Atlanta Georgia Temple

The Atlanta Georgia Temple - my 66th temple

I visited the Atlanta Georgia Temple in 2019 with my daughter, but the temple was closed for cleaning. I was very grateful to come back in December 2024 when we were touring my son's mission and we were able to attend the temple a couple of times!

The temple is located at 6450 Barfield Rd NE Sandy Springs, Georgia. Its google maps location is here: Atlanta Georgia Temple The temple was originally dedicated in 1983, and was rededicated in 1997 and 2011. My favorite things about this temple are the chandelier in the Celestial room and the mural in the endowment room. We did a sealing session with our children and it was a large sealing session. It was very special to do sealings of multiple children at once during the session, especially since my son and daughter in law were there with us.

The Atlanta Georgia Temple in December 2024

The temple in January 2025

The quiet street where the temple in located

Me in front of the temple in 2019

My daughter at the Atlanta Temple in 2019

2019

Places to Stay in Atlanta:

We were in Atlanta for a week and wanted to stay altogether, so we stayed in an Airbnb that was close to the temple. Here is the Airbnb link: Guest Suite in Atlanta The owner lives in part of the house, although we didn't run into him at all. It was a quick and easy drive to the temple and not too far from other Atlanta locations that we wanted to see. When my daughter and I came to Atlanta in 2019 we stayed at a hotel downtown, which was fun to be high up and see the city lights at night, although we had to pay for parking for our rental car.

Our Airbnb - our entrance was in the back

Places to Eat Near the Temple:

The temple is located in a residential area, but there are places to eat nearby. Before we went to the temple we went to eat at a fun place called Food Terminal, which has a Michelin star. It is only a 3 minute drive from the temple to the restaurant.

The food was really good, but my favorite thing was their robot waiter.

Another place we ate in Georgia that we really loved was Marietta's Diner. It is a 22 minute drive from the temple, and well worth it. Its google maps location is here: Marietta Diner It was packed, despite heavy rain, when we visited in December 2024. The food was excellent, and we even had the owner come and check in on how we were enjoying our meal. It has a very unique environment.

Marietta Diner in December 2024

22 minute drive from the Atlanta temple to Marietta Diner

We also ate at a place called Doug's Place in Emerson, Georgia. It's located at 696 GA-293. Its google maps location is here: Doug's Place

I actually wasn't very fond of the food there, although it was very popular because pretty much every table was full.

One of our favorite places that we ate on the trip was at Mama's Boy in Athens. It is located at 197 Oak Street. Its google maps location is here: Mama's Boy

We stopped for some great ice cream at Andy's in Athens. It's located at 2180 W Broad St. Its google maps location is here: Andy's

This fire truck was across the street from Andy's

We also ate dinner at Jim-N-Nick's in Athens. It's located at 1787 Oconee Connector in Athens. Its google maps location is here: Jim-N-Nick's The food was great, and the atmosphere was fun!

We had a delicious dinner at Longhorn Steakhouse in Atlanta, which is located at 2892 N Druid Hills Rd NE in Atlanta. Its google maps location is here: Longhorn Steakhouse near the Swan House

The Legend of Longhorn Steakhouse

The Yard by Centennial Park in Atlanta is a fun ice cream place that is only a few minutes' walk from Centennial Park. It is located at 341 Marietta St. in Atlanta. Its google maps location is here: The Yard

Max's Coal Oven Pizzeria is very close to the Yard and to Centennial Park. It is located at 300 Marietta Street NW in Atlanta. Its google maps location is here: Max's Coal Oven Pizzeria

Things to See in Atlanta:

* Atlanta Aquarium

* Centennial Park

* Botanical Gardens

* Stone Mountain

* Pine Mountain Recreation Area

* Allatoona Pass Battlefield (Civil War)

* Kennesaw Mountain

* Bear Hollow Zoo

* The University of Georgia

* The Swan House at Atlanta History Center (filming location of the Hunger Games)

* Stone Mountain

* Sweetwater Creek State Park (filming location of the Hunger Games)

* Centennial Olympic Park

* Ponce Market

* Piedmont Park

* Atlanta Botanical Garden

* Georgia Aquarium

Pine Mountain Recreation Area

It is only a 9 minute drive from Pine Mountain Recreation Area to Allatoona Pass Battlefield.

