Here are some updates to our Georgia travel book:

NEW

ME – Statesboro. BORO FAMILY WATER PARK. The park includes a five-lane Mat Racer slide & Spray Ground, three waterslides, two body slides, one inner tube slide, and a zero-depth entry play pool designed to accommodate a variety of ages with low level water. An 800-foot Lazy River encircles the play and leisure pools. Pools are open year-round under a portable dome structure. Full concession stand with seating area, and more. https://splashintheboro.com/

NE – ATHENS, GEORGIA added info:

• Free and fun for all: The State Botanical Garden of Georgia (free) is a 313-acre collection of flora and fauna that’s perfect to visit on sunny days. The Alice B. Richards Children’s Garden really sets it apart by offering interactive, educational component for children to explore under, around and through. Think watering plants, digging for dinosaur bones, checking underneath the soil for how plants grow, etc. – it can all be done here!
• Encounter Georgia’s native wildlife at the Memorial Park and Bear Hollow Zoo (free). While you’re there, visit the pond, play at the expansive playground, and stroll the wildlife trail to spot black bears, bobcats, white-tailed deer, owls, and more.
• Georgia Museum of Art at the University of Georgia (free) just brought back its backpack tour program. Available to grab at the front desk, each backpack (free) offers goodies and activity cards, available in English and Spanish, for families to use throughout their gallery exploring adventure.
• Stay: Lodging is available for every budget, including modern inns, hotels, B&B’s and short-term rentals. Homewood Suites is a favorite of families, located downtown and right next to the head of the Firefly Trail.

NW – CIVIL WAR RAILROAD TUNNEL. Dalton (Tunnel) – 215 Clisby Austin Road (I-75 exit 341 west on rte 41) 30755. Phone: (706) 876-1571. civilwarrailroadtunnel.com. Tours: $7.00 per person. 8 passenger golf carts. Hours: Monday-Saturday 9am-5pm.

Explore the 1,477 foot tunnel completed in 1950. This was the scene of the Great Locomotive Chase and the first tunnel through the Appalachian Mountains. The 1848 Clisby Austin House on the property served as Sherman’s Headqtrs. in May 1864. On tour, you can stand where General Sherman stood as he devised his Atlanta Campaign.

NW – SOUTHERN MUSEUM OF CIVIL WAR AND LOCOMOTIVE HISTORY. Kennesaw https://kidslovetravel.com/a-good-civil-war-and-train-museum-for-kids/ (recent visit post)

NW – ATLANTA/MIDTOWN – MARY MAC’S TEA ROOM. Now that’s a Southern meal. For more than 70 years Mary Mac’s has set the standard for Southern cooking in Atlanta. It is the last of the 16 tea rooms that once dotted intown Atlanta. Not surprisingly, you will find a varied crowd at Mary Mac’s, everyone from politicians and students to churchgoers and sports figures. On your first visit you get a complimentary cup of pot likker (collard greens soup). Guests start lining up early for Mary Mac’s comfort food, which includes items like fried chicken, blackened catfish n grits, sweet tea, fried green tomatoes and delicious peach cobbler. 30 different southern sides (including kid favorite mac n cheese and mashed potatoes n gravy). Mary Mac’s menu items are so popular that the restaurant even produced its own cookbook. Where: 224 Ponce de Leon Ave., Midtown https://marymacs.com/

NW – ATLANTA/MIDTOWN – THE VARSITY. “What’ll ya have?” is the language at the world’s largest drive-in restaurant. The Varsity, located across from Georgia Tech in Midtown, has been serving stadium staples since 1928 with its hot dogs (naked dogs), fried pies and onion rings. The restaurant can accommodate 600 cars and more than 800 people. During Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets home football games, more than 30,000 people grab a bite at The Varsity. The restaurant was also a pivotal locale in the movie “We are Marshall,” starring Matthew McConaughey and Matthew Fox. Where: 61 North Ave., Midtown www.thevarsity.com

NW – ATLANTA BREAKFAST CLUB (near Centennial Olympic Park Drive Children’s museum/World of coca-cola/Aquarium) Modern diner with retro seating for down-home breakfast fare, plus burgers and other American staples. Peach cobbler French toast, chicken n gravy, chicken n waffles, gumbo, poboys. Specialty: Georgia Peach – Crispy All Natural Chicken Breasts, Belgian Style Waffle, Fresh Peach Cobbler Sauce, Shortbread Crumble, Powdered Sugar and Vanilla Butter $24.95. Hours: 6:30am-3pm. 249 Ivan Allen Jr Blvd NW, Atlanta, GA 30313. https://www.atlbreakfastclub.com/

