Worth a visit because: It has the largest collection of species orchids under glass in the United States.

Description: The Atlanta Botanical Garden's large and diverse collection of orchids includes specimens from Asia, Australia, Central America, Mexico, Ecuador and Madagascar. The plants are displayed in landscaped areas and seasonal displays in three main growing spaces in the 16,000-square-foot Fuqua Orchid Center: The Orchid Atrium, a space for events and changing seasonal displays; the Display House, which bursts with the color of tropical species; and a Tropical High Elevation House, where mist shrouds cloud forest orchids. The garden makes its extensive library available to researchers by appointment and is a leader in orchid conservation efforts, especially with the propagation and re-establishment of the cigar orchid (Cyrtopodium punctatum) in Florida
and the monkey face orchid (Platanthera integrilabia) in Georgia.

Best time to visit: February-April, when the annual Orchid Daze exhibition showcases thousands of orchids in bloom. This late-winter, early-spring time frame also overlaps the March-April Atlanta Blooms festival when several hundreds of thousands of daffodils, tulips and other spring bulbs are in flower.

While there, be sure to see: Canopy Walk, a 300-foot-long elevated walkway 45 feet high through the canopies of some of Atlanta’s oldest hardwoods.