ATLAirport Guide

Your first day in Atlanta after a long flight: MARTA downtown and what's near the stops

MARTA leaves from the Domestic Terminal for $2.50. Peachtree Center is the stop for the Georgia Aquarium, World of Coca-Cola and Centennial Olympic Park.

The brick walk and lawn of Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta, with a stone column and the cylindrical glass tower beyond the trees.
Centennial Olympic Park

MARTA’s Airport Station sits between the North and South baggage claims in the Domestic Terminal, and a ride costs $2.50. Discover Atlanta puts the airport about 10 miles south of downtown and lists the Georgia Aquarium, World of Coca-Cola and Centennial Olympic Park under one stop, Peachtree Center.

Boarding at the Domestic Terminal

Both the Red and Gold lines run from the Airport Station to downtown, so take whichever train comes first. MARTA’s fare page lists Breeze cards, Breeze tickets and tap to pay. The standard fare includes up to four free transfers in three hours, and a 1-Day (24-hr) Pass costs $9.00. Our MARTA rail page has the late-evening change at Lindbergh Center, and our MARTA guide has the first and last trains.

If you’ve landed at the International Terminal, MARTA says a free shuttle at the arrivals level goes to baggage claim at the Domestic Terminal. The Plane Train also stops at Domestic Terminal Baggage Claim. Our International Terminal shuttle page has the stop, and our guide to arriving on an international flight walks the route from the aircraft to the curb.

What’s near each stop

Stop MARTA’s average travel time to Airport Discover Atlanta lists nearby
Garnett 15 minutes Atlanta City Hall, Georgia State Capitol
Five Points 16 minutes Underground Atlanta, Georgia State University. It’s also where the Blue and Green lines meet the Red and Gold
Peachtree Center 17 minutes Centennial Olympic Park, Georgia Aquarium, World of Coca-Cola, SkyView Ferris wheel, Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame, National Center for Civil and Human Rights
North Avenue 19 minutes Fox Theatre, Georgia Tech
Midtown 20 minutes Margaret Mitchell House, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
Arts Center 22 minutes High Museum of Art, Woodruff Arts Center

MARTA’s weekday Gold timetable lists clock times for single trains instead of averages. Its 12:00 p.m. departure from Airport reaches Five Points at 12:17 p.m., Peachtree Center at 12:18 p.m. and Midtown at 12:22 p.m. The Midtown guide helps you pick between the North Avenue, Midtown and Arts Center stops.

A first afternoon at Peachtree Center

Discover Atlanta’s one-day downtown route starts at Centennial Olympic Park and calls the Georgia Aquarium, World of Coca-Cola and the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame “just steps away” from there.

The route goes on to a 90-minute tour of Mercedes-Benz Stadium and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, and it includes an evening ride on SkyView Atlanta. Our guide to the aquarium and downtown sights covers how to reach each one by MARTA.

Four downtown hotels and how they connect

Four downtown hotels from the hotels page:

Hotel Where it sits
Hilton Atlanta Joined by skywalk to Peachtree Center and its MARTA station
Embassy Suites by Hilton Atlanta at Centennial Olympic Park On the edge of Centennial Olympic Park, a five-minute walk from the Georgia Aquarium, with breakfast included
Omni Atlanta Hotel at Centennial Park On Marietta Street in the Centennial Park District
Signia by Hilton Atlanta Georgia World Congress Center Connected to the Georgia World Congress Center, next to Mercedes-Benz Stadium and State Farm Arena

If the train feels like too much

ATL posts a $37.50 flat taxi fare to downtown for one person, which includes a $1.50 surcharge. Its shared-ride shuttles list a maximum of $16.50 per person to downtown. Uber’s route page gives its own averages of $35 for UberX and 22 minutes for the trip. Our guide to every option downtown sets them side by side with the fare above.

Sources