13 Best Things to Do in Athens, GA (2026 Guide)

The best things to do in Athens GA are free: the State Botanical Garden of Georgia and the Georgia Museum of Art both charge nothing for admission or parking, and the Tree That Owns Itself costs nothing to see. Athens sits about 70 miles east of Atlanta, and the town runs on two calendars — a normal one, and a UGA football Saturday one, when downtown traffic, parking, and hotel prices all spike.

This guide covers Athens’s must-see stops — 13 of them — with verified hours, admission, and parking, plus what changes on a home game day. If you’re building a bigger trip, our guide to things to do in Macon covers the other major stop in Georgia’s historic south.

Quick picks: the State Botanical Garden for a free half-day outdoors, the Georgia Museum of Art for a free rainy-day stop, downtown’s 40 Watt Club and Georgia Theatre for music history, Bear Hollow Zoo at Memorial Park for a free animal stop with young kids, and Sandy Creek Park if the kids or the dog need space to run.

What are the top things to do in Athens, GA?

State Botanical Garden of Georgia

The State Botanical Garden of Georgia is a 313-acre garden and natural area on UGA’s south side, and both admission and parking are free. It’s the single best free outdoor stop in Athens, with themed garden rooms, a tropical conservatory, and several miles of nature trails.

• Cost: free admission and free parking, confirmed on the garden’s official site; donations are welcomed but not required.
• Hours: grounds and trails open daily 7am-7pm (closed UGA holidays); the Visitor Center/Conservatory and gift shop are open Tuesday-Saturday 9am-4:30pm and Sunday 11:30am-4:30pm, closed Monday.
• Drive time from downtown Athens: about 10 minutes; it’s on South Milledge Avenue.
• Dogs: not permitted on garden property except service animals — this is a firm rule, not a suggestion, so leave pets at home for this stop.
• Stroller access: the International Garden and main paved paths near the Visitor Center are stroller-friendly; some of the wooded nature trails have roots, gravel, and grade changes.
• Payment note: the on-site facility is cashless — bring a card or mobile pay for the gift shop or café.
• Best time: spring (March-April) for bloom, or early morning in summer to beat both heat and crowds.

Georgia Museum of Art

The Georgia Museum of Art is the official art museum of the state of Georgia, housed on UGA’s East Campus, and general admission is free every day. It holds more than 17,000 works, with rotating exhibitions alongside its American and European permanent collection.

• Cost: free general admission for everyone, confirmed on the museum’s own visitor page; reserving a free ticket online in advance is recommended.
• Hours: Tuesday-Wednesday 10am-5pm, Thursday 10am-9pm, Friday-Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday 1pm-5pm; closed Monday.
• Parking: the Performing Arts Center deck and East Campus deck charge for parking Monday-Friday via the ParkMobile app or kiosk (credit card only, no cash); all decks and lots are free on weekends and free after 6pm on weekdays. Accessible parking is available beneath the museum at 90 Carlton Street.
• Family/dog note: single-level, stroller-friendly galleries; service animals only inside.
• Tip: Thursday evenings (open until 9pm) are the least crowded time to visit.

The Tree That Owns Itself

The Tree That Owns Itself is a white oak at the corner of South Finley and Dearing Streets that, according to Athens legend, legally owns itself and the 8 feet of land around its trunk. The story dates to an 1890s newspaper account attributed to William H. Jackson, and while the legal deed has never been verified, the city has treated the tree as self-owned for more than a century. The current tree is technically a second-generation offspring, planted in 1946 after the original fell in a storm.

• Cost: free — it’s a roadside tree with a small marker, viewable from the public sidewalk.
• Drive time from downtown Athens: about 5 minutes.
• Dogs and strollers: no official pet or stroller policy is published for the site, which is a marked tree viewed from a public sidewalk, with no gate, ticket or staffed entrance.
• Family note: a quick 5-minute stop, easy to combine with a driving tour of Athens’s historic neighborhoods.

Downtown Athens Music History: 40 Watt Club and Georgia Theatre

Athens’s downtown music scene launched R.E.M. and the B-52’s, and two venues still carry that history: the 40 Watt Club and the Georgia Theatre. The 40 Watt Club traces back to 1979 and has occupied its current West Washington Street location since 1991; past acts tied to the club include R.E.M., the B-52’s, Pylon, and Drive-By Truckers, alongside national touring acts. The Georgia Theatre, a historic venue on North Lumpkin Street, was gutted by a fire in 2009 and reopened in 2011 after a rebuild that kept some fire-damaged elements visible inside.

