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A guide to fun things to do in Atlanta this weekend.

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Halloween is on Saturday, so you'll have the entire weekend to get your fill of haunted houses, spooky spots and everything in between. 

Netherworld: Tickets are available to check out the legendary attraction's haunted house and 2026 Lights On Tour through Nov. 1, with its final weekend run Nov. 6-7.

The Cabrera Family Haunted House, as this year is the family's final year hosting. (through Sat.)

Thriller Escape (through Sun. and Nov. 6-7)

Nightmares Gate Haunted House (through Sun.)

Other weekend events happening around Atlanta

👻 Fright Night at Fernbank blends Halloween with an exhibit about elephants. (Fri.)

🎃 Performance Jam ATL presents an immersive Halloween show at Pratt Pullman Yards. (through Fri.)

🎶 Wontanara Festival celebrates west African music, dance, and heritage with artist exhibits, workshops, drum and dance classes, a marketplace, and a concert. (Fri.-Sun.)

🐶 Show off your pet's costumes in the inaugural Howl-O-Ween Pup Parade & Beltline Crawl along the Eastside Trail (Sat.)

🏈 The UGA Bulldogs and Florida Gators play the Atlanta Gridiron Classic at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. (Sat.)

🪘Learn about Indigenous cultures at the four-day Native American Festival and Pow Wow. (through Sun.)

🎉 Oakland Cemetery celebrates Día de Muertos (Spanish for Day of the Dead), a Mexican holiday period where friends and family pay respects to loved ones who've passed away. (Sun.)

⚽️ Atlanta United hosts Toronto at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. (Sun.)

Atlanta weekender: Haunted houses, UGA-Florida, Atlanta United

Halloween is on Saturday, but there's plenty of other things to do around Atlanta this weekend.

Monstrous figure in chainmail armor with a skeletal face and glowing white eyes, hooded and gripping a large weapon, lit by blue-green stage lights.

Netherworld is open for all Halloween lovers and Haunted House snobs. Photo: Courtesy of Netherworld.

Halloween is on Saturday, so you&#x27;ll have the entire weekend to get your fill of haunted houses, spooky spots and everything in between. Here are a few spots to consider: <ul><li><a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Netherworld" data-vars-click-url="https://www.fearworld.com/" data-vars-content-id="34f67615-bd4a-4042-8b8f-2b2a466c6467" data-vars-headline="Atlanta weekender: Haunted houses, UGA-Florida, Atlanta United" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.fearworld.com/" target="_blank">Netherworld</a>: Tickets are available <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="to check out" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2026/09/18/netherworld-haunted-house-stone-mountain-halloween-2026" data-vars-content-id="34f67615-bd4a-4042-8b8f-2b2a466c6467" data-vars-headline="Atlanta weekender: Haunted houses, UGA-Florida, Atlanta United" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2026/09/18/netherworld-haunted-house-stone-mountain-halloween-2026" target="_self">to check out</a> the legendary attraction&#x27;s haunted house and 2026 Lights On Tour through Nov. 1, with its final weekend run Nov. 6-7.</li></ul>

Things to Do

The Atlanta restaurant scene is always changing. Here are some of the latest headlines that you may have missed. 

Star Community Bar announced it will close after 35 years in Little 5 Points. According to the AJC, which reported the news first, Red Light Café will relocate from Amsterdam Walk to the space Star Bar will vacate. 

The restaurant said on its website Red Life Café signed an agreement to take over the space, and the deal is expected to close in January.

"The raw, rebellious spirit stays," Star Community Bar said. "The Little Vinyl Lounge stays. Elvis stays. Red Light is bringing its jazz, burlesque, improv and fellow weirdos along to help keep Little Five weird."

Star Bar's last day is Dec. 31, AJC reports.

"We're incredibly excited about what's ahead and honored to help carry forward 35 years of Star Bar history," Red Life Café said on Instagram.

Mastro's Ocean Club, an upscale steakhouse and seafood restaurant, will open Friday, Nov. 6 on the ground floor at The CTR in Downtown, Atlanta magazine reports.

