The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, featuring the University of Alabama versus Virginia Tech, will take place Saturday at 5:30 p.m. at the Georgia Dome, 1 Georgia Dome Drive NW, Atlanta, 404-223-9200, www.gadome.com/
Virginia Tech jumps into the 2013 season Saturday, battling two-time defending national champion Alabama at the Chick-fil-A Kickoff game.
And while the football drama at the Georgia Dome should be enough to keep fans of the Hokies and the Crimson Tide preoccupied, there are plenty of other activities downtown to offer some distraction.
This is one of the liveliest weekends Atlanta has seen in a while, bristling with superheroes, rock stars and NASCAR racing.
In fact, Atlanta was a top trending search for Labor Day travelers, according to airfare comparison website Kayak. The site attributes the surge in searches to the Chick-fil-A Kickoff and a weekend of NASCAR racing at Atlanta Motor Speedway in nearby Hampton, with a Braves homestand and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Decatur Book Festival thrown in for good measure.
While Hampton is a short drive south, closer at hand — in fact, only steps from the Dome — is a cornucopia of activities, many of them free, to keep fans busy until the whistle blows at 5:30 p.m.
Centennial Olympic Park: Nine-time Grammy winner Sheryl Crow will give a free concert in Centennial Olympic Park on Saturday, with Uncle Kracker opening at 2:30 p.m. The gates to the park will open at 11 a.m. and the concert will conclude promptly at 4:30 p.m. 265 Park Avenue West Northwest Atlanta, 404-223-4412, http://www.centennialpark.com/
Also at Centennial Olympic Park, Chick-fil-A has created Tailgate Town, a free attraction, with a barbecue competition (with samples for guests), kids’ inflatables, face-painting, a cornhole contest and food for purchase.
Tailgating: Some serious tailgating will be taking place at the parking facilities all around the Dome and in the plaza immediately outside the arena, which will host perhaps the most refined tailgating of all. That little picnic, catered by the Tailgate Guys in the International Plaza, is a "turnkey operation." No tailgate required. Just walk up and eat. But, like the indoor parties staged in the adjacent Georgia World Congress Center — the Bama Bash and the Virginia Tech Tailgate — the Tailgate Guys' affair is sold out.
The real tailgating however, the kind that involves a car, will be happening in downtown parking lots. Officials request that tailgaters keep in mind a few rules: One vehicle per space. Sidewalks must remain clear. No deep fryers, open flames, disorderly conduct, weapons, fireworks, amplified sound systems, inappropriate or vulgar music or inappropriate language. For a complete guide to tailgate etiquette, visit: http://on-ajc.com/19QBeH1
The FanZone: The Chick-fil-A Kickoff game FanZone will host tens of thousands of football aficionados in the C Level halls of the adjacent Georgia World Congress Center. The FanZone will have marching bands, interactive games and a "team walk" by the Alabama and Virginia Tech teams. Admission is $10 with a Kickoff Game ticket, $15 without ticket. 11:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. The Team Walks begin at 3:00 p.m. chick-fil-akickoffgame.com/
Dragon Con Parade: On Saturday morning, just a short walk from the Dome, one can find the parade that traditionally kicks off Dragon Con, a massive yearly gathering of fans of comics, science fiction, fantasy and pop culture. Visitors will see monsters, Jedi knights, Marvel superheroes and cosplay gals. This year the parade heads north on Spring Street, turns east on Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard, south on Peachtree Street, east on Andrew Young International Boulevard and north on Peachtree Center Avenue. It begins at 10 a.m. and is free. Dragon Con itself runs Friday through Monday; four-day tickets are $130; Saturday-only tickets are $50. http://on-ajc.com/16U0H0P
The Georgia Aquarium: Also right around the corner from the Dome is the Georgia Aquarium with discounted tickets available to guests of the Kickoff game. The tickets ( $31.95 adult, $25.95 children, $27.95 seniors) include admission to the aquarium and to AT&T Dolphin Tales, Deepo's 3D Undersea Wondershow and FROGS - A Chorus of Colors. Tickets must be purchased online at http://on-ajc.com/15nqIBQ
The Georgia Aquarium, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturdays, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday through Friday; 225 Baker St NW Atlanta, 404-581-4000, http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/
The World of Coca-Cola: The World of Coke, just at the other end of the Centennial Park, offers $3 off admission for Kickoff attendees, if they buy their tickets here: http://on-ajc.com/17p2olX 9 a.m.-7:30 p.m., 121 Baker Street, http://www.worldofcoca-cola.com/
NASCAR: Atlanta Motor Speedway hosts a Labor Day weekend of big-time racing with the Great Clips/Grit Chips 300-mile Nationwide Series race Saturday night and the AdvoCare 500 on Sunday. Saturday's tongue-twisting race, which starts at 7:30 p.m., is sponsored by the hair salon chain Great Clips and Jeff Foxworthy's "innovative" corn snacks, Grit Chips (tickets, $30 and up). Sunday brings the highly anticipated AdvoCare 500 begins at 7:30 p.m., following a pre-race concert by Billy Currington (tickets $39 and up). Atlanta Motor Speedway 1500 Tara Place, Hampton, 30228 770-946-4211, http://on-ajc.com/187SK7h
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