The 15 best things to do in Atlanta, from the BeltLine and Piedmont Park to Sweet Auburn and Stone Mountain. Hours, access, and when to go.
Atlanta offers more variety than most Southern cities. The stuff to do in Atlanta ranges from whale sharks swimming through 70+ marine habitats at Georgia Aquarium to walking the neighborhood where Martin Luther King Jr. was born. You're in the birthplace of Coca-Cola and the Civil Rights Movement, a city that hosted the Centennial Olympic Games and earned recognition for 63 MICHELIN-rated restaurants.
The things to do in Atlanta don't fit a single category, and that's the point. Stone Mountain sits 3,200 acres wide just outside the city. The BeltLine connects neighborhoods through 22 miles of trails and public art. Whether you want museums, parks, markets, or history, places to visit in Atlanta deliver without overselling themselves.
More than 11 million gallons of water flow through Georgia Aquarium, making it the largest aquarium in the Western hemisphere. Tens of thousands of animals live across eight separate galleries, from whale sharks gliding through the Ocean Voyager tunnel to African penguins waddling around Cold Water Quest. The aquarium operates 365 days a year, opening at 9:00 AM with closing times that vary seasonally.
Ocean Voyager houses the main attraction: a 100-foot underwater tunnel where whale sharks and manta rays swim overhead. Cold Water Quest features sea otters and penguins in temperature-controlled environments. Dolphin Coast holds roughly 13 Common Bottlenose Dolphins, while Tropical Diver recreates a Pacific coral reef with 164,000 gallons of living coral habitat. Southern Company River Scout presents the only freshwater gallery with species from Asia, Africa, and South America. The Sharks gallery displays deep-tank apex predators, and Aquanaut Adventure offers interactive displays on marine science careers.
Explorers Cove opened with two expansive touch pools where you can engage with rays, sharks, guitarfish, and sturgeon under staff supervision. The gallery includes a salt marsh environment and digital technology that lets visitors draw their own sea creatures and watch them swim on a giant video wall alongside other creations. Beyond the galleries, animal encounter programs pair you with dolphins, penguins, sea otters, sea lions, seals, and belugas through behind-the-scenes tours and training sessions. Dolphin and sea lion presentations run on daily schedules, with same-day reservations only and limited seating on a first-come basis.
Plan for 3-4 hours to see the entire aquarium. Weekday mornings work best for avoiding crowds, specifically Mondays and Tuesdays. Summer and holiday seasons bring the heaviest traffic. On the other hand, crowds thin after 5pm, and late evening hours between 7-9pm offer the most relaxed viewing. Visit galleries during show times when theaters fill up and exhibition halls empty out.
The main entrance sits at 225 Baker St NW. For parking, navigate to 357 Luckie Street, NW Atlanta, GA 30313, which leads directly to the seven-level attached parking deck. All entrances enforce a 6'8" height restriction. MARTA provides access from the Georgia World Congress Center/CNN Center station within walking distance. The deck includes elevators on every level, electric vehicle charging spots, and disability parking.
The 92,000-square-foot facility opened in 2007 at Pemberton Place, blocks from where John Pemberton created the original formula in 1886. World of Coca-Cola sits adjacent to Georgia Aquarium in the Centennial Park District, transforming the brand's story into a multi-sensory journey through exhibits that blend artifacts with interactive technology. Average visits run approximately 2 hours.
Step inside The Studios, an interactive space where pop culture and personal expression collide through remixing and co-creating experiences. The Vault presents the legend behind Coca-Cola's secret formula through high-tech displays, while Scent Discovery challenges your senses with aromatic experiences that connect flavor to memory. Icons celebrates timeless symbols like the contour bottle, and you can meet the Coca-Cola Polar Bear for photos. AI-powered displays at Tales from the Soda Fountain transform your image into vintage portraits set in early twentieth-century pharmacies. An original 1939 Coca-Cola delivery truck anchors one of the photo opportunities.
