Atlanta’s Playgrounds

ATLANTA’S GROUNDS

BY CARRIE WHITNEY

KIDS CAN BE HARD ESPECIALLY ON VACATIONS THAT INVOLVE ENTERTAINING SIBLINGS OF ALL AGES.THE SOLUTION: HEAD TO THIS SOUTHERN CITY, WHERE THE WHOLE FAMILY CAN SWING AND SLIDE INTO ACTIVITIES

OUTDOOR FUN

Atlanta has plenty to offer in the great outdoors, from flowers and mountains to famous pandas. In fact, some of the outdoor adventures don’t even require getting dirty.

Consider the Atlanta Botanical Garden (www.atlantabotanicalgarden.org), where young plant enthusiasts can work their way through a caterpillar maze into a butterfly garden, excavate replicas of dinosaurs and plant fossils, and visit a Creek Indian house in the Children’s Garden before moving on to view the amphibian collection, which has brightly colored, endangered poisonous frogs. The garden also hosts kids programs, story times and drop-in classes. Parents will enjoy the Fuqua Orchid Center and other specialized gardens.

For more rugged fun, head outside the city limits to Stone Mountain Park (www.stonemountainpark.com) and find out why it’s Georgia’s most popular place to visit. This park and campground—built around a 1,683-foot mountain—is full of adventures. Those whose children are bouncing wiThenergy can climb the mountain, while the more laidback can take the Summit Skyride to the top. There is also an amphibious Duck tour, Antebellum Plantation and Farmyard with live animals, and the Treehouse

Challenge, which pits boys against girls (perfect for a healthy dose of sibling rivalry). Stay until dark for the laser light show (nightly starting May 24), which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

Save some energy for animals from all over the world at the easy-to-navigate Zoo Atlanta (www.zooatlanta.org). This animal-packed place welcomes families for special NightCrawler events, during which children older than 6 can spend the night at the zoo.

In addition to hanging with the pandas, meerkats, king vultures and more, visit the KIDZone, which boasts a playground, carousel, train ride, climbing wall and petting zoo—perfect for parents who need a time-out, too. Lucky visitors just might see a joey hop out of its mother’s pouch.

When your children seem like they are about to jump pouch, too, hop off to Centennial Olympic Park (www.centennialpark.com), which offers themplenty of outdoor space in which to run wild. Spokesperson Katy Pando calls the park an “urban oasis” in the middle of downtown Atlanta, and nothing could be more true. With two playgrounds and plenty of green space, Centennial Olympic Park also hosts weekly events during the spring and summer. Listen for live music Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and save the date for Fourth Saturday Family Fun Days with interactive offerings for children.

NATURE CALLS

Families with the youngest of children or the most blasé of teens can find something fascinating at this nature center in Roswell, GA, about 20 miles from Downtown.

It offers animal encounters, guided hikes, canoe tours and tons of special family-oriented events. It’s also a great place to just hang out, observe nature and visit the river. With low grades throughout, the Nature Center is an ideal place for little ones to begin hiking. Backpacks with thematic activities are available for rental, so the whole family can participate in a self-guided adventure.

“You can park your car at the Nature Center and go down the hill,” says local mom Maureen Cowie. “You just don’t quite know what’s around the next corner. It’s just a really fun place to go, and we never get tired of it because it’s different every season.” www.chattnaturecenter.com

EDUCATIONAL STOPS

What child won’t be excited to see the world’s largest dinosaurs? See them at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History (www.fernbankmuseum.org), which is also filled with interactive exhibits that cover topics like the five senses, Georgia’s archaeological history and the area’s diverse climate.

“When you get down to it, natural history really does excite all ages, and often in the same ways,” says Children’s Program Specialist Mary Moerlins. “Whether it’s explaining the source of a dart frog’s poison or introducing a Madagascar hissing cockroach, the reactions of parents and children is very often the same: wonder, excitement and curiosity.”

The dinosaurs aren’t the only big things at Fernbank. The museum is also home to a five-story-high IMAX screen. The films usually run about 45 minutes, ideal for younger viewers. Parents might want to return alone (a real date on a family vacation!) for the Friday Night Martinis and IMAX.

