I will be going to a Seminar in Atlanta mid-July. Not sure what else is happening but there are virtually no hotel rooms available that week. The seminars will be at the Sheraton downtown.
My hotel choices are:
Grant Park Hotel - recent reviews included people with no water and other low ratings. one person said it was the most disgusting place they had ever stayed at.
W Hotel - twice the price of any other options
3)Holiday inn in Decatur 6 miles away
Courtyard in Marietta 12 miles away
So my question is how bad is the traffic from either Decatur or Marietta?
According to Google maps, transit time by car is 17-26 minutes, depending on route and traffic (they do not recommend using the “freeways”). Other folks can better inform you about traffic and parking.
Also depends on if you mean the “Holiday Inn” on Clairmont, or one of the several Holiday Inn Express’ that are in Decatur.
One other option is from the Holiday Inn on Decautr, you are a short (0.2 mi) walk to the Metro Station, which can take you downtown without the traffic woes. Don’t know which station is closest to the Sheraton, but it is an option.
I am not an Atlanta resident, but I enjoy looking up travel questions like this. Other actual Atalnta residents probably know better than I.
Is that the Holiday Inn Express near N. Decatur and Clairmont? If so, that’s not a bad area (the Publix right there is my primary grocery store) - safe, though I can’t speak to the hotel cleanliness or anything. You’re not far off from the East Lake or Avondale Marta stations, and the train will run you into downtown. If you want to drive all the way in, the important thing to remember is you’ll want to turn right onto N. Decatur, then right onto Superior and then right onto Scott - turning left out of that parking lot is more trouble than it’s worth.
I live in Decatur and work downtown. Most days I take the train, but the reality is the Decatur-downtown commute isn’t generally that bad. I just don’t want to pay for parking when the marta station is free and the monthly train pass is cheaper than parking every day would be. If you drive in each day, download the Waze app and use it.
Traffic will be bad coming from Marietta. Don’t stay there.
Atlanta resident here. Find a hotel near a MARTA station, and don’t deal with traffic at all.
Atlanta traffic sucks. On any given day, it can be not so bad, and on the next day as bad as anything in LA or DC. (those are my two go-to locations for sucky traffic comparisons)
Try the Courtyard Atlanta Decatur/Emory, 130 Clairemont Avenue. One block walk to the MARTA station, and also one block walk to some wonderful restaurants. Very safe area.
Seconded. If you can use MARTA, do so. Decatur is not actually in the city of Atlanta, but it adjoins, and is close enough to take the train. The car commute is not so bad, but the traffic is heavier than you might expect on four-lane surface streets. If you do decide to stay in or around Decatur and drive into the city, DeKalb Avenue is a lot less frustrating than Ponce de Leon, IMO. (Except for that damned stop light at Arizona Ave., where I always seem to get stuck behind someone waiting to make a left turn across two lanes of traffic at a light that doesn’t have an arrow.) But really, MARTA is the way to go.
Good advice here - train into and out of Atlanta each rush hour, then use your car to go eat in downtown Decatur at night. Tons of great restaurants to choose from. Parking isn’t free, but it’s reasonable and there is a deck downtown that always has spaces available. From there it’s an easy walk to great local restaurants around near the courthouse square: The Brick Store Pub (used to be a general store), The Iberian Pig, Parker’s on Ponce (a bit pricey), Leon’s Full Serve (used to be a gas station) plus many more and a host of chain restaurants like Ted’s Montana Grill. If you go to the square every night for a week you won’t have to eat in the same place twice and you won’t likely be disappointed.