Summers in Atlanta are hot and humid with average temperatures falling between 80 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit, although they can be even higher. The warm, temperate weather of "Indian summers" often prevails in September and October and can last until mid-November. Winters are short and usually moderate. The agreeable spring weather of March and April bring out the city's cherry, azalea and dogwood blossoms.

Trade Commission Of Mexico

+1 404 522-5373

+ 1 404 586 8460

+1 770 671-0506

British Consulate General

133 Peachtree Street Northeast, Suite 3400 Atlanta, GA, 303003, Tel.: + 404 954 7700

Canadian Consulate

1175 Peachtree St. NE, 100 Colony Square, Suite 1700, Atlanta, GA, 30361; Tel.: +1 404 532-2000

French Consulate

3475 Piedmont Rd. N.E., Suite 1840, Atlanta, GA, 30305; Tel.: +1 404 364 9780

German Consulate

Marquis Two Tower, 285 Peachtree Center Ave. N.E., Suite 901, Atlanta, GA, 30303; Tel.: +1 404 659-4760

Honorary Irish Consulate, Consul: Thomas R. Williams

3200 Arden Rd. NW Atlanta, Ga 30305; Tel.: +1 404 332-6401, Fax: +1 404 332-6404

Japanese Consulate

3500 Lenox Road Northeast Street 1600, Atlanta, GA, 30326, Tel.: + 1 404 240 4300

Business centers generally provide a range of services that include secretarial, translation/interpretation, and office services, including computer rentals, audio/visual equipment rentals, cellular phone rentals, copy and printing services, and temporary office space and staff. Most large hotels (some of which may be listed here) also have business centers that offer many of the same services that independent centers provide.

3 Dunwoody Park; Tel.: +1 770 393-0520

2600 Century Pkwy NE; Tel.: +1 404 325-4888

3475 Lenox Road, NE; Tel.: +1 404 364 6500

3350 Riverwood Parkway, SE; Tel.: +1 770 240-1400

1201 Peachtree St., NE; Tel.: 1 404 870-9000

1200 Abernathy Road; Tel.: 1 770 551-8100

Americasmart Atlanta

240 Peachtree St. NW; Toll-Free Tel.: 800 285-6278, Tel.:+1 404 220-3000

Cobb Galleria Center

2 Galleria Parkway NW; Tel.: 770 955-8000

Georgia International Convention Center

1902 Sullivan Rd.; Tel.: + 1 770 997 35 66

Georgia World Congress Center

285 International Blvd. NW; Tel.: + 1 404 223 4300

Gwinnett Civic and Cultural Center

400 Sugarloaf Pkwy.; Toll-Free Tel.: +1 800 224-6422, Tel.: +1 770 623-4966

Hartsfield Executive Conference Center

Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport; Toll-Free Tel.: +1 800 713-1359, Tel.: +1 404 761-6116

The Georgia Dome

One Georgia Dome Dr. NW; Tel.: +1 404 233-9200

Atlanta Association of Interpreters and Translators

+1 770 587-4884

Atlantic International Translators

+1 770 350-9050

Berlitz Translation Services

+1 404 261-5062

+1 800 755-5775

IBS Express

Tel.: +1 404 761-8484

Metro Courier

Tel.: 404 875-4830

World Courier

Toll-Free Tel.: +1 800 221-6600, Tel.: +1 770 840-8232

Tel.: +1 800 247-2676

Tel.: +1 800 225-5345

Tel.: + 1 800 247-4747

Tel.: +1 800 742-5877

All upper-range and most medium-priced hotels are equipped with dataports that allow guests to use laptop computers. Many hotels offer business centers equipped with computers and Internet access. Outside hotels, cyber cafes are available including:

Passports valid for at least six months after arrival are required for all. In general, travelers visiting the U.S. are required visas. However, under the Visa Waiver Program, citizens of Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom are allowed to stay for 90 days without a visa. Citizens of Canada and Mexico do not need a visa but must carry proof of citizenship and identity.

Beginning October 26, 2004, all travelers, including children of any age, who want to travel visa-free to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program must have a Machine-readable passport.

Duty-free allowances are 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 2 kilograms of tobacco, 1 liter of alcohol, and gifts worth up to $100. Meat products, seeds, plants, fruits, and hazardous goods are prohibited.

The area codes for Atlanta are 404, 770, and 678. It is necessary to dial the area code and the number in making local calls in Atlanta. There is no toll charge for any of the three local area codes from within the Atlanta calling area.

