Contact information and flight status
- atlanta-airport.com; 800-897-1910 or 404-530-7300 (24 hours).
- Twitter / Facebook / YouTube
- Terminal maps
- Current departures
- Current arrivals
Checkpoint savvy
Busiest times: Monday and Friday 5 a.m. - 9 a.m. and Thursday/Friday/Sunday 3 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Workarounds: All 28 lanes in the North, South and Main checkpoints provide access to all secure areas for domestic flights. Carriers with a presence in international and domestic terminals allow entrance to either, but ATL suggests international travelers enter through the International Terminal and domestic travelers enter through the Domestic Terminal. Real-time updates on security wait times available here.
Depending on your airline and your status with TSA, expedited TSA PreCheck lanes may be available at the Main and North Checkpoints.
Parking
Parking information: 404-530-6725 or 877-ATL-PARK (24 hours). Parking information is also on airport radio station 830 AM, or online.
Most convenient: Hourly parking in front of terminals, $36/day. Daily parking across from terminals, $16/day. Online reservations available.
Least expensive: Airport Park-Ride Shuttle, $9/day (Economy lot, $12/day).
Cellphone lot: A 160-space cellphone lot is located along South Terminal Parkway at the east end of the Park-Ride reserve lot.
Transportation to/from city
Most convenient: Taxi: To downtown (flat fare/first rider, $2/each additional passenger), $30. Travel time: 20 to 25 minutes. To midtown, $32. To Buckhead, $40. Shared shuttle vans, including SuperShuttle Atlanta, are also available to the Central Business District, including downtown, midtown and Buckhead.
Least expensive: MARTA trains run between the airport and downtown in about 20 minutes, to Buckhead in about 30 minutes. Fare: $2.50.
Wi-Fi and charging stations
ATL offers free Wi-Fi throughout the airport, including the transportation mall under the concourses.
Power outlets throughout the airport; free charging stations near many Delta gates.
Go local
Good choice for local gifts: 11 Alive Travel Store (news/gifts; Centerpoint B), Zoo Atlanta Panda Veranda (Concourse B). See more options.
Good choice for local food: Atrium NE: Atlanta Chophouse. Concourse A: P.F. Chang's (upper level), Piece of Cake, Varasano's Pizzeria. Concourse B: FLY Burger Bar Boutique, Savannah's Candy Kitchen, Paschal's Southern Cuisine (also in Atrium), Café Intermezzo. Concourse C: Carrabba’s Italian Grill. Concourse D: Atlanta Braves All Star Bar and Grill, Terrapin Tap House/Cigar and Smoke Lounge (50+ craft beers, specialty flatbreads). Concourse E: One Flew South (fine dining), Goldberg's Café, Atlanta Stillhouse (30+ brands of bourbon). Concourse F: Jekyll Island Seafood, The Pecan, Ecco (tapas and wine), The Varsity (burgers), Sweet Auburn Market Café. See more options.
Tips and tidbits
The airport has 52 water bottle-refill stations, a Visitor Information Center (at the top of the arrivals escalator) and two piano bars (at the Concourse E Centerpoint and on Concourse A, by Varasano's Pizza). There are also pet relief areas and a vibrant art and exhibits program that includes artifacts relating to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (on loan from the King Center) and a 10-foot-tall, 31-foot-long dinosaur (on loan from the Fernbank Museum of Natural History).
Two hotels — the Atlanta Airport Marriott Gateway and the Springhill Suites Atlanta Airport Gateway — are connected to the airport via the ATL SkyTrain.
Work/nap pods are available at Minute Suites on Concourse B; a common-use VIP lounge with shower facilities is on the concourse level of the international terminal (day pass: $35).
Smoking areas are available on each concourse. (Concourse D area is in the Terrapin Tap House/Cigar and Smoke Lounge.)
Nearby layover option
The World of Coca-Cola museum, the Georgia Aquarium, and the Auburn Avenue historic district are 20 to 25 minutes away via MARTA.
Your tips and picks?
Please share your time and money-saving tips, favorite restaurants, bars and stores in comments below.
These guides are written by Harriet Baskas, who is the author of six books, including the airport guidebook Stuck at the Airport and a blog of the same name.