According to its website, Mastro's diners will have their pick of "expertly prepared USDA Prime steaks, fresh seafood, signature seafood towers, sushi, handcrafted cocktails, and an award-winning wine list."

Mastro's opening follows The CTR's announcement that Live-K Karaoke signed a lease to open in the space formerly home to Dantana's. 

CP Group, which owns the former CNN Center where The CTR is located, said Live K Atlanta is expected to open in fall 2027.  

In Sandy Springs, two restaurants have also signed leases to open in a new mixed-use development under construction near City Springs. 

Salted Melon and Chastain Creamery will open at Hillcrest, the 8.1-acre redevelopment under construction at the corner of Mt. Vernon Highway and Sandy Springs Circle.

Zoom in: This will be Salted Melon's second Atlanta location. The Charlotte, N.C.-based eatery, which serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, opened its first Atlanta location in Buckhead earlier this year.

Chastain Creamery, which is also based in Buckhead, will offer dozens of handcrafted ice cream flavors at its second location. 

Hillcrest, which will feature 362 apartments, 30 for-rent townhomes and more than 19,000 square feet of retail space, is set to open in summer 2027.

Atlanta restaurant shake-up: Star Bar to close, Mastro's set to open

A new steakhouse will open at The CTR in Downtown, while Salted Melon and Chastain Creamery will expand to Sandy Springs.

Juicy steak with herb butter on a dark slate board, pink interior visible; bright asparagus on a black plate in the background, plus a crystal whiskey glass with ice and a gold fork.

Mastro's Ocean Club's winter frost Wagyu ribeye with asparagus and an Old Fashioned. Photo: Courtesy of Mastro's Restaurants

The Atlanta restaurant scene is always changing. Here are some of the latest headlines that you may have missed. <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Star Community Bar" data-vars-click-url="https://www.starbaratl.bar/" data-vars-content-id="53879453-4ea4-4fc7-95f4-4c52c263e110" data-vars-headline="Atlanta restaurant shake-up: Star Bar to close, Mastro&#x27;s set to open" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.starbaratl.bar/" target="_blank">Star Community Bar</a> announced it will close after 35 years in Little 5 Points. According to the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="AJC" data-vars-click-url="https://www.ajc.com/arts-entertainment/2026/10/star-bar-atlanta-closing-red-light-cafe-opening/https://www.ajc.com/arts-entertainment/2026/10/star-bar-atlanta-closing-red-light-cafe-opening/" data-vars-content-id="53879453-4ea4-4fc7-95f4-4c52c263e110" data-vars-headline="Atlanta restaurant shake-up: Star Bar to close, Mastro&#x27;s set to open" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.ajc.com/arts-entertainment/2026/10/star-bar-atlanta-closing-red-light-cafe-opening/https://www.ajc.com/arts-entertainment/2026/10/star-bar-atlanta-closing-red-light-cafe-opening/" target="_blank">AJC</a>, which reported the news first, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Red Light Café" data-vars-click-url="https://redlightcafe.com/" data-vars-content-id="53879453-4ea4-4fc7-95f4-4c52c263e110" data-vars-headline="Atlanta restaurant shake-up: Star Bar to close, Mastro&#x27;s set to open" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://redlightcafe.com/" target="_blank">Red Light Café</a> will relocate from Amsterdam Walk to the space Star Bar will vacate.

Food and Drink

The slim majority Republicans held on the Cobb County Board of Education was wiped out Tuesday when voters ousted a longtime GOP member.

Why it matters: Michael Garza's victory gives Democrats a 4-3 majority and ends the GOP's last foothold in Cobb County.

The latest: Garza, whose children attend Cobb County schools, defeated incumbent David Chastain with 55% of the vote. He told Axios he approached his campaign with the message that "this is bigger than just one race and bigger than just one person."

He said people have long wanted change for various reasons, ranging from reports of students experiencing racism and antisemitism in the classroom to parents' frustration that their children with disabilities were not getting the services they needed.

