En route from Atlanta, Georgia we were directed by our family to savor this little piece of Bavarian bliss. Completely unaware of its existence we quietly followed google aunty’s directions without high expectations and boy were we surprised! At less than two hours distance from Atlanta, is this quaint, beautiful, little township that whisks you to Germany without the requirement of a passport or a visa.

Formerly a logging town that was in decline, the city resurrected itself by becoming a replica of a Bavarian alpine town, in the Appalachians instead of the Alps.^[1] This by far is one of the cutest towns you will ever visit, a completely different experience from the traditional American towns usually seen on the east coast.

With a small population of less than 1,000 residents, Helen, Georgia is an excellent tourist destination with lovely mom and pop shops, famous festivals as well as classic South-German architecture and design throughout the town.

The town has more than 200 specialty and import shops offering everything from candle making and glass blowing to cuckoo clocks and quilts. Dining options range from traditional German fare to traditional Southern.^[2] The town offers carriage tours of the main street, which is the perfect way to soak in the charisma of the scenery.

When we visited live music filled the ambience with a fun vibe that matched perfectly with the long list of german beers offered by the pubs here.

You can rent a mountain cabin with a hot tub, tube the Chattahoochee River, enjoy beautiful hiking trails, or shop for collectibles. We recommend the tubing and mini golf experience.

Many people must know of Helen for the famous Oktoberfest held in the autumn months, now that we know of this amazing escape it’s on our bucket list for future 😛 The annual hot air ballon race held the first weekend of June probably attracts the most number of visitors into town. Be it any time of the year this town has something special to offer and it is worth a detour on your destinations.

One of the best stop’s we made was at Steve’s old time photos, a decently priced photoshop. There, two sweet women helped us dress up and clicked our old time pictures that crystallized this day for us forever.

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One popular shop that is every child’s dream, a chocolate candy paradise called the Hansel and Gretel candy kitchen. We filled our bellies and bags with these drops of heaven and headed home after spending the afternoon in authentic German style!

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helen,_Georgia

[2] http://www.exploregeorgia.org/city/helen