Pine Mountain

Allatoona Pass Battlefield

Allatoona Pass Battlefield was the site of a famous Civil War battle in 1864, and was also the site of the Great Locomotive Chase. You can still see the original trenches used in the Civil War battle, which have been preserved all these years. Its google maps location is here: Allatoona Pass Battlefield It is free to visit and open during daylight hours. Some claim that it is haunted, as other Civil War sites are rumored to be. We didn't happen to see any ghosts during our visit, although history does feel very alive there. Here is a website with more information about it: Allatoona Pass Battlefield

Allatoona Lake

The site of the Great Locomotive Race of 1862

The Clayton-Mooney house was used as a command post and field hospital during the Civil War. It is a private residence and not open to the public, but the back yard has 21 graves of unknown soldiers in it.

Kennesaw Mountain

The website for Kennesaw Mountain is here: Kennesaw Mountain The Battle of Kennesaw Mountain in the Civil War was one of the highest-stakes battles of the siege on Atlanta. The Kennesaw Mountain Battlefield Park is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The entrance pass is $5. It is located at 900 Kennesaw Mountain Dr. in Kennesaw, Georgia. Its google maps location is here: Kennesaw Mountain Battlefield

Many people believe that Kennesaw Mountain is haunted, with many saying that they smelled gunpowder when visiting this Civil War battlefield. People have also claimed to see ghosts of soldiers or other apparitions, heard sounds such as gunshots, or just felt an eerie feeling. When we visited, we didn't see or smell or hear anything odd, although the mountain was covered in fog so I admit there was a bit of an eerie feeling. Friends of ours told us of a time that they were there at night and played a joke on some other friends of theirs, creating what appeared to be "orbs" off in the distance on the mountain, making their friends believe that they'd witnessed the paranormal. I don't know if they ever told their friends that they had created the paranormal activity or if they've allowed them to believe in their "ghost sighting" to this day. Whether you experience the paranormal or not, it is definitely a sobering experience to visit this battleground so fraught with history and think of the sacrifice of lives there.

Some kids were at the battlegrounds playing with their remote control trucks

Bear Hollow Zoo

The Bear Hollow Zoo is in Athens, located at 293 Gran Ellen Dr in Athens, Georgia. Its google maps location is here: Bear Hollow Zoo It is open from 9 am to 5 pm daily.

We especially enjoyed seeing all of the turtles

notice the lizard that blends in so well!

The University of Georgia

The Arch at the University of Georgia -you're only supposed to walk under it after you're graduated

a sundial

The law school

We had fun in the bookstore

the stadium

The University of Georgia's google maps location is here: University of Georgia

The institute building at the University of Georgia

Swan House at Atlanta History Center

The Swan House was used in the filming of the Hunger Games movie series. It was President Snow's mansion. It is located at 130 West Paces Ferry Rd in Atlanta. Its google maps location is here: Swan House

The official website is here: Swan House at Atlanta History Center It is open on Tuesday through Sunday from 9 am to 4 pm. Tickets are $27 for adults.

Entrance to the Swan House

Park in the parking area and start by buying tickets inside the Atlanta History Center

The Cyclorama downstairs is very cool!

The Cyclorama is a 360 degree painting of the Battle of Atlanta, completed in 1886

Clark Gable from Gone with the Wind is part of the Cyclorama. He was added in 1939

walking from the history center to the Swan House

approaching the Swan House

One side of the Swan House

The grounds of the Swan House

One of the sides of the Swan House

The back of the Swan House, which you'll recognize from the Hunger Games as President Snow's mansion and the balcony where he came out to speak to the public

President Snow's office

This porch on the side of the house was used in the Hunger Games movie

The Swan House has a scrapbook of the Hunger Games scenes that were filmed there

Stone Mountain

Stone Mountain has a carving of Confederate figures Jefferson Davis, Robert E Lee, and Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson. Stone Mountain is the world's largest granite outcrop and is now a famous Confederate monument. It was started in 1910 and completed in 1972. This website shares more of the history of Stone Mountain: Stone Mountain History Their official website is here: Stone Mountain There are a variety of prices for admission, depending on what you want to do at Stone Mountain. We happened to be there on New Year's Eve 2024 and got to see the light show on the mountain and fireworks as 2025 came in!