If the troop has had enough of the dinosaurs, maybe they’d like to dive into the world’s largest aquarium.
The most exciting way to experience the Georgia Aquarium (www.georgiaaquarium.org)—which holds 8 million gallons of fresh and marine water—is through a behind-the-scenes tour.
Venture to the top of the exhibits and—for those ages 10 and up— into the fish kitchen and surgery room. The aquarium recently began hosting overnight family events, which give an entirely new meaning to “sleeping with the fishes.” And it just launched the “Swim with Gentle Giants” dive program, which promises a new perspective on undersea life.

Marine life and huge carnivores are sure-fire ways to keep the family happy, but a history lesson? You better believe it. Learning about the past takes on new life at the Martin Luther King Junior National Historic Site (www.nps.gov/malu). Guests can visit Dr. King’s birth home, something that particularly helps young ones imagine him as a child they can relate to. Kids will also enjoy exhibits like “Children of Courage,” which explores children’s participation in the Civil Rights Movement.

Keep going back in history—to the Civil War—at the Atlanta History Center (www.atlantahistorycenter.com), where the signature exhibitions have hands-on activities to delight young visitors. The 33-acre property features the 1840s Tullie Smith Farm, complete with blacksmiths and candle dippers in character. The Centennial Olympic Games Museum is also a favorite; its interactive trivia game and sports lab with a long-jump, uphill bike challenge and rowing machine make for some friendly competition. Who knew history could be such a workout?

GET CREATIVE

FORGET THE CHILDREN’S MENU…and the giant mouse and jumping in a pit of colorful balls. Here are some dining options parents and kids will like.

Osteria 832 Pasta & Pizza (www.osteria832.com; 404-897-1414) is an easy-on-the-wallet, family-friendly Virginia-Highland eatery. Picky kids will love simple salads, pastas and thin-crust pizzas, while adults can go crazy with options like smoked prosciutto pizza and mussels with white wine and garlic. “If you don’t have kids, you feel out of place there between 6pm and 8pm,” says Atlanta dad Kamau Bobb.

“What’ll ya have?” shout servers at The Varsity (www.thevarsity.com; 404-881-1706), a historic downtown restaurant that is also the world’s largest drive-in. The menu includes stadium standards like hotdogs and hamburgers as well as local favorites like onion rings and fried fruit pies.

For a laidback dinner-and-a-movie night with the crew, head to AMC Buckhead Backlot 6 (404-467-9619), where you can enjoy boThat once. Sit around a table in large, comfy chairs as the meal is served during the show.

The Center for Puppetry Arts (www.puppet.org) has earned much recognition for its adult puppet shows, but it still gives plenty of attention to young viewers with its family series. Family shows run about 50 minutes, claiming to hold the attention of audience members from 4 years old to 104 years old. Before or after the performance, children can attend a Create-a-Puppet Workshop and make a puppet related to the show.

Just a few blocks from the puppet center, the High Museum of Art (www.high.org) welcomes families with activities that bring art to life for budding aficionados. Toddler Thursdays and Weekend Studio allow children to create personal masterpieces based on the current and visiting exhibits.

The High is also home to the Greene Family Learning Gallery, which has areas where youngsters can exercise creativity through activities like building structures or recreating the museum’s collection on a magnetic board. Parents can pick up Family Guides, which make the rest of the museum visit interactive and fun for the kids.

If the creative juices won’t stop flowing, head to the Purple Hippo Art Studio (www.purplehippoartstudio.com), an open art studio in Dunwoody featuring a wall of supplies like stencils, feathers, paint and the all-important glitter, combined with a no-rules attitude.

“We try to promote parent-and-child activities,” co-owner Kim Nicholson says. “We give you the freedom to make a mess and make whatever you’ve always wanted to make.”

Traveling with the family doesn’t have to be a stressful experience. In fact, it should be just the opposite. And nothing makes for better family bonding than a city like Atlanta, filled with activities that will entertain the children while bringing out the kid in you.

AirTran Airways provides daily, low-fare flights to Atlanta. Visit www.airtran.com for more info.