free parking (Atlanta, Dunwoody, College Park: apartment complex, hotel, safe neighborhood)

[castaway83]

Will be flying out of Atlanta next month and gone 2 weeks, in the past I've parked at a hotel, they charged abt $5/day, was told I could park at the Marta College Park station, but on their hp is says it's only for daily parking? Or garage $8/day. Does anyone have a suggestion?

[TheKiwi]

Why not park on a residential street and then take an Uber or Lyft to the airport from there? Plenty of free residential parking in this city, though check out signs first because some areas you do need a permit in. Also it's obviously at your own risk, so don't leave anything in the car that may look enticing to thieves.

[JPD]

How far do you live from the airport or the nearest MARTA station? Could you Uber/Lyft/Cab/get a ride from a friend to either of those?

Do you have any friends who live close to the airport or MARTA that would let you leave your car at their house?

I wouldn't advise leaving your car on a random residential street for two weeks a bunch of reasons.

[castaway83]

no, I live in Greenville, SC, but flying out of here is a pain, Charlotte is usually more expensive, so I usually fly out of Atlanta

[JPD]

Looks like your only other option is to take Amtrak/Megabus/Greyhound to Atlanta, but if your goal is to save money on parking, that might be a pointless non-solution.

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by castaway83

no, I live in Greenville, SC, but flying out of here is a pain, Charlotte is usually more expensive, so I usually fly out of Atlanta

Why not park at Dunwoody Station, $5/day in garage and ride Red Line to Aiport. End of Line Stations always have higher long-term parking fees.
MARTA

[Tarzanman]

I'd park the car on the street in a safe neighborhood or apartment complex, then uber/lyft to the MARTA station

[ATLTJL]

I'd park the car on the street in a safe neighborhood or apartment complex, then uber/lyft to the MARTA station

But the OP may not be from Atlanta. So how would you suggest identifying a safe neighborhood? And in a lot of neighborhoods, an unknown car parked on the street for 2 weeks might get residents suspicious. You're not supposed to be able to tow a car if its plates are good and it's parked legally, but if they tell cops its been abandoned there, you never know what they will do.

Of course, I'm speaking of a subdivision. If it's a city street where people typically parallel park and its a busy area where people come and go, you're probably fine. Personally, I can't think of any areas like this by the airport, but I don't know the area that well. It's also tough for an out of towner because they'd have to take copious notes/GPS coordinates for where they parked. Can you imagine getting back and jumping into an Uber to get to your car, but you're not quite sure where you left it?

If you park in an apartment complex, make sure they don't have assigned parking or parking stickers. Complexes near the airport may be hip to this game.

The safest place might be to parallel park on a street where it's legal in one of the historic downtowns within eyeshot of a police station.

[st3mpy]

Park in residential Midtown (Between Ponce and 10th, Piedmont and Charles Allen) and ride North Ave or 10th St Marta to the airport. Many cars are parked for weeks at a time in this area, no one will care of notice.

[joey86]

Residential parking in Atlanta shouldn't be used for long term parking by someone not visiting the city itself. That's obviously a bunk deal for "us" vs them parking in a paid lot. Fork over the $5 a day that will protect your car from break-ins.