Atlanta Travel Guide

Atlanta is one of America’s most prominent Southern cities, where a blend of Old South and New South has soaring skyscrapers within blocks of older buildings of vast historical significance.  It’s this mix of new-age southern charm, coupled with Atlanta’s lack of natural growth controlling boundaries, that make it one of the fastest growing cities in the country.  This suburbanization has led the city down a distinct path lined with a burgeoning restaurant and shopping scene, and propped up by the cities pre-existing status as a historical waypoint to the Deep South.

It requires no stretch of the imagination to understand why spring and autumn are the best times to pay a visit to Atlanta, at least weather-wise.  Though the summers can be much cooler than places further south in the United States, the extremely balmy weather exacerbates whatever heat is in the air.  There is also a month long span from late August to early September when tens of thousands of students flock to the area’s many colleges; something far more beneficial to the party seeker than it is to those looking for a hotel vacancy or discount airfare for their Atlanta vacation.

Due to its impressive, sprawling footprint, Atlanta hotels offer great places to stay no matter what your budget is.   With that said, Atlanta does have its fair share of expensive hotels, and rates at downtown hotels like The Glenn Hotel and Ritz-Carlton that tend to fluctuate depending on whether there is a large convention in town (Atlanta is one of the country’s most popular convention locations).  You’ll find your best deals during the weekend, as well as at hotels away from the center of the action.

There is no mistaking Atlanta as simply a shadow of its past; in every way will you find it a modern city with the right amount of events and activities that draw on the city’s seminal role in US racial history.  However, the city’s roots do lie in the prominence of its museums and history centers, the High Museum of Art being the best one to visit for those with more things to see than they do time to see them in.  Come September is festival season, where events such as the Yellow Daisy Festival at Stone Mountain Park offers a variety of arts, crafts and fun giveaways.   The shopping elite might be a little overwhelmed with Atlanta at first, as it consists mostly of giant malls filled with chain stores, movie theaters and restaurants.  While this makes for a difficult time in narrowing down a proper starting point, the trendier Buckhead district on the North side of Atlanta is routinely referred to as the “Beverly Hills of the South.”

Walking is a completely reasonable way to get around the city’s pedestrian-friendly areas like Midtown, Downtown, Decatur, and Virginia-Highland.  The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority, MARTA is also a convenient way to travel throughout Atlanta and all the stations on its light rail network. Evening travelers be wary, however, as the system often becomes rowdy or empty at nighttime, making travel feel unsafe to those unfamiliar with the city.  If MARTA does not provide service to all the areas you need, driving will be your best bet for transport around the sprawling city.  For extended stays a car is wholly recommended to aid in sampling the unique neighborhoods of the greater Atlanta region.  Congestion is definitely a problem to take note of, with rush hour peaking from 6-10am and 3-7pm, weekends included.  All the major districts of Atlanta offer complimentary or low-cost valet services and should parking be scarce, public lots are in high availability and are generally inexpensive.