Atlanta Attractions and Activities
Oh, the many things that one may do in the City in a Forest! Oh yes, it got that nickname from its famous abundance of trees that is a rarity among major cities, in fact, the city’s main street, Peachtree Street, is named after a tree of the same name. Beyond the Downtown, Midtown, and Buckhead business districts, the skyline slowly fades away to reveal a lush, dense canopy of woods that spreads into the suburbs. An event stationed here is the Atlanta Dogwood Festival, a festival of arts and crafts celebrated annually whenever the native dogwood trees are in bloom. The nickname is backed by facts as well, with nearly 50% (rounded off from 47.9%) of the city covered by trees, highest amongst most cities and far above the national average of 27%.
Of the many things you can do here, let us talk about parks first. Atlanta has hundreds of parks, nature preserves, and gardens, and exactly 343 of these in total dot the metropolis. Although this only amounts to about 5.6% of the city’s total acreage, compared to the national average of just over 10%, 64% of Atlantans live within a 10-minute walk of a park, a percentage equal to the national average. Famous parks you can visit are Piedmont Park and the Centennial Olympic Park, which was built for the 1996 Summer Olympics.
There are also multiple festivals that one can visit, if it is in town that is. Inman Park Festival, which is held and celebrated during the spring within Atlanta’s oldest neighborhoods, offers an artist market, live entertainment, and many, many food vendors. They also have the Atlanta Film Festival, which has gotten Academy Awards before. The international film festival held every April has showcased a diverse range of independent films, including genre films such as horror and sci-fi.
They also have a sizable scene for ethnic festivals if one wished to dip into the many cultures that reside in Atlanta. The city’s large Hispanic community is represented in Festival Peachtree Latino, the largest multicultural festival in the Southeast, which is held annually at Piedmont Park. Other ethnic celebrations include the National Black Arts Festival, the Atlanta Caribbean Carnival, St. Patrick’s Day parade, the Atlanta Greek Festival, the Atlanta Turkish Festival, Festival of India, JapanFest, and Korean Festival.
The city also has many different kinds of museums dotting its perimeter, such as the APEX Museum, Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, Atlanta History Center, or for planes, because randomness, there’s the Delta Flight Museum for that! For the more scientifically inclined folks out there, there’s the Fernbank Science Center. As for those interested in the Civil Rights Movement, there’s the Martin Luther King Jr., National Historic Site, which is the preserved home of the man himself when he was but a child, as well as where he pastored, and his final resting place.
Also, you want to try out the City in a Forest’s cuisine? I only have two words and an explanation, The Varsity. Why? Well, it is a cultural staple of Atlanta, as well as the world’s largest drive-in restaurant.