Augusta Hospitality

Once a year, during the first full week of April, the eyes of the world are focused on Augusta as the world’s greatest golfers gather at the Augusta National Golf Club for the Masters Tournament. Bobby Jones built the Augusta National Golf Club and hosted its First Invitational Tournament in 1934.

Built along the banks of the Savannah River on the Georgia-South Carolina border, Augusta is the oldest and second largest city in Georgia. Augusta is approximately 150 miles east of Atlanta on Interstate 20 in east central Georgia, just two and a half hours from the beach and the mountains.

Augusta has been rated as the second best place to live in Georgia, and 111th in the nation. (Places Rated Almanac). Augusta was named the nation’s most affordable housing market in 2007 by a national publisher of business journals that had analyzed income and housing price data for 95 metro areas larger than 500,000 people. The Wall Street Journal published a story in 2006 about how the Augusta area's high quality-of-life and low costs made it an under-the-radar draw for retirees.

Augusta is home to the United States Army Signal Center Fort Gordon, the state’s Medical College and Dental School as well as Augusta State University. The city is also recognized for its state-of-the-art medical facilities and growing business and manufacturing sectors.

Augusta was once the capital of Georgia and has a large number of historically significant homes and facilities. The Cotton Exchange, established in 1872, supplied local businessmen with cattle and grain quotations from Chicago, stock averages from New York and daily market prices for cotton.

In addition, Augusta is home to Woodrow Wilson's (28th president of the United States) childhood home; the Ezekiel Harris House; George Walton’s (signer of the Declaration of Independence) home and many more historical places of interest.

Augusta’s Springfield Baptist Church is the oldest independently formed African-American congregation still meeting on its original site. It is also where Morehouse College was founded. The Georgia Republican Party and the Southern Baptist Convention were both started in Augusta. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, built in 1749, is the third oldest Episcopal Church in Georgia.

Augusta was the childhood home of the late James Brown, and is the birthplace of Amy Grant, Laurence Fishburne, Jessye Norman, Terri Gibbs, Danny Glover, Joe Penney, boxer Ray Mercer, novelist Frank Yerby, professional wrestler Hulk Hogan and pro golfer Larry Mize. Ty Cobb, a great baseball player of his time, also made his home in Augusta.

Augusta reflects the historic charm of the classic South with its tree-lined streets and majestic antebellum mansions. There are dozens of shops and restaurants, cultural and historic attractions in Augusta.

With an average temperature of 62.7 degrees, Augustans spend much of the year outside playing golf and taking advantage of many parks and recreational facilities.