• Cost: no cover to walk downtown and see the exteriors; show tickets vary by act and are sold through each venue’s own site.
• Parking: use a downtown parking deck (see parking section below) rather than hunting for street parking on a show night; the Georgia Theatre recommends the West Washington Street deck immediately behind the venue.
• Dogs and strollers: neither venue publishes a pet or stroller policy. The Georgia Theatre does say it allows no full-size backpacks and searches all bags, and the 40 Watt Club says the club is accessible and asks anyone needing special assistance to call ahead of the show.
• Family note: the 40 Watt Club is generally 18 and over with a government-issued ID, but under-18s are admitted with a parent or legal guardian; the Georgia Theatre runs some 18+ shows and some all-ages shows, and also admits under-18s to its 18+ shows with a parent or guardian. Check the specific show listing before planning a family visit.
• Tip: downtown Athens between College Avenue and Lumpkin Street is walkable, so you can combine a show with dinner without moving your car.

UGA Campus and Sanford Stadium on Game Days

The University of Georgia campus is free to walk any day, but a home football Saturday at Sanford Stadium changes downtown Athens completely — plan around it rather than into it. On a game day, downtown parking decks charge a flat gameday rate instead of hourly rates, hotel prices climb well above normal weekend rates, and North Campus and downtown sidewalks fill hours before kickoff.

• Gameday parking: the College Avenue and Washington Street downtown decks charge $50 for single-gameday parking or offer a $350 season pass, first-come, first-served, per Downtown Athens’s parking page. Campus lots like the East Campus Deck also open for game days with shuttle service.
• Traffic: expect heavy congestion on campus-adjacent streets starting several hours before kickoff and for 1-2 hours after the game ends.
• Lodging: book well ahead for football Saturdays — Athens hotel rates rise significantly for home games, especially rivalry weekends, and rooms can sell out weeks in advance.
• Policies: the SEC Clear Bag Policy applies inside the stadium, and open alcohol containers are prohibited by county ordinance outside the stadium as well.
• Dogs and strollers: inside Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium, service animals are welcome and all other animals are refused entry, and strollers are not allowed inside the stadium at all, per UGA Athletics. UGA does not publish a general pet rule for the open campus grounds.
• Non-gameday visits: if you just want to see campus and Sanford Stadium’s exterior, any non-game weekday works and parking is far easier — check the football schedule before planning a casual campus visit in the fall.

Sandy Creek Park

Sandy Creek Park is Athens-Clarke County’s largest park, with trails, disc golf, boat rentals, and a dog park spread around Lake Chapman. It’s the best outdoor option in Athens for a family or dog-focused half-day that isn’t the Botanical Garden.

• Cost: $2 per person for visitors ages 4-64; children under 4 and adults 65+ enter free, and an annual family pass covering everyone in your vehicle is $50 for Athens-Clarke County residents or $75 for non-residents, per Athens-Clarke County’s fee page. Disc golf runs $1 per round or $10 for a 12-round punch card; canoe and kayak rentals are $8 per boat per hour, available weekends only from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend.
• Hours: hours shift seasonally — check Athens-Clarke County’s current park information page before you go.
• Dogs: the park includes a dedicated dog park area; leashed dogs are permitted on the general park trails outside that area.
• Family note: playgrounds, wide multi-use trails, and picnic areas make this an easy stop with young kids; the swim beach operates seasonally in summer.
• Drive time from downtown Athens: about 10 minutes northeast of downtown.

Sandy Creek Nature Center

Sandy Creek Nature Center is a free 225-acre preserve north of downtown with live animals indoors and twelve trails outside. The Education and Visitor Center holds live reptiles and amphibians, marine and freshwater aquariums, interactive natural history exhibits and a resource library, and the grounds add more than four miles of trails, a circa-1815 log house and the ruins of an old brick factory.

• Cost: free admission, per Athens-Clarke County.
• Hours: the Education and Visitor Center is open Tuesday-Saturday 8:30am-5:30pm; the trails are open sunrise to sunset daily.
• Address and parking: 205 Old Commerce Road; the county lists the nature center as a greenway trailhead with parking and restrooms on site.
• Kids angle: the indoor exhibit hall plus a short trail loop fills about two hours, and there is an ADA interpretive trail if you want the flattest option.
• Dogs: Athens-Clarke County park rules require pets to be leashed and cleaned up after; the nature center does not publish a separate pet rule for the exhibit building, so ask at the desk before taking a dog indoors.
• Tip: binoculars, Identiflyers and educational Trail Packs can be checked out free at the Education and Visitor Center before you start walking.

