Stephy

I will be traveling w/ my husband to Atlanta in late Sept. for a weekend wedding. We would like to do some sight seeing or see something that Atlanta is known for. The Groom just keeps directing me to Malls but there has to be more than that. We are staying about 10 miles outside the city but I'm not sure which direction (Cobb parkway?) Anywho if anyone has any suggestions I would appreciate it.

Thanks!

starrsville

Lots of things to do in Atlanta. Use the search box above to read some great ideas.

One thought - the reason the groom may be just directing you to the malls is because you may not have a lot of time to do the sight-seeing over the wedding weekend - unless you come in early or stay later of course. You will be NW of Atlanta in Cobb County. The Kennesaw Battlefield may be the closest "sightseeing" venue to you.

stumpworks73

The new aquarium is a world class destination. You may need to reserve tickets in advance if the city is busy that weekend. Coke has opened a new museum/visitors center that gets good reviews. The Art Museum mid town is a great destination. Stone Mountain park should be beautiful in September.

Stephy

In looking at the maps we are probably going to be up in "Cobb Country" for most of our stay on this short visit. Any quiet hotel recommendations? We are not sure if we should stay at the Renaissance Waverly b/c I read it was noisy. Not sure if something cheaper like the Windgate will be a safe bet..... I think we should just look for a comfortable, affordable yet nice hotel at this point. Opinions please....

starrsville

I wouldn't say that the Waverley is noisy, but most of the hotels around there should be okay. I've stayed at the Hampton Inn. The Vinings area is nice.

I'm a big fan of Atlanta and usually would suggest sight-seeing location, but... Really give some consideration about how much time it's going to take to and from some of the sights. Stone Mtn is on the opposite side of the city. The aquarium is great and the new World of Coke opened next to it - but traffic in Atlanta can be a bear.

I was in a wedding in San Francisco and pretty much there would be no sightseeing on that trip. I was there for the wedding. If you head off to sight-see, be sure the wedding party knows it - and you have a clear idea of how far away something is and how long it will take to get there. On the weekends, downtown andn midtown won't take too long to get to - usually

hills27

I agree, the aquarium is great.

TrvlMaven

The Margaret Mitchell House is interesting and you see all the memorabilia from "Gone With The Wind". We walked there from MARTA. http://www.gwtw.org/

Newsboy

Perhaps you were being cute, or perhaps it was a typo, but the area you'll be staying in is Cobb COUNTY, which is a bustling, affluent urban area and one of Atlanta's most popular suburbs. There's very little "country" left anywhere around there. In fact, the Galleria area where the Waverly is located is a major job center, with headquarters for the Weather Channel, Home Depot and a major convention complex on site. So no, don't expect to be in the COUNTRY, Dear Stephy!

However, if you want to stay at a place that FEELS like the country, I recommend the Wyndam Garden Vinings. It's about a mile or two from the Galleria in the historic village of Vinings, which has great shopping, an old train depot, and sidewalk cafes, etc. The address would be on Paces Ferry Road. If nothing else, it would give you more of an Atlanta and Georgia atmosphere to make your trip memorable beyond the wedding.

If you do have time to visit a site, I'd also encourage you to see the Georgia Aquarium downtown, perhaps on Sunday before you leave town, assuming of course the wedding is on Saturday?

Hope this helps. And again, you'll be in Cobb COUNTY. FYI

kudo96

You could tour the CNN studio.

kate20155

Agree with the CNN and Coke tours-it is fun. Atlanta Underground is trashy. Stone Mtn is ok too. You have limited time so don;t plan on too much.

thit_cho

I have been to Atlanta on business a few times, and its admittedly not one of my favorite cities -- the main sites have been created as tourist sites (CNN, Coca-Cola World, the Aquarium, etc.). On the other hand, the MLK Jr. sites are historic, authentic and unique to Atlanta.

Also, since the wedding is in September, the Aquarium may have no living fish by then -- they seem to be perishing on a regular basis, especially the star attractions, but the aquarium does not seem to be willing to forego maintaining whale sharks in captivity!

Stephy

Thanks for all the suggestions! The Vinings area sounds interesting to me along with the Margret Mitchell House and MLK sites. I have heard that Stone Mountain is a must see but I'm not sure if we will have time for it. And it sounds like Cobb County is a very nice area so the accommodations should be comfortable.

One of my co-workers also suggested going to "Varsity" restaurant. I guess they are supposed to have good greasy food. I am a vegetarian, but my husband is a big meatie so I'm wondering if it is worth the visit for him?

Stephy

One more thing. I think Newsboy said that this is the headquarters of the WeatherChannel. Can you take tours of this site (like CNN)? I am addicted to the Wheather Channel.

southerngirl

I lived in Vinings for 7 years and if you need to be in Cobb County for the wedding, I think Vinings is a great home base. The Wyndham Vinings is great and there are several great restaurants in walking distance in the Vinings Jubilee (restaurants and shops). From Vinings you can be downtown to CNN or Aquarium in 20 minutes and to north Cobb Co in 20 minutes. There are lots of great things to see in Atlanta! What sort of things do you like to do?

aileen679

Make your appointment to see the Aquarium for the first thing in the morning, otherwise forget it! We went a couple of Saturdays ago and it was packed. It was about 10:30 and we looked at people's backs for about a half hour and then just sat down and waited while every one else tried to do better. There was a huge line waiting to get in when we left.

The big tank is short on fish at the present time. They are supposed to be waiting on a bigger and better pump and filtration system. The old one isn't big enough.

Dorothy01

We just spent a quick weekend in Atlanta. We arrived around 10:00 on Saturday morning and drove to the High Museum of Art where we spent several hours - great museum with a diverse collection! Our next stop was the Atlanta Zoo to visit the baby panda. Panda tour tickets are not needed after 3:00 PM; however, you need to reserve tickets if you plan to visit earlier in the day.

On Sunday, we popped in to see the pandas again (we had free tickets) and then went to the Margaret Mitchell House. If you are a fan of history and/or literature, you will enjoy this visit. Later that day, we went to the Jimmy Carter Library.

If we had time, we would have visited Stone Mountain again; we were there in late October years ago. The Coca Cola Museum and CNN Tour are on our list for our next visit.

Hubster

Check out the Buckhead area.

jent103

Just a note on the Varsity: I haven't been to the Cobb County location, but the original is in downtown Atlanta, near the Georgia Tech stadium. I wouldn't really go for the food; it's more the atmosphere and the fact that's the "world's largest drive-in." Personally, I'd say it's not worth a special trip downtown, but if you'll be down there anyway for the aquarium or World of Coke, it's a fun place for lunch or dinner (for your husband, at least!).