For moments that bring the family together, stay at one of the Cottages at the Inn at Serenbe and unplug from city life. Enjoy farm-to-table meals from The Farmhouse or The Hill, visit the Farmer's Market and tour one of the state's first certified organic farms. Peruse books for the entire family at the independent bookstore Hills & Hamlets, attend children's storytime at Birdhouse Coffee Room, and enjoy live music on the Porch of the Farmhouse.
There are places that change you quietly. No grand announcement, no itinerary item to check off. Just the moment you arrive, take a breath, and realize your shoulders have dropped two inches without you noticing. Serenbe is one of those places.
Nestled in the Chattahoochee Hill Country just outside Atlanta, Serenbe is a 2,000-acre biophilic wellness community where dense, walkable hamlets sit alongside preserved forests, organic farmland, and over 20 miles of trails that lead to waterfalls. It is part neighborhood, part destination, entirely its own world. And at the heart of it all is Garnie Nygren.
The eldest daughter of Serenbe founders Steve and Marie Nygren, Garnie grew up between Atlanta and the rolling hills of Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia. She went on to graduate from Cornell University's prestigious Hotel School and returned home to help build something most developers told her family was impossible: a thriving community where development and nature don't just coexist, they elevate each other. Today, as COO and Co-Managing Director of Serenbe, she runs the daily operations of both the development and The Inn at Serenbe, sits on multiple boards including the Cornell Hotel Society and Woodward Academy, and raises her own children inside the community she helped bring to life. She is also a co-owner of cold-pressed Bamboo Juices and boutique retailer Resource. Her daily routine includes three hot power yoga classes a week, 18,000 steps on the trails, and a daily juice. She does not treat her wellness habits as optional.
We sat down with Garnie to talk about what it actually means to design a life around nature, connection, and intention, and what families discover when they finally make the trip.
More Than a Weekend Away
Most of us approach a family getaway the same way: find a hotel, book a few activities, exhale briefly, go home unchanged. Serenbe quietly dismantles that formula.
The community was originally conceived by Garnie's father, Steve Nygren, as a response to suburban sprawl threatening the rural land her family had retired to in the mid-1990s. He didn't set out to build a luxury destination. He set out to protect something worth protecting, and the community grew organically from that impulse. Today, Serenbe is home to over 1,400 residents, more than 250 children, and a steady stream of families who come for a weekend and leave rethinking everything.
"Serenbe is an intentional and thriving wellness community," Garnie tells us. "While a typical getaway isolates you from daily life, Serenbe integrates you into a meticulously designed, eco-conscious community where residents and visitors share a lifestyle focused on sustainability, nature, and connection."
That integration is the thing that surprises most guests. You are not a tourist here. You are, for a few days, simply a neighbor.
A Place You Feel Before You Understand
The first thing visitors notice at Serenbe is not something they see. It's something they hear, or more precisely, something they stop hearing.
"One of the very first things you'll notice when you arrive at Serenbe will be the sounds of nature and the resulting calm," Garnie says. "Often, we hear about how visitors are able to exhale fully and breathe deeply. You're surrounded by preserved woodlands and clean, fresh air without the noise of busy streets and the hustle and bustle of urban life."
The 2,000 acres include preserved forestland, wildflower meadows, two waterfalls, a large granite outcropping, an animal village, hot tubs, two pools, a stone labyrinth, and a croquet lawn. Rocking chairs sit on porches positioned to face nothing but trees. There is no background noise to compete with your thoughts. For anyone whose nervous system has been running hot for years, that absence lands like a physical thing.
"Serenbe sets the table," she says. "The people who arrive, residents and visitors alike, create the magic of community."
Stay: The Cottages at the Inn at Serenbe
For families looking for a base that feels like home — without the noise of home — the Cottages at the Inn at Serenbe are the answer. Scattered across the Inn's grounds and overlooking the lake and animal village, each cottage delivers the comfort of a hotel room with the stillness of the surrounding landscape. There are no hallways to rush through, no lobbies full of strangers. Just your family, your porch, and the sound of the woods.
For larger families or extended trips, Inn Homes within the broader Serenbe community offer everything from lofts to townhouses to five-bedroom retreats, some with private pools. The accommodations are designed to dissolve the usual tension of traveling with children. When the setting is this engaging, the logistics take care of themselves — though the usual rules of packing with kids still apply on the way there.
