The Tour
Chartered in 1785, the University of Georgia was the first state-chartered public university in the nation, and its historic North Campus remains one of the loveliest college greens in the South. This walk starts beneath the iron Arch on Broad Street and threads past the school's oldest buildings, a Greek Revival chapel, and the hedges of Sanford Stadium.
University of Georgia Campus Tour is a self-guided walking tour of Athens, built around its campus side. It's one of 7 Georgia Roam tours in Athens — each a different route through the city, on your own schedule.
The walk covers 8 stops over about 1.2 miles and roughly 1 hour 15 min, entirely at your own pace. Each stop's story unlocks on your phone the moment you arrive — GPS-triggered, hands-free, no guide and no tour group to keep up with.
What you'll see
This walk covers the oldest part of the first state-chartered university in the country: North Campus, a lawn shaded by old oaks just across Broad Street from downtown Athens, entered through the iron Arch. Some of the brick and stucco buildings around it date to the early 1800s. You'll see Old College, the university's first permanent building, and the columned Chapel, whose bell students still ring after football wins.
The tour covers more than old buildings. You'll hear about the debating societies that have met on campus since the early 1800s and the green where Georgia played the state's first college football game, in 1892. There's also a walled garden that honors the first garden club in the United States, and the library that holds some of Georgia's most important historical documents. The walk also takes in the stadium, where the hedges gave Bulldogs football its most famous phrase.
The route is about 1.2 miles on foot and takes around 75 minutes at an easy pace. Weekday mornings and quiet weekends are the most relaxed times to go. On home football Saturdays, North Campus fills with tailgaters and parking gets scarce. Spring azaleas and fall color make those two seasons especially good. The Georgia Roam app plays each stop's story when you arrive.
Georgia
