Which MARTA station by the airport is better to use? (Atlanta: rental car, rental)

[aktanner]

We are looking into a hotel possibly by the Atlanta airport for the July 4th weekend (downtown is too expensive). We wanted to ride the MARTA to downtown. In experience on a busy weekend, if staying at a hotel at either I-85/Virginia Ave or I-85 Riverside Dr, is it easier to drive to the MARTA station at College Park and park, or take a hotel shuttle to the airport and catch the MARTA in the terminal?

[PKCorey]

Either option will work...

I prefer the CP idea tho...as long as you have rental car...

[jeffreda30238]

I agree. Either way is fine. If you have a rental, the CP train station probably would be better, but if you don't and plan on using the shuttle, just catch it at the airport.

[saharaga]

If you are familiar with the College Park station, then maybe parking at College Park is good idea. I personally prefer the taking the train from the airport option. I have always found MARTA stations fairly easy to navigate but College Park is one of the largest train stations and I did not find it easy to navigate when I parked there. Frankly, it was a nightmare. It took me forever to find my car when I got back because of the sheer volume of cars that park there and the layout of the huge parking lot.

Also, the parking is split on opposite sides of the station so heaven help you if you exit the station on the wrong side. It is not an easy task to walk around until you find your car because not all of the parking areas are connected. If you do exit on the wrong side, it's usually best to go back to the station and have the attendant escort you out the other side.

Here's a map of the College Park Station (http://www.itsmarta.com/getthere/stations/maps/AreaMaps_CollegPark.pdf - broken link) and you can see from the layout that the rail line splits the terminal into two areas so there is little option to walk around to the other side if you come out the wrong side.

[PKCorey]

Originally Posted by saharaga

If you are familiar with the College Park station, then maybe parking at College Park is good idea. I personally prefer the taking the train from the airport option. I have always found MARTA stations fairly easy to navigate but College Park is one of the largest train stations and I did not find it easy to navigate when I parked there. Frankly, it was a nightmare. It took me forever to find my car when I got back because of the sheer volume of cars that park there and the layout of the huge parking lot.

.

LMAO...Me too. I swear, everytime, I park @ CP, I spend about 5-10 mins searching for my car. I can never find it and I have to play it off cause I"m lost .

I know what side I came in on but I can never find my car where it should be...

[jeffreda30238]

wow...i have never gotten lost at the CP station...i never thought it was that large, i always thought it was pretty small actually...lol

[PKCorey]

It's not getting lost, per se, its so many cars, its hard to remember which line you are in.

I"m usually in the right section but wrong line...Even worst, when you walk pass yo car 2 or 3 times lmao

[saharaga]

Well, I will freely admit to being lost. LOL! It took me about 20 minutes of walking around before I realized I was on the wrong side.

Originally Posted by PKCorey

It's not getting lost, per se, its so many cars, its hard to remember which line you are in.

I"m usually in the right section but wrong line...Even worst, when you walk pass yo car 2 or 3 times lmao

[PKCorey]

I didn't even know their was 2 sides. I always park on the side facing the ATT building or the back lot from your link...

I wasn't lost! Ok, maybe, I was