Driving to Atlanta and then on to Destin,Fl.

[gretchen]

I'm surprising my daughter with an impromptu trip to Atlanta and then we're going to Destin. Never been to either. Our main interests in Atlanta are the aquarium and Walking Dead sites and of course Destin is the beaches. First question - am I foolish to think I can drive from St. Marys to ATL in one straight shot,or should I plan a hotel stop between the two. Looks to take about ten hours. Second question - those of you who have been to either location what do you suggest we see/do? We don't care to learn anything on vacations - just there to eat,chill and explore!

 

[migtig]

You can drive straight through to Atlanta with a couple of pit stops. Speed limits are raised on the interstates as long as there isn't any road construction. You will be zonked when you get there though. Do the walking dead tour. Stay at the Peachtree Hotel, eat anywhere in Midtown or Buckhead. I also like Blue Ridge Grill and Fat Matt's.

From there to Destin - follow the speed limits. Some of the little towns you'll pass through drop the speed zones drastically, solely for the purpose of giving you a ticket. :shrug:
Lots of new hotels have gone up recently, so you should be able to find a nice place for a decent price. It'll be very quiet in comparison to Atlanta. To eat check out the Back Porch and McGuire's Irish Pub. More like a quiet beach town than anything else. Last time I was there though, there were a lot of visible homeless / panhandlers.

 

[Larry Gude]

I' am I foolish to think I can drive from St. Marys to ATL in one straight shot,o !

I would think only you can answer that one. 10 hours, in general, is a fairly long day of driving for most people but nothing extreme. I presume, because you're asking, you've never driven that far in a day?

 

[migtig]

Oh, and unless it's part of the tour with a group, avoid the Underground.

 

[gretchen]

Oh, and unless it's part of the tour with a group, avoid the Underground.

What is the Underground?

 

[gretchen]

I would think only you can answer that one. 10 hours, in general, is a fairly long day of driving for most people but nothing extreme. I presume, because you're asking, you've never driven that far in a day?

The last time I drove to Florida I was exhausted by the time I got to Santee,SC. But I also had some medical issues at the time that added to the fatigue,so I wondered what the "normal people" consensus would be.

 

[gretchen]

You can drive straight through to Atlanta with a couple of pit stops. Speed limits are raised on the interstates as long as there isn't any road construction. You will be zonked when you get there though. Do the walking dead tour. Stay at the Peachtree Hotel, eat anywhere in Midtown or Buckhead. I also like Blue Ridge Grill and Fat Matt's.

From there to Destin - follow the speed limits. Some of the little towns you'll pass through drop the speed zones drastically, solely for the purpose of giving you a ticket. :shrug:
Lots of new hotels have gone up recently, so you should be able to find a nice place for a decent price. It'll be very quiet in comparison to Atlanta. To eat check out the Back Porch and McGuire's Irish Pub. More like a quiet beach town than anything else. Last time I was there though, there were a lot of visible homeless / panhandlers.

Im on the fence about doing the tour vs. driving to the sites myself. It seems like it would be more efficient to just go look,take our pics and on to the next rather than have to wait for other people,hear long stories,etc. I've emailed the company to ask if they have some sort of private access to certain sites or if it is all just available to the public with no answer. Thanks for the speed advice,I tend to keep it around 90 on main roads/interstates.

 

[huntr1]

Have family in Cumming, Ga. Yes, you can make it to ATL from SoMD in 1 shot. Did it with 4 kids over spring break.

We went to Destin last summer. We rented a house on a state park. It was great. Barely more than getting a hotel room, but much more enjoyable. There was a tram in the park that took us to the beach. Nice and quiet. No crowd on the beach. Tons of sand dollars in the water. Will be going back in 5 years.

 

[migtig]

Im on the fence about doing the tour vs. driving to the sites myself. It seems like it would be more efficient to just go look,take our pics and on to the next rather than have to wait for other people,hear long stories,etc. I've emailed the company to ask if they have some sort of private access to certain sites or if it is all just available to the public with no answer. Thanks for the speed advice,I tend to keep it around 90 on main roads/interstates.

If you aren't familiar with Atlanta, I'd spring for the tour. I think somebody on the forum did that not that long ago and raved about the experience.