Emergency police, fire, and ambulance

911

For local calls, dial the seven-digit telephone number. For long-distance calls within the U.S., dial 1, then the three-digit area code, then the seven-digit number. For long-distance calls outside the U.S., first dial 011 and the country code. Four special prefixes, "800," "888," "877," and "900," are not area codes but indicators of special services. "800," "888," and "877" are toll-free calls. The "900" numbers charge you for the call and are often expensive. For collect calls or operator-assisted calls, dial "0" instead of "1". For local directory assistance, dial 411. For long-distance information, dial 1, and then the appropriate area code followed by 555-1212. The most common public phone is the coin-operated type. Telephone-card phones are becoming increasingly common.

There are several cellular service providers in the U.S., including: Verizon Wireless, Cingular, T-Mobile, AT&T Wireless, Nextel, VoiceStream, and Sprint PCS. Mobile phone numbers follow the regular telephone number convention, with the seven-digit telephone number followed by the area code.

If you choose to bring your cellular phone into the U.S., check with your home cellular service provider to establish compatibility of your phone with systems abroad. Rent a locally compatible cellular phone before you arrive to obtain reasonable rates and reliable service.

Foreign currency must be exchanged to U.S. dollars. Money can be exchanged at banks and various foreign-exchange services. Most restaurants, shops, and hotels will take traveler's checks and major credit cards. Travelers can also withdraw cash from ATMs.

The basic unit of U.S. currency is the dollar, which equals 100 cents. Coins are the copper penny (1 cent) and four silver coins: the nickel (5 cents), the dime (10 cents), the quarter (25 cents), and the half-dollar (50 cents). Silver $1 coins and "golden" dollar coins also exist. Paper bills come in denominations of $1, $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100.

Atlanta is in the Eastern time zone (Greenwich Mean Time minus 5 hours). From early April through late October, Georgia switches to daylight-saving time.

Sales tax in Atlanta is 7%. There is no VAT.

110V AC, 60Hz. Plugs are of the flat, two-pin type.

Atlanta can be a difficult city to navigate without the aid of a car. Taxis can be called from any pay phone, and hotels, bars and restaurants will gladly call them for their patrons. In most cases taxis arrive within 15 minutes. Note that taxis cannot be flagged from the street. Taxi rates start at US$1.75 and increase US$0.25 every 0.7 miles thereafter.

Buses run regularly at rush hour, but at other times of day they may come as infrequently as once every 45 minutes. The MARTA rail system runs from 5am-1am Monday though Friday, and 6am to 12:30am on weekends. Schedules are available at the Five Points MARTA station in the heart of downtown, or by phoning the MARTA information line at 404-848-4800.

No specific immunizations are needed to enter the United States. For more information, contact the Center for Disease Control at 800-342-2437.

On the 71st floor of the Westin Peachtree Plaza, The Sun Dial Restaurant offers a 360-degree view of Atlanta, for an unforgettable meal, 723-feet above the city. For Continental cuisine with Asian influences, The Dining Room of the Ritz-Carlton has been awarded five diamonds. For the southeast's widest selection of fresh seafood, go to the Atlanta Fish Market, one of the many restaurants in the Buckhead's area. Atlanta's connoisseurs may be found at Bones and The Chops, which serves up a selection of beef dishes, or Mumbo Jumbo, whose offering is American-Continental. Thelma's Kitchen is the place to try contemporary Southern cuisine. The first U.S. location of Au Pied de Cochon, a popular French brasserie featuring a raw seafood bar, is located at the InterContinental Buckhead.

Known for its antique and "mock-antique" shopping, Atlanta is also noted for high-tech goods and good deals on books.

Some suggestions for visiting Atlanta include the CNN Center - which offers studio tours, The Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic District, the Civil War Museum, Atlanta Cyclorama, Stone Mountain Park, the World of Coca Cola - which offers self-guided tours, Six Flags Over Georgia and the Atlanta Zoo. Atlanta also has a wealth of science and nature centers - the Fernbank Science Center, one of the U.S.'s largest planetariums, has an original Apollo capsule on view; SciTrek allows visitors to explore the world of science and technology; and the Fernbank Museum of Natural History houses the U.S.'s largest natural history collection south of the Smithsonian. Locals of Atlanta are proud of their numerous professional sports teams, which include the Braves (baseball), the Falcons (American football) and the Hawks (basketball).