BOTTLE CAP CAFE – Bottle Cap Café is located outside World of Coca‑Cola and can be found next to the green space between World of Coca‑Cola and the Georgia Aquarium. A cafeteria style sandwich, salad and coffee/soda shop that brings new meaning to endless ideas for floats! We tried the mini float flight – loved the Coke and Root Beer the best. https://www.worldofcoca-cola.com/plan-your-visit/bottle-cap-cafe

NW – ATLANTA HISTORY CENTER. Buckhead. https://www.atlantahistorycenter.com/ Tuesday–Sunday from 9am–4pm. $27/$24. Gatherround: Stories of Atlanta is the cornerstone exhibit. It tells the story of Atlanta in the eyes of many different people who have called Atlanta home or been connected to the city in some way over the years. Using artifacts, various types of media and interactive experiences you will learn about the cultural ways of life in the city. The Jukebox Diner is a clever space to discover Atlanta’s history serving food. As you sit in a booth, look over the story menu and make a choice. Punch the letter/number into the jukebox and hear a short story about famous chefs and southern food. The Cyclorama should not be missed! The focus of the exhibit is the Battle of Atlanta, a three dimensional painting from the 1880s. The painting has recently added a whole new 360 degree viewing experience involving a theatrical video on the painting. New Children’s Experience – This experience is included with museum admission. Plan your day with ease and reserve a timed spot into the Children’s Experience to guarantee entry. The Goizueta Children’s Experience is an exciting new, 5,000 square-foot space at Atlanta History Center Buckhead where kids can experience the city through play, exploration and storytelling. The immersive and multi-sensory design will delight children from crawlers (ages 1-3 years old) to second graders (ages 6-8 years old). Each year, the Experience introduces a new theme. This year, kids can explore the vibrant “Our Great Big City” theme, rooted in Atlanta’s history, innovative spirit, distinctive geography, and dynamic arts and culture scene. Other Play Spaces of note: the Victorian Playhouse behind Swan House and the Playhouse and Playground on the walking path out back. Having been to dozens of History Center’s kid’s areas, this is one of the best! From the colorful entrance, guests are drawn inside to the craft area and interactive playgrounds – all inside the museum. Everything pertains to the exhibits so it double-downs learning. Really impressed.

Dining options: Souper Jennys has fresh offerings of soup and salad and light entrees/sandwiches. Kids gravitate to their sides like fruit salad or PB&J sammies. Cafe style seating with lots of windows. Next door is Swan Coach House Restaurant with a more foo-foo tea room setting serving their Swan’s Favorite plate: Signature Chicken Salad served in house-made Timbales, petite lettuces w/ champagne vinaigrette, signature Frozen Fruit Salad, and Cheese Straws. $10 kids meals. Experience timeless tradition in a historic setting. Simply yum! https://www.swancoachhouse.com/restaurant

ATLANTA BOTANICAL GARDENS: The thirty acres of the garden is full of a variety of plant collections, conservatories, exhibits, and woodlands. A favorite part is the canopy trail, it was less crowded than the indoor buildings on the other side of the gardens. The Earth Goddess, in the Cascades Garden is quite the scene. As always, the kids spend the most time in the Children’s Garden. In December one of the best Christmas activities in Atlanta is seeing the gardens transformed into a holiday wonderland every night with a special holiday lights event. Hours: Tuesdays – Sundays 9am – 4pm (additional hours for events). https://atlantabg.org/ $30+

SOUTH CITY KITCHEN MIDTOWN (near Piedmont Park/Atlanta Botanical Garden) Humble foods with a surprising sophistication are exactly what South City Kitchen Midtown fries up daily. As you’re welcomed around the table, their exhibition-style kitchen prepares elevated down-home classics, like she-crab soup, fried green tomatoes, shrimp and grits, and buttermilk fried chicken that has found itself in Yelp’s Top Five Best Fried Chicken in the nation! Fried green tomatoes- perfect crispness maintaining medium hard tomato with oozy goat cheese; she crab soup – luscious blend of sherry, cream and crab; fried chicken – epitome of crispness with juicy chicken inside, served with mashed potatoes and collards with nice smoky flavor; trout super fresh and salad with butter milk dressing /mixed greens was refreshing! Join them Monday–Friday, 4–6 PM for sips, bites, and a whole lotta Southern charm. Lunch 11am-2:30pm, brunch 10am-3pm, Dinner 5-9:30pm. 1144 Crescent Ave NE. https://www.southcitykitchen.com/

