ATLAirport Guide

Atlanta Airport to the Georgia Aquarium and Downtown Sights by MARTA

Get off the Red or Gold line at Peachtree Center for the Georgia Aquarium, or change at Five Points for the arenas and stadium. The fare is $2.50.

Looking up along the curved canopy of the Georgia Aquarium in downtown Atlanta, with its red letters and the glass prow behind.
Georgia Aquarium

Get off at Peachtree Center for the Georgia Aquarium. The Red and Gold lines both stop there, so you don’t change trains, and the fare is $2.50. Discover Atlanta calls Peachtree Center an important downtown stop to know.

Peachtree Center is the stop for the aquarium and its neighbors

Stop How you reach it MARTA’s average travel time to Airport Discover Atlanta lists nearby
Peachtree Center Red or Gold from the airport 17 minutes Georgia Aquarium, World of Coca-Cola, Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame, National Center for Civil and Human Rights, SkyView, Centennial Olympic Park
Five Points Red or Gold from the airport 16 minutes Underground Atlanta, Georgia State University
SEC District Red or Gold to Five Points, then Blue or Green 17 minutes Georgia World Congress Center, State Farm Arena, Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Vine City Red or Gold to Five Points, then Blue or Green 18 minutes Mercedes-Benz Stadium, State Farm Arena, Clark Atlanta University
King Memorial Red or Gold to Five Points, then Blue or Green 19 minutes Oakland Cemetery, Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park, The King Center

Discover Atlanta calls Centennial Olympic Park about a half-mile walk from Peachtree Center, and it lists the aquarium and its neighbors alongside the park. The Hub, a food hall at Peachtree Center, is there if you’d like a bite first. The Hilton Atlanta is joined by skywalk to Peachtree Center and its MARTA station. The Embassy Suites at Centennial Olympic Park says it is a five-minute walk from the Georgia Aquarium.

On MARTA’s trains, children 46 inches and under ride free, up to two per paying adult. Riders over 65, on Medicare or with disabilities pay $1 with a reduced-fare Breeze card. You can pay with a Breeze card or ticket, or tap a bank card at the faregate.

Change at Five Points for the arenas and the stadium

Five Points is where all four MARTA rail lines meet. Follow the signs to a Blue or Green train, since both serve SEC District (Sports, Entertainment, and Convention District) and Vine City.

A local who rides MARTA to work and writes for Discover Atlanta describes what each stop opens onto. SEC District puts you at the State Farm Arena Gate 4 entrance and in front of Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and a pathway leads on to the Georgia World Congress Center. Vine City has a pedestrian bridge across to the stadium. After an event at the stadium, that writer boards at Vine City instead of SEC District to dodge the crowd, and says extra trains run during major events.

Use the streetcar between sights

The Atlanta Streetcar is a separate fare, and your train fare doesn’t carry over. MARTA’s fares page lists it at $1.00 with no transfers, and a streetcar 1-Day pass at $3.00. Discover Atlanta says it runs about every 15 minutes and takes you to places such as Centennial Olympic Park, Woodruff Park, Municipal Market and the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park.

Check the last train before a late return

Both lines stop at Peachtree Center and Five Points, so the later Gold train still works once the Red’s done for the night. For the ride back, check the last train in MARTA’s trip planner or the MARTA On the Go app, which MARTA’s airport page points to for real-time schedules. The table shows the last departures from Airport Station.

Day Last Red departure Last Gold departure
Weekdays 8:50 p.m. 1:20 a.m.
Saturday and Sunday 1:10 a.m. 1:20 a.m.

It doesn’t include the last Blue or Green train. The first trains from Airport Station are in the MARTA guide, and the downtown guide compares MARTA with a taxi, a shared van and Uber.

If you land at the International Terminal, MARTA’s station isn’t there. It’s a free ride away in the Domestic Terminal on the International Terminal shuttle.

Sources