Taste It! delivers the main draw with over 100 beverages from the Coca-Cola family representing different parts of the world. Sparletta Sparberry, a caffeine-free raspberry cream soda, has been exclusive to central and southern Africa since 1955. Minute Maid Joy Apple Lychee combines ripe apple with lychee notes from the tropical fruit native to southern China. Fanta Melon Frosty from Thailand offers sweet melon flavor, while Sprite Cucumber adds crisp cucumber to the classic lemon-lime base. Beverly, a non-alcoholic Italian aperitif from 1969, remains unavailable in market and exists only at World of Coca-Cola due to its distinctive taste. Inca Kola from Peru tastes like liquid bubblegum, and Stoney Tangawizi brings naturally flavored ginger beer from Tanzania, where "tangawizi" means ginger in Swahili.
Coca-Cola Stories presents hundreds of authentic artifacts in floor-to-ceiling displays covering everything from company founders to innovations like vending machines. Walk through an immersive cityscape inspired by pivotal locations in the brand's history, including an early twentieth-century pharmacy with a virtual soda jerk. The Beverage Lab lets you create custom flavor profiles and taste historic recipes like New Coke and TAB from the 1980s.
The entrance stands at 121 Baker Street NW. Parking sits at 126 Ivan Allen Jr Boulevard NW. MARTA riders can use either the Dome/GWCC/Philips Arena station or Peachtree Center station, both approximately a 10-minute walk from the entrance. The museum operates 7 days a week, closing only on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Covering nearly 35 acres in the Sweet Auburn Historic District, this national park preserves the places that shaped Dr. King's early life and the Civil Rights Movement. The birth home where he spent his first 12 years stands alongside Ebenezer Baptist Church, the King Center crypts, and structures that served as organizing headquarters for social change.
Dr. King's birth home at 501 Auburn Avenue remains closed for renovations, but ranger-led presentations about the house run throughout the day at the adjacent bookstore. Ebenezer Baptist Church, restored to its 1960-1968 appearance, offers daily walk-through tours where rangers explain the church's role as Dr. King's spiritual home and the birthplace of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Fire Station No. 6, one of the South's first desegregated firehouses, now holds exhibits on Atlanta's fire department history. Freedom Hall displays artifacts related to Dr. and Mrs. King, Mahatma Gandhi, and Rosa Parks. The King Center includes the marble crypts of Dr. and Mrs. King, surrounded by a reflecting pool and the Eternal Flame. The International World Peace Rose Garden and the Gandhi statue provide quiet reflection spaces, while the Civil Rights Walk of Fame honors movement pioneers along the promenade.
Rangers conduct church tours daily, providing context that self-guided visits miss. All programs remain free and open to the public. Special events mark significant dates, including Martin Luther King Jr. Day in January and the anniversary of his April 4, 1968 assassination.
The visitor center, church, and Freedom Hall operate from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. All facilities close January 1st, Thanksgiving Day, and December 25th. Arrive early in the day for the best experience, specifically on weekdays when crowds thin out.
Free parking sits at 423 John Wesley Dobbs Ave NE. MARTA's King Memorial station on the Blue and Green Lines stops a half-mile away. The Atlanta Streetcar's King Historic District stop delivers you directly across from the park entrance.
Twenty-two miles of abandoned railroad corridors now form a continuous loop connecting 45 neighborhoods across Atlanta. The Atlanta BeltLine draws almost 2.5 million visits each year, transforming former industrial routes into multiuse trails where pedestrians, runners, cyclists, and roller skaters share the path. This isn't a single park but a network of eight main trails and three connector routes that link neighborhoods to parks, businesses, and cultural spaces throughout the city.
The Eastside Trail stretches 3 miles from Piedmont Park to Reynoldstown and remains the most established section. Accordingly, this segment hosts the highest concentration of restaurants and bars lining the route. The Northside Trail covers 2.9 miles through tree-canopy corridors, while the Southwest Trail runs 2.6 miles between Enota Park and Adair Park. Construction continues on several segments through 2026, with the Southside Trail Segments 2 and 3 targeting completion before FIFA events in June.
