Atlanta Travel Forum

Hi there, I will be travelling back to south Africa and have a 8 hr layover in Atlanta..so wanted to head out and see some sites/shopping...I have been to Atlanta before, but dont'really remember how to get around....
If you could please send ideas of shopping etc to visit near the aiport...
Thanks

I don't think there is anything that you are looking for that qualifies as close by. The airport is on th S side of the city and most of the shopping areas are to the N. There's really not much of interest in 'downtown' Atlanta, other than Underground Atlanta which is a few city blocks from the late 1800's that the city has built over with bridges and viaducts and so now is 'underground'. Not too far from there is CNN center, you could take a tour of the studios (for a fee)and Centennial Park. 2 or 3 blocks away is the new Georgia Aquarium the only one in the world with a tank housing whale sharks. All of these sights can be reached by the MARTA metro train which leaves from the airport and the stop to get off is Five Points (about 20 minutes from ATL). The easiest large scale mall accessible by the same MARTA trains is Perimeter Mall, which is (I think) the last stop and should take about 40 minutes from the airport, but I'v never done that trip so that's just a guess. Hope that helps.

What Dave said is pretty much correct. There is also another mall, Lenox, that is just off of a Marta stop. If you were to go to the midtown area, you could stop by the High Museum of Art. It is only a couple of blocks from a Marta station. I've never taken Marta to the High so I don't know which stop to check out.

But you can look at the site www.itsmarta.com for more information about where the rail lines run.

It may be a moot point because you are already in South Africa, but just in case you have yet to travel, here is some more advice. With 8 hours layover, taking an international flight, you need to allow 1 hour for security and getting to your gate upon returning (assuming you will already be checked in, otherwise add another hour for safety). Add to this around 30 - 40 minutes either way (including wait and travel times) if you travel away from the airport on Marta, and you really only have about 5 1/2 hours to play with. Downtown does not have the shopping breadth but does have the sites. Exit Marta at Peachtree Center where there are a few shops in the small mall, a food court, and is next door to a Hard Rock Cafe. From there you can walk to the GA Aquarium (World's largest) and right next door is the World of Coca Cola, a museum to, you guessed it, Coca Cola. Both can be done with a bite to eat in between in the time available, provided you don't linger too long at the exhibits.

Option 2 is to take the Marta to Arts Center where you can either go to the High Museum of Art (5 min by foot)which has a Louvre exhibit, the only one of its kind outside of the Louvre and/or you can take the free shuttle bus from the Marta station to Atlantic Station which is a great shopping venue. it is not a mall, but has all the mall type retail in a pedestrian friendly street layout. There are lots of good restaurants there catering to all pockets and tastes, a cinema/movie theatre and even an upscale bowling alley. You can definitely fit the museum and the shopping into 5 hours. Check out some websites to pre-plan so you get the most out of your time. I can recommend www.atlanta.net for the attractions and restaurant scene. They also have some consumer reviews. Good luck.