Musings on Travel: Spending the Day at the World of Coca Cola #WorldofCocaCola #travel #vacation #ga #collegetourcation

Disclosure: I was given tickets for my family to visit the World of Coca Cola to facilitate my review. The views expressed in this post are my own.

CollegeTourCation World of Coca Cola Atlanta GeorgiaRoad Tripping To Georgia

This summer was the summer of the road trip to end all road trips. For years, I wanted to road trip with my family…possibly in a camper…possibly by train…most likely by car…drive cross country to the West Coast…stop at Mount Rushmore, the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone. My road trip was long on details but short on specifics. For years, I have planned this hypothetical cross country road trip, but summer camps, family vacations, jobs, and swim team always got in the way. The trip simply never materialized. With the kids getting older, a cross country road trip was looking less and less likely.

This year June became July and it seemed that yet another summer would end without the cross country road trip. As the end of July neared, things had changed. My husband and daughter wanted to look at colleges in the South. My older daughter — a college student herself — wanted to tag a long on the trip. If my husband and two daughters were going, my son and I weren’t about to miss out. The mythic cross country road trip was becoming a reality! I even gave our road trip a hashtag! I called it the #CollegeTourCation…a college tour and family vacation all rolled in to one…with stops in North Carolina, Atlanta’s World of Coca Cola, Florida’s Kennedy Space Center, and so much more.

Not necessarily the cross-country road trip I imagined, but we were still going on a road trip has been on my bucket list for ages. I had hoped to do a cross-country road trip…perhaps in an RV…to the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and Mount Rushmore, but school, swim team schedules, volleyball tournaments, college, and of course money meant we didn’t stray far from the East coast. Except for two trips to California, we’ve mainly vacationed to Florida (twice), Williamsburg (VA, three times), Niagara Falls (the Canadian side, once), and Pennsylvania (many times). I’ve visited Minnesota, North Carolina, Texas, and South Carolina without the kids. My husband has spent a few days in Las Vegas. Even with these road trips, the vast majority of the United States is uncharted territory for my family.

CollegeTourCation World of Coca Cola Vault Atlanta Georgia

Will we find the secret recipe for Coca Cola in the vault?

Sightseeing at the World of Coca Cola

A trip out West wasn’t in the cards this year. Not enough vacation time. That didn’t stop us from doing an Epic Road Trip! After extensive planning in a very short time frame–we thrive on last minute planning–the Epic Road. This Epic Road Trip combined two trips…a tour of colleges in the South with a family vacation to the South to one of our favorite locations, the World of Coca Cola. This Epic Road Trip, dubbed the #CollegeTourCation, saw the 5 of us driving over 2,500 miles…in an 8-day period…crammed in a 9-year-old minivan…packed to the rafters with suitcases, backpacks, blankets, drinks, snacks, towels, and sunscreen (2006 Toyota Sienna…you did not let us down!)…staying at 7 hotels…eating countless free hotel breakfast buffets…and stopping at more restaurants, fast food places, and pizza joints than I care to count…touring 6 colleges…visiting 5 tourist spots…the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex was a huge hit with all of us! Phew! Writing everything down tires me out!

CollegeTourCation World of Coca Cola 4D Movie

Ready for the 4D movie — In Search of the Secret Formula — at the World of Coca Cola

What You Need To Know About the World of Coca Cola

  • The World of Coca Cola opens daily at 10 a.m. Last ticket is sold at 5 p.m. each day.
  • General admission tickets are $16 for Adults (13-64), $14 Seniors (65+), $12 Youth (3-12), and Toddlers (0-2) are free.
  • Admission tickets include access to all exhibits, the 4D movie, and the Taste It! area.
  • The World of Coca Cola is located at 121 Baker Street, NW, Atlanta, GA, next to the Georgia Aquarium and close to Centennial Olympic Park.
  • Parking is available at the parking garage adjacent to the World of Coca Cola at 178 Ivan Allen Jr. Blvd., Atlanta, GA.
  • Admission to the World of Coca Cola includes the following exhibits: Vault of the Secret Formula, Milestones of Refreshment, Bottle Works, Pop Culture Gallery, photo ops with the Coca Cola Bear, the 4-D theater, and Taste It! area,
  • Plan to spend at least 3-4 hours at the World of Coca Cola.
2015 CollegeTourCation World of Coca Cola Italy Beverly

Sampling drinks from around the world…like the interesting tasting Beverly from Italy…in the vast Taste It! room at the World of Coca Cola.

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