"To know that those people now see hope that we're going to address those issues and have those honest conversations about really what matters to their families and what matters in our classrooms just means everything to me," he said.

What they're saying: Heather Tolley-Bauer is a co-founder of grassroots organization Watching the Funds – Cobb, which for the last five years has been documenting and criticizing spending choices approved by the board.

Tolley-Bauer told Axios she hopes the Democratic-led board will initiate a forensic audit of Cobb County School District spending, paying particular attention to the contracts approved with Servius and Vapor Wake.

Flashback: Partisan tensions on the Cobb County School Board began in 2019 when two Democrats, Charisse Davis and Jaha Howard, took office after ousting longtime Republican incumbents.

In 2019, the GOP majority voted to scrap a portion of the meeting where they could talk freely about anything, due to concerns that some of the topics were "political."

They also implemented a rule that required every board member to have at least three of their colleagues support an initiative before it could be placed on the agenda.

This effectively undermined the Democratic members because they needed two of their colleagues and at least one GOP member to agree.

Friction point: The board's slim GOP majority also faced criticism for how it interacted with the public.

In 2021, the GOP-led board limited how many people could speak during public comment and how long they could speak.

In 2022, the board started requiring people to sign up in person if they wanted to speak. In 2023, it mandated that speakers line up outdoors — rather than inside the lobby — if they wanted to speak.

Last year, the GOP members approved a controversial policy that ended broadcasting the public comment portion of their meetings.

The intrigue: Superintendent Chris Ragsdale, the longest-serving superintendent in metro Atlanta, has faced mounting pushback about public comments he's made about parents and stakeholders who've been critical of district operations.

Jeff Hubbard, president of the Cobb County Association of Educators, told WSB in August that more than 100 educators were questioned after walking out during Ragsdale's controversial speech ahead of the new school year.

What's next: Garza said he wants to explore whether Ragsdale is the right person to continue leading Georgia's second-largest school district. 

The bottom line: Tolley-Bauer told Axios she hopes Ragsdale and the three remaining Republican board members understand that "the people have spoken, and that what we want is clear." 

"It is collaboration, it is civility, it is respect, it is cooperation, and it is fiscal responsibility," she said.

Democrats win control of GOP-led Cobb school board

Michael Garza's victory gives Democrats a 4-3 majority and ends the GOP's last foothold in Cobb County.

Illustration of an apple with an I Voted sticker.

The slim majority Republicans held on the Cobb County Board of Education was wiped out Tuesday when voters ousted a longtime GOP member.Why it matters: Michael Garza&#x27;s victory gives Democrats a 4-3 majority and ends the GOP&#x27;s last foothold in Cobb County.

Education

Politics

In 2021, Keisha Lance Bottoms chose not to serve a second term as Atlanta's mayor amid growing voter discontent. 

Five years later, Bottoms stunned the nation and made history, becoming Georgia's first Black woman governor by defeating Republican challenger Rick Jackson with 54% of the vote.

Why it matters: Following Stacey Abrams' 2018 playbook of campaigning heavily in middle and south Georgia counties and targeting rural and Black voters was crucial in propelling Bottoms to the governor's mansion.

What they're saying: Charles Bullock, a political scientist at the University of Georgia and coauthor of "The Changing Political South," told Axios Tuesday's results were surprising.

While Democrats felt confident about a win by U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff win and were hopeful for a Bottoms victory, they most likely didn't have sweeping all statewide constitutional offices on their bingo card.

Flashback: Republicans began chipping away at Democratic control of statewide offices in 2002 when Sonny Perdue defeated incumbent Gov. Roy Barnes to become the Georgia's first GOP governor in more than 100 years.

That same year, Saxby Chambliss defeated incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Max Cleland. 

Republicans went on to flip other constitutional offices over the years, with the final pickups happening in 2010, when the GOP won the attorney general, agriculture commissioner and labor commissioner seats, and the state schools superintendent post in 2014.

