10 family adventures
More incentive to grab the kids and get the hell outta your house
Photo credit: Joeff Davis
For the parents looking to get the kids out of the house, but don’t want to spend a day at Chuck E. Cheese, there are plenty of options around town. Whether you want to throw on a pair of roller skates or finally find out the history behind “Touchdown Jesus,” chances are you’ll find something that’ll make the entire family ask, “Are we there yet?” at one of these ATL hot spots.
ART Station Theatre
A trolley barn and power station converted into an arts center housing a small theater; art galleries; a children’s gallery; dance, music and pottery studios; and a gift shop. In addition to regular performances and exhibits, ART Station has a full slate of workshops, activities and art camps.
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Autrey Mill Nature Preserve & Heritage Center
The 46-acre preserve is a favorite for families and hiking day trips. The Heritage Village maintains the charming rural heritage of a General Store, chapel, and farmhouses. Nature enthusiasts can explore 2 miles of walking trails through the forest or dip their toes in Sal’s Creek.
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Cascade Family Skating
If the neon cascade sign looks familiar, that’s because Cascade Family Skating served as a primary shoot location for the 2006 movie ATL, starring a roller-skating T.I. The southwest Atlanta rink follows in the tradition of southwest Atlanta’s now-defunct Jellybeans, where the talented teens who con...
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Centennial Olympic Park
The best thing to come out of the 1996 Olympics is this stately public plaza with dancing fountains, cool light towers, and a variety of spring and summer music series. A redesign of the park is in the works as part of the city’s larger re-envisioning of Downtown.
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College Football Hall of Fame
Gridiron devotees can explore the new Downtown hall’s exhibits filled with historic memorabilia, learn about their alma mater’s football legacy, and throw the pigskin on an indoor football field at the College Football Hall of Fame. The three-story museum, which has relocated from South Bend, Ind., ...
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Fernbank Museum of Natural History
Discover a world of WOW at Atlanta’s science and nature experience. Travel around the world and back in time as you discover live animals, amazing places, ancient fossils, prehistoric cultures and new science discoveries. Throughout the year, new exhibits, movies and experiences offer more to explor...
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Georgia Aquarium
The nation’s largest aquarium has more aquatic life than any other aquarium, with specimens from more than 500 species, including whale sharks, the largest fish in the sea. Visitors can go to the “touch tank” for the chance to interact with sea stars and anemones. “Behind the Scenes” tours are avail...
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The Woodruff Arts Center
Any journey into Atlanta art should begin — but certainly not end — at the Woodruff Arts Center. Look to the Woodruff’s High Museum for blockbuster traveling exhibitions, look to the two stages of the Tony-brandishing Alliance Theatre for everything from flashy musicals to pared-down drama, and look...
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World of Coca-Cola
The new soda-pop museum, next to Centennial Olympic Park, is slicker than the old one — but still basically a big interactive commercial that you pay to watch. It features free samples of various international flavors of the company’s sugar water, a mini-bottling line, and Coke-themed pop art.
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Zoo Atlanta
The zoo houses more than 1,400 animals, including elephants, Sumatran tigers, black rhinos, zebras, and Chantek, the first orangutan to use sign language. And did we mention pandas?
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The list above first appeared in the 2015 CL Cityguide and was updated by CL Staff recently.