Travel Guides > Atlanta, GA

Atlanta Travel

Often dubbed the "Capital of the New South" or the "Next Great International City", Atlanta has changed a lot since the days of "Gone with the Wind". While you can still find a handful of white columned buildings, you're more likely to see sparkling skyscrapers. While the locals still say "ma'am" and eat grits, heavy southern accents are a rare commodity here.

Atlanta has gradually assumed its place as a cosmopolitan city. Home to a number of very large companies, like Coca Cola, Delta, and Georgia-Pacific, the city is consistently ranked as one of the best places in the U.S. to do business. Yet, the large number of trees and parks that line the city make it a wonderful sort of small-town place to live and raise children.

The city of Atlanta is only 131 square miles in size, so it's easy to see a lot of what there is to see in just a few days. Unlike New York or Philadelphia, the downtown area isn't home for many Atlanta residents. Rather, the center of the city is filled with businesses, restaurants, shopping, and sports venues, like the 71,500 seat Georgia Superdome, home of the Falcons.

Atlanta's neighborhoods are fun to visit and often quite historic. Sweet Auburn is considered to be the Martin Luther King Jr. Historic District. His boyhood home, church, and crypt are all located here.

Virginia-Highland is a little like New York's Greenwich Village or SoHo, but with more trees. You'll find some of the best restaurants in town in this little neighborhood, along with huge numbers of art galleries, bookstores, antique shops, boutiques, and bistros
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For a fun and light-hearted attraction that will thrill the kids, check out The World of Coca Cola. This three-story exhibition takes visitors on a tour through the history of the world's most-consumed soft drink. You'll find cool Coke memorabilia, interactive displays, and video presentations on you trip down Coca Cola memory lane. The best part of the trip is the end... where you can grab free samples of about 30 different types of Coke beverages - some quite unusual - designed to please the palates of Coke drinkers the world over.

Atlanta is where cable news began and visitors to the city can enjoy a 40-minute guided tour of the CNN Studios. While you're waiting for your tour to begin, you can even have a videotape made of yourself reading the nightly news, just like Wolf Blitzer!

A good photo-taking area is Centennial Olympic Park, site of the 1996 Olympic Summer Games. Sporting events and concerts happen here weekly but most visitors just stop by to check out the Olympic Rings fountain and the Quilt Plaza, which tells the story of the games.

Another must-see is the Atlanta History Museum. More than just a building filled with artifacts, this 32-acre complex tells the history of the city and the South in general, and also includes an historic estate, a replica of a 19th century farm, forested trails, and pristine Southern gardens.