A Macon historical park — whose supporters are pushing for it to become Georgia’s first national park — has been named one of the world’s greatest places of 2025 by Time magazine.
The expansive Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park holds seven ancient mounds built around 900 C.E. on land that has been occupied for over 12,000 years. The land was home to four prehistoric cultures, and the mounds that still stand today were built by the Mississippians, according to the National Park Service.
This week, Time heralded the park as one of the world’s 100 top destinations.
Every year since 2018, the magazine solicits nominations of places around the world — from hotels and museums to restaurants, parks and other attractions — for the list.
In addition to Ocmulgee, regional destinations on this year’s list include The Radical hotel in Asheville, North Carolina, which operated as a supply distribution center in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, the Georgia Safari Conservation Park in Madison, and a luxury hotel, the Palm House, in West Palm Beach, Florida.
Macon Mayor Pro Tem Seth Clark, who has championed the effort to get the mounds designated as a national park, said locals already knew the site is among the globe’s best spots. He called it “one of the most significant landscapes in telling the story of our shared American identity.”
“It’s just kind of nice to see that other people are saying what we’ve known since we went on our first field trip there in second grade,” Clark said, of the magazine’s accolade.
Clark also serves as the executive director of Ocmulgee National Park & Preserve Initiative and has backed a bipartisan effort in Congress for national park status. He is hopeful the park will receive the prestigious designation this year.
Ocmulgee’s current designation as a “national historical park” places it in the same park service category as the Jimmy Carter site in Plains and the Martin Luther King Jr. site in Atlanta.
The quest to make Ocmulgee a national park also includes a proposal to double its footprint, officials have said. There are currently 63 national parks, including some of the country’s most iconic places such as the Grand Canyon, Great Smoky Mountains and Yellowstone.
The Ocmulgee Mounds Association celebrated on social media Time magazine’s mention, which it called “a huge recognition of (the park’s) significance.”
The park includes the Earth Lodge, described on its website as a reconstructed council chamber of the Mississippian culture; eight miles of hiking trails; parts of the Ocmulgee River; Clay Pond and a visitor center that houses a museum.
After the arrival of European settlers caused devastating population decreases in the Native tribes, the survivors formed groups known today as the Muscogee (Creek) Nation that consider the mounds their ancestral homeland, according to NPS.
Time also highlighted other Macon sites to visit: the Otis Redding Foundation, which is opening its new Otis Redding Center for the Arts this month, and the Macon Bacon trail, a self-guided food tour through 20 of Macon’s most notable restaurants.
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