Chasing Cars: Talladega (and the South East)

[the_dude07]

I forgot to add one thing...the "must do" attraction in Atlanta is the new aquarium. Someone correct me if I'm wrong but it is the worlds largest aquarium. Havent made it there myself but from the news articles I've seen it looks great! I'd highly recommend purchasing tickets in advance.

[UKCraig]

Hey Dude!
Thanks for your input - this really proves the value of this excellent site!

I have to confess I am not a fan of parks either - in fact I really dont like them at all! But this trip is not just mine and my friend who I will be travelling with loves them and can't wait... hey ho :) And, as we are going to go, we are restricted to the opening times of the park and the Saturday is the only day we can fit it into the schedule. Therefore, together with the race and the baseball, this means the first part of the week is essentially set in stone.

I like the idea of Chattachoochee though - I'll speak to Simon about that and see what happens. It might be that we do a day there and then move on to Great Smokey NP... maybe this is the part of the visit that will remain fluid and give us the opportunity to make it up on the ground which is something we enjoy.

Thanks for the tip on Myrtle Beach. We seem to have found a decent campsite and have booked a site which fronts onto the ocean. This is booked and paid for but I will certainly take the advice on board and plan a little more time in the Charleston area than we originally planned, thanks again :)

I would very much like some assistance with the Atlanta part of the trip - that would be ideal! The aquarium idea is just the sort of thing that I'd never have thought of. Basically what are the must sees and the don't bothers from a tourist perspective?

We'll also be looking to do a bit of shopping - so any suggestions would be welcome there too. We'll likely be looking to take home some CDs and DVDs (Walmart?) and maybe do a little shopping for clothes and other goodies (outlet centre?)

[the_dude07]

I would definitely skip the Coca Cola museum. I'd also skip Underground Atlanta, which is an area of downtown Atlanta with shops and bars/clubs.

If you are into art museums, The High Museum of Art just added on--- almost doubling the size of the museum. check out their website
http://www.high.org if you're interested.

An interesting part of town is Little 5 Points http://www.l5p.com. There are a lot of interesting shops and restaurants in that area. Not sure what your music/movie tastes are, but I always go to a place in Little 5 points called Criminal Records http://www.criminal.com. I'd rather give my money to a store like this then somebody like Wal-Mart, but thats just me.

If you are into high end department stores, the only place to go is Lenox Mall and Phipps Mall in the Buckhead area of Atlanta (they are across the street from each other) http://www.buckhead.net/lenoxsquare/. If you want outlets, I'd go here http://www.premiumoutlets.com/outlets/outlet.asp?id=16 . I have been to this outlet a few times and there are some really good deals there. Its about 30 minutes North of Atlanta.

Hope this helps and have a great time on your trip and in Atlanta. Let me know if you have any further questions.

[UKCraig]

Dude, that's awesome (great name too! ;))

I will definately check out Criminal - they have some good stuff listed on their site. Nice one. Really appreciate the tip on the outlet centre too, that'll go down well :)

I hear the weather is good out there right now... bring it on :)

[UKCraig]

Just got back in this morning and wanted to thank you for your help - was an excellent trip! I am now thoroughly knackered and desperately trying to stay awake until a sensible hour before turning in. Back to work tomorrow :(

Thanks again

[Mark Sedenquist]

Just got back in this morning and wanted to thank you for your help - was an excellent trip!

After you have regained some sleep, I hope you will be able to return and share with us what you found and did out there!

Mark

[UKCraig]

Will do... on the proviso that more help is forthcoming for my next trip, later in the year ;) It's gonna be a busy few days but I will do a little report at some point soon. In the meantime there's a few photos at www.craigantill.com/images/atlanta if anyone's interested.