What CAN'T we miss? Philly/Atlanta round trip August 16-24, 2008

I know, I know - south in August? Anyway...

My boyfriend and I (in our thirties, no kids) are planning to spend around 10 days roundtrip, the Philly to Atlanta leg being Rt. 81 S to Chattanooga then Rt. 75 S to Atlanta, then returning via 85 N to Richmond then 95N to Philly. I went to college in Nashville and lived in Atlanta for several years after that, so I have a couple ideas of places I'd like to go, especially in Atlanta, but he's never even been south of Washington, D.C.!

Our taste is, in a word, quirky. We also like food, and the bf especially needs to try some down-home Southern cooking. Current nonnegotiable must-sees include the Dog Days Peach and Sunflower Festival near Winchester, VA, Rock City near Chattanooga, TN, Fort Sanders Yacht Club (classic arcade games) in Knoxville, TN, Lexington Barbeque #1 in Lexington, NC and probably the Sliding Rock just SW of Asheville, NC in the Pisgah National Forest. I'm also digging up some offbeat places to check out on Roadside America, but, while I'm finding lots of goofy photo ops ("Here we are next to the World's Largest Chest of Drawers!"), we'd like to find more things to experience, as opposed to things to look at.

Whaddya say? Searching the internet is a great start, but it's no substitute for a personal recommendation. And please don't let our proposed route deter you - we're not looking to break any speed records here and we'd be happy to detour for something local and unique! Thanks for reading my post and for any ideas you'd care to throw my way...

Welcome to the RTA Forum!

It looks like you've got a very good start. I don't have a lot of personal recommendations in this area, but you might find a few more ideas in our A-Z list of things to do in every state. There are some more good ideas about the Southeast in this thread.