The Underground is in the Five Points Area and is "underground" - though it has an upper and lower level. It's historic, and cool and artsy and gangland all at the same time. It has funky shopping and retro style museums, and lots and lots and lots of bars - can party until 4am there with you being able to drink and walk from bar to bar. However, a lot of historic stuff has been burned to the ground and rebuilt ever since the Civil War. When I was a kid, the place was nothing but homeless people in the 80s. In the early 90s (Rodney King) the area was burned to the ground and riots were all over. It's mostly tourists during the day and partyers at night and what my dad would call "degenerates" at all time of the day. It can be a little "iffy" if you aren't comfortable with the area, and there was a shooting there just last week. There are so many other beautiful places to see in Atlanta, I just wouldn't send a first-timer to that neighborhood. I also don't know how old your daughter is, so since the bar scene is the number one business around there, I just wouldn't recommend it. However, I did party there when I was younger.

Buckhead is lovely. Nice homes, nice shopping, nice scenery still - even in a city. My grandmother said it used to be called the Heights when she was a little girl. :shrug:

But Midtown is where it is at. Theaters, symphonies, museums, Piedmont Park, Peachtree Street aka the Strip, the Botanical Gardens, etc.

Oh and I don't know how long you will be there, but most places you can access via riding the rails - MARTA, and if I remember correctly, a lot of places will run free shuttles back and forth. Check out the places you want to hit and see if they line up with a MARTA map and offer a shuttle. http://www.itsmarta.com/

 

[Larry Gude]

The last time I drove to Florida I was exhausted by the time I got to Santee,SC. But I also had some medical issues at the time that added to the fatigue,so I wondered what the "normal people" consensus would be.

Presuming one driver, I think 10 is reasonable. If something goes wrong, bad traffic, and it stretches to 12 or so, that's still doable for most people.

Drink LOTS of water the DAY before and take it easy on the carbs (always) especially leading up to and during the trip. Eat light. Good hydration helps A LOT.

 

[gretchen]

Presuming one driver, I think 10 is reasonable. If something goes wrong, bad traffic, and it stretches to 12 or so, that's still doable for most people.

Drink LOTS of water the DAY before and take it easy on the carbs (always) especially leading up to and during the trip. Eat light. Good hydration helps A LOT.

I'm paying the price for carbs right now. I've been doing Atkins induction and went off the rails the other day and went carb crazy. Now I'm exhausted,and feel just heavy and crappy.

 

[gretchen]

If you aren't familiar with Atlanta, I'd spring for the tour. I think somebody on the forum did that not that long ago and raved about the experience.

The Underground is in the Five Points Area and is "underground" - though it has an upper and lower level. It's historic, and cool and artsy and gangland all at the same time. It has funky shopping and retro style museums, and lots and lots and lots of bars - can party until 4am there with you being able to drink and walk from bar to bar. However, a lot of historic stuff has been burned to the ground and rebuilt ever since the Civil War. When I was a kid, the place was nothing but homeless people in the 80s. In the early 90s (Rodney King) the area was burned to the ground and riots were all over. It's mostly tourists during the day and partyers at night and what my dad would call "degenerates" at all time of the day. It can be a little "iffy" if you aren't comfortable with the area, and there was a shooting there just last week. There are so many other beautiful places to see in Atlanta, I just wouldn't send a first-timer to that neighborhood. I also don't know how old your daughter is, so since the bar scene is the number one business around there, I just wouldn't recommend it. However, I did party there when I was younger.

Buckhead is lovely. Nice homes, nice shopping, nice scenery still - even in a city. My grandmother said it used to be called the Heights when she was a little girl. :shrug:

But Midtown is where it is at. Theaters, symphonies, museums, Piedmont Park, Peachtree Street aka the Strip, the Botanical Gardens, etc.

Oh and I don't know how long you will be there, but most places you can access via riding the rails - MARTA, and if I remember correctly, a lot of places will run free shuttles back and forth. Check out the places you want to hit and see if they line up with a MARTA map and offer a shuttle. http://www.itsmarta.com/

Thanks for all the info. Kiddo is turning 15,not legal to drink yet. So I guess we're brown bagging it. (Kidding!)

 

[Larry Gude]

I'm paying the price for carbs right now. I've been doing Atkins induction and went off the rails the other day and went carb crazy. Now I'm exhausted,and feel just heavy and crappy.

So, cut them out. I'm sick of that crash.

 

[PeoplesElbow]

I drive to Spartanburg SC and back in one day, its about 4 hrs from Atlanta if that.

My opinion is you can get on 40 in NC and take that to 77 and then get back on 85 without losing any time and cutting out a fair amount of the crappy backed up area of 85. I-40 is a nice pleasant drive between Greensboro and I-77 in Statesville.

 

[gretchen]

Good suggestions all. I guess the only thing to do is wing it and see how far I get without being too exhausted. I'm allowing two days,one night in Atlanta and five in Destin. Hope I don't fall in love with ATL and want to stay longer,but it doesn't seem like there is much to do. We're beach people,so we might look around a little and then we're heading for water!