<p>hey - not sure who the atlanta people are here on the board.</p>
<p>DD and a few friends are going to the game this weekend. they don’t have a place to stay. can any atlanta people give suggestions as to where they might be able to stay? they can get a hotel room, but they (and I) don’t know the area and don’t want to pick a random hotel room in a random area (that may or may not be safe.)</p>
<p>any help is appreciated.</p>
<p>thanks.</p>
<p>I can not make any hotel suggestion for Atlanta. However, I have found Google Earth to be of great value when searching for vacation homes and hotels. I know some from Atlanta have posted about trying to use MARTA instead of driving to the game. You could pull up the route map for MARTA and then use Google Earth to locate hotels along the route, what restaurants are nearby, what the general area looks like, business park, shopping, etc. </p>
<p>Best of luck</p>
<p>I have stayed at the Atlanta Airport Marriott Gateway. It is a lovely hotel with top notch amenities. You can take the Skytrain to the Atlanta Airport station and then make a connection to MARTA. </p>
<p>The station (The Skytrain station) at the airport is located adjacent to MARTA’s Airport station at the west end of the main terminal complex. according to Wikipedia</p>
<p>MikeW…do they want to stay close to downtown or will out towards the burbs be ok. Out some will save some $$$. I assume they have a car? Which they can use to get to a Marta station and then not have to worry about driving & parking downtown. also what kind of budget?</p>
<p>The Dunwoody area around perimeter mall (looking at a map it would be where Ga400 & I-285 intersect) would be ok. Close enough to downtown and Buckhead. Generally on the safe side, especially near the mall area.</p>
<p>Feel free to PM me with specific hotels/areas and I can give you more info on those areas.</p>
<p>I agree with the Peachtree/Dunwoody area and have them catch Marta to the Georgia Dome. My DD and 10 of her friends are staying at our house (northern suburbs) and plan to take Marta to avoid the parking, traffic, etc.</p>
<p>they will have a car and they don’t need to stay near the venue. somewhere within walking distance from marta stop might be good. if not walking distance they can drive there. i was looking for somewhere on the blue line for simplicity’s sake. which line is dunwoody? red?</p>
<p>budget … idk lowish but they will be splitting between 4 people.</p>
<p>If they can find a Homewood suites that might work. They could get 2 beds in the bedroom and a sofabed in the living room.</p>
<p>Don’t worry about the Marta lines. They are all basically straight routes. Dunwoody would be on the red line (north of the city). All of the stations on the red line from Lindbergh Center north have parking decks so very easy to get to and park at the station. (Although I would avoid the Lindbergh Center station for college age girls). </p>
<p>The trick is if you are headed north on the Red/Gold lines, just watch for the train going to the final destination on the line you want to ride (i.e. if you want the Red line, look for the train going to North Springs station). If you do that you do not have to change trains.</p>
<p>My D called and she is SO excited to be going to the game this weekend! She’s going with 4 others, 2 of which do not even have tickets but just want to be near the action! Oh, and then there’s the Coke Tour! :-)</p>
<p>I was just looking at hotels…slim picking for the <$200/night category.</p>
<p>Just saw this posted on one of the ATL Facebook pages! Anyone going to the game may need to allow extra time to navigate crowds.</p>
<p>“Labor Day weekend traditionally is one of the busiest of the year around Metro Atlanta, loaded with events across the board, and this year is no exception. Events this weekend include Dragon*Con, the Decatur Book Festival, national champion Alabama headlining the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game and NASCAR’s AdvoCare 500 – along with home games for the Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Silverbacks, home openers for Georgia Tech and Georgia State, and Atlanta’s Black Pride Weekend.”</p>
<p>Oh, you’ll know Dragon<em>Con is there…!
<hello to my D and S-I-L who reserved rooms a YEAR AGO for Dragon</em>Con!></p>
<p>Take a look on Expedia…pick Alpharetta on search area… if they go towards Alpharetta area, good availability. The Atlanta Marriott Alpharetta is very nice, secure, pool, etc. $ 239 a night Right off 400, they would jump on that headed SB, and drive to the North Springs station (red line) takes them right down to where they want to be, no changing trains. Many more less expensive good hotel options as long as they are in Alpharetta, they will be close to access to 400, and the red line Marta. </p>
<p>For girls, great shopping and dining in Roswell, town right next to Alpharetta. Suburban and not as exciting as down town, but safe and good to get away from the crowds and crazies late night!</p>
<p>thanks for the tips. will pass along the info. :)</p>
<p>$239 for a hotel room?
I won’t pay that.
I would not stay around the airport.
I would not stay downtown unless I was in a high-rise hotel with secured parking (that you’ll pay extra for).
Dunwoody - Perimeter Mall area - Roswell - most of Marietta - Alpharetta (they can drive and park at the Perimeter Marta station)
Taking Marta - they need to be sure they get on Marta and head home before Marta quits running.</p>
<p>what time does it quit running?</p>
<p>There are also NASCAR races at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend. That will also impact traffic and lodging. We’re leaving metro ATL to watch the game in Tuscaloosa…Dreamland and the big screen.
Roll Tide!</p>
<p>Taking in these tips since son just informed us that he will not be in town for Parents Weekend, but instead, is heading to Atlanta for a music festival that weekend.</p>
<p>Dad is disappointed, but I’m thrilled he’s getting this experience before they all go their separate ways. Son is a senior and will be going to grad school, where his friends will likely all enter the workforce.</p>
<p>Thank you for the advice on this thread, and please report back on your experiences. </p>
<p>Our advice to son is to take the Marta down to the event rather than drive, although it thankfully won’t be his car, but we did tell him to pay for a cab back to their car if the Marta does stop running before they get out of the event. It may cost a bundle, but I’d rather my kids be safe than save a buck.</p>
<p>I would also look into private limo services, shuttles, to see if they may offer rides to the event. I’ve used this for son when he went out of town for a conference. It’s a guaranteed reservation, and you don’t have to depend on a cab being available.</p>
<p>Hope you all have a great time. I’m looking forward to indoor tailgating this weekend!</p>
<p>The trains run until 1:30 am. After 7pm the Red Line only operates between North Springs and Lindbergh. Simply transfer at Lindbergh Station to continue your trip. For more detailed information on schedules, maps, etc check out</p>
<p>[MARTA</a> - Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority](<a href=“http://www.itsmarta.com%5DMARTA”>http://www.itsmarta.com)</p>
<p>Thanks for that link. Wow, that looks like the Metro in DC. Son is going to love it!</p>