Bear Hollow Zoo at Memorial Park

Bear Hollow Zoo is a free walk-through zoo of non-releasable native Georgia wildlife inside Memorial Park, in the Five Points neighborhood. Residents on exhibit include an American black bear, a North American river otter, a beaver, a red fox, an American alligator, a bald eagle, three owl species and a reptile house, and the zoo sits inside a 72-acre park with a playground, pool, fishing pond and the Birchmore Trail.

• Cost: free admission, per Athens-Clarke County.
• Hours: the zoo is open daily 9am-5pm; Memorial Park itself is open daily 8am to sunset.
• Address and parking: 293 Gran Ellen Drive; the county says parking is limited during peak season and special events and encourages carpooling, cycling, walking or Athens Transit Route 14.
• Kids angle: the zoo loop is short enough for preschoolers and pairs with the park playground; budget an hour for the zoo, longer if you add the playground and fishing pond.
• Dogs: only service animals are permitted within Bear Hollow Zoo; Memorial Park has a separate dog park elsewhere on the property.
• Tip: the zoo keeps the same 9am-5pm hours seven days a week, which makes it the easiest stop to slot into a Monday, when both the Georgia Museum of Art and the Lyndon House Arts Center are closed.

Lyndon House Arts Center

The Lyndon House Arts Center is Athens-Clarke County’s free public arts center, pairing rotating contemporary gallery exhibitions with the circa-1850 Ware-Lyndon House museum on the same grounds. The historic house holds a decorative collection, an exhibit and film on the Ware-Lyndon House enslaved and descendant stories, and an interpretive garden outside.

• Cost: admission is always free, with no tickets or reservations required.
• Hours: Tuesday and Thursday 10am-8pm, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 10am-5pm; the historic Ware-Lyndon House is open Tuesday-Saturday 10am-5pm. Closed Sundays, Mondays, all UGA home football games and all Athens-Clarke County holidays.
• Address and parking: 211 Hoyt Street, with free parking available.
• Kids angle: free, indoors and quick: 45 minutes to an hour covers the galleries and the historic house, and the center also runs classes and workshops.
• Accessibility: the facility is wheelchair accessible and keeps three wheelchairs available for guest use if you call ahead; a stroller policy is not published.
• Tip: check the UGA football schedule first, because this is one of the few Athens attractions that closes outright for home games.

Historic Athens Welcome Center and the Church-Waddel-Brumby House

The Historic Athens Welcome Center occupies the Church-Waddel-Brumby House, a circa-1820 home believed to be the oldest house original to Athens, and the house museum is free and open 362 days a year. Staff hand out day-trip ideas and personalized itineraries, and the center runs daily guided sightseeing tours of Athens, either a guided walk or a shuttle ride with a local guide.

• Cost: the house museum is free and open to the public; guided walking and shuttle tours are ticketed separately and sold online or in person, and the center does not publish a flat tour price on its visit page.
• Hours: open to the public Monday through Sunday, 10am-5pm.
• Address and parking: 280 East Dougherty Street, a few blocks from City Hall; on-site parking is not published, so use a downtown deck.
• Kids angle: a 20-to-30-minute museum stop, and the center hosts homeschool open houses and standards-aligned school field trips.
• Discounts: Historic Athens members get 10 percent off tours and gift shop purchases with code HAMEMBER; military, AAA members and seniors get 10 percent off with code WELCOME-10.
• Tip: tour spaces are limited, so book online before you drive; a private group tour is the only way the center guarantees a group admission.

North Oconee River Greenway

The North Oconee River Greenway Trail is a free paved path that runs along the river from Sandy Creek Nature Center through Dudley Park and past Oconee Hill Cemetery toward Bailey Street and Carriage Lane. It is part of the wider Oconee Rivers Greenway system, which the county describes as 8 miles of concrete multi-use trail plus 3.1 miles of natural-surface hiking trail, all of it non-motorized.

• Cost: free; no entry fee is published for the greenway.
• Hours: Athens-Clarke County states that all trails are open sunrise to sunset, and general park rules warn that patrons remaining after posted closing time will be ticketed.
• Parking and restrooms: Dudley Park (1170 East Broad Street or 286 South Poplar Street), the Sandy Creek Nature Center trailhead (205 Old Commerce Road) and Walker Park (200 Trail Creek Street) all have parking and restrooms; Easley’s Mill (470 Oconee Street) and the College Avenue trailhead (1003 MLK Jr. Parkway) have parking but no restrooms; the Bailey Street, Carriage Lane and Carr’s Creek trailheads have neither.
• Kids angle: concrete surface and no motor traffic, so it takes strollers, balance bikes and scooters; start at Dudley Park if you want a restroom at the trailhead.
• Dogs: allowed on leash, and county park rules also require you to pick up after your pet.
• Tip: the East Campus Connector links the Oconee Street Park and Ride lot to this trail and the UGA campus, so you can leave the car outside downtown entirely.