NW – ATLANTA BRAVES @ the BATTERY & BALLPARK TOURS. Atlanta. 755 Battery Avenue (I-75 exit 246, Fulton St East) 30339. https://atlanta.braves.mlb.com. Located in the new Battery entertainment complex, try arriving a couple hours early to do some shopping, eating and entertainment. From bowling to bull-riding, karaoke to concerts or farmers markets and games (virtual TopGolf & Nintendo), this complex offers it all. They even have a grassy area for families to picnic, watching the ballgame, within earshot of the cheering fans inside the ball park. Inside the complex, take advantage of activities such as pre-game pep rallies with various drumline and hiphop entertainers. Take pictures with mascots or by famous statues in Monument Garden. To keep kids busy during the game, visit Hope & Will’s Sandlot. BALLPARK TOURS are offered Mon-Sat on non game days or off season. $25 adult, $15 child.

MW – NATIONAL INFANTRY MUSEUM AND SOLDIER CENTER. Columbus. www.nationalinfantrymuseum.com. The museum is just off Fort Benning Road, about two miles south of Victory Drive. If you are using a GPS, enter 3800 South Lumpkin Rd., Columbus, GA 31903.

The National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center sits on a 200-acre campus outside the gates of Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia. LAST 100 YARDS ramp is eight U.S. Infantry battle scenes from Yorktown to Baghdad. Fort Benning Infantry school soldiers graduate on a parade field behind the museum every week, marching across ground that has been seeded with soil from major Infantry battlefields around the world. Graduations are open to the public. World War II Company Street is a collection of seven buildings constructed in the 1940s when the Army signed up 16 million Americans to defend the nation. They include authentically recreated barracks, mess hall, chapel and the headquarters building and sleeping quarters General George S. Patton used while stationed at Fort Benning in 1941.

The Family Gallery, which recognizes the sacrifices made by those who love an Infantryman, includes a child-size area where kids can try on soldier uniforms and peer from inside of a pretend Bradley Fighting Vehicle at a humanitarian mission in Iraq. One of the Museum’s galleries demonstrates what it takes to turn a young farm boy from Ohio or a football star from Texas into an Infantryman. Inside the museum is the EST 2000, a rifle range simulator exactly like what soldiers train on at Fort Benning. The museum is the only public facility in the nation with this attraction.

SE – Savannah – Leopolds 212 E Broughton St, Savannah, GA · (912) 234-4442 http://www.leopoldsicecream.com/ Hours: Daily 11am to 10pm – This local favorite, founded in 1919, still sources many ingredients from area farms. The ownership has been handed down in the same family. A house specialty, the tutti frutti milkshake, has run ice cream and Georgia pecans.

CLOSED

NE – Helen, Black Forest Bear Park;  NE – Blairsville, Misty Mountain Model Railroad;  NE – Hiawassee, Crystal River Ranch Llama Treks;  NE – Helen, Remember When Theatre

NE – Lilburn, Yellow River Game Ranch. After more than 35 years, the Yellow River Game Ranch has closed. The ranch is famously home to Georgia’s own Beauregard Lee, who is the South’s favorite weather-predicting groundhog. The famous groundhog was moved to a new home in a nearby nature preserve.

NE – Braselton, Mayfield Dairy Farms

MW – Pine Mountain, Butts Mill Farm

MW – Thomaston, Rock Ranch

NW – Dalton, Dalton Depot Restaurant

NW – Atlanta, CNN Studio Tours

NW – Atlanta, Philips Experience

SE – Savannah – Comfort Suites Historic District

SE – Savannah – Whistle Stop Cafe

SE – Savannah – Oglethorpe Speedway

SW – Americus, Habitat for Humanity Global Village

SW – Ashburn, Crime and Punishment Museum and Cafe

Order book: https://kidslovetravel.com/travel-books/ (search KIDS LOVE GEORGIA, 5th Edition)