Patch Picks: Spring Break Staycations

Patch Picks highlights editor and reader picks of great local businesses, destinations, services, organizations, ways to spend a day off, and more. 

You’ll find useful lists to help you, your family, friends, and significant others find the best places for everything from Sunday brunch to New Year’s Eve celebrations, pumpkin patches, date night destinations, florists, girlfriend nights out, kids party places, parks and more.

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 Spring Break "Staycations"

• If you live in Acworth, you should take advantage of the great local restaurants and shops along Main Street in the historic downtown district, and many of them are open on the weekends. You and your family can grab a bite to eat and then stroll along Main Street and go shopping at the boutiques and specialty stores. Later in the day, bring the kids to on Beach Street. Although, Acworth Beach is not yet open for the season, there are still many fun things to do at the park. Whether you like walking, biking, fishing or boating, at Cauble Park you can do all of these activities. The park has two playgrounds, rental facilities, and boardwalk. Cauble Park is open daily until 11 p.m.
• For the outdoor enthusiasts, Kennesaw has some great places to walk and hike. Wander through the gardens at the. This spot is a botanical garden and learning center spanning 16 acres. The garden features a variety of plantings including Japanese maples, rose gardens, koi ponds, waterfalls and more. Bring your children to Swift Cantrell Park which has walking trails, a great playground, meadows, picnic pavilions and a dog park. For the avid hiker, is a great place to get some exercise. You can walk, jog or bring your dog up the many trails. This historic site was the location of a major Civil War battle in 1864. The park also includes three historic battlefield areas and you can see the Civil-war-era cannons.
• Cartersville is home to many unique museums, and you should take a day or two to visit some of them and discover some local history. The displays a wide variety of Western art. Exhibits include Civil War art, Native American artifacts and presidential portraits. This location is the second largest museum in Georgia and is the only museum of its kind in the southeast. Another fun museum to visit is the , where you can see gems and minerals, a fossil gallery, which includes a Tyrannosaurus rex, and other dinosaurs. Be sure to check out the Science in Motion exhibit which takes you through 100 years of transportation technology. The museum also houses a planetarium with shows running every 45 minutes. If you’re going to make it a day to learn about history, why not visit the ? There you can see six earthen mounds dating back from between 1000 A.D. to 1550 A.D., a plaza, a village area and more. There is also a museum housing artifacts and an interesting film to watch about the history of the Etowah Indian Mounds.
• If you’re in the Marietta area, be sure to eat at one of Cobb County’s favorite landmark’s . Not too far from KFC is historic Marietta Square. Stroll around the square and shop at the boutiques and antique stores. On weekends some of the restaurants have live music on the patio. There are also many special events and concerts throughout the year in the Square at Glover Park. Another fun thing to do is explore the Chattahoochee River. Columns Drive is part of the Cochran Shoals Area of the river and includes three miles of trails, where you can bike or hike. The area is also a great place to bird watch and explore the wetlands from a shaded boardwalk.
• Make a day trip to Downtown Atlanta and see some of the fun attractions the state’s capital city has to offer. Many people who live in the metro area have never seen some of these great places in Atlanta. The , consisting of 8.5 million gallons of water, is the world’s largest aquarium and home of whale sharks, sting rays, tropical fish and numerous other sea creatures. On April 2, an exciting new exhibit will open called Dolphin Tales featuring live dolphin shows. The aquarium also has many other fun and educational exhibits including a 4-D theater that plays documentaries. The showcases the history of Coca-Cola as well as worldwide Coke products.  The museum displays historic relics and Coke memorabilia. Customers can try coke products from around the world during the tour. Finish off your day by visiting , which is home to more than a thousand animals and set in Atlanta’s Grant Park. The zoo is best known for its giant pandas and has more than 200 species of animals from around the world.