The Marriott Marquis Atlanta: Atlanta's Soaring Architectural Gem


The Marriott Marquis Atlanta is located in downtown Atlanta in the heart of the hotel district. The hotel is easily accessible from the Interstate 75/85 Downtown Connector. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is 15 minutes away, and most of Atlanta's downtown attractions are within walking distance or a short cab ride away, including the World of Coca-Cola, the Georgia Aquarium, Philips Arena, the Georgia Dome and Centennial Olympic Park. There is inside access from the hotel to Atlanta's public rail system, MARTA.

The Marriott Marquis Atlanta, completed in 1985, was designed by internationally famous Atlanta architect John Portman. Portman is known for creating the "atrium hotel,'' and the Marriott's atrium, at 53 stories high, was the largest in the world at the time it was built. Portman designed a large part of Atlanta's downtown skyline; in addition to the Marriott, his buildings include the Westin Peachtree Plaza, the Hyatt Regency and Peachtree Center.

The Marriott Marquis is Atlanta's largest hotel, featuring over 1,600 rooms and 94 suites. In 2008, the hotel completed a $140 million dollar, three-year renovation that updated guestrooms, added more suites, expanded the meeting space and completely redesigned all public areas. New features of the hotel include:

The Atrium Ballroom, a 25,000-square-foot banquet space with floor-to-ceiling windows.

Seven additional meeting rooms, bringing the total available meeting space to 160,000 square feet.

Pulse, a new bar and lounge area that serves small plates and features an eye-catching five-story, acrylic sail that changes colors with the day's moods.

Sear, the hotel's signature restaurant that offers fire-grilled steak and seafood.

A new concierge lounge for preferred guests on the 42nd floor that is the largest concierge lounge in the Marriott chain.

High Velocity, a sports bar that serves a large selection of beer and casual food and offers 21 plasma televisions and a 40-foot matrix projection screen television.

The Spa, which provides full spa treatments as well as express, 25-minute services.

J. W. Marriott Jr., chairman and CEO of Marriott International, says of the new look, "We expect this renovation ... will push the Marriott envelope and help lead our brand to an entirely new level.''

The Marriott Marquis Atlanta is Atlanta's premier convention hotel, with access to all the trade marts in downtown Atlanta as well as its own massive meeting space. Its 160,000 square feet of space can be divided into 84 separate spaces, the largest of which is the Atrium Ballroom, which has a maximum seating capacity of 4,600. All meeting rooms have wireless internet access, and a Fed-Ex business center and secretarial services are available. The hotel provides standard audio/visual facilities and a full catering service.

Reviews of the renovated Marriott Marquis have been glowing, from both business and vacationing guests. "The public areas are gorgeous, neat, clean and very modern,'' says one reviewer on a well-known travel site. "The new renovation is amazing!'' raves another. One business traveler, whose regular, luxury hotels were booked, "was delighted that the Marquis surpassed these hotels in service, accommodation and cuisine.'' Guests were also pleased with the downtown location, the stunning architecture and the professional service. Most negative reviews involved the prices of the rooms, parking and services. Overall, however, this guest's comment summed it up: "This is one of the coolest hotels I have ever stayed at.''

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