How Do You Test an Active Lifestyle in Metro Atlanta Before You Decide to Move?

By Deborah Morton, Managing Partner, The Agency Atlanta. RealTrends Top 1.5%.

You test an active lifestyle in Metro Atlanta before you decide to move by living a thirty-day version of it where you already are. Pick one or two activities, book them on public courts or city golf courses, and keep notes on what you actually did, what it cost and whether you wanted more.

A month of real attempts tells you more than a year of imagining. Cobb County PARKS lists eight pickleball courts at Shaw Park on Shaw Park Road in Marietta, and the City of Atlanta operates four public golf courses, including the 18-hole course at Chastain Park at 216 West Wieuca Road NW. Those are places you can visit this month without joining a club or putting a house on the market.

This guide is about the part before homes. The house you have may be paid for, familiar and full of good history. Moving is expensive and tiring. Staying is often the smartest choice. But a mild feeling that things have changed is real, and it deserves a real answer.

Why does the feeling of wanting something different show up?

It usually shows up when life changes shape. Children grow up, work shifts, a parent needs less or more from you, or grandchildren turn out to live in another state. The house stays the same size while the weeks get a different texture. Nothing is wrong. You just notice that you want something, and you cannot yet name it.

That is the right moment to experiment rather than decide. A decision made from a vague feeling tends to be big and expensive. An experiment made from the same feeling is small and cheap.

What is a thirty-day lifestyle test?

It is a simple plan with four parts: choose, schedule, record and review.

• Choose one or two activities, such as golf, pickleball, a walking group or a class.
• Schedule them at the days and times you would genuinely keep, not the easiest ones.
• Record after each session: how long it took, what it cost, how far you drove and how you felt afterward.
• Review at the end of thirty days. Which one did you look forward to? Which did you skip?

Write the notes down. Memory is generous. A notebook is honest.

Where can you test golf and pickleball without joining anything?

Public facilities cover both. You can try them on a public court or a city course without joining a club first.

For pickleball, Cobb County PARKS lists eight courts at Shaw Park, 900 Shaw Park Road in Marietta. The City of Alpharetta, in Fulton County, lists 18 lighted pickleball courts and offers lessons, clinics and leagues through its Recreation, Parks and Cultural Services Department. The City of Johns Creek, also in Fulton County, lists six pickleball courts at Newtown Park, 3150 Old Alabama Road, and five more at Cauley Creek Park, 7255 Bell Road, and it sets open-play windows at both parks. Each city or county sets its own rules for walk-up play, reservations and leagues, and those pages change, so confirm the one you plan to use before you go. For a court-by-court look at public play in Cobb, Alpharetta and Johns Creek, see Where Can You Play Pickleball in Metro Atlanta Without Joining a Club?

For golf, the City of Atlanta lists four courses it operates, plus a fifth course run by a separate authority. The city's own list, which also links to tee-time reservations, is:

• Browns Mill Golf Course, 480 Cleveland Avenue SE: 18 holes, operated by the City of Atlanta.
• Chastain Park Golf Course, 216 West Wieuca Road NW: 18 holes, operated by the City of Atlanta.
• Tup Holmes Golf Course, 2300 Wilson Drive SW, at Delowe Drive: 18 holes, operated by the City of Atlanta.
• Candler Park Golf Course, 585 Candler Park Drive NE: nine holes, operated by the City of Atlanta.
• John A. White Golf Course, 1053 Cascade Circle SW: listed by the city under youth golf and operated by the Atlanta-Fulton County Recreation Authority.

Each city and county parks page lists its own courts or courses, addresses and booking rules, and those pages are the authority, so check the one closest to you before you plan the practical side.

What are the signs the test is working?

A few are easy to spot. You find yourself checking the schedule on a day you are not playing. You mention the activity to friends before anyone asks. You are disappointed when weather cancels it. And you start wondering what a Thursday morning version would look like every week.

These are signs of interest, not commitment, and interest is exactly what you wanted to learn. If several show up, the next question is a good one: could this fit into my life as it is, or would it truly be easier somewhere else?

What are the signs it is not?

You keep rescheduling. You come home tired and unhappy. You discover you liked the idea of the group more than the game. Or the drive takes enough out of the day that you stop going. These are also useful, and they cost you very little.

There is no shame in a result like this. Golf may turn out to be a few rounds a year. Pickleball may be fun once a month. Plenty of people find the activity matters less than the people, and that is worth knowing before anyone moves for a view.

When does staying put make the most sense?

Often. Staying makes sense when the activity you tested is available within a comfortable drive of home, when your current home still fits your life, and when the cost and effort of a move would outweigh what you would gain. It also makes sense when your friends, doctors, volunteer work and routines live near where you are now. Those things are slow to build and quick to lose.

A useful question is: what exactly would a move change that a different calendar would not? If the honest answer is "very little," a different calendar is the cheaper fix.

When does it make sense to start looking at where to live?

When the test points to a repeated weekly routine and the distance or logistics are the real obstacle, not the activity itself. If you would play three times a week and the drive makes that unrealistic, that is a clear signal. If the activity is a small part of a bigger change, such as being closer to family, then the lifestyle test is one input among many.

