As it happens, I’ve made four roundtrips from ATL to MEM in the last six weeks, after not having flown through MEM for a few years. One thing I noticed is that the Sheraton hotel that was actually part of Terminal A is closed; the airport police use the old desk area off to the side of the security checkpoint as a place to eat their lunch, and during a long delay yesterday I wandered with my kids up to the second level of the terminal and looked in the doors that used to be the exit doors from the hotel into the main terminal area. I assume that it closed as a result of the increased security after 9/11, but I don’t really know that. So what’s the story? Did it in fact close as a result of 9/11, or was it unrelated? Anyone ever stayed there? How many rooms did it have? (couldn’t have been many – there’s only the one floor of space, and the distance from the exit doors into Terminal A and the “T” in Concourse A isn’t much more than, what, 100 yards or so?). Are there any plans to do anything with that space, or is it just impossible given that it straddles the secure and non-secure areas of the Terminal?
I’ve never been to Memphis, but I imagine the hotel was closed down for security reasons. Since 9/11, you can barely stick your nose into the terminal anymore, unless you’re actually flying somewhere yourself, and from the description it sounds like this hotel was practically on a concourse. If that was so then the hotel would have been inside the security perimeter and hence too much aggravation for anyone to consider staying there.
I miss the old days…it was kind of fun when I had to meet someone at the airport, and could go out to the gate and watch for the plane to pull up and the person to come out. I’m sort of a plane nut, so I used to enjoy watching the ramp operations, and spotting different types of aircraft.
That was my assumption, but I was hoping someone who knows for sure would speak up. I fly on business every week, so I’m all too aware of the changes in airport security since 9/11.
Here’s a decent aerial photo of the Memphis airport. The white squares are the roofs of the A (left) and C (right) terminals, with B Terminal being the white rectangle between them. It’s difficult to tell in this picture, but there are at least three levels to each – a lower baggage claim level, the middle ticketing level, and an upper level. The upper level of B Terminal is airport offices. Don’t know what’s in the upper level of C. The upper level of A was the hotel. Actually, it was the grayish rectangular bit you can see extending out from under the white roof structure toward the left, partway over the walkway down to the A Concourse. The entrance to the hotel wasn’t actually inside the security checkpoint – it was, and is, immediately outside it. The hotel space itself, however, did extend over the secured area, and so I suspect this may have played a part in the demise of the hotel, but again I merely speculate.
I always assumed that the market for the hotel was primarily stranded travelers and those arriving very late at night or departing very early in the morning; since such folks would be going through security anyway, the additional hassle wouldn’t have been that great, even if it had been inside the checkpoints.
Nobody has any info on this?
I asked around, but nobody seems to know anything about it. I do know that the B terminal* is undergoing an extensive renovation right now to convert it to a more modern mall/airport dealie, so that might have something to do with it.
I don’t recall any local news items after 9/11/2001 about the hotel closing down, but my interest in the state of accomdations at our airport was taking a back seat to war and stuff.
I will continue inquiries and post again if I have any information.
*I think it’s the B terminal. It might be the A.
I spent one night there many years ago, but have no idea why the hotel closed. One fact that may have entered into the decision is that the rooms were very small and at least the one we stayed in had no windows. I asked my wife who is a flight attendant based in Memphis. She said she had no idea either, but she’s leaving today for a five day trip and will ask (if you can wait that long).
But of course. This is just idle curiosity on my part, after all.
It’s the B Concourse area. They’ve changed vendors for concessions in the airport and are building a big food court/shopping area in the crotch of the “Y” in the middle of B Concourse.
B Terminal still looks pretty much like it has since the place was built. Only so much you can do with that design.
There used to also be a hotel inside the airport in Detroit. I got stuck there in the mid 80s whne the airport was closed because of a crash. Not sure if that’s still there either. If I recall correctly, there is also a hotel in Toronto attached to the terminal.