i just booked a ticket to germany going through atlanta. it’s about a four hour drive from where i live. going there isn’t going to be a problem, but coming back i’ll be too tired to drive.
any advice on hotels around there? i’m looking for a safe place to stay. nothing too fancy. i just need a place to sleep for the night.
oh, and if any one could give me info about extended parking services that would be much appreciated too.
Well, get there early. I mean EARLY. It takes people an hour or more just to get through security at Hartsfield, or so I’ve read. And I mean just the standing in line, going through metal detectors, and getting out again.
I know there’s extended parking at the airport, but I couldn’t tell you too much about it, I usually park at one of the stations and MARTA to the airport.
This may prove useful:
I am not from Atlanta, so I can give you no info. . .
Except that I have flown out of Atlanta a number of times. For me, and possibly for you, too, the best parking situation was to park at the Doraville MARTA station on the north side of town, and take the train to the south side. Allow about an hour for the ride, though.
Atlanta traffic can be murder, and it’s relaxing to let someone else do the driving for you. The Doraville MARTA station is also right at I-285, and since you’ll probably be heading north, you’ll have the bulk of the traffic jam behind you.
From what I’ve seen, the hotels around the airport aren’t necessarily great, but they seem reasonably safe (I’ve been to a couple by the airport for conventions, and while not the greatest part of town, I never felt uneasy).
There are plenty of places along (I can’t believe as a native I’m forgetting the name) the main road by the airport where you can park for extended time, running about $4-$6 a day. They provide a shuttle and will drop you off at your airline’s terminal.
What was posted above about time consideration due to security is accurate. Atlanta’s airport is VERY busy and the lines to get through can be lengthy. On the bright side, by taking an airport shuttle (or MARTA), you can avoid the random vehicle checks they’ve recently restarted.
I lived in Atlanta until last August (now I’m in Knoxville).
As far as parking at a Marta station, coming from TN your best bets are likely the N. Springs station, Sandy Springs or Dunwoody. Sandy Springs/Dunwoody. Check http://www.itsmarta.com for details. If you prefer parking closer to the airport, I have no advice on those, as I always walked from my apartment to the train station.
Hotels: there are any number near the airport. If you go to any of the travel web sites like travelocity, you can specify specific areas of town. I generally go for a Fairfield or Hampton Inn - they tend to be clean and they often have interior corridors so your door opens onto a hallway, not to the outside. That’s just my personal preference though.
Allow plenty of time. If you take Marta from the north side of town, allow 40-60 minutes on the train. Plan to get to the airport at least an hour earlier than you think you need to be there. That gives you a cushion of time in case there are issues with traffic in town and extra time to get through security. I can always manage to waste time in airports just watching people.
and that’s exactly where i’m coming from.
my flight is around 2 so i was planning on being there at 11. any one think i need to get there earlier?
i’m already assuming i’m going to get searched. i have a US passport, but my place of birth says iran. it never failed before for me to get searched “randomly”. i’m assuming now that the probability is 100%.
i would love to take the train across town, but it that’s going to tack on that much extra time i don’t think i can. plus lugging around my suitcase and backpack could probably be a major pain in the ass.
as of right now i’m probably going to have to leave here at 6 am. i don’t think i can really do any earlier.
does anyone know any hotels around the airport that i should avoid? and how safe are those parking services?
and that’s why we need an East TN dopefest. There are more and more of us around here.
I think 11 for a 2PM flight should be enough time - what day of the week is your flight on? I’d think that 3 hours might be problematic on a Monday when all the business folks leaving town are there or on Friday when those who are in Atlanta for the week are leaving, but on a Tues-Thurs, I’d call it plenty, even on a Saturday. Sundays could make it a push as well (families leaving on vacations…some business people travel on Sundays if they have a long way to go/long flight/early morning meetings on Monday.
lsura, any idea on how much time it’s going to take me to drive there? assuming i go the speed limit or five above. i’ll be leaving from the campus area. and i’m not the type to stop unless the gas light comes on or i really, really have to pee.
btw, i’m assuming you’re at ut. sick of the orange yet?
When I make the trip down there (as I will next week), it usually takes me about three hours to the north side of town (Marrietta) - that includes an hour to Chattanooga and then 2 from there to Atlanta. I have made it in less - but that three hours is when I hold myself to around 75 most of the way. At that point you’re still 30-45 minutes from the airport.
