Even though Atlanta has been torn down and rebuilt a number of times, the city is steeped in history. You can still find historic buildings dotted throughout the city - from the Civil War to the civil rights movement and everything in between. Instead of putzing around a stuffy library, visit one or two of these places to get a real taste of Atlanta history:
Sweet Auburn Curb Market - This market was first established in the early 1900s and is still a functioning municipal market today. During segregation, blacks were only allowed to shop the stalls along the curb, hence its name. Today, the market is located downtown near the Georgia State Campus. It has a number of stalls that sell meats, fish, and produce. There are also a number of small, popular eateries like Grindhouse Burgers and Bell Street Burritos. This is not a gentrified, downtown, touristy market like Chelsea Market in New York and Pike Street Market in Seattle. Its appearance is a little rough around the edges, but that just adds to the charm and authenticity of the place.
After stocking up on groceries and getting a bite to eat at the curb market, head north one block and walk along Auburn Avenue. This is the Sweet Auburn district, a historically black business district and home to Ebenezer Church and the birth home of Martin Luther King, Jr. You can still see some of the facades of the historic businesses that shut down decades ago like the famous music club, The Royal Peacock. If you want a guided tour of the area, get in touch with the Atlanta Preservation Center for more information.
Not too far north of the Sweet Auburn district is Margaret Mitchell House on Peachtree Street. You can take a tour of the famous writer’s apartment and see where she wrote Gone with the Wind. If you’re looking for a grander house museum, head north on Peachtree and check out Rhodes Hall, the home of Rhodes Furniture founder Amos Rhodes. Peachtree Street used to be lined with mansions and Rhodes Hall is one of the only remaining ones today. It was built to look like a small German castle and the interior does not disappoint.
Just south of downtown is Oakland Cemetery. It’s the resting place for many famous Atlantans like Margaret Mitchell and Maynard Jackson, and has a number of beautiful mausoleums scattered throughout the grounds. Stop by the Visitors Center, take a self-guided tour, or come for one of the events hosted at the cemetery. If you think cemeteries are creepy and/or boring, a trip to Oakland Cemetery will change that mindset.
Not far from Oakland Cemetery is the Cyclorama located in Grant Park. It’s a giant, panoramic painting depicting the Battle of Atlanta fought during the Civil War. The best part is that you get to sit on a rotating platform during the tour of the painting, which is complete with music, educational facts, and lighting. There’s nothing else like it in town. Make sure to stop by the small exhibit on how the Cyclorama was installed and how, at one point, it became overrun with rats.
Last, but definitely not least, head west to the Wren’s Nest. In the West End neighborhood, it is the oldest house museum in Atlanta and the home of Joel Chandler Harris, the creator of Uncle Remus and Brer Rabbit. Plan ahead and make sure to come for a tour and storytelling. It’s fascinating to tour the home of one of the most popular authors of the 19th and 20th centuries. The storytelling is geared towards kids, but it’s equally as fun for adults.
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Things To Do In Buford
Reunion Country Club
5 or 10 Groupons, Each Good for One 18-Hole Round of Golf at Reunion Country Club (79% Off)
Named one of Georgia’s Best Courses You Can Play by “Golfweek Magazine,” course features undulating terrain and a hole with two greens
Flowery Branch
$70 $15
Two-Hour BYOB Painting Class for One or Two at Masterpiece Mixers Paint & Party Studio (Up to 48% Off)
Masterpiece Mixers Paint and Party
Multiple Locations
$25
$13
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Two or Four Hookah Flavors with Non-Alcoholic Drinks at The Blue Caterpillar Hookah Lounge (Up to 61% Off)
The Blue Caterpillar Hookah Lounge
Buford
$45
$19
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Five-Day Wakeboarding Camp or a Two-Hour Lesson for One or Two at Wake Lanier (Up to 59% Off)
Wake Lanier
Multiple Locations
$800
$440
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After-School Sewing or Fashion-Sketching Program at Fashion Workshops (Up to 56% Off)
Fashion Workshops
Multiple Locations
$134
$67
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Four or Eight Yoga Classes at Yoga In Daily Life (Up to 59% Off)
Yoga In Daily Life
Buford
$48
$21
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$79 for a Three-Month Gym Membership with Three Personal-Training Sessions at Legacy Family Fitness ($249 Value)
Legacy Family Fitness
Buford
$249
$79
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Kids' Group Guitar Lessons with Optional Guitar at Childbloom Guitar Program North East Georgia (Up to 72% Off)
Childbloom Guitar Program Northeast Georgia
Buford
$156
$43
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Fun Friday, Gymnastics Classes, or a Birthday Party at Fusion Gymnastics (Up to 48% Off). Five Options Available.
