Celebrating the Holidays in Atlanta at Stone Mountain Park, Lake Lanier and Centennial Olympic Park

I've been living in Atlanta for two years now and have found so many exciting, cultural, educational and just plain fun things to do here, especially around the Holidays. Though Stone Mountain Park, Lake Lanier and Centennial Olympic Park are all wonderful at any given time of the year, these locations during the Holiday season are truly spectacular.

A Stone Mountain Christmas:

Stone Mountain Park is located of exit 8 of U.S. Highway 78, in Stone Mountain, Georgia. Each Holiday Season between November 11 and December 30th, the park present A Stone Mountain Christmas, and turns its 3,200 acres of natural beauty into a winter wonderland.

There are nightly fireworks by the Snow Angel, the Christmas story told on the Train, live holiday shows, millions of lights in the Crossroads and even snow! Highlights include the new Miracle on Elf Street where you can take a peek into the heart of Santa's Workshop to see the crew and Mrs. Clause; dance your way into the Christmas spirit with the residents of the Babe Hardy Home for Entertainers with their new Christmas at the Palmetto; see Santa's entrance on his sleigh; see the 4D Christmas movie; visit Kids' Land & the Coca-Cola Bear; 'ooh' and 'ahh' at the Christmas laser show; see A Crossroads Christmas Carol Live Show; hear story time with Mrs. Claus; and enjoy the Coca-Cola Christmas tree "Give, Live, Love - Coke."

A Stone Mountain Christmas is open weekends, November 11th - December 17th: Fridays, 4:00 - 10:00pm; Saturdays & November 22nd - 24th, 3:00 - 10:00pm; Sundays, 3:00 - 9:00pm; and Nightly beginning December 18th - 30th: December 18th - 23rd, 3:00 - 10:00pm; December 26th - 30th, 3:00 - 9:00pm (Closed December 24th and 25th). Regularly priced tickets are $15.00 + tax for Adults and $12.00 + tax for Kids (ages 3 - 11), but if you present your Kroger Plus card at the register, you'll get $3.00 off a full-price Christmas Admission.

Magical Nights of Lights:

The Magical Nights of Lights is located on Lake Lanier at 7000 Holiday Road in Lake Lanier Islands, Georgia. Typically an upscale resort, Lake Lanier is transformed into a magical Holiday delight.

There is a driving tour through more than six miles of gigantic, illuminated characters made up of millions of twinkling lights. Visit the 2nd annual live nativity scene presented by Blackshear Place Baptist church. After touring, you can visit the new Holiday Village. There is Santa's Shop for holiday gifts and a chance to visit with Santa Claus himself; pony and amusement rides; a bonfire for roasting marshmallows; delicious holiday fare; and a new 4,250 square foot ice skating rink. Kids of all ages can even have Breakfast with Santa! Santa Claus will be at Emerald Pointe Hotel from 9:00am until 12 noon on December 2nd - 3rd, 9th - 10th, 16th - 24th to listen to wish lists, participate in fun holiday activities and enjoy a fantastic holiday breakfast buffet. (Breakfast is first come, first served.)

Prices for cars are $30, Monday - Thursday, and $40 on Fridays - Sundays and Holidays. Starting Nov 1st, passes will be available online for: $30 plus a $1.95 service fee. For passenger vans, it's $55 and for school/charter buses it's $150. You can pick up discount coupons to Magical Nights of Lights beginning November 13th at the following locations: Publix Supermarkets, McDonald's, Party City, The UPS Store, Great Clips, Mall of Georgia and Gwinnett Place Mall. For more information, call (770) 932-7200.

Holiday in Lights:

Centennial Olympic Park is located just off I75/85 or I-20, along Marietta Street, across from Embassy Suites. Following the 1996 Olympic Games, a large part of the park was closed and redesigned for Atlanta's public use. Today, Centennial Olympic Park sits on 21-acres, celebrating the winter holidays with outdoor ice skating, holiday concerts and beautiful displays, it truly is a "Holiday in Lights."

The Park's annual "Holiday in Lights" begins on Saturday, November 18th and provides great holiday, family-friendly fun that lasts all the way through until January 7th. Holiday highlights include the incredible lighting displays throughout the Park that are different and unique each year, and the outdoor ice skating rink.

The ice skating rink has real ice that's three inches thick! There's also covered observation seating, theatrical lighting on the ice and festive lighting in the trees surrounding the rink. You can skate for 90 minutes for only $6 (skate rentals are an additional $2, but groups of 20 or more get free skate rentals). There's also a smaller kiddie rink so parents can skate with their little ones in a safer (and softer) environment.

The "Holiday in Lights" theme is also carried throughout the other two campuses: the Georgia World Congress Center and the Georgia Dome. To learn more about this year's Holiday concert schedule, you can call (404) 222-PARK (7275).

No matter where you choose to spend your Holiday outings, or why even choose, you'll have a fantastic time. Atlanta boasts great events all year round, but you'll be in for an extra special treat when you visit one of these fantastic locations during the 2006 Holiday Season!