St. George Island is a very comfortable seven hour drive from Atlanta.  I have made the trip in as little as 5.5 hours and I have a friend who once made the distance in twelve hours.  My daughter lives in downtown Atlanta (near Turner Field) and she regularly makes the trip in six hours.

Here is our preferred route:

• Take I75 south to Cordele, Georgia.
• At Cordele take the Georgia-Florida Parkway (hwy 300/19)
• Take 300/19 through Albany, through Camilla and through Pelham to Meigs, Georgia
• At Meigs take a right on hwy 111 and continue on through Cairo, Georgia to Havana, Florida
• At Havana take a left on hwy 27 and then a right on hwy 12 toward Quincy, Florida
• Follow hwy 12 through Qunicy to Gretna
• At Gretna take a left on hwy 65.  This is a very long straight leg of the trip and as you get on hwy 65 you will be 65-70 miles from SGI.  Hwy 65 takes you through the Apalachicola National Forrest and Tate's Hell.  You will be tempted to go very fast...resist the temptation and enjoy the drive.  Watch out for deer, bears, panthers, coyotes, alligators, snakes armadillos, owls, Bald Eagles and turtles (we have seen all of these on hwy 65). Also watch out for the Florida State Patrol, we have known several people who have received citations on this strech of highway.
• Hwy 65 dead ends into hwy 98 at Green Point.  Go right into Eastpoint and take a left on hwy 300 and cross the bridge over St. George Sound to St. George Island.