Hi adamroberts777,
The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in the Atlanta area (subject to the guidelines here) are listed in post #2 here.
There is nothing in the Macon or Athens areas that I’m aware of that would justify a trip there compared to what is available to you in Atlanta.
The Birmingham list is in post #57 here and if you do decide to go there the first place I would suggest visiting is Royal Bedding which is a factory direct manufacturer that I think very highly of.
The options you have after a purchase should you need to exchange or return a mattress are just one part of what I call your personal value equation that may be important to you so it would depend on how one of their mattresses compared to the other mattresses you are considering based on all your other criteria as well. If your testing indicated that the mattress was a good match for you and there was little risk that you would need to return it then it would be a much less significant issue than if you weren’t confident that a mattress would be a suitable choice and the risk of returning it was higher. Some manufacturers have separate costs for returning a mattress and with others it’s built in to the initial cost of the mattress so it’s an “invisible” cost.
There is more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here that can help you make more meaningful comparisons between mattresses based on all the criteria that are important to you.
Phoenix