Fun Get-a-Way: Atlanta Georgia

This past weekend my wife and I took a long weekend getaway to Georgia. We left Friday morning and returned Sunday evening. Our trip was multi-purposed. First my daughter had stayed with her Aunt, one of my sisters, for spring break. We needed to pick her up and bring her home. Also, my sister and her husband just had a baby boy nine weeks ago, and we wanted to meet our new nephew! My other sister and her two boys met us for the weekend. So, we had one of those family get-togethers that I’ve been telling you about.

We arrived Friday evening, and stayed up late getting all caught up. Saturday morning my sister and her husband cooked a wonderful breakfast. Saturday afternoon we ventured into Atlanta and had lunch at Willey’s Mexicana Grill. If you have never heard of Willey’s, think GIANT burritos. Very good, I highly recommend it. Next on the agenda was the Georgia Aquarium. What a wonderful time. Imagine fish, fish and more fish. There are more than 8 million gallons of fresh and marine water. And there is plenty to keep the little one’s occupied. My nephews loved the play area with lots to climb on and plenty of things to do. There is a touch tank full of sting rays. Exhibits featuring California sea lions, sea otters and African black-footed penguins will impress. We all stood in amazement as we watched the graceful Beluga whales. And the grand finale, the giant whale sharks, the largest fish in the world. Good times! I highly recommend this to anyone with kids or if you just love water creatures!

TIPS: Park in neighboring parking lots across the street to save a few $$$.
Purchase tickets online and check in at the will-call booth to beat the lines.

After leaving the aquarium we observed the remnants of destruction caused by the tornado that went through downtown just several weeks ago. Most of the tall buildings still have hundreds of boarded up windows. You never think of a tornado rolling through the middle of a big city! What a sight.

Next it was on to dinner. My brother in-law chose Teds Montana Grill. Serving up chicken, beef and bison, it was reasonably priced in a comfortable eco-friendly atmosphere. The food was good and we enjoyed the company. Sunday morning we had breakfast at a local pancake house and said our “good byes”. I hope my nephew doesn’t grow up to fast! We will continue get together as often as possible.

For those of you interested in Atlanta I recommend the following attractions from previous trips. As you will see, you could easily plan a week long vacation here. Years ago, one of the things that always intimidated us about planning a vacation or get-a-way was not knowing anything about the area. So, through our experiences, I will try to introduce places we have traveled, to help motivate you to plan your own trips. Oh and while I’m thinking about it, our family has been known for 10+ years as the “B-Family” by our friends and family. This included personalized plates on my wife’s vehicle! As I write about our family trips and vacations in the future, I’m going to include the “B-Family Hot Spots” tag line.  Here I will list places of interest that we have visited, that I feel you may wish to take your family. So here goes:

• Georgia Aquarium
• Zoo Atlanta
• Georgia Dome
• CNN Center
• Stone Mountain Park
• World of Coke

Additional Information:

For more info: http://atlanta.citysearch.com/roundup/40242/
For discounted admissions to area attractions: http://www.trustedtours.com/store/Atlanta-City-Pass-C263.aspx

Tagged as: atlanta • Family • georgia • get together • Get-a-Way • Kids • nephew • trip