The corridor hosts one of the largest temporary public art exhibits in the United States. Sculptures, murals, and installations from hundreds of artists appear along the trail, with concentrated galleries on the Eastside Trail covering approximately 2,900 square feet of surface area. The art rotates seasonally during the June-to-June exhibition cycle.
Some 6,000 businesses operate within a half-mile of the trail. The Eastside Trail provides walk-up access to Krog Street Market and Ponce City Market, while the Southwest Trail connects to breweries and the Lee + White food hall. Dog-friendly patios appear frequently, coupled with water bowls and outdoor seating.
Free parking sits at Pittsburgh Yards with over 200 spots available. Collier Road offers another free lot with stair access to the Northside Trail. MARTA stations at West End, King Memorial, and others place you within walking distance of various trail segments.
Water, sunscreen, and comfortable walking shoes form the basics. Leashed pets join you on all sections. Four ADA-accessible restroom facilities serve the trail at Piedmont Park, Lowery-Bedford Pine, Allene Avenue, and Historic Ward Skatepark.
The largest visual art museum in the Southeastern United States sits on Peachtree Street, spanning 312,000 square feet designed by two Pritzker Prize-winning architects. Richard Meier completed the original building in 1983, followed by Renzo Piano's 2005 expansion that more than doubled the museum's footprint. Between them, these structures house over 20,000 works organized into seven distinct collecting areas that reflect both regional heritage and global artistic movements.
The museum holds extensive 19th and 20th-century American fine and decorative arts, major photography holdings, and folk and self-taught work from Southern artists. African art spans from prehistory through contemporary pieces, while European paintings and works on paper cover six centuries from the 1300s through 1900s. Modern and contemporary art fills galleries with work from 1945 to present, including paintings, sculpture, new media, and design. Photography comprises the largest single collection with more than 8,500 prints, notably strong in American modernist and documentary traditions from mid-twentieth century. The folk and self-taught collection features artists who worked with materials ranging from canvas to stone, scrapyard metal, and bubble gum.
Piano's design incorporates 1,000 light scoops across the roof system that capture northern light and filter it into the Skyway Galleries. The buildings wear white aluminum panels that align with Meier's original white enamel facade. Meier's structure earned recognition as one of the ten best works of American architecture of the 1980s from the American Institute of Architects.
Programming includes High Frequency Fridays with DJs, Toddler Thursdays for children fifteen months through three years, monthly UPS Second Sundays with free admission, and walking tours exploring the museum's 100-year history.
The entrance stands at 1280 Peachtree Street NE in the Woodruff Arts Center complex within Midtown's arts district.
Spanning 200-plus acres in Midtown, Piedmont Park has served as Atlanta's Common Ground since 1904. The park runs along 10th Street and Piedmont Avenue, open daily from 6am until 11pm. Walk the paved paths circling Lake Clara Meer, throw a frisbee across the Front Lawn, or settle into one of the playgrounds while the city skyline rises above the tree line.
The Active Oval occupies what was once a race track, now converted into two soccer fields, two softball fields, two sand volleyball courts, and a running track. The Sharon Lester Tennis Center adds courts for racquet sports. The Legacy Fountain Splash Pad features more than 70 jets pushing water 30 feet into the air, while the Aquatic Center pool includes four lap lanes, beach entry, and a current channel. Two playgrounds serve different age groups: Noguchi Playscape brings geometric shapes and bright colors designed by sculptor Isamu Noguchi, while Mayor's Grove Playground follows Boundless design principles for accessibility.
The Green Market has connected the community with local farmers and artisans for more than 20 years, running Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. beginning the last weekend in March through the second weekend in December. Shaky Knees Music Festival takes over the grounds September 18-20. The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra performs free concerts, while weekly group walks meet Tuesdays at 10am for 45-minute tours.