If you leave Knoxville around 6 and it takes, say, 3.5 hours to get to Marietta, you’ll be in good shape - rush hour should be mostly over although you still might want to take 285 around town.
Yes, I’m at UT - I moved up here for grad school. The orange bugs me to no end (although I own a couple of sweatshirts - they’ve been cheap in the bookstore this semester. They’re grey with limited orange on them though), but there’s only another year left and I’ll be heading someplace new.
i’ve also heard the traffic there is horrible. a friend of mine said it was worse than LA. it’s kinda freaking me out a little. i’m not the typical driver that you find around here. i know how to handle myself around bigger cities. i’ve driven around nashville (i know, probably nothing in comparison) and through memphis, charleston and chicago. the worst i’ve found so far is south carolina. the people there tend not to pay attention… one guy ran me off the road on the interstate. some how i didn’t get hurt.
so how bad is it driving around there? should i be worried about the small town drivers in the big city (big problem around nashville) or do they actually know what they’re doing and are just really agressive?
Aggressive, yes. Or at least I found them to be aggressive (and I’m still one of them. I try to tone it down around here…but it doesn’t work often). And if they are on their cell phones, they’re not paying attention to what’s going on around them.
If it begins to rain, traffic will immediately seize up. “Small towners” in the city can be a problem, but mostly where the interestates converge.
For dealing with the traffic - take your time, plan your route, and don’t let them stress you out.
I’m sure there are other Atlantan’s around here as well who can give more advice.
Yes, the traffic in-town is awful. Beyond horrible. For example, my grandparents just didn’t understand why I take MARTA into town when I have a still-pretty-new car until they had to drive through the heart of the ATL. Now, they completely understand.
The drivers here are aggressive. The ones that aren’t are stupid. Some are both. And no one knows how to drive, especially in the rain. Just make sure you know where you’re going and how you’re going to get there, and don’t let the exits sneak up on you.
so are the bypasses any better? or is it all the same no matter what i try?
i tend to be a fairly cautious driver in unfamiliar places. but i’ll be a little antsy simply because this is the first time i’ll have to do all this all by myself. i’ve flown internationally on my own several times since i was six, but i’ve always had some one to drop me off and pick me up. and i’ve driven by myself several times to places that i don’t know at all. doing everything together though is new.
i just want to get as much info together now so i don’t have many surprises.
ShadiRoxan - Make it easy on yourself. You can stop at the Mariott in Marietta, and take an airport shuttle. You leave your car at the hotel. The shuttle may be something like $30 (round-trip) or so, your car is left in the parking lot, you have a hotel room, and door-to-door service to the airport. I live just outside of Marietta, and NEVER mess with leaving my car at the airport. There are several hotels nearby, and you could still use the Marriott shuttle (or any of the others). Check with Mariott in Marietta to get the shuttle info - your peace of mind is worth it!
Funny this comes up right now - I’m heading out the door to go to Sevierville for the weekend! I’ll honk at you as I drive through Knoxville this evening.
thanks everyone for your help. i found a hotel that’ll keep my car for a week and has a free shuttle for me to use. all i have left to do now is buy gifts for my family there, pack my luggage and wait.
Have a good trip! The shuttle’s the best idea, make someone else drive in the madness of traffic. Also, I think shuttles usually let you off out in front of the airport, so there won’t be a ton of walking (now once you’re in the airport…)
If you are worried about traffic, just do what everyone else does:
Set your cruise control on 90 and close your eyes.
ShadiRoxan, may I borrow your thread for a moment?
I’ll be flying through Hartsfield this Saturday night, en route to Chicago. I have an 80-minute layover, during which time I need to deplane, pass immigration/customs, retrieve and recheck baggage (hopefully there’s a module as I leave customs), then find my way from the international terminal to wherever Delta leaves ATL for O’Hare, getting through whatever security checkpoint might lie along the way.
Looking at the airport site, this same route yesterday would have me go from Terminal E to Terminal A.
So, Hartsfield veterans, is 80 minutes enough time? Please say yes…
On a Saturday night? You’ll probably be ok. Just don’t dawdle until you’re back through security and close to your new gate. Take the train if you have to make that big of a terminal change - walking from E to A takes a while (yes, I did it once. I also had the time to spare.)
I’d like to say yes, but I’d be worried about getting through customs and then going back through security. I’ve never gone through Customs, so I don’t know how much time it takes.
Getting from Terminal to Terminal at Hartsfield is actually pretty easy, they have a train/subway thing that runs through the airport, out to all the terminals.