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Chattanooga Facts
Population: 155,544
Elevation: 685 feet above sea level
Land Area: 135.2 miles
Location: Southeast corner of Tennessee
Time Zone: Eastern Time Zone
When To Go:
Visitors can take full advantage of the mild climate in Chattanooga, with its warm summers and mild winters, by spending a lot of time outdoors. While March is the wettest month, that rain is also responsible for over 200 species of spring flowers. October is delightfully dry, cool and richly colored. The hills surrounding Chattanooga entice walkers and hikers to explore their vivid foliage. Extreme cold is rare and with an average of over 200 frost-free days and minimal snowfall, outdoor activities thrive year-round. December is mild enough to celebrate the Holidays on the river, when dozens of boats are brightly decorated. July and August are warm, but daily average highs stay below ninety degrees. The air currents generated by the climate and the surrounding mountains, make Chattanooga a yearlong destination.
National Holidays:
New Year's Day Jan. 1
Martin Luther King, Jr., Day 3rd Mon. in Jan.
President's Day 3rd Mon. in Feb.
Memorial Day last Mon. in May
Independence Day July 4
Labor Day 1st Mon. in Sept.
Thanksgiving Day 4th Thurs. in Nov.
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day Dec. 24 and 25
New Year's Eve Dec. 31
Nearest Cities:
Nearest city with pop. 200,000+: Atlanta, GA (106.9 miles).
Nearest city with pop. 1,000,000+: Chicago, IL (498.3 miles).
Nearest cities: Ridgeside, TN (1.5 miles), East Ridge, TN (3.9 miles), Lakeview, GA (4.7 miles), Red Bank, TN (4.9 miles), Rossville, GA (5.0 miles), Lookout Mountain, TN (6.7 miles), Fort Oglethorpe, GA (7.1 miles), Lookout Mountain, GA (7.7 miles).
Getting There
By Plane
Major airlines serve the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (tel. 423-855-2200) from Atlanta, Cincinnati, Memphis, and Charlotte. To reach the city center, take Highway 153 south to I-75, and then go west on I-24. Exits 1A, 1B, and 1C all get you downtown.
By Car
Major routes into Chattanooga are I-75 from the north (Knoxville) and south (Atlanta), I-24 from the northwest (Nashville), and I-59 from the southwest (Birmingham, AL).
Visitor Information
Start off your visit at the Chattanooga Visitors Center, 2 Broad St. (tel. 800-322-3344 or 423-756-8687), open daily from 8:30am to 5:30pm, where you can pick up some helpful brochures and maps. Here you can buy discount ticket packages, which get you into several of Chattanooga's most popular attractions. A free electric shuttle from the visitor center makes touring downtown attractions a snap.
Transportation
Chattanooga sits at the intersection of Interstates 75, 24, and 59.
The Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (423-855-2200) serves the area with the following airlines: US Airways Express, Northwest, Airlink, American Eagle, Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA)
The Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) provides regularly scheduled bus transportation for the area.
CARTA also provides an electric shuttle system that operates downtown between the Chattanooga Choo Choo/Holiday Inn at Shuttle Park South and the Tennessee Aquarium at Shuttle Park North.
Greyhound/Trailways Bus Lines -- 423-892-1277.
Claims to Fame
Chattanooga has the world's longest pedestrian bridge -- The Walnut Street Bridge.
Chattanooga has the nation's first and largest military park -- Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park.
Chattanooga has the world's steepest passenger railway line -- The Lookout Mountain Incline Railway.
Chattanooga has the world's largest freshwater aquarium -- The Tennessee Aquarium.
Chattanooga has the South's largest collection of American art -- The Hunter Museum of Art.
More than 300 kinds of trees and 900 varieties of wildflowers grow in the Chattanooga area, more than anywhere on earth, except central China.
The Chattanooga Choo Choo/Holiday Inn's lobby, a former railroad terminal, contains the largest freestanding brick dome in the world. The interior height of the dome is 85 feet.
The deepest commercial caverns in the United States are located on Lookout Mountain and are over 1,000 feet underground -- Ruby Falls.
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