Where Kids Forget Their Screens
If you have ever tried to pry a phone out of a child's hands on vacation, you will understand why this particular point from Garnie stops parents in their tracks.
"One thing we consistently hear from families is that kids have so many activities and ways to be engaged with nature that they're able to get off screens," she says.
The Serenbe trails wind through forests where children have quietly built their own fairy houses over the years, tucked into the roots of trees and the bends of creeks. Kids fish in Grange Lake, pick blueberries off bushes lining neighborhood paths, ride bikes through the hamlets, go canoeing, and discover trampolines built directly into the landscape. The magic, Garnie notes, is in the spontaneity. Nobody schedules wonder. It finds the children on its own.
Eat: Farm-to-Table, Rooted in Soil
When Garnie talks about food at Serenbe, she does not reach for the phrase "farm-to-table" as a marketing term. She reaches for it because the farm is, quite literally, next door.
Serenbe Farms is one of Georgia's first certified organic farms, and its relationship with The Farmhouse restaurant is less a supply chain than a conversation. Chefs visit the farm weekly, make requests based on what is ready to come out of the ground, and the produce arrives by hand. The menu changes constantly, shaped by season and soil rather than trend cycles. The Farmhouse also has its own kitchen garden that guests are welcome to walk through before or after dinner, where Chef Nic harvests fresh herbs and elements for each meal.
Her personal recommendation for a dish that captures the spirit of dining here: the seasonal Serenbe Farms Green Salad paired with the Pan-Roasted Springer Mountain Chicken, or the famous Sunday Fried Chicken. Both embody what Garnie calls "the spirit of connection — to the land, the season, and the surrounding community."
On Saturday mornings, that connection spills out into the open at the Farmer's Market, where local growers, artisans, and small food producers fill the hamlet with heirloom vegetables, wildflower bundles, handmade candles, artisanal jams, and locally raised meat. The market runs every Saturday from 9am to 1pm, and for families with children, it tends to be quietly transformative.
"So many of the kids have never been to a farm or know that a carrot comes out of the ground and blueberries are from a bush," Garnie says. "That discovery and aha moment is never forgotten."
Explore: Books, Storytime, and Live Music
What makes a community feel like a community and not just a collection of houses and amenities? In Garnie's experience, it's the things that invite you to linger.
Hills & Hamlets Bookshop is one of them. Independently owned and thoughtfully curated around Serenbe's core values of wellness, nature, food, and the arts, the shelves hold titles for every kind of reader, from children discovering picture books to adults finding their next literary obsession. Author signings, book clubs, and children's story hours fill its calendar year-round.
For families with little ones, children's storytime at Birdhouse Coffee Room is one of those low-key, high-magic experiences that children ask about for weeks afterward. It is the kind of moment that does not need to be orchestrated. It simply happens, in a room full of people who chose to show up.
On Friday evenings, The Farmhouse porch fills with music. Live performances run from 5:30 to 8:30pm, with residents and visitors arriving together, drink in hand, settling into warm weather and unhurried conversation. There is no velvet rope here, no reservation required to belong. It is, as Garnie describes it, simply a beginning to the weekend.
What You Carry Home
There is a question at the end of every meaningful family trip, the one you don't always think to ask until the drive home. What did this change in us?
Garnie has her own answer.
"I hope families leave Serenbe feeling inspired to bring more connection, intention and nature into their everyday lives," she says. "Whether that's starting a small garden, shopping at local farmers markets, cooking with seasonal organic ingredients, or simply spending more time connecting with neighbors, Serenbe shows that wellness and community can be woven into daily routines in meaningful, approachable ways."
In a moment when burnout has become a baseline state for many mothers and families, the idea that a place could model something different feels like more than a getaway. It feels like a reminder of what's possible. It is the same instinct driving mothers everywhere to trade the crowded schedule for something simpler — a standing walk with other mothers, an hour outside with nothing to prove.
"In a world that's increasingly digital and disconnected," Garnie says, "places like Serenbe matter because they remind people what it feels like to slow down and truly connect with nature, community and with themselves."
Q&A with Garnie Nygren, COO of Serenbe
What was the original vision behind Serenbe, and how did the idea of a community built around connection and nature come to life?
