1. Gain a New Perspective on the City They say you can’t understand a place without knowing its past—so you can’t truly grasp Atlanta without visiting Atlanta History Center. Its 33-acre Buckhead campus is home to interactive exhibits (including one on the 1996 Olympics), an 1860s farm, the h istoric Swan House mansion, and a newly revamped children’s zone. It’s also where you’ll find a massive circular painting depicting the Battle of Atlanta—one of only two cycloramas in the country. 2. Salute the President Georgia’s own Jimmy Carter passed away in late 2024, and you can pay homage to the former U.S. president at the Carter Center in the Poncey-Highland neighborhood. Watch a film about a typical day in his life as president, and have your picture taken while seated in a replica of the Oval Office. The museum dives deep into key moments from Carter’s presidency, including the Camp David Accords. 3. Climb to the Top Atlanta might not have giant mountains, but it does lay claim to an 825-foot-tall exposed piece of granite, Stone Mountain, that happens to be Georgia’s most-visited attraction. Hike the trails, canoe in the lake, play a round of golf, and climb or take the aerial tram to the summit for panoramic city views. 4. Stop and Smell the Roses Atlanta Botanical Garden in Midtown is home to 30 acres of blooms, including an orchid collection that’s among the world’s largest. Don’t miss the edible garden or the giant Earth Goddess sculpture made of thousands of vibrant plants. 5. Drink It All In Atlanta is the birthplace and headquarters of Coca-Cola, and its newly revamped downtown museum, World of Coca-Cola, pays proper tribute to the globally famous brand. See the vault where the closely guarded recipe for Coke is held, and sample more than 100 carbonated drinks from around the world (including Italy’s intensely bitter Beverly soda and Peru’s fruity-sweet Inca Kola). 6. Dive Right In See whale sharks, manta rays, and beluga whales at downtown’s Georgia Aquarium, the largest aquarium in the Western Hemisphere. Laugh at the penguin exhibit and cheer during the dolphin presentation, but be warned: If you sit in the first few rows, you will get wet! 7. Pay Tribute to the King At Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park in the Sweet Auburn neighborhood, discover many of the places significant to the civil rights hero. Tour his newly renovated birth home, find a pew in the church where he preached, and pay your  respects at his tomb. Exhibits at the Visitor Center explore the movement King spearheaded; a short film about his life plays continuously in the theater. 8. Get Cultured The largest art museum in the Southeast, Midtown’s High Museum of Art not only contains major works (including some by Monet, Picasso, and O’Keeffe), it is a piece of art itself, with most of its buildings designed by renowned architect Renzo Piano. The museum is one of three artistic institutions that comprise the 12-acre Woodruff Arts Center (the third-largest arts center in the country); the others are the Alliance Theatre and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. 9. Appreciate the Fight for Human Rights Downtown’s National Center for Civil and Human Rights takes an unflinching look at the U.S. civil rights movement and the continued struggle for human rights worldwide. It recently unveiled two new wings with several galleries between them, including one exploring the Reconstruction Era and another designed for children as a “secret headquarters for change agents.” 10. Go Ape Home to one of the continent’s largest populations of lowland gorillas, Zoo Atlanta in Grant Park recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of its partnership with the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. The newly expanded African Savanna exhibit showcases southern white rhinos, giraffes, zebras, and elephants in a setting that mimics their natural habitat. The post The big 10 must-do’s in Atlanta appeared first on Atlanta Magazine. ...read more read less