Atlanta walking tour & city guide

Downtown and Centennial Olympic Park

Downtown Atlanta grew up around the railroads, and much of it was rebuilt after the city burned during the Civil War. Today its heart is Centennial Olympic Park, created for the 1996 Summer Olympics, with fountains, lawns and the SkyView Ferris wheel.

Around the park you will find the Georgia Aquarium, one of the largest in the world, the World of Coca-Cola and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, which tells the story of the American civil rights movement and global human rights struggles.

Sweet Auburn and the King legacy

East of downtown, the Sweet Auburn district was once the center of Black business and culture in Atlanta. Here the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park includes the house where he was born, Ebenezer Baptist Church where he preached, and the tomb he shares with Coretta Scott King beside a reflecting pool.

A classic walk on the BeltLine

The Atlanta BeltLine is a project to turn a 22-mile loop of old railway lines into trails and parks. The finished Eastside Trail is the best stretch to walk: start at Piedmont Park, the city's great green space in Midtown, and head south along the trail past murals, new apartment blocks and joggers.

After about a kilometer you reach Ponce City Market, a huge brick Sears building turned into a food hall with a rooftop amusement park. Continue south to the Old Fourth Ward park and on to Krog Street Market and the tunnel of street art beneath Krog Street, ending in the bungalow-lined streets of Inman Park.

Visiting tips

Spring, when the dogwoods and azaleas bloom, and autumn are the most pleasant seasons; summers are hot and humid. Atlanta is spread out, so combine walking with the MARTA rail system or rideshares. Midtown, Inman Park and Decatur are good bases.