Lake Clara Meer's dock provides views across the water toward Midtown's buildings. Two off-leash dog parks separate large and small breeds in the northeast section. Six Springs Wetlands promotes urban biodiversity, while the Skyline Picture Point frames downtown Atlanta through the trees.
Navigate to 1322 Monroe Drive, Atlanta, GA 30306 for GPS. The parking garage sits in the center of the park, shared with the Atlanta Botanical Garden, with access from the lowest floor and the first 30 minutes free. MARTA's Midtown and Arts Center stations both sit within walking distance, while bus routes 27, 36, and 809 stop near various entrances.
A former movie palace turned performing arts venue, the Fox Theater stands as one of Atlanta's most architecturally distinctive buildings. Approximately 750,000 people visit annually for more than 300 performances and events. The structure earned National Historic Landmark status on May 26, 1976, with the U.S. Department of the Interior citing its architectural uniqueness.
Originally designed as the Yaarab Shrine Temple headquarters for a 5,000-member organization, the $2.75 million project exceeded budget, prompting the Shriners to lease the auditorium to movie mogul William Fox. The theater opened on December 25, 1929, just two months after the stock market crash. Financial troubles forced the Fox to close only 125 weeks after opening, and by 1932, William Fox was bankrupt. The complex changed hands multiple times before finding stability during the 1940s as one of Atlanta's finest movie theaters.
In 1974, Southern Bell approached owners with plans to demolish the theater for a parking deck. A preservation campaign involving entertainers like Liberace and Lynyrd Skynyrd generated enough public outcry that the city refused to issue a demolition permit. Atlanta Landmarks, Inc., a nonprofit, now operates the venue, hosting Broadway touring companies, the Atlanta Ballet's annual Nutcracker, and a summer film series.
The Fox hosts Broadway productions, concerts, comedy shows, and special events year-round. The Atlanta Ballet performs there seasonally, while the Coca-Cola Film Series brings classic movies back to the big screen.
Guided tours run approximately one hour and require walking throughout the theater, including stairs. Seasonal variations include film tours before Coca-Cola Film Series screenings and holiday tours from Thanksgiving through New Year's Eve that showcase the Fox's Christmas Day 1929 opening story.
The entrance sits at 660 Peachtree Street NE in Midtown, part of the Fox Theater Historic District that includes the Georgian Terrace Hotel.
One of the largest exposed granite masses in the world sits 16 miles east of downtown Atlanta, rising 1,686 feet above sea level. Stone Mountain Park spreads across more than 3,000 acres, incorporating forests, lakes, and six main trails with varying difficulty levels alongside the mountain itself.
The Walk-Up Trail covers 1 mile from base to summit, open daily from dawn until dusk. A painted yellow dashed line guides the route from start to finish, marking the safest path up the granite face. Clear days deliver views stretching 60 miles, including the Atlanta skyline and North Georgia mountains. The climb includes steep sections near the top and rocky terrain throughout.
The Crossroads Area hosts Great Locomotive Chase Adventure Golf, Dinotorium, a 4D Theater, and Summit Skyride. This Swiss cable car transports guests more than 825 feet above ground, offering an alternative to hiking. After sunset, the Drone & Light Show projects choreographed images onto the mountain's face from Memorial Lawn, accompanied by music, fireworks, and flame effects.
Pumpkin Festival runs during fall with glow-in-the-dark attractions and storybook character meet-and-greets. Stone Mountain Christmas transforms the park from November through early January with more than two million lights and holiday shows. The Yellow Daisy Festival brings over 400 artisans, while Highland Games and Native American Festival round out the annual calendar.
The park sits approximately 16 miles from downtown, reachable via Highway 78 east.
Wear shoes with strong traction. Flip flops and heels don't work on granite slopes. Bring water for hydration. Rain makes rocks extremely slippery. Weekend mornings during spring and fall draw heavy crowds; early arrivals find the summit quieter. The Skyride pickup location sits over a mile from the Walk-Up Trail parking area.
