Georgia is full of places that are great for kids who are just ready to be discovered. Help your family decide where to go next by picking your best category, such as animals, adventure, the outdoors, learning, or free things. You can’t go wrong here.
At Wild Animal Safari in Pine Mountain, the animals will eat right out of your hands. Giraffes, zebras, camels, and bison may come up to your car on the 3.5-mile drive through the park looking for a snack, which you can buy.
Learn about Georgia’s freshwater fish at the Go Fish Education Center in Perry. You can even learn how to throw a line. At the outside pond, staff and volunteers help people who are just starting to fish. Inside are tanks with more than 70 kinds of fish.
The UGA Marine Education Center & Aquarium is on Skidaway Island, southeast of Savannah. It puts you in touch with Georgia’s sea life. People can touch crabs and snails in the same tank. There are also tanks with seahorses, stingrays, and alligators.
Great big cats, tigers, and bears! There are more than 1,000 animals to see at Zoo Atlanta. The only twin bears in the US are there. Check out the petting zoo and the new overhead playground. You can feed the goats and sheep there.
Welcome to the Lady Jane. The first mates on this shrimp boat get to tour the estuaries and marshes that surround St. Simons Island and Brunswick Island. There are trips for fishing, crabbing, shrimp hunting, and even special dolphin tours.
Could the Georgians figure out what Bigfoot is? Adventure: Bigfoot! in Cherry Log is the place to go see for yourself. This strange museum has the biggest permanent collection of Bigfoot artifacts in the country. It has a life-size replica, a diorama, and maps of the most recent sightings.
The Clubhouse in Statesboro is a sports fan’s dream. You can race go-karts, hit baseballs, and play more than 80 different video games. Get some ice cream at the make-your-own bar. Things don’t get any better than this.
8. Stone Mountain Park
Slide to the top of the world’s biggest piece of rock on the Summit Skyride at Stone Mountain Park. It’s a fast (but still very comfortable) Swiss cable car. From your perch 825 feet above the ground, you can see the Appalachians and the city of Atlanta up to 60 miles away.
9. Wild Adventures
Wild Adventures in Valdosta is like having three parks in one. It has a zoo, a theme park, and a water park. Take a ride on roller coasters, go down the slides at Splash Island, and see wild animals like lions, giraffes, elephants, and more.
10. Six Flags Over Georgia
There is something for kids of all ages at Six Flags Over Georgia in Austell. Teenagers can’t wait to ride the big roller coasters, while kids their age love the Hanson cars, steam train, and water park with a wave pool.
11. Lane Southern Orchards
When it gets warm outside, it’s time to pick fresh peaches and berries at Lane Southern Orchards in Fort Valley. You can visit the roadside market at any time to buy fresh fruits and vegetables, homemade ice cream, and other tasty treats to take home.
12. Dauset Trails Nature Center
The Animal Trail at the Dauset Trails Nature Center in Jackson is a great place to see foxes, otters, birds, bears, and more. You can hike or ride your bike along it. Don’t miss the chance to see early farm life up close in the field.
13. Sunburst Adventures
At Sunburst Adventures in Clarkesville, you can pony ride, kayak to waterfalls, fish, ride ATVs, and go to the farm. There are houses for adults that have hot tubs and fireplaces that they will love.
14. Okefenokee Swamp Park
You can take a guided boat trip to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge through Okefenokee Swamp Park in Waycross. You’ll see egrets, sandhill cranes, red-shouldered hawks, and, of course, alligators. A different train tour goes around the swamp.
15. Georgia State Parks
Georgia State Parks & Historic Sites are always fun for the whole family. You can hike, paddle, fish, and do a lot more! For kids, 59 parks and historic sites offer activities that they can do to become Junior Rangers and win badges. There is a dog walking club called Tails on Trails. Bring your dog with you. If you join the Muddy Spokes Club, you can ride your mountain bike on miles of fun tracks. See the state’s wide range of landscapes and keep an eye out for local animals in their natural habitats.
16. Historic SAM Shortline Railroad
Take a ride on the Historic SAM Shortline Railroad, which runs between Cordele and Archery on an engine from 1949. You can get on and off the bus to visit the Georgia Rural Telephone Museum in Leslie and the place where President Jimmy Carter grew up in Plains.
At the Interactive Neighborhood for Kids in Gainesville, you can step into a little play world. Kids can check out a mini-medical clinic, bank, beauty salon, grocery store, courthouse, and diner from the 1950s, among other things.
At the heart of the Thronateeska Heritage Center in Albany’s old Union Station is a steam locomotive with six train cars and a caboose. Another popular attraction is the 40-foot dome planetarium, which hosts science projects every month for kids during “Toddlersaurus Time.”
At the Museum of Arts and Sciences in Macon, you can be both an artist and a scientist. It has a theater, a fossil of a whale from 40 million years ago, and more than 70 animals, such as bearded dragons and alligators.
Kids can dig for fossils, minerals, and shark teeth at the Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville, which is connected to the Smithsonian. They can also look at a Megalodon jaw that is nine feet wide, look at models of Sputnik and the Apollo 1 capsule, and play with sound, magnets, and rainbows.
At BabyLand General Hospital in Cleveland, you can go to the nursery and watch Cabbage Patch kids being born. To bring a baby home, you have to pay a fee and swear to follow certain rules.
Bring a lunch to the Folkston Railroad Depot and Viewing Platform for a day of trains. Listen to engineers talk on the scanner and watch as more than 60 trains pass through the Folkston Funnel’s two tracks in a single day.
The Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park in Macon has more than 2,000 American Indian items and seven mounds that you can explore. To get a great view of downtown, walk the half-mile to the top of Great Temple Mound.
Do not forget your glasses when you visit Phinizy Swamp Nature Park in Augusta. The 14 miles of hiking and biking trails are full of animals like otters, alligators, and bobcats. Phin is a yellow-bellied slider turtle and the mascot for Phinizy Kids. You can meet him at the tourist center before your trip.
You can get into the Georgia Southern University Museum in Statesboro for free on the last Saturday of every month. The skeleton of a Mosasaur, also known as the “T-Rex of the Sea,” is there. It’s 26 feet long and is from 78 million years ago.