Serenbe was founded by my father, Steve Nygren, to protect the rural Chattahoochee Hill Country from suburban sprawl. His vision was to establish a biophilic wellness community where dense, walkable European-style neighborhoods, which we call hamlets, are built alongside preserved green spaces — proving that development and ecological stewardship can coexist in harmony. Each of Serenbe's hamlets has complementary commercial centers focused on the elements of a well-lived life: arts for inspiration, agriculture for nourishment, health for wellbeing, play for a joy-filled life, and education for lifelong learning. We started building in 2004, our first residents moved in in 2005, and today the community is home to over 1,400 residents including over 250 kids.
For someone who's never been, how would you describe the feeling of arriving at Serenbe for the first time?
One of the very first things you'll notice when you arrive at Serenbe will be the sounds of nature and the resulting calm. Often, we hear about how visitors are able to exhale fully and breathe deeply. You're surrounded by preserved woodlands and clean, fresh air without the noise of busy streets and the hustle and bustle of urban life. Serenbe sets the table by creating a beautiful place set in nature with mixed-use planning and intentional, thoughtful architecture. The people who arrive, residents and visitors alike, create the magic of community.
What makes Serenbe different from a typical weekend getaway or resort?
Serenbe is an intentional and thriving wellness community, providing a more authentic and holistic experience than a standalone resort. While a typical getaway isolates you from daily life, Serenbe integrates you into a meticulously designed, eco-conscious community where residents and visitors share a lifestyle focused on sustainability, nature, and connection.
What's the experience of staying in one of the Cottages like, especially for families traveling together?
The Inn Cottages are quiet escapes that provide the comforts of a hotel while being truly immersed in nature. They come in a variety of sizes and dot the grounds of The Inn at Serenbe, overlooking the lake, animal village, and other areas. You can also choose to stay in an Inn Home within the greater Serenbe community, from lofts to townhouses and larger homes up to five bedrooms, some with private pools.
What do families tend to be most surprised by during their stay?
One thing we consistently hear from families is that kids have so many activities and ways to be engaged with nature that they're able to get off screens. There are so many spontaneous moments that happen at Serenbe, from the trampolines that are built into the grounds to activities like canoeing, horseback riding, and more. Kids build forts in the woods, fish in Grange Lake, pick blueberries off bushes in the neighborhoods, ride bikes or scooters around town, or wander the trails looking for the fairy houses that have been organically created by other children around Serenbe.
Can you walk me through what a farm-to-table meal at The Farmhouse looks like, from soil to plate?
As one of Atlanta's original farm-to-table restaurants, The Farmhouse focuses on organic ingredients from the restaurant's own kitchen garden, neighboring Serenbe Farms — one of the state's first organic farms — and other Chattahoochee Hills and regional producers. The menu updates frequently to highlight the freshest local seasonal ingredients. Chefs shop the farm weekly, make requests for what's coming out of the ground, and the produce is delivered by our farmers. Guests can walk through The Farmhouse's kitchen garden before or after dinner, where Chef Nic harvests fresh herbs and elements for each meal.
What can a family expect when they visit the Farmer's Market on a weekend morning?
Families visiting Serenbe can explore a variety of offerings from Serenbe Farms as well as growers, artisans, craft-makers, and healthy food producers every Saturday morning from 9am to 1pm. Guests of all ages can wander through the stalls and peruse heirloom and hybrid vegetables, herbs and flowers, artisanal goods such as candles, jellies, jams and oils, locally grown meat, and more.
Why do you think kids respond so strongly to seeing where their food actually comes from?
In the internet age where it can often be easier for kids to look something up than to discover it, we can sometimes forget how curious they really are. We host farming workshops and classes specifically designed to educate kids on how food is produced. So many of the kids have never been to a farm or know that a carrot comes out of the ground and blueberries are from a bush. That discovery and aha moment is never forgotten. It's a memory they will share with others.
If someone could only do one thing during their stay, what would you tell them not to miss?
A walk in nature. We have over 20 miles of trails that take you through pristine forests, past waterfalls and art installations. You'll travel through the animal village, past the horse stables, and can reflect on a labyrinth walk or immerse yourself in something that simply cannot be replicated anywhere else.
Plan your visit at serenbeinn.com. Follow Serenbe on Instagram @serenbe and connect with Garnie Nygren on LinkedIn.