Lots of people sat on the hill and watched the movie projected onto Stone Mountain, and then enjoyed the fireworks at midnight

You can kind of see the carving on the Stone Mountain behind the picture

fireworks at midnight

Sweetwater Creek State Park

Portions of the Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay Part 1 were filmed in Sweetwater Creek State Park, as well as other movies. Sweetwater Creek State Park is located at 1750 Mt. Vernon Rd in Lithia Springs, Georgia. Its google maps location is here: Sweetwater Creek State Park

It is open every day from 7 a.m. until dark. A website with more information is here: Sweetwater Creek

There are a variety of hiking trails that you can take within the park. Take either the green, white, or red trails to reach the Mill Ruins where Gale and Katniss talk under the archway while on a hunt. One of the park rangers told us that if we take the white trail to where it intersects with brown that is where more of the hunting scenes were filmed with Katniss and Gale. We followed the brown trail from the river back up to where it joins the white trail, and then back to the parking lot. Some of the area that Katniss and Gale hunted during Mockingjay Part 1 is across the creek from the mill, and there isn't a trail system that leads to that so it isn't accessible without crossing the creek.

The website from the QR code is here: Douglas County Film Trail

We started on the red trail

The Old Mill on maps navigation

The Old Mill is right next to the creek

The circled area is near the brown trail where a park ranger told me some of Hunger Games & Catching Fire was filmed. This is half of the route that we hiked.

The Old Mill is all fenced around now

The archway where Katniss and Gale sat talking. Now it's been fenced over

We didn't see any snakes

pictures from the movie at Sweetwater Creek State Park

the old mill is in the background on the other side of the river

Here's some footage from our time at Hunger Games filming locations in Georgia: Hunger Games Filming Locations in Georgia Here is a scene from the movie filmed at Sweetwater Creek: Hunger Games in Sweetwater Creek State Park

Centennial Olympic Park

Atlanta, Georgia hosted the Olympics in 1996. Centennial Olympic Park's official website is here: Centennial Olympic Park The park is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. The google maps location is here: Centennial Olympic Park

Ponce Market

Ponce City Market's official website is here: Ponce Market They are located at 675 Ponce De Leon Ave NE in Atlanta. Its google maps location is here: Ponce Market It is open from 10 am to 9 pm.

Another guest who apparently really loves rubber duckies

The Marriott Marquis

This could also be a place to stay in Atlanta, but the reason I visited the Marriott Marquis is because it was one of the Hunger Games filming locations. The Marriott Marquis is located at 265 Peachtree Center Ave NE in Atlanta. The google maps location is here: Marriott Marquis Portions of Catching Fire & Mockingjay Part 1 were filmed here.

Here is a scene from Catching Fire that was filmed in the hotel: In the elevator with Johanna

Here is a film of them creating the rescue scene in the Marriott Marquis: Making of the rescue

And here is the actual scene from the movie in the Marriott Marquis: Peeta Rescue Scene from

Mockingjay 1

The Marriott Marquis

Piedmont Park

Piedmont Park is located very close to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. Its google maps location is here: Piedmont Park Their official website is here: Piedmont Park The park is open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

Atlanta Botanical Garden

The Botanical Garden is located at 1345 Piedmont Avenue NE in Atlanta. Their google maps location is here: Atlanta Botanical Garden Their official website is here: Atlanta Botanical Garden Official Website Tickets are $27.95 if you purchase them online ahead of time, or $29.95 in person. We were there at Christmas-time, when the gardens were full of lights and it was amazing! Here is a video of some of the lights during our Christmas-time visit: Atlanta Botanical Garden We made a reservation to eat at the Longleaf Restaurant, which was very good but very expensive. The link to make a reservation to dine inside the Botanical Garden is here: Dining at the Botanical Garden

arriving at the garden

Georgia Aquarium

The official website of the Georgia Aquarium is here: Georgia Aquarium The Georgia Aquarium is located at 225 Baker St NW in Atlanta. The google maps location is here: Georgia Aquarium Tickets are $44.49 if you plan in advance. Buying a year pass is only about $20 more, so I'd recommend that. The aquarium is open from 9 am to 8 pm.