Ben Burton Park

Ben Burton Park is a free-to-walk 32-acre wildlife preserve on the Middle Oconee River with a 1.4-mile blazed trail, river access, fishing and picnic areas. The site held a hydroelectric generating station built in 1896 and used until 1964; Georgia Power donated the land to the county in 1967, and part of the park is now a streambank stabilization project.

• Cost: no entrance fee is published for Ben Burton Park.
• Hours: sunrise to sunset.
• Address and parking: 615 Mitchell Bridge Road; a parking charge is not published.
• Kids angle: the 1.4-mile trail follows orange blazes through upland forest and along the riverside, with picnic areas and fishing along the way; budget an hour to 90 minutes.
• Dogs: welcome, but they must be on a leash of 6 feet or less and under your control at all times.
• Strollers: not published, and this is a blazed natural-surface woodland trail, so a carrier is the safer choice with a baby.
• Tip: this is the county park that states outright that dogs are welcome on the trail, which makes it the easy answer on a day when the Botanical Garden is out.

The Double-Barreled Cannon

The double-barreled cannon on the Athens City Hall lawn is the only one of its kind, and it costs nothing to walk up to. John Gilleland of Athens designed it and a local foundry built it in 1863, the idea being to fire two balls joined by a chain that would cut down a line of soldiers. The test firing went badly: by one eyewitness account the chain broke, the balls flew in opposite directions, one killed a cow in a distant field and the other knocked the chimney off a log cabin. The city kept the cannon rather than scrap it, Ripley’s Believe It or Not featured it, and it still sits on the lawn pointing north.

• Cost: free; it is an outdoor monument on the City Hall lawn.
• Hours: no hours are published, because there is no gate or ticket.
• Address and parking: City Hall, 301 College Avenue in downtown Athens; the College Avenue deck is closest, with the first hour free and $2 per hour after that.
• Kids angle: a 5-to-10-minute stop with a genuinely good story attached, easy to fold into a downtown walk.
• Tip: string it together with the 40 Watt Club and Georgia Theatre exteriors and the Historic Athens Welcome Center, all within a few downtown blocks of the same parking deck.

Is Athens a good day trip with kids?

Athens is an easy town to visit with kids as long as you avoid downtown on a home football Saturday. The State Botanical Garden’s paved paths and International Garden are the most stroller-friendly stop on this list and cost nothing. The Georgia Museum of Art is a good rainy-day fallback, also free, with single-level galleries. Sandy Creek Park adds playgrounds and open space for kids who need to run before or after museum time. For more family-trip planning around the state, see our guide to best Georgia state parks for kids.

How far is Athens, and where do you park?

Athens is about 70 miles from downtown Atlanta, roughly 1 hour 15 to 1 hour 30 minutes in normal traffic via I-85 and GA-316. Traffic on GA-316 can slow considerably during Atlanta rush hour and on Friday afternoons before a home game weekend.

• Downtown parking decks: the College Avenue Deck and Washington Street Deck both offer the first hour free, then charge $2 per hour on non-gameday visits, per Downtown Athens’s parking locations page. Parking is free on nine city holidays, including New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, July 4th, Labor Day, and Thanksgiving.
• On-street parking: metered spaces are scattered throughout downtown; pay via the ParkMobile app.
• Football Saturdays: the decks switch to flat gameday rates ($50 single day / $350 season) rather than hourly billing — see the game-day section above.

For a broader look at day trips within driving range of Atlanta, see our guide to weekend getaways from Atlanta and our list of the 25 best small towns in Georgia. If you’re building out a bigger Southern food itinerary, check our roundup of the best BBQ in Georgia, and if middle Georgia’s other big stop is on your list, see our companion guide to things to do in Macon, GA.

What if it rains, or you only have one morning?

FAQ

What is Athens, GA best known for?

Athens is best known as the home of the University of Georgia and Sanford Stadium, its influential 1980s music scene (R.E.M., the B-52’s), the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, and the Tree That Owns Itself.

How far is Athens from Atlanta?

