Atlanta is a Mecca for historic, scientific, artistic and cultural exhibitions. You’ll find everything from dinosaurs on display to a vault holding Pemberton’s secret recipe. Here are five locations that even the most seasoned Atlanta museum-goer may have missed.
College Football Hall of Fame and Fan Experience. From the moment you enter the building, you are immersed in the excitement and spirit of college football fanfare. Tickets include high-tech RFID 'credentials,' valuable for two reasons. First, this microchip personalizes your museum experience by displaying stats, photos and information about your favorite college football team as you make your way through the exhibits. Second, it allows you to relive your football experience with friends once you get home. Log onto the website to retrieve photos and videos made during your visit, such as an ESPN-style newsroom call of the game or a fight song karaoke experience.
Don’t miss the Game Day Theater, where the energy of the game comes to life in ultra high-definition. Finally, head to the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl Skill Zone for an opportunity to get your hands on the pigskin. Kick a field goal between the posts, take the quarterback challenge and test your agility with a run through an obstacle course.
Ticket prices range from $16.99–19.99 per person and include the Fan Experience and RFID pass with video downloads.
Museum of Design Atlanta. MODA's unique and cozy atmosphere showcases exhibitions that focus on the marriage and impact of design on everyday life. There is no permanent collection; each retrospective is available for a short time only. Visit their exhibitions page for current, future, and past exhibits. Rest assured, this is not a nerds-only experience, not that there's anything wrong with nerds.
Ticket prices range from $5-10 per person.
Delta Flight Museum. Learn about the history of aviation through the eyes of Atlanta's Delta Airlines. Start in the age of early propellers and step forward into modern-day jet propulsion. You'll learn about Delta's founding, including photos, advertisements and other artifacts of old. Board a full-sized Boing 767, The Spirit of Delta. First and business class sections are preserved, and the coach section holds vintage uniforms and other Delta artifacts.
Other aircraft on display include the Waco 125, Travel Air 6B Sedan, and a Stinson SR-8E Reliant. Free guided tours are available each month, and on second Tuesdays (at 1 p.m.) visitors enjoy an interior tour of Ship 41, Delta's first DC-3 to carry passengers.
Ticket prices range from $7-12.50 per person. The 60-minute flight simulator experience is $425 for 1-4 people.
Center for Civil and Human Rights. Atlanta is a hub for the Civil Rights movement; this museum embraces this time in the 1960s and then expands the dialogue to include fundamental global human rights. Take a solemn and heart wrenching journey through key moments of the past such as the Freedom Rider's efforts, the March on Washington and the 1963 Birmingham church bombing. Place yourself in the past- take a seat at a makeshift lunch counter, with headphones, listening to the cruelty and hatred experienced by black protestors requesting service in a white diner.
The Global Human Rights Movement exhibit sets Atlanta’s museum apart from others around the country. Touchscreen mirrors allow you to identify with global personas based on gender, religion or career choice, only to learn of the discrimination and brutality inflicted around the world because of those same traits. Finally, the lower level displays artifacts and writings from Dr. King, in partnership with Morehouse College.
Ticket prices range from $10-15 per person.
Michael C. Carlos Museum. Located on the campus of Emory University, this collection of ancient art is one of the premier in the region. Michael C. Carlos is best known for its Egyptian collection, including the oldest mummy in the Americas. You'll see 10 mummies and nine intricately crafted coffins, among other funerary artifacts.
Also in the permanent collection, explore Greek and Roman art, some pieces as old as 4000 BC. Over 2,300 pieces of America's art include selections from the Maya, Aztec, Inca and ancient Costa Rican cultures. Asian art at Michael C. Carlos focuses on India and the Himalayas, including a beautiful 2nd-century seated Buddha from Mathura, the birthplace of Krishna.
Ticket prices range from $6 – 8 per person.
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