the hotel.

Cooper Coffee & Wine adds another layer to The Cooper’s day-to-night cycle. Overlooking The Cooper Marina, this all-day café transitions seamlessly from a bright morning hub into a warm, intimate wine bar by night. The concept blends the relaxed charm of coastal living with European boulangerie sensibilities: excellent coffee by day, a curated wine list and intimate tasting opportunities by evening. It’s the kind of space where locals congregate, where hotel guests can begin their day with a soothing cup of cappuccino and later unwind with a glass of something thoughtful as the harbor lights begin to glitter.

 

Rounding out the quartet is Bar Marti, perched on the hotel’s fourth floor with expansive harbor views. This guests-only poolside bar and dining destination is designed for effortless consumption of sun and starlight. It promises light, fresh fare and handcrafted cocktails in an open-air setting—a perfect venue to unwind after a day exploring the city or to cap off an evening with friends and fellow travelers.

Wellness at the Water’s Edge

The Cooper isn’t anchored solely in hospitality and dining; it anchors wellness as a core promise. The hotel’s 7,000-square-foot Spa at The Cooper is a standout in a city that already prides itself on its healthful living. The spa emphasizes bespoke treatments and active recovery offerings designed to de-stress and restore in a setting that resonates with water’s fluid energy. Amenities include red light therapy beds and cryotherapy loungers—modern systems that cater to guests seeking cutting-edge wellness modalities. Experiential showers and compression sleeves complement the spa’s offerings, giving visitors tools to unwind and recover after long days of meetings, sightseeing, or waterfront adventures. The spa’s presence reinforces a broader philosophy: luxury is not only about indulgence but also about restoration and balance.

A Marina, A Fleet, A Gateway to Experiences

The Cooper’s waterfront location is more than a view; it’s a portal to experiences. The hotel features an on-site marina with a fleet of luxury vessels, including an iconic Hinckley yacht, available for guest excursions, dinner cruises, and private events. Guests can pair a day of harbor exploration with a sunset cruise or anchor a celebration at harbor’s edge with sunset backdrops and the city’s nocturnal glow as a cinematic backdrop. This is hospitality that invites guests to live as locals do—on the water, amid the rhythms of Charleston’s maritime life.

The rooftop infinity pool is another signature element, offering cabanas and sweeping harbor views that encourage a slow, contemplative pace—leisurely days followed by memorable evenings. The pool’s setting reflects The Cooper’s philosophy: hotel life should feel like a retreat that’s both luxurious and livable, with every space oriented toward water, light, and air.

Meetings, Weddings, and the Arts of Gathering

With more than 20,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space, The Cooper positions itself as a premier venue for weddings, meetings, and milestone celebrations. The Grand Lawn, a 4,000-square-foot expanse, can host open-air events for up to 400 guests, while the 5,655-square-foot Ballroom offers harbor-view sophistication and flexible layouts. The versatile Salon and the intimate Boardroom provide options for groups of varied sizes and purposes. The river’s edge and the harbor’s energy become integral characters in every gathering, delivering settings that feel both grand and intimately connected to Charleston’s natural beauty.

A Partner in Charleston’s Story

The Cooper is not an isolated venture; it is a member of a broader family of hospitality and cultural assets under the BHC umbrella. Guests will enjoy access to flagship property The Charleston Place, Sorelle, and a new community greenspace in downtown Charleston, American Gardens. This network enhances the overall experience, offering a continuum of hospitality and wellness throughout a stay that begins at The Cooper but continues through Charleston’s celebrated assets.

What This Means for Travelers and Locals

For travelers, The Cooper represents a new paradigm in Southern-inflected, waterfront luxury. It’s a place to luxuriate in a harbor-to-table dining program, to unwind in a spa that respects both modern science and a sense of serenity, and to explore Charleston from a vantage point that situates the city within a broader waterborne landscape. For locals, The Cooper offers a contemporary social hub that complements the city’s existing fabric—a place where residents can meet friends for coffee, wine, or a sunset cocktail while anchoring themselves to the harbor’s evolving story.

The Opening and How to Engage

Reservations are being accepted in advance of The Cooper’s March 1, 2026 opening. For those who wish to secure a stay or explore event possibilities, the hotel’s website at www.thecooper.com provides direct access to booking and updates. The social channels offer ongoing visibility into progress, design milestones, and previews of the culinary journeys that will unfold within The Cooper’s four venues.

A Vision Realized through Collaboration

What makes The Cooper particularly compelling is not just its amenities or its striking harborfront position, but the collaborative energy behind it. Champalimaud Design’s interiors, Atelier Kim’s collaboration, Meyer Davis’s culinary concepting, and the leadership of Casey Lavin, President of BHC, collectively promise a refined, cohesive experience. It is the coming together of design, cuisine, hospitality, and landscape—themselves a chorus of Charleston’s legacy and its next chapter.

A New Chapter for Charleston’s Waterfront

Charleston has long attracted visitors with its cobblestone streets, historic houses, and tidal charm. The Cooper adds a new dimension: a purpose-built luxury destination on the peninsula that respects tradition while inviting modern discovery. It’s a place where a guest might begin a day with a stroll along the water, move into a meeting or wedding within a ballroom that glows with harbor light, and end the day with a panoramic cocktail at Bar Marti, watching the harbor’s shimmer reflect on brick façades and gilded balconies. The Cooper is poised to become not just a hotel but a social and cultural touchpoint—a waterfront anchor for the city’s evolving hospitality landscape.

In the years to come, The Cooper could become synonymous with Charleston’s waterfront identity, a symbol of how urban luxury and coastal living can converge. If the opening is executed with the finesse implied by its concept and design partners, The Cooper will not only meet travelers’ expectations but redefine them, inviting visitors to experience Charleston with a new sense of wonder, and locals to see the harbor as a living, breathing part of the city’s daily life.

As reservations open in advance of March 2026, The Cooper invites guests to envision a stay that blends the gentility of Southern hospitality with the dynamic energy of a waterfront destination. It promises a stay that is as much about the water as it is about the room, as much about the conversations in a refined dining room as the shared laughter by a rooftop pool. In short, The Cooper is more than a hotel; it’s Charleston’s next great neighborhood, a place where the city’s oldest traditions meet its most ambitious horizon.