Zoom in: Bullock said the electorate in the 2026 midterms was different from two or even four years ago. Georgia's Black voter turnout was "really strong," and Hispanic voters also leaned Democratic.

He also said younger people showed up at the ballot box during the early voting period.

What they did: The Bottoms campaign held rallies and and mobilized voters across rural counties in middle and south Georgia. 

It's the same blueprint that catapulted Abrams onto the national stage and put her within 54,000 votes of winning the gubernatorial race against Brian Kemp in 2018.

U.S. Rep. Everton Blair (D-Ga.) who is serving out the unexpired term of David Scott, told Abrams at a Covington event on Sunday that Democrats' wins "are because of the groundwork that you put in and countless hours supporting Democrats like me up and down the ballot." 

The intrigue: Fewer people voted for Bottoms than they did for Ossoff and nearly all Democrats running for statewide office, suggesting some voters either chose not to vote in the governor's race or supported Jackson.

Stunning stat: Jackson spent more than $220 million of his own fortune in his campaign to become Georgia's next governor, the AJC reports.

Bullock said Jackson's advertising that criticized Bottoms' tenure as mayor may have turned off some voters, particularly those in metro Atlanta.

But many others, he said, may not have been in tune with what was happening in the city or may not have lived in the state during that time.

The big picture: Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, who succeeded Bottoms, said during Ossoff's watch party that the Democratic wins across Georgia show "the South got something to say," a reference to André 3000's declaration about the future of hip-hop at the 1995 Source Awards.

What happened on the Republican side? Bullock said numbers show that Republican voters in GOP-dominated counties "were not as enthusiastic as Democrats to make the commitment to get to the polls." 

Jordan Fuchs, a Republican consultant who works in the secretary of state's office, said voters "sent a clear message that they want leaders who care about their gas and groceries and not ballrooms and reflecting pools."

She told Axios Tuesday's election was a "100% a referendum on Trump" but added that the Republican Party in Georgia has been dysfunctional over the years, to the point where some supporters, specifically metro Atlanta women, felt like they've been purged from the party.

State of play: Bottoms won in part because she appealed not only to her base but to white women in the region, Fuchs said. 

Republican voters most likely sat out this election due to their dissatisfaction over the economy and Trump's policy decisions. 

"The momentum clearly was on the Democratic side," she said.

What's next: The Georgia GOP said in a statement it will focus on welcoming new voices, investing in local chapters and developing "leaders who understand that public service starts with showing up and listening."

Fuchs' advice for the party: Stop trying to relitigate the 2020 election. 

"It's a fundamental misunderstanding of what is going on around us," she said. "Voters don't want to talk about 2020." 

How Keisha Lance Bottoms won the governor's race

Despite attacks on her mayoral record, Bottoms won 54% of the vote against Republican Rick Jackson.

A woman in a hot pink suit stands at a glass podium and speaks into the microphone. A sign that reads " keisha lance bottoms governor" is seen in the background.  

Georgia Gov.-elect Keisha Lance Bottoms speaks during an election night watch party at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis. Photo: Megan Varner/Getty Images

In 2021, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Keisha Lance Bottoms" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2026/11/04/georgia-governor-election-results-bottoms-jackson" data-vars-content-id="c4dd29e0-4933-447b-bae6-425b68b1d48e" data-vars-headline="How Keisha Lance Bottoms won the governor&#x27;s race" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2026/11/04/georgia-governor-election-results-bottoms-jackson" target="_self">Keisha Lance Bottoms</a> chose not to serve a second term as Atlanta&#x27;s mayor amid growing voter discontent. <ul><li>Five years later, Bottoms stunned the nation and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="made history" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2026/11/04/2026-midterm-elections-american-politics" data-vars-content-id="c4dd29e0-4933-447b-bae6-425b68b1d48e" data-vars-headline="How Keisha Lance Bottoms won the governor&#x27;s race" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2026/11/04/2026-midterm-elections-american-politics" target="_self">made history</a>, becoming Georgia&#x27;s first Black woman governor by defeating Republican challenger Rick Jackson with 54% of the vote.</li></ul>

Republicans and Democrats are pulling out their respective heavyweights to galvanize supporters as Georgia enters the last day of early voting. 

