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Lying at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains on the Oconee River, this historic Georgia city is a lively college town with one of the country’s top music scenes. Make yourself at home in our Holiday Inn Express® Athens hotels, and discover “the Liverpool of the South.”
When you stay at one of our Athens hotels, you’ll be close to white-columned antebellum homes and the University of Georgia campus. The country’s first state college, UG was chartered in 1785. Stroll the oak-shaded pathways of the Old North Campus to see the city’s oldest building, Old College, built in 1806. It doesn’t cost a dime to visit the perfumed gardens at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia. Bike paths thread through hardwood forests along the North Oconee River Greenway, also free. Reopening in early 2011 after a major expansion is the Georgia Museum of Art, with a choice collection of American art. Pick up a free brochure for one of the city’s self-guided walking tours at the Athens Welcome Center.
Live music streams out of clubs and cafes ringing the University of Georgia campus. Pick up the free self-guided Athens Music History Walking Tour at the Athens Welcome Center. Follow the trail of downtown clubs, record shops and even pizza joints where native Athens bands like R.E.M. and the B-52s spent their formative years. Our hotels in Athens are also close to the city’s wide range of restaurants, from award-winning international eateries to modest soul-food cafes like Weaver D’s Delicious Fine Foods—whose sign “Automatic for the People” was the title of R.E.M.’s 1992 album.
Explore this quintessential Southern college town when you stay in our Athens hotels, where you can take advantage of the university’s free lectures and public events all year-round. + View More - View Less