Between the Georgia Aquarium and World of Coca-Cola sits a museum that connects the American Civil Rights Movement to human rights struggles worldwide. The National Center for Civil and Human Rights underwent a $58 million renovation in 2025, adding six new galleries and doubling event space. The average visitor spends about 75 minutes moving through three permanent exhibitions.
"Rolls Down Like Water" recreates pivotal moments through interactive displays designed by Tony Award-winning playwright George C. Wolfe. The lunch counter sit-in simulation includes headphones that reproduce the taunts and threats activists faced, with a 2025 update adding preparatory training context and recovery space. The gallery breaks into sections marked by events like Brown vs. Board of Education.
"Everyone. Everywhere." shifted focus in 2025 from showcasing dictators to highlighting human rights defenders. The "A Mile in My Shoes" installation lets you select a pair of shoes and walk while hearing the owner's story through immersive audio.
"Voice to the Voiceless" displays Dr. King's personal effects from the Morehouse College collection, including handwritten drafts of "Letter from Birmingham Jail".
The entrance stands at 100 Ivan Allen Jr. Blvd. Hours run Monday through Saturday 10am to 5pm, Sunday noon to 5pm.
Eight acres along Piedmont Avenue and the BeltLine's northeast corridor are transforming into expanded garden space that connects Atlanta's urban oasis to the multiuse trail system. The garden opens Tuesday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., evolving with each season to create spaces that never look the same twice.
The International Plant Exploration Program brings specimens from global expeditions into cultivated displays. Skyline Garden, Perennial Garden, and Rose Garden host sweeping seasonal plantings changed twice yearly, while decorative planters punctuate walkways with foliage combinations. Family programs run weekly at no additional cost beyond garden admission, coupled with Garden Chef Demos on select Saturdays featuring seasonal recipes from the Edible Garden Outdoor Kitchen.
Scarecrows in the Garden returns October 1 through November 1, celebrating the garden's 50th anniversary with supersized scarecrows alongside creations from local families and community groups. The Great Pumpkin-Carving Festival follows in October. Atlanta Blooms brought more than 139,000 bulbs across 51 tulip varieties to the Great Lawn and adjacent beds during spring, creating color-blended waves inspired by the Netherlands' Keukenhof Gardens. Cocktails in the Garden runs Thursdays through September 24 with live music after hours.
Garden Lights, Holiday Nights illuminates the grounds from November through January.
The entrance connects to Piedmont Park in Midtown's arts district.
Originally transformed from neglected downtown space into the central gathering place for the 1996 Summer Olympics, this 22-acre green space now anchors Atlanta's entertainment district. The park opens early and closes late, drawing visitors who split their time between the lawns, walking paths, and the attractions that frame its borders.
The world's largest interactive fountain shoots water over 15 feet high through 251 individual jets. A $2.5 million renovation completed in 2025 added 360° LED lighting for evening shows, a fog system with 200 emitters, and upgraded music synchronization. Shows run at 12:00 p.m., 2:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m., and 9:00 p.m. daily, featuring Georgia-connected artists like Outkast alongside classics from Michael Jackson and Ray Charles.
SkyView Atlanta's Ferris wheel rises alongside the park. The Children's Museum of Atlanta and Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame sit within the same district.
Southern Company Amphitheater hosts the free Downtown Sounds concert series featuring local and national acts. Annual events include Look Up Atlanta Independence Day Celebration and Juneteenth Atlanta Parade and Music Festival.
The address reads 285 Andrew Young International Blvd. NW. MARTA's GWCC/CNN Center station or Peachtree Center station both place you within a 10-minute walk.
North Druid Hills holds a science and nature complex where dinosaurs tower overhead and forests stretch across 75 acres. Fernbank Museum of Natural History opened in 1992, creating exhibits that blend paleontology with hands-on discovery and outdoor exploration through old-growth woodland.