Why it matters: While Georgians have already shattered early voting records for midterms, candidates will spend the final days before the election crisscrossing the state to win over voters.

As of Thursday afternoon, more than 2.3 million ballots had been cast early and in person across Georgia, surpassing the 2.28 million who voted early in 2022, according to the Secretary of State Election Data Hub.

Driving the news: Former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Kamala Harris were both in Georgia this week as part of the Democratic Party's efforts to mobilize its base.

Obama headlined a rally for Sen. Jon Ossoff and gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms at the Arena at Southlake, in deep-blue Clayton County, a majority-Black county just south of Atlanta and home to the world's busiest airport.

Harris joined Ossoff on Thursday at Clark Atlanta University, one of Atlanta's historically Black colleges and universities. 

Zoom in: The audience at the 8,000-seat arena, which quickly reached capacity, was treated to a performance by the CAU's Mighty Marching Panthers.

R&B artist Janelle Monae performed a few songs, including her anthem "Electric Lady" and her rendition of "Let's Go Crazy" by Prince and The Revolution.

Bottoms and Ossoff spoke before Obama took the stage to a very energetic crowd. 

What they're saying: Most of Obama's comments centered on President Trump and his handling of the war in Iran (a conflict Obama said "nobody asked for and nobody voted for") and Trump's response to the increased price of gas, food and other necessities and utility bills.

He also criticized Trump's attention to the construction projects at the White House and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's focus on the testosterone levels of male U.S. troops.

"These are not serious people, and we are all paying the price for their lack of seriousness," Obama said.

He also mocked the Trump's administration for its response to his jab likening the president's decorations to if  "Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory."

"They don't have solutions to actual problems, so they'd rather have the media and you talking about the Cheesecake Factory," the president said.

The other side: Garrison Douglas, spokesperson for Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson, told the AJC in a statement that Obama was a "washed up" president who can't "cover up the fact that Keisha Lance Bottoms is a failed mayor who abandoned her city after making it less affordable and less safe."

Jackson on Wednesday campaigned in southeast Georgia with current Gov. Brian Kemp and former Gov. Sonny Perdue.

"I believe in a Georgia where you keep more of what you earn, schools are strong, kids are reading, communities are safe, police are supported, and no one is left behind," he said in a post on X. "That's building on Governor Kemp's legacy."

What we're watching: How long the lines on Election Day will be. 

Georgia's early voting surge fuels final campaign push

Obama and Harris rallied Democrats while Kemp and Perdue hit the trail for GOP gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson.

A man wearing a gray shirt speaks into the microphone at a podium with a sign that reads "united for Georgia." A larger "United for Georgia" signs is in the background, with the U.S. flag on the left and the Georgia state flag on the right. 

Former President Barack Obama speaks as U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Keisha Lance Bottoms listen onstage. Photo: Courtesy of Megan Varner/Getty Images

Republicans and Democrats are pulling out their respective heavyweights to galvanize supporters as Georgia enters the last day of early voting. Why it matters: While Georgians have already <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="shattered" data-vars-click-url="https://x.com/GabrielSterling/status/2115765220740153724" data-vars-content-id="d51f71c5-2d79-4ce0-b750-fd40f9b23298" data-vars-headline="Georgia&#x27;s early voting surge fuels final campaign push" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://x.com/GabrielSterling/status/2115765220740153724" target="_blank">shattered</a> early voting records for midterms, candidates will spend the final days before the election crisscrossing the state to win over voters.

Kristal Dixon

Featured stories

Democrats win control of GOP-led Cobb school board

How Keisha Lance Bottoms won the governor's race

Jon Ossoff defeats Mike Collins in highly contested Senate race

Atlanta restaurant shake-up: Star Bar to close, Mastro's set to open

Georgia's early voting surge fuels final campaign push