Georgia Aquarium

I am a sucker for marine life. I visit the Georgia Aquarium at least once every year, and I don’t even have a season pass. The entrance fee can be pretty steep ($24 for adults and there’s no student fee), especially when you have other places to visit in Atlanta. However, here’s the trick. If you go to the aquarium close to their closing time (around 4 PM – they close at 6), they sell the ticket half-price. Naturally, you need to make sure you get there in time and have sufficient time to browse around the exhibit. Plus, going there toward the end of summer when school has started helps a lot as there are not that many visitors.

So I paid $12 and with the aquarium map in hand, I was ready to greet my marine friends. To use the short period of time allotted to see all the great exhibits, try to go reverse. Most people like to start from ‘River Scout’ because it is just across from the entrance hall and go clockwise to other exhibits. I recommend starting from ‘Ocean Voyager’ or ‘Tropical Diver’ and go counter-clockwise. Better yet, never leave the site without experiencing the underwater tunnel and the gigantic viewing window in ‘Ocean Voyager.’

My fave was and has always been the re-creation of tropical coral reef environment in ‘Tropical Diver’ – it’s just so fantastic. For me it’s just a total relaxing gallery. It’s blue and green and tropical water creatures in exceptional colors. What makes this exhibit even perfect is the creation of crashing waves above the viewing gallery that come in every few minutes, complete with the sounds.

This hotel is awesome. I was traveling with 3 other friends one weekend and we got the best view of downtown Atlanta. I was originally looking for a downtown hotel that is close to MARTA station so that we could just hop on the train and not worry about parking – by the way downtown city parking was expensive and hard to find. I wasn’t sure if the recent marketing campaign from Residence Inn actually played a part, but I’ve stayed in decent Atlanta hotels many times and this one impressed me big time.

First of all, the hotel was strategically located in downtown Atlanta, within walking distance to the Olympic Park, Underground Atlanta, CNN, etc, etc. MARTA station was just across from the hotel. Spot on. I think the hotel acquired the classical part of the building which preserved the traditional European architectural details. We had asked for a high floor, which they provided with no extra charge. The large windows gave way to the spectacular view outside the room was exceptional, especially in the evening with all the city lights.

The room was clean; the two queen beds were clean and comfortable. Like other residential -type rooms, it had a kitchen area with a full-size fridge (not a mini fridge), two-burner stove, microwave, and dishwasher. There was a cute dining area with dining table and chairs. And the living area was just great in the evening when we were hanging out after a day of exploring Atlanta.

The complimentary breakfast was as divine, serving both hot and cold breakfast. And it’s none of the ‘standard’ complimentary cereal & bagel breakfast. We’re talking scrambled eggs & sausage, make-your-own waffles and sandwich, grits, yogurt, juices, coffee of course cereal & bagels, and a great selection of fruit and teas. Well, I love tea, so I paid attention to that :)

Suffice to say, we were happy campers (travelers) ready to do some more exploring that day.

Room rate was $119 a night, which was not bad when we split it into 4. Con: room had no balcony.