Fusion Gymnastics
North Forsyth
$40
$21
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5, 10, or 20 Vinyasa, Beginner, Gentle, and Restorative Yoga Classes at AfterGlow Yoga & Fitness (Up to 58% Off)
AfterGlow Yoga & Fitness
Buford
$50
$25
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5 Kickboxing Classes or One Month of Unlimited Kickboxing Classes at Gentry's MMA & Fitness (Up to 71% Off)
Gentry's MMA & Fitness
Buford
$45
$17
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Two, Four, or Six One-Hour Personal Training Sessions at G.A.T.A CrossFit (Up to 78% Off)
GATA CROSSFIT
Buford
$150
$45
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21 Days or 6 Weeks of Unlimited Boot-Camp Sessions at Fit Body Boot Camp (Up to 85% Off)
Fit Body Boot Camp
FBBC Buford
$185
$39
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Beginner's On Ramp Class with 5 or 10 CrossFit Classes at South Hall CrossFit (Up to 70% Off)
South Hall CrossFit
Flowery Branch
$174
$59
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10 or 20 Fitness-Kickboxing Classes at Choe's HapKiDo Karate of Flowery Branch (Up to 79% Off)
Choe's HapKiDo Karate of Flowery Branch
Braselton
$124.99
$39
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Two towers jut out of facing beaches, joined by cables that span an unusually placid portion of Lake Lanier. When Wake the Lake Cable Park's small groups of customers suit up, however, the cable comes alive, towing boarders to and fro at blistering speeds. Nestled in a secure inlet surrounded by white beaches, the Park is sheltered from boat wakes so that beginners can acclimate themselves and can safely try out new tricks. A brand-new kicker box makes it even easier for boarders to grab some air and, for advanced riders, fistfuls of cloud.
7000 Lanier Islands Pkwy
Buford,
GA
US
Nestled in the high branches of Gwinnett Environmental & Heritage Center, a network of ropes, ladders, and bridges invites amateur adventurers to scurry across their lengths. Although Treetop Quest’s ropes courses hover as high as 55 feet above the ground, guests stay safe thanks to a belay system that’s impossible to detach at canopy level. During self-guided adventures, they encounter more than 70 obstacles, whooshing along ziplines, scaling rope nets, and carefully crossing suspension and monkey bridges. Before guests ascend through the branches, instructors issue them harnesses and gloves and give them a thorough safety briefing. The courses vary in difficulty and height to accommodate all experience levels and ages, allowing visitors as young as 4 to enjoy a challenge, even if it’s just trying to sweet-talk a squirrel into sharing his stash of Corn Nuts.
Amid the excitement, Treetop Quest educates patrons on the surrounding environment through plaques and info boards at each course level. The courses operate sustainably to respect their arboreal hosts; the structures are treatment-free and don’t puncture the trees in any way.
2020 Clean Water Dr.
Buford,
Georgia
US
Within Sunset Cove, a secluded corner of Lake Lanier, the water is usually quite calm. In fact, only one thing is known to regularly disturb it: the screaming wake of a speeding wake-boarder. The boarders ride courtesy of Wake The Lake Cable Park, whose powered cable system enables visitors to learn the art of wake-boarding in a controlled environment. Within the sheltered cove, the park's steel cable tows riders past a series of towers at a speed designed to simulate that of a professional wake-boarding speedboat or a recently spooked shark. In the process, it sends them gliding over rails and launching off table-top jumps and kickers planted in the middle of the water. One-on-one lessons with Hyperlite high-performance wakeboards begin at the cove's wraparound sand beach before heading out into the aquatic park, where instructors help riders hone their skills. Wake The Lake Cable Park's system is low energy and entirely emissions-free, allowing visitors to ride without worrying about disturbing local marine life or ruining their view of that cool pillow-shaped cloud.
7000 Lanier Islands Pkwy.
Buford,
GA
US
The owners of Dead Center Indoor Gun Range founded their business to give shooters of all ability levels a place to feel safe while improving their marksmanship. To do so, they built a 25-yard, eight-lane indoor range—designed to handle both handgun and rifle fire—with a ventilation system that quickly purifies the air, as well as surveillance cameras that lovingly watch over shooters. To further demonstrate their commitment to safety, range chiefs make sure guests comply with NRA gun safety rules. Beyond supervising open shooting sessions, they also teach both armed and unarmed defense in beginner through advanced classes, such as Don't Be a Victim and the NRA FIRST Steps Pistol Orientation. Dead Center's staff also mans a pro shop and offers four levels of membership with privileges such as waived fees for firearm rentals.
1759 Buford Highway Northeast
Buford,
GA
US
Don’t let the shepherd's pie, fish 'n' chips, and draft beers fool you. Though Tilted Kilt snatches up the best cultural fragments of Scotland, England, and the Emerald Isle, the eatery started in Las Vegas. Restaurateur Mark DiMartino sought to combine the communal, rousing feel of pubs in the British Isles with the campy fun of American sports bars, pairing hearty food and traditional trappings with televisions and waitresses clad in mini kilts and alluring plaid halter-tops modeled after William Wallace’s eveningwear. Since its founding, Tilted Kilt locations have popped up in 25 states and two Canadian provinces, serving all manner of hybrid dishes such as the Scottish cheese steak, the Sloppy Jane made with sliced turkey or shaved rib eye, and the Tilted Guilt, an ice-cream sundae perched atop a cookie.
3480 Financial Center Way
Buford,
GA
US
