Things to do in Atlanta
 

Hi,

I'm one of your new cousins (a plat. elite with KLM) and I'm coming over to Atlanta on a special offer that KLM are running at the moment.

I'll be spending 2 nights in Atlanta before jetting off to Las Vegas for a week and I was wondering what I can do in Atlanta. The things I've found so far are the Coke factory, and the might delta hub. Any suggestions?

I'm also considering using Delta for my flight to LAS. I would normally use NW, because of the free upgrade scheme for KLM Plats, but I'm taking the Girlfriend along. What is Delta Dom. F class like? Is it worth paying the extra for, or is the Y class good enough?

Thanks for your time,
Steve

Welcome to the Delta forum, Steve!

Some other options you may want to consider when visiting the Atlanta area are:

• Stone Mountain Park
• A tour of the CNN Studios at the CNN Center
• Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park
• Martin Luther King Center
• Tour the home where Margaret Mitchell (author of Gone With The Wind) lived and wrote the book
• Cyclorama

I am sure that there are several other places of interest which I may have missed. If you need more information or links, please let me know.

By the way, the World of Coca-Cola is not a factory but rather a tour and museum of sorts, with all you can drink at the end of the tour. I still recommend it.

As for domestic first class on Delta Air Lines, the 767-400 series flights (which are on most of the flights from Atlanta to Las Vegas) usually have a personal in-flight entertainment system in which I like to play games, but the first class area and its seats is usually somewhat shoddy. There is also at least one 767-300 and a 757. As shoddy as the first class cabin may be, the coach cabin is usually in worse condition. Depending on the flight, you also get a meal in domestic first class, whereas you have to pay for a meal in the coach cabin. However, I have found that these days, the meal could be good or bad, as I have found myself not eating the main course of the meal on some Delta Air Lines flights.

Given those factors, I would say that it is worth it to pay extra to fly first class. An A fare between Atlanta and Las Vegas costs US$679.96, which is not all that bad considering that a coach fare can be purchased for US$252.95 (US$191.54 if you are willing to connect through Salt Lake City on the outbound flight). I am unsure as to whether or not you can include an A fare with your international itinerary or book it separately.

I hope you find this information helpful, Steve. Let us know if you need any further information at all.

The CNN Tour , Cyclorama and World of Coca Cola usually get good reviews from visitors I've taken around Atlanta. I also recommend adding the Atlanta History Museum to the list. Otherwise, the advice already posted is spot on.

To see all of those places be sure you're renting a car, of course.

In addition to the suggestions of the previous posters, there is also the James (just call me Jimmy) Carter Presidential Library--just east of downtown, the Carlos Museum at Emory University, the Atlanta Zoo (if you want to check out the almost always fun pandas) and the Cyclorama of the Battle of Atlanta (Civil War). The Zoo and Cyclorama are adjacent to each other in Grant Park, just east of downtown Atlanta, so you can do both together easily. And of course, if you and/or your girlfriend are into shopping, you can do so until you drop from exhaustion (or the wieght of your credit card bill) at the adjacent Lenox and Phipps Plaza Malls. Have a good holiday. As mentioned in a previous post, you'll do much better in Atlanta with a car than trying to navigate on public transportation. Atlanta is very spread out and public transportation is limited and not very effecient.

Where are you staying in ATL?

Will you have a car?

If you are staying near the airport--you will need a car to go to various attractions that may be sprinkled around the metro area.

You can take the MARTA train from the airport into town---the website is www.itsmarta.com. I think that marta.com still has a link on her site for MARTA train too...... ;)

If you don't have a car, you'll have to stick to places close to MARTA and town. Several have been mentioned. Atlanta Underground is a possibility also. If the Fox Theatre has a good show to see while you are here, that is a good choice also.

If you do rent a car, be prepared to use the gas pedal expeditiously. Don't let the speed limit signs fool you--if you are under 70 mph--you will be considered an obstacle to other drivers..... :D

..

If you happen to be here on a weekend, I recommend a Falcons football game. Always a good time with some decent food at the dome!

The World of Coke is worth checking out. I go there a couple of times per year and have a ball!!

There are also some interesting sites slightly North of Atlanta, called Roswell and Marietta. Substantial suburbs, but they have lots of Civil War momentums and sites to see if you are into history.

If you are into amusement parks, Atlanta has Six Flags Over Georgia, a large park with rollercoasters, rides, food, floats, etc

The other option is to drive to Helen in the North Georgia Mountains (2 hours maybe) where you can see an American attempt to recreate a Bavarian village. As a Dutch, you will undoubtedly get a laugh out of it... It's worth looking at....

Other places
 

How can you locals talk about Marietta and landmarks and not mention the biggest landmark of all. The landmark by which all of Marietta is measured. I'd be chicken if I didn't mention the "Big Chicken". A leftover from Kentucky Fried's legacy, it is a two story building in the form of a chicken. The eyes roll, the beak opens and closes. Bring your movie camera :p http://roadsidegeorgia.com/site/bigchicken.html

Am I the only one who owns a piece of the old place before it was remodeled?

Other sites listed in the above link I posted...

Although as a gold prospector I never got there, the Gold Museum in Dahlonega might be of interest.

If heading to Dahlonega, in Cleveland there is the "Babyland Hospital" where Cabbage Patch dolls were created.

If you want a somewhat novel place to have dinner, try one of the "Dave and Busters" in town. The food is good and there are a number of arcade games and virtual reality which make it a fun evening. Or you can just play something a bit more tame like billards or table shuffleboard...

Without wanting to start a war of words here--just expressing a contrarian opinion--a jaunt up to the North Georgia Mountains would be a lovely and beautiful thing to do, but I would go anywhere but Helen. It is commercial and hokey and totally out of character with the real serenity and beauty of the area. :)

FYI you can fly in A (discounted first) class for ~ $690 RT ATL-LAS.. You may look into that..

This milepost flagrantly violates the terms and conditions of FlyerTalk.

A fellow FlyerTalk member innocently and harmlessly requests for a little friendly assistance, and you decide to blatantly and purposely tell Overtons to go to Helen...

...to go to where?!!

My apologies
 

I was not aware that referring a tourist to Helen is a TAC violation. My apologies. I am glad he did not ask for ideas for Grand Cayman. I would have been in really deep waters then....

No problem, Deltahater — I am glad that you are able to sea that I am simply trying to keep the Delta forum as efishent as possible...

Actually, since the poster needs to resume his flight, he was actually going to Helen and back....