Giants of the Mesozoic presents Argentinosaurus and Giganotosaurus skeletons in the central rotunda. A Walk Through Time in Georgia traces the state's natural history through five geographic regions. NatureQuest transforms thousands of square feet into an immersive play area with multi-level treehouses, suspension bridges, and live animal habitats featuring juvenile alligators. Fantastic Forces offers STEM activities covering meteorology, physics, and engineering, while the adjacent STEAM lab includes robotics and microscope stations.
WildWoods extends across 75 acres with elevated canopy walks, tree pods, and nature-themed playgrounds split into paths for different age groups. Fernbank Forest connects through this area, offering over two miles of trails through old-growth trees. Bronze sculptures of Lophorhothon atopus greet arrivals at Dinosaur Plaza.
The Giant Screen Theater projects documentaries onto a 4-story screen. One film comes with general admission, subject to availability.
NatureQuest includes hundreds of activities encouraging open-ended exploration.
Hours run 10am to 5pm. General admission covers exhibits, outdoor areas, one film, and parking.
City leaders purchased six acres in 1850 to create Atlanta's first public burial ground, originally named Atlanta Cemetery before becoming Oakland in 1872 to honor the oak trees growing throughout the grounds. This represents one of the oldest historical plots in Atlanta, surviving the city's 1864 burning.
The cemetery expanded to 48 acres by 1867, incorporating space for Civil War soldiers hastily buried on battlefields. More than 70,000 people rest here, though only 40,000 markers exist due to family monuments, wooden markers that disintegrated, and Potter's Field burials. Of those interred, approximately 6,900 are Confederate soldiers. The site earned National Register of Historic Places status in 1976, and the Historic Oakland Foundation was established to oversee restoration.
Bobby Jones, the only golfer to win four major titles in one year, rests in the Original Six Acres alongside Margaret Mitchell, author of Gone with the Wind. Maynard Jackson, Atlanta's first African American mayor, lies in the northwest corner with his marker facing the skyline. Twenty-seven former mayors and six governors occupy plots throughout the grounds.
Daily 90-minute guided tours begin at 10:30 AM from the Visitor Center. Special topic tours cover subjects from Victorian symbolism to African American history on most Saturdays and Sundays.
Designed as a Victorian garden cemetery, Oakland maintains seasonal plantings from spring daffodils through autumn foliage and winter evergreens across Atlanta's third-largest public green space.
Located at 248 Oakland Avenue SE, the cemetery opens dawn to dusk daily. Admission remains free.
A restored 1920s warehouse in Inman Park holds food stalls and artisan shops within walking distance of the Eastside Trail. Krog Street Market earned recognition as one of "The World's Best Food Halls" by Travel + Leisure, drawing visitors who want neighborhood character without the sprawl of larger markets.
Cuisines span wood-fired pizza, sushi, Southern comfort food, and global options under one roof. The selection focuses on quality over quantity through carefully curated vendors.
Local makers and artists set up rotating displays during the Krog Indie Market pop-up every fourth Saturday. Artisan vendors occupy boutique spaces throughout the single-level layout.
You can walk through the entire market in roughly 5 minutes. The warehouse maintains authentic industrial character from its original construction, creating an intimate atmosphere. The outdoor patio welcomes dogs and provides people-watching space.
Direct access from the Eastside Trail positions the market as a natural pit stop while walking, biking, or jogging. Bike racks accommodate cyclists arriving via the trail.
Weekday mid-afternoons between 2-4 PM offer the quietest experience. Weekend brunch from 10 AM-1 PM and dinner from 6-8 PM draw the heaviest crowds. Operating hours run Monday through Thursday 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday 8 a.m. to 9 p.m..
Atlanta doesn't require you to choose between history, art, or outdoor recreation. You can start your morning at Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park, spend your afternoon walking the BeltLine, and end with dinner at Krog Street Market. The attractions listed here operate year-round, though seasonal events add layers worth timing your visit around. Focus first on what matches your interests rather than trying to see everything. Museums cluster in Midtown for efficient planning, while the BeltLine connects multiple neighborhoods if you prefer covering ground on foot. The city rewards both focused deep dives and casual exploration equally.