About 70 miles, roughly 1 hour 15 to 1 hour 30 minutes in normal traffic via I-85 and GA-316.

Is the State Botanical Garden of Georgia free?

Yes. Admission and parking are both free, per the garden’s own site, though donations are welcomed. The grounds are open 7am-7pm daily, and the Visitor Center keeps shorter hours and is closed Mondays.

Should I avoid Athens on a UGA football Saturday?

Not necessarily, but plan differently. Expect flat gameday parking rates ($50 single-day at downtown decks), heavier-than-normal downtown traffic for several hours around kickoff, and higher hotel prices that require booking well in advance. If you just want a quiet campus walk, pick a non-game weekend instead.

Is downtown Athens dog-friendly?

Sidewalks and many outdoor patios downtown are dog-friendly on leash, and Sandy Creek Park has a dedicated dog park. The State Botanical Garden of Georgia does not allow pets except service animals, so plan that stop without your dog.

Where should I park in downtown Athens?

The College Avenue and Washington Street parking decks both give you the first hour free, then charge $2 per hour on regular days. On UGA home game days, expect flat gameday rates instead.

Is the State Botanical Garden or Sandy Creek Park better with kids and a dog?

Sandy Creek Park, if the dog is coming. It has a dedicated dog park, allows leashed dogs on the general trails, and adds playgrounds and wide multi-use trails for $2 per person ages 4-64 (free under 4 and 65+). The State Botanical Garden is free and has the most stroller-friendly paved paths in Athens, but it permits service animals only.

Is Athens worth the drive from Atlanta for one day?

Yes, on a non-game day. The drive is about 70 miles and 1 hour 15 to 1 hour 30 minutes each way, and the two headline stops cost nothing: the State Botanical Garden is free to enter and park, and the Georgia Museum of Art is free every day it is open. Downtown decks give you the first hour free, then $2 per hour.

What should you do if you only have one morning in Athens?

Go straight to the State Botanical Garden of Georgia. The grounds open at 7am daily, admission and parking are free, and it is roughly 10 minutes from downtown, so you can walk the International Garden and the paved paths before the heat and the crowds. Add the Tree That Owns Itself, a free 5-minute stop, on the way back.

What is there to do in Athens when it rains?

The Georgia Museum of Art is the rainy-day answer. General admission is free every day it is open, the galleries are single-level and stroller-friendly, and Thursday runs until 9pm, which is also the least crowded time to visit. It is closed Monday. East Campus decks are paid Monday-Friday but free on weekends and after 6pm on weekdays.

How we checked this guide: Dates, hours, admission and parking prices, and access details were verified against the official sources listed below on September 12, 2026. Operators change schedules and raise prices without notice, so confirm anything time-sensitive before you drive. The figures in this guide also feed our Georgia Attraction Transparency Index and Family Day-Out Cost Index.

Sources

• State Botanical Garden of Georgia – official site
• State Botanical Garden of Georgia – location, hours & parking
• Georgia Museum of Art – visit & admission
• Tree That Owns Itself – background
• Visit Athens – The Tree That Owns Itself
• 40 Watt Club – venue history
• 40 Watt Club – background
• Georgia Theatre – official site
• CNN – Georgia Theatre reopens after fire
• Visit Athens – UGA football parking & tailgating
• Downtown Athens – parking locations & rates
• Athens-Clarke County – Sandy Creek Park fees
• Athens-Clarke County – Sandy Creek Park information
• Athens-Clarke County – dog parks at Sandy Creek Park
• Athens-Clarke County – Sandy Creek Nature Center
• Athens-Clarke County – Sandy Creek Nature Center trails & grounds
• Athens-Clarke County – Bear Hollow Zoo
• Athens-Clarke County – Memorial Park
• Athens-Clarke County – Lyndon House Arts Center, plan your visit
• Historic Athens Welcome Center – visit & tours
• Athens-Clarke County – Oconee Rivers Greenway trails system
• Athens-Clarke County – Ben Burton Park
• Athens-Clarke County – park rules and regulations
• Athens-Clarke County – Double-Barreled Cannon
• Athens-Clarke County – City Hall location
• UGA Athletics – Sanford Stadium policies
• 40 Watt Club – FAQs
• Georgia Theatre – FAQ

About Hank Whitlock

Hank Whitlock is the pen name of the It's Georgia editor. Every guide is built around the questions a busy family actually asks before a trip: how long is the drive, what does parking cost, can the stroller make it, are dogs allowed. Details are checked against official park, city, and venue sources, and each guide shows the date it was last updated.