Savoy Automobile Museum — Attraction in Cartersville

Ever driven by someplace new and shiny and said to yourself, "I wonder what is over there?" Today, on the way to somewhere else, that we realized was about to close, this place popped in mind.

Boy, I am glad it did.

What is it? A very cool classic car museum. Where is it? About fifty minutes north of Atlanta just off of Interstate 75, heading towards Chattanooga, TN.

What's in it? Cars that go way back to almost the beginning of motorized vehicles. Did I cover them all? NOPE, I got caught up in the car sections that I remember from my childhood roaming the streets, or the luxury stately cars of the past.

How long to see it all? I'm guessing about 3 hours would work. Can you touch the vehicles? NO, but I saw several parents with children who could read, but pretended that they could not. In fact, I saw several parents who pretended they couldn't read also. Can you get close to the cars? Yes!

Can you eat in the museum? NO, but they have a Cafe, which I didn't have time to visit.

Pets allowed? NO! Thank goodness!!! They know the different between a trained service animal, and your dog, Fluffy, with a 'service animal collar' that you brought from Amazon.

Are weapons allowed? No, thank goodness! Why would I present such a question? Simple, this is Georgia. Enough said.

Are large purses allowed? No, they actually have a measuring device, I 'think' 9 or 12 inches, was the maximum width. They enforce the rules.

PHOTOGRAPHERS Are large camera bags allowed, backpacks and so forth? NO! Same rules apply, that pertain to the ladies' purses. What type of lens is best? Some of the best cars, like the monster sized Cadillacs were so close to each other, I had problems capturing them with 70-300mm. What do I suggest? A 28-70mm lens or a prime 50mm lens will work fine. That way you can get close and get the details. Flash necessary. Nope, but you already knew that.

**The photos below are just from my cellphone so they don't show the dynamic color of these cars well. My 'real' camera (wink) zoom lens was too close to capture how gorgeous these cars are. But I'll add some photos from it, when I've reviewed them.

COST: Well for two adults we paid $30 (there's other pricing). However, if you think you will be visiting again and get some type of membership, they will 'deduct' the price you paid for admission, from whatever the membership fee is, if you purchase the membership the same day.

*The photographs attached are mainly from my cellphone. Because my zoom lens was too large for such close...

It's taken us far too long to make our way up to Savoy. Only 30 minutes from Kennesaw, it's not a long drive, and so, so worth it.

Came on a Friday after lunch, there was no line for tickets or entry. Tickets are available online or at the front counter for the same price.

The museum is not huge, but the quality of the exhibits really sets it apart. Everything is sparkling clean and shiney, the walls, the floors, the glass, and yes - the cars.

Yes, you probably can SEE everything in 15 minutes, but don't do that.

We easily took 2 and a half hours to peruse everything. Came with my wife, teenage son, and elementary school age daughter, and didn't have anyone ask ever if it was time to go. In fact they were looking in every nook and cranny looking to make sure we didn't miss anything. Consequently, I think they found every bathroom and event area in the building, to their disappointment.

Take the time to look at each vehicle, read the plaques, take it in and absorb new information.

There are, I believe, 5 areas to visit, each it's own exhibit. If I understood the front desk guy correctly, the oldest exhibit swaps out every month. So if you were to come monthly, you will see SOMETHING that wasn't there last time.

I even saw something I had never heard of - so that's always a lot of fun too.

Last thing that I think I don't see mention of is the art on display. There are paintings covering the walls in the main gallery. It's not The Louvre, but there are lots and lots of really cool pieces to see and take in. Another room had posters from racing events, and lots lots more. Don't forget to look at the walls!

A family annual pass is about the cost of 2 visits, and I definitely see us coming 2 or 3 times a year to see the changing exhibits, so that would be a...

I have been going back and forth on whether this should be a four or five star review... And it was a tough decision.

When compared to other automotive museums such as the Porsche or Mercedes museum, the Savoy comes up just a tiny bit short.

Overall the museum is great. The building is clean, well lit and easy to navigate.

You can get right up to all the cars on display, and they are all positioned in such a way that you can walk all the way around and get a good view from all angles.

Everything on display was in outstanding condition. All of the cars were cleaned meticulous and detailed to perfection.

Each individual collection was well thought out and had a good selection of cars that fit the overall theme.

The restaurant had a good selection of food, and prices were reasonable.

There are two downsides:

1. Everything is displayed with the hood closed. It would have been nice to see the engines on some of the vehicles.

2. The Savoy has an incredibly large collection of vehicles. Only a fraction of those cars are displayed at any one time.

One of the displays is updated every month, with the current vehicles leaving and new ones rotating in.

While this is great for keeping things new and exciting, (and making people come back), it sucks for anyone that does not have the ability to come every 3-4 months to see the updated exhibits.

Many visitors will only ever see a small fraction of the overall vehicles. And that really is my major complaint.

I understand there is a limit to what can be on display, and a much larger building would be expensive, but...

That said, the Savoy is still very much worth a visit. We took our time and spent roughly half the day looking at everything on display (Although it's possible to walk through and see everything in about...