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Watch the sun go down with a microbrew in hand on the outdoor patio at Park Tavern, a wildly popular microbrewery on the edge of Atlanta’s beautiful urban grassland, Piedmont Park, Midtown’s ode to Central Park. It’s packed all day on weekends. Dinner must be in this area as well; it was originally restaurants that lured the Beautiful People back to the city, thanks in part to ONE. midtown kitchen. It’s hidden in a former warehouse – an Atlanta trend that someone should probably cry uncle on soon – on Dutch Valley Rd. A cheaper Midtown option is Tap (located right on Atlanta’s main thoroughfare, Peachtree St), a gastropub serving upscale bar fare to a sultry crowd sauced on microbrews. Parallel to Peachtree St on Juniper St is Cuerno, an excellent Spanish tapas bar that does a wealth of interesting paellas. If you see Atlanta’s finest here pouring liquor into their mouths like they are funneling a beer on Spring Break in Panama City Beach, that’s just a porron, a Spanish wine pitcher used to drink cava (Spanish sparkling wine).

Further north is the notorious Buckhead district, once home to so many bars and clubs, the city of Atlanta had to pull the plug on the party and rezone it residential. Essentially, it shut the bars down and turned Buckhead back into the upscale area it once was. Leading the comeback is Atlanta’s most luxurious hotel (until the next one), Mansion on Peachtree. Opened in 2008, this well-located, lavish hotel near Lenox leaves no stone unturned. Thoughtful local touches like sweet peach tea and candied Georgia pecans served on arrival are just a few of the addictive luxuries here (the recessed TVs “hide” behind paintings).

Rounding back to the east side of the city, there’s Virginia-Highland, a historic district that was always home to Atlanta’s more bohemian, less Brooks Brothers side. Arrive early enough to browse all the kitschy boutiques along N Highland Ave between Ponce de Leon and Morningside Dr, then dive headfirst into the city’s best concentration of bars. Atkins Park is the classic drinking den, but N Highland is lined with old-school taverns, outdoor patios and live music options – a perfect bar-hopping route. On the other side of Ponce is Manuel’s Tavern, which also packs in the hungover set on weekend mornings. Weekend brunch for those that can focus is always at Murphy’s, which is a little classier than Manuel’s and home to scrumptious shrimp and grits and other Southern-leaning breakfast fare.

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“There have been a lot of baseball parks built in that same fashion since, but when it was constructed, Turner Field was certainly an innovative concept – more than just a day at the ballpark. It’s almost an amusement park within the stadium. A great prelude to a game is a meal at The Varsity. Today it’s exactly how it was when I was six years old. One of best chili dogs I’ve ever had.”

David Corbett, Atlanta, GA

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If you dig this area of town, Highland Inn is one of Atlanta’s best-value hotels, walking distance from everything on both sides of Ponce. The area is also home to Atlanta’s only true traveler-friendly budget option, Atlanta International Hostel (though management will hold rooms for international travelers over American ones, so it’s only travel-friendly if you have flown over an ocean to get here. Yes, we’re serious).

Widen the circle out to the east a bit and check out Decatur, once a run-of-the-mill suburb until the vaguely bohemian and vaguely gay communities joined forces in the area to turn its small-time downtown area into a quaint little hipsterati commune. Cute boutiques and simple restaurants and coffeehouses now line Ponce de Leon Ave, including Indigo Girl Emily Salier’s excellent casual Southern Watershed, housed inside a former mechanic’s garage. It’s a favorite with Decatur lesbians, Diana Ross, Peter Gabriel and pretty much anyone in between.

Southwest from Decatur is what is perhaps Atlanta’s neighborhood du moment as well as