At that stage the conversation naturally moves to communities, and to the documents and rules that come with them. Start with what a place offers and what its paperwork says, not with who it is supposedly for.

What does a sample thirty days look like?

Here is one simple version, which you should adjust to your own calendar.

• Week one: visit a court or course without playing. Watch, ask questions and take a first lesson or round.
• Week two: return at the time of day you would normally play. Notice crowds, the drive and how you feel afterward.
• Week three: bring a friend or your partner. See how the activity works as a shared routine.
• Week four: play at least once more, then sit down with your notes and decide what to repeat.

That is it. There is no prize for doing more. The point is to collect honest information at low cost.

What does it cost to run the test?

Less than most people expect. Public courts and city courses typically charge by the visit or the round, and some park pages list free open play. The cost of a month of testing is small compared with a membership or a move. The real investment is attention. Track your spending as you go so you can compare it with what a club or a community would ask.

If the test points toward a bigger change, you will have a basis for the next questions: what a club costs, what a community requires and what a different home would involve. If it does not, you have spent a modest amount to learn something valuable.

What if the test shows you want something the area does not offer?

Then you have a clear and useful result. Maybe the activity you love needs a climate, a landscape or a community that is not close to home. Maybe the real draw is being near family. Either way, you are now looking at a specific need instead of a vague restlessness, and a specific need can be answered. That is the point at which a conversation about where to live becomes useful, and it will go better because you did the thinking first.

It is equally valid to discover that what you wanted was not an activity at all, but a standing commitment, a group of people or a reason to leave the house at nine on a weekday morning. Those can be built almost anywhere, including right where you are.

How do you avoid talking yourself into a move?

Look for evidence that would change your mind, not only evidence that supports it. If you are excited about a community, ask what you would miss about your current one. If you are excited about leaving, ask which parts of your life you would be rebuilding from scratch. Moving can be a wonderful decision, and it is a better one when you have weighed what you would leave behind as carefully as what you would gain.

How do you involve the people who matter?

Bring them along. A spouse, a partner or a friend who will be part of the routine should be part of the experiment. Compare notes at the end of the thirty days. Two people can have very different reactions to the same court or course, and it is better to find that out before a closing than after.

If the people in your life live in another place, add a trip to the test. Spend a week in the area you are curious about and run your normal routine. The question is not whether it is a nice place for a visit. The question is whether it supports the week you want.

What if you are not sure which activity to test?

Start with whatever you already half want to try. Curiosity is a good guide. If nothing stands out, pick the one that sounds easiest to start this week, because momentum matters more than the perfect choice. You can always switch at the end of the month, and the notes you keep will make the next experiment smarter.

It also helps to include something that is not a sport. A class, a volunteer shift or a standing lunch with friends can teach you just as much about what a good week feels like.

Frequently asked questions

How long should I test an activity before deciding?

Thirty days of real attempts is a reasonable minimum. Longer is better for anything that depends on seasons or schedules.

Do I need to buy equipment first?

Not necessarily. Check with the facility before you buy a full set of gear, because some programs and public courses offer a way to start with less.

Is it normal to not know what I want?

Yes. The feeling often comes before the answer. Experiments are a way of finding the answer.

What if my partner wants something different?

That is common. Test separately and together, and compare notes. The goal is a plan you both want to live inside.

Should I talk to a real estate professional now?

Only if it helps. A conversation can clarify what a move would involve, including the option to stay, without any commitment.

Questions? Call (470) 990-4414.

Sources

• Cobb County PARKS, Shaw Park. 900 Shaw Park Road, Marietta; eight pickleball courts. Checked Nov 14, 2026.
• City of Alpharetta, Tennis and Pickleball. The live page meta on Nov 14, 2026 lists 18 lighted pickleball courts and lessons, camps, clinics and leagues. Check the city page for current reservation and walk-up rules. Checked Nov 14, 2026.
• City of Johns Creek, Newtown Park. 3150 Old Alabama Road; six pickleball courts; open play Monday through Friday 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturday 8 a.m. to noon, with no rentals during those windows, starting Nov 17, 2025. Checked Nov 14, 2026.
• City of Johns Creek, Cauley Creek Park. 7255 Bell Road; five pickleball courts; open play Monday through Friday 8 to 11 p.m. and Saturday 8 a.m. to noon, with no rentals during those windows, starting Nov 17, 2025. Checked Nov 14, 2026.
• City of Atlanta Department of Parks and Recreation, List of Golf Courses. Four city-operated courses (Browns Mill, Chastain Park and Tup Holmes, 18 holes each; Candler Park, nine holes) plus John A. White Golf Course, listed under youth golf and operated by the Atlanta-Fulton County Recreation Authority; the page also links to tee-time reservations. Checked Nov 14, 2026.
• City of Atlanta Golf. Confirms the same four city-operated courses: Browns Mill, Chastain Park, Tup Holmes and Candler Park. Checked Nov 14, 2026.
• Featured photo: the stone clubhouse at Chastain Park Golf Course in Atlanta, by John Phelan, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0. Photographed Feb 28, 2026. Attribution required.