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Atlanta's must do recommendations

Martin Luther King Jr. CNN. Coca-Cola. Atlanta is the birthplace of many fascinating people and world-changing ideas. From historic sites and eye-opening museums, to gorgeous parks and world headquarters, there’s so much to discover in this Georgia city. Fill your itinerary with some of our favourite attractions and you’ll quickly learn there’s more to the South than fried chicken.

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Martin Luther King Jr National Historic Site

Before the civil rights movement that ended segregation, Atlanta was a very different city to what you see today. Learn all about the man who helped shape history at the Martin Luther King Jr National Historic Site. Have a snoop inside his Auburn Avenue Home, visit the church where he served as Co-Pastor, and learn all about his life and his dream at The King Center memorial museum. For more, tag on a trip to the Center for Civil and Human Rights.

Explore the Civil Rights Movement in Atlanta

High Museum of Art

Taking the Southeast’s art scene to great heights is the High Museum of Art. All the big names like Claude Monet, Max Ernst and Nicolas Tournier can be spotted in the extensive permanent collection, alongside a dynamic presentation of African, American and European artworks. With around 11,000 pieces, ranging from historic photography to modern art, there’s plenty to inspire within its walls.

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Piedmont Park

Looking out over Lake Clara Meer, with the skyscrapers of Midtown towering in the distance, you’d be forgiven for thinking you’re in New York City’s Central Park. Located in the middle of Atlanta, Piedmont Park is the city’s most popular urban park and an excellent place to shrug off jet lag. It’s home to picturesque gardens, a conservatory full of tropical plant life, and numerous sports facilities offering everything from tennis and fishing to skateboarding and cycling.

CNN Center

Ever wondered what it’s like in a real life newsroom, or wanted to sit in the anchor’s seat with all the cameras on you? Well, CNN Center at the CNN Headquarters offers you exactly that. An unmissable experience for budding journalists and television junkies, CNN’s behind-the-scenes tours take visitors to the other side of the camera, into the studios, newsrooms and control rooms of the leading American news network. You may even meet a famous face or two.

Ponce City Market

Housed in a historic warehouse in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward, Ponce City Market is more than your average collection of food stalls. The development (by the people behind New York City’s famed Chelsea Market) is packed full of restaurants, cafés and boutiques, and is a hotspot for Atlantans in the know. Its pulsing heart is the Central Food Hall, which is full of eateries and market stands offering grab-and-go food and snacks.

A Guide to Ponce City Market in Atlanta

Image credits: Ponce City Market © Sarah Dorio, All other imagery © iStock