<p>i am going to be in Atlanta from 9/7 to 9/17. i got couple questions:</p>
<li><p>how’s the weather usually in Sept? is it humid and hot? normally, how often/bad is atlanta affected by hurricanes/tropical storms? </p></li>
<li><p>how necessarily is car? i heard two different versions; it seems to me the locals tend to think that marta is kinda useless while many travellers said it took them to many places they wanted to go. my hotel is like 50 yards from the midtown station.</p></li>
<li><p>are there any areas/streets in midtown or atlanta that are “compact” with many shops, restaurants, and pedestrians…etc?</p></li>
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<p>I’ll do my best to answer till somebody else pops in who goes into town more often.</p>
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<li><p>In Sept the weather is beginning to change, and anything goes. Mostly it is pretty warm, but not blistering hot. (We still need A/C in Sept.) If Florida has a hurricaine, we will have rain and winds eventually. We usually get plenty of warning.</p></li>
<li><p>I live outside Atlanta, and need a car because Marta doesn’t come this far. However, we often will drive to the closest station and take the trains in because it’s such a pain to drive in Atlanta. </p></li>
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<p>I don’t know downtown really well - I pull out a map and plot my route everytime I have to go there. I think there is a ton of stuff to do in Atlanta, and if you don’t need to go outside the city proper, you won’t need a car.</p>
<p>CNN, World of Coke, Centennial Olympic Park, Georgia Aquarium, Underground Atlanta, etc, are all within walking distance of each other. I’m sure your hotel will have good downtown maps. They are pretty easy to come by. I think you can even have the Tourist center mail them to you ahead of time if you want.</p>
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<li> Viriginia Highlands is one such neighborhood - with shops, restaurants, pedestrians. I know because my S’s music teacher lives there. (And there is a bus from the Midtown station that goes that route.) There are surely others.</li>
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<p>Entirely depends on where you want to go…and at what time of day/night. Atlanta is not the safest town and I wouldn’t advise tourists to be out walking in the dark for several blocks (near marta stations) by themselves in most areas (some would probably be ok, others not so much). You might want to keep the phone number of a cab company with you in case it is needed. </p>
<p>Atlanta is also not public transportation friendly (it is really spread out and buses only go so far). But if you plan your trip and know where you want to go, you might do ok. What hotel did you pick? It is better to go with upscale here (no Days Inn or Motel 6’s…that’s asking for trouble). </p>
<p>City of Decatur (Decatur Marta Station) has something like 20 restaurants, a night spot or two (Eddies Attic for one), art gallery, etc… The marta station is right in the middle of the “square” with all the shops, etc…Very friendly during the day, don’t know much about after dark. A cab can sometimes be found right outside the Marta Station on Church St. Agnes Scott college is within walking distance. Emory’s CLIFF (shuttle) runs SOMETIMES through that area (I think Mon - Fri during the day, but maybe you could check the schedule.).</p>
<p>Midtown isn’t too bad…but maybe I think that because that’s where I go to school. It’s easier to get around in a car, I wouldn’t advise you to use MARTA the whole time you’re down there.</p>
<p>At least as a college student I find myself going to little 5 points, Atlantic station, and Tech Square a lot.</p>
<p>I will be staying at Westin in Buckhead the first 3 nights. Then I will be staying at Regency Suite at Midtown. Regency Suite is supposed to be 3-star and many people gave it good review. It looks like I probably want to rent a car in most days for convenience and safety.</p>
<p>The areas you are staying in should be fine. Lots of places in and around Lenox Mall (near the Westin/Buckhead). There is a lot of revitalization going on in the Midtown area- lots of places that are pedestrian friendly- cute hangouts on… Vickery I think (I am out of town right now-- cant double ck that- sorry) and a TO DIE FOR chocolate shop called – something with “Pink” in the name- maybe Chocolate Pink (sorry - I am tired and my brain seems to have gone to bed already). Then there is Atlantic Station- an all-in-one complex of stores, theaters,etc. There are trollys from the Arts Center Station to Atlantic Station. There was a thread started a while back by someone who was bemoaning hte fact that they would be in… was it Lithia Springs or Austell or one of the suburbs (Binx- do you recall??), and thought he’d have nothing to do. People posted with LOTS of great ideas about what to do in and around Atlanta.</p>
<p>In terms of having a car - I find Atlanta pretty easy to drive, direction-wise. But difficult traffic-wise. And it’s a pain to park some places.</p>
<p>Yes Binx!
-That’s the thread I was thinking of! Thanks! Tons of good info in that thread for the OP to read about.
Sam-
Try also going online into <a href=“http://www.accessatlanta.com%5B/url%5D”>www.accessatlanta.com</a> That will tell you what is going on (events, concerts, etc) during the time you will be in town. I also agree, having a car is helpful. The hotels should have parking. I think there is a parking lot across from the midtwon MARTA station right by the Regency Suites. I can’t recall if the hotel has its own lot. You will be in walking distance to Piedmont Park which is next to the botanical gardens. If there happens to be any kind of festival going on when you are here, street parking will be challenging, but I have never had any trouble finding some parking.</p>
<p>Sam, where are you coming from? If you are from a smaller area, driving in Atlanta might be a bit overwhelming. There is a lot of traffic, and we are famous for having streets that change names for no reason, and half of them have the word “Peachtree” in them! You can walk down Peachtree St from your hotel down towards downtown- there are shops and restaurants as you walk down towards the Fox Theater (really cool old restored theater). There is a lot to do, but there is a lot of new building going on to- that is becoming a hoppin’ place. There is a lot in the Lenox mall area, as I mentioned earlier this morning. You should be fine at the Westin to walk to the malls and such if you dont want to deal with a car there.</p>
<p>Thanks for your help. I live in LA, so the traffic won’t be overwhelming though I will still dislike it. So what about safety? It seems to me according to binx and others (in other sites), Atlanta has many unsafe areas with some interspersed in even areas like Midtown, which is supposed to be one of the most desirable areas to live in Atlanta; I was told by one not to walk west from Regency Suite cos things can get a bit rough starting from Spring street and I looked at the map and Spring St is only 1 block away west! So it’s hard for me to guage. I am a city person and have lived in Chicago, SF and have been to Boston/NYC many times. All those places have their share of bad neighborhoods but for the most part, they aren’t interspersed all over the city and so one wouldn’t accidentally run into them easily; I can walk across huge areas without feeling unsafe in those cities. It seems like Atlanta is a bit different; you have to be watchful in most areas?</p>
<p>I don’t think Atlanta is any different from any other big city in terms of safety. There are parts of downtown I would prefer not to roam around in by myself, but in general I feel pretty safe. Midtown has a large gay population, and it is very pedestrian friendly in that area. Spring Street is fine. It is Techwood that I would stay away from. That area gets sKetchy, but you wouldnt have need to be over there anyway.</p>