For many, Atlanta is only a short stopover on the way to another destination in the USA, as the city is home to the largest airport in the world. Atlanta itself also has a variety of sights, museums and activities to offer its visitors, as well as a rich and interesting history.
For example, Atlanta is the headquarters of the famous Coca Cola Corporation and the news channel CNN and hosted the Summer Olympics in 1996. Atlanta is a metropolis with over 5 million inhabitants and the capital of the US state of Georgia. From Germany you can reach the international airport, hub of the airline Delta Airlines, non-stop from many larger cities, the flight time is about 9 hours.
Attractions in Atlanta
Centennial Olympic Park
The Centennial Olympic Park, as the name suggests, was opened as part of the Olympic Games in 1996 and is located right in the heart of the city. The park invites locals and tourists alike to walk, picnic and relax and attracts several million visitors every year, not least because of the numerous events that take place here. Especially in summer, there are regular concerts and events here. The park is an excellent starting point for exploring the city.
Georgia Aquarium
Very close to the Centennial Olympic Park is the Georgia Aquarium, the largest aquarium in the world with a water volume of almost 38 million liters. Here, guests can experience dolphins, penguins and stingrays up close, and for the little visitors there is even a kind of “fish petting zoo” where you can pet small sharks and stingrays. In addition, the Georgia Aquarium is home to one of the largest reef aquariums in the entire world.
World of Coca-Cola
A vacation in Atlanta wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Coca Cola World, home of the world’s famous lemonade. Originally designed as a medicine for headaches and made with real cocaine, Coca Cola is now popular all over the world and is distributed in every country except Cuba and North Korea. In the Coca Cola World, visitors learn everything about the cult drink and can take a look behind the scenes of its production. As a special highlight, there are five tasting stations where you can taste drinks from North America, Central America, Europe, Asia and Africa free of charge. Of course, visitors to Coca Cola World can also buy all kinds of products from the Coca Cola Group here.
High Museum of Art
With the High Museum of Art, Atlanta has one of the most renowned museums in the entire southeastern USA. Over 11,000 exhibits are on display here, including American art from the 19. and 20th century, as well as a large number of important European paintings and an ever-growing selection of African-American art objects. In addition to the permanent exhibition, the High Museum of Art also shows changing exhibitions, for example on topics such as photography or fashion.
CNN Studios
The internationally renowned news channel CNN is headquartered in Atlanta and offers its guests a behind-the-scenes look at the television station as part of the CNN Studio Tour. Interestingly, tours begin with a ride on the world’s longest free-standing escalator, and visitors have the chance to read the news on camera. During the tour, you will also get to know the control room, where all the threads come together, as well as the blue screen area and the backstage areas.
Atlanta Zoo
The Atlanta Zoo in Grant Park covers an area of almost 16 hectares and is home to over 1000 animals from about 200 species. Atlanta’s oldest attraction is a meeting point for locals and tourists, visitors of all ages, and offers the opportunity to get closer to the animals in a habitat-like environment. The zoo’s most famous animals are its gorillas, as well as its giant pandas, as Atlanta is one of only four zoos in the USA that are home to the lovable bears. For the little visitors, there is also a petting zoo with goats and sheep as well as a zoo train.
Around Atlanta
Providence Canyon State Park
If you think that you have to travel to the west of the USA to see canyons, you are far from it, because only about 2.5 hours drive from Atlanta, south of the city of Colombus, Georgia, lies Providence Canyon State Park. This canyon landscape is also called the Grand Canyon of Georgia and looks like the miniature version of its namesake. Due to ongoing erosion processes, this canyon is currently still in the development phase. A special highlight is an abandoned farm on the park grounds, where about a dozen rusting vehicles from the 1950s can still be visited today.
Anderson National Historic Site
The Anderson National Historic Site is also about a 2.5-hour drive from Atlanta and is a particularly worthwhile destination for history buffs. At the time of the American Civil War from 1864 to 1865, Anderson was a Confederate prisoner of war camp, which held up to 45,000 enemy soldiers there. Today, this place is a monument in the form of a National Historic Site and, as an open-air museum, conveys a lot of interesting knowledge about the camp and the American Civil War.
