Activated alumina was fabricated with aluminum hydroxide in this study. High-purity alumina gel and boehmite were prepared from aluminum hydroxide by a hydrothermal process and fired to activate alumina having a surface area of 380 ~ 480 $m^2/g$ with less loss of ignition. The aging and drying condition during the fabrication process affected the loss of ignition, the sedimentation time of the alumina suspension, as well as the surface area of the activated alumina. For pellet-type activated alumina, the pre-fired alumina gel and boehmite were press-formed and fired at $400^{circ}C$ and $550^{circ}C$ for 6 h, respectively. The fired pellets showed a low density of 2.0 ~ 2.2 $g/cm^3$ with 20% firing shrinkage and sufficient handling strength. In this study, a new fabrication process for high-quality activated alumina with aluminum hydroxide is introduced. The effects of the processing parameters on the activated alumina properties are also examined.