So my kid is getting a long weekend from Boot Camp at Ft Benning. There's a family ceremony on Friday AM, and then he's free until Monday PM. I'm figuring that there's more to do and see in ATL than close to the base, although I welcome local knowledge in that regard. I see the Falcons are out of town. I'm looking for suggestions for a moderately-priced hotel, preferably in the middle of enough stuff that a car won't be necessary, restaurants, sites to see, etc. Knowing my kid like I do, I assume he's going to want to watch football all day Sat and all day Sunday, so a sports bar might be a good idea.
Spent a week on business in Atlanta recently....so by no means an expert, but here's what I learned: 1. Downtown is a ********. Stay away. 2. Buckhead is the area you want for restaurants and nightlife. There are many hotels in the area, and you can most certainly find a good deal through your favorite internet travel site. 3. There is an area outside of Buckhead referred to as the Perimeter, which is more suburban, and "mallish" if you know what I mean, but that has plenty of restaurants and hotels also. You might find a better deal on a hotel there than in Buckhead. And you use the MART Rail system to get back and forth between the Perimeter and Buckhead. Not sure about "sights". I did run through the Georgia Tech campus one morning (at the edge of downtown) and that was kind of cool. Have you checked to see if they are playing at home?
I agree on downtown, though I've stayed in some nice hotels there. Also agree on Buckhead -- that is a good area to stay. THere is an Embassy Suites in Buckhead. STayed there once -- it's fine
I traveled to Buckhead a decent amount for business in the past. It's about a 40 - 45 minute train ride using MARTA from the airport. If you drive, the traffic is hellish during rush hours. The Intercontinental was the nicest hotel I stayed at (there's also a Ritz Carlton), and you can often stay at the Crowne Plaza, Hyatt, Hilton for under $100 if you go through the right websites. Otherwise plenty of places like Embassy Suites, Comfort Inn, Holiday Inn, etc. Buckhead is walkable but not in high heat/humidity. When it's cooler you can walk to just about anything in the area within about 30 minutes. But there are plenty of cabs usually. There are two malls, one is upscale, the other less so, and an enormous amount of dining options at all price levels and across all cuisines. There always seemed to be a fair amount of international travelers in the area and there is some sort of international university located there as well. Not much in the way of sight-seeing however. If you take MARTA downtown then you can go visit the Aquarium, CNN, Coca Cola museum, etc..
I lived there for 5 years, now 3 years removed so i'm sure much has changed. Here's a list i sent to a friend recently. go eat at rathbuns avoid atlanta underground avoid cnn center tour avoid Stone Mountain have a hot dog at a braves game ...have a stiff cocktail at The Highland Tap (past midnight only) go see "goldie" at the Clairmont have a pint at The Brick Store in Decatur go see the aquarium, awesome see a band in East Atlanta (The Earl) stroll through piedmont park have some oysters, shrimp and beer at 6 Feet Under near the cemetery
somebody on rivals radio was talking about a great sports bar near CNN, but of course, I cannot remember the name. Ring any bells?
probably Jock's n Jills. it's ok, nothing different than any other sports bar. the texas exes used to watch UT games at the Buckhead location. pretty good turnout most of the time.
Midtown which is in between Buckhead and downtown is where you should go. Most of the bars in Buckhead were closed down a few years ago. Midtown has quite a lot of bars and restaurants and you can walk to all of them. It is just across from the Georgia Tech campus (the area between North Avenue and 16th Street and just east of I-75/85) The Taco Mac (140 beers on tap) on Peachtree is a good place to watch Texas games which is also across the street from a Hudsons Grill which is another sports bar. The Vortex is just a block away. Cabs to the Virginia Highlands area which is also a good bar and restaurant area are only about $12, There are also a bunch of hotels in Midtown and you can take the MARTA from the airport which takes about 20 minutes. I wouldnt bother with the anything near the CNN complex unless there was an event going on in the Georgia Dome.
I found out a few days before the trip that he had to stay within 50 miles of the base, so it was Colombus for us. Not a bad town, actually. A little to "mall-y" and "Olive garden-y" for my taste, but not a bad town.