Travelling from Memphis to Atlanta (Knoxville, Chattanooga: live in, bus, moving to)

[sweetu1995]

I will be moving to Memphis for work. However, my family will be staying in Atlanta GA. I plan on visiting them as frequently as I can. I wanted to know what is the best possible way - bus, rail, flight?

I prefer not to drive. Also I heard travelling by greyhound in and out of memphis is not safe. How true is that?

[maximus10]

First off, there is no passenger rail line to Atlanta. Only to New Orleans and Chicago. Second, Greyhound is horrible period. No matter where it's at. But that's just me. Flying would be very easy if you have the funds. The drive is not bad at all. If Birmingham would ever finish its loop or whatever they call it, it would be an even better drive.

[JMT]

AirTran offers cheap air fares and flies Memphis-Atlanta (also Tunica-Atlanta).

[JoeCartpath]

Roundtrip Memphis to Atlanta is less that $200....and is only about an hour flight.

Driving, you basically have two choices; Memphis-Nashville-Chattanooga-Atanta or Memphis-Birmingham-Atlanta. I've done both many times - and continue to do so since my best friends live in Marietta. Personally, I don't find that much difference either way....and I don't mind the drive at all.

If I-840 is EVER completed, the Nashville route would be much improved and the time probably dropped by at least 30 minutes - maybe more. But that's a long time away. Going that way, the stretch from Memphis to the Tennessee River is the most boring section. The stretch from Monteagle to Chattanooga is beautiful.

The Birmingham route is MUCH improved now that you don't have to take old 78 from Jasper into Birmingham to get to I-20. Highway 78 is now fully Interstate-like almost to I-65. Going to Atlanta, you just stay on Hwy 78 until it ends. The last several times I've gone, that has been at Cherry Avenue - but Google now shows it complete to Coalburg Road, although I don't know if that's accurate. Either way, you exit 78 there and turn right...then turn left on Daniel Payne Blvd...then right on I-65...to I-20 East (It's easier than it sounds).

The stretch from MS to Birmingham is boring, as there's not much there. No rest stops...although a few of the exits in AL now have gas stations. Coming back this way there is a rest stop just as you enter MS.

I think the Birmingham route is about 45 minutes shorter - but that might also depend on where in Atlanta you're going. I sort of alternate between those two routes...Birmingham if I want the quickest....Nashville if I want to stop in Nashville or Chattanooga to do something on the way. Last month I even went Memphis-Nashville-Gatlinburg-Atlanta-Birmingham-Memphis....two of us in a Miata

Maybe your family would arrange to meet you for an occasional weekend in Nashville? There's a lot to do and see there, and it's pretty close to midway. My friends in Marietta do that occasionally...and it makes for a nice weekend mini-vacation for all of us...

[Brian]

If you fly to ATL from MEM, it'd be like 30 minutes, one way. If you have to ride on Greyhound, simply have a friend to accompy you until your bus is ready to depart.

I live outside of Atlanta. When driving to Memphis from the Atlanta/Marietta suburbs, I prefer backroads, from Rome, GA (outside of Atlanta/Marietta suburbs) to Huntsville, AL., and stay on US 72 West all the way to Corinth, MS/Memphis. Not much of traffic to deal with.

I once drove all the way to Knoxville, Tenn., from Memphis before heading back to Atlanta. It was heck of a drive.

[rackensack]

As others have said, there is no train service and I wouldn't put my worst enemy on a bus between Memphis and Atlanta, so driving and flying are your only two options. Best fares between MEM and ATL are about $120 if you can schedule your flights at the cheapest off-peak times; assuming gas at $2.75/gal and roughly 