Guide to Finding the Perfect Gifts at Atlanta’s Attractions

By Rachel Griner

Published December 6, 2023
Last Updated December 7, 2023

The gift-giving season is in full swing. Here are ideas to spoil family and friends from November right through to Valentine’s Day from the gift shops located inside some of our top attractions.  

Atlanta Botanical Garden

After strolling through the garden, stop in at the gift shop, which is full of  all things horticultural. There are candles, garden ornaments and throw pillows guaranteed to add a touch of whimsy to any home. For the hostess on your list, consider floral pitchers and platters, guaranteed to make any garden party pop. Pick up a beautiful copy of “Atlanta’s Urban Oasis: the Atlanta Botanical Garden,” tracing the garden’s history and exhibitions with beautiful images.

Atlanta History Center

Atlanta History Center has an incredible museum store with an extensive book selection highlighting regional history. Peek at the evolution of the city in photographs in “Atlanta: Then & Now,” and work up an appetite thumbing through “My America: Recipes From A Young Black Chef” by Kwame Onwuachi and Joshua David Stein. The Cyclorama Puzzle captures the Atlanta History Center’s famed exhibit – a 132-year-old painting of the Battle of Atlanta. There’s also a delightfully punny collection of merchandise, like the “Busy Making History” mugs.

Center for Puppetry Arts

Find that perfect gift for a child or a child at heart with items such as Sesame Street shirts, puzzles and books. Grab a few collectible figures that are featured in the center’s Worlds of Puppetry Museum and find craft kits. Unique paper dolls, videos, retro mugs and metal lunch boxes will delight the pop culture collector on your list, and, of course, there are plenty of plush puppets to take home. 

Children’s Museum of Atlanta

The Museum Store at Children’s Museum of Atlanta has all sorts of educational toys bound to spark interest in your smallest gift recipient. Check out plush forest creature puppets and delve into a wide variety of interactive books, puzzles and building toys. Need a chameleon, coloring book or a selection of magnetic letters and numbers for the fridge? We bet you’ll find the perfect ones here. 

Fernbank Museum of Natural History

The Museum Store is populated with prehistoric gifts, ranging from dig kits to dinosaur shirts, jewelry and figurines. Find science kits to keep the budding archeologist busy and discover geodes and toys. For the dino lover, you’ll need a triceratops tie or the Tacosaurus Rex taco holder, a must-have for any holiday gathering or Taco Tuesday.  

Georgia Aquarium

If there’s a sea creature stuffie out there, the Georgia Aquarium gift shop likely has it. Find a new best friend for the littles and view the unique selection of aquatic jewelry. Georgia Aquarium ornaments will commemorate your trip for years to come, and a selection of hoodies, shirts, ocean toys and tumblers are also available.

High Museum of Art

A perfect gift for the art history buff on your list might be “100 Years, 100 Artworks,” which traces the history of modern and contemporary art via one masterpiece per year. Trivia lovers would enjoy The Art Game, which teaches fun facts about what art has been the most influential, shocking and expensive. Quirky friends will like “Artsy Cats: a 500-Piece Puzzle” with cats posed in the works of famous artists – think Frida Catlo and Vincent VanCat. In the jewelry department, the High has commissioned a necklace based on the museum’s Renzo Piano addition. Friends who appreciate architecture could go for the Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired earrings by David Howell & Co. 

Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum

Stop in at the Carter Library’s shop for history-themed items such as a Carter Campaign coffee mug and bistro mugs with the famous Jimmy Carter signature. To make sure your recipient is on time, the Jimmy Carter Captain Clock might be in order, and check out the Carter signature backpack, children’s books, an Air Force One model and even a Jimmy Carter baseball. 

Museum of Design Atlanta

Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA) is the only museum in the Southeast dedicated exclusively to the study and celebration of design, and the MODA gift shop has a carefully curated selection of high-quality design gifts. Young ones can build their dreams in the Wooden Treehouse Dollhouse – a 24-inch tall tree house designed to be assembled in multiple ways. The book “Eames: Beautiful Details,” celebrates the designers Charles and Ray Eames. The soft, woven Lisa Congdon Blanket featuring one of her signature compositions of stacked shapes made out of recycled yarn. 

National Center for Civil and Human Rights

Find a T-shirt with the center’s iconic mural designed by Paula Scher, as well as shirts with the message “Women’s Rights Are Human Rights.” Grab totes with inspirational messages such as “Reflect, Inspire, Transform” and “I Am A Man.” Kids on your list could appreciate the  Great African Americans knowledge cards, a Word Girl notebook or The Universal Declaration of Human Rights journal. The 100-piece puzzle of the Scher mural, featuring 20th century protest posters, will keep family members entertained. 

World of Coca-Cola

Stop into The Coca-Cola Store to shop for holiday gifts and stocking stuffers. Classic enthusiasts will love the wall-mount bottle openers and a retro-looking ice chest. Bottle Evolution tin signs capture the image and design of each style of the Coca-Cola bottle since 1886. Two bold choices are a pair of big, fluffy polar bear paw slippers and brightly colored Fanta PJs or boxer shorts in purple and orange. Polar bear devotees will appreciate the super soft six-inch toy that comes wearing a variety of styles from the classic scarf and Coca-Cola sweater to hoodies, rugbies and even a Hawaiian shirt.

Do a little more shopping around Atlanta’s neighborhoods.