Although most travelers visit Georgia for Atlanta's top attractions, including CNN Studios and the World of Coca-Cola, opportunities for culture and entertainment reach well beyond the limits of the Peach State’s capital.
The coastal city of Savannah, Georgia's original colonial town, is a 3.5-hour drive from Atlanta through peach and pecan orchards. There, strengthen your sixth sense on an evening ghost tour of the many purportedly haunted buildings around the historic district, where the Spanish moss hanging from live oaks in every square is said to mark sites of tragedy. Or choose to delight your taste buds on a culinary tour of Paula Deen’s home town.
Other Georgia destinations include the historic mill town of Columbus, 1.5 hours east of Atlanta, where you'll find Civil War history, a botanical garden designed by Frederick Law Olmsted (creator of Central Park), and opportunities for white-water rafting and kayaking on the Chattahoochee River.
For easy day trips from Atlanta, there's nearby Macon, where the Georgia Music Hall of Fame honors the Allman Brothers, while the funky college town of Athens impresses football fans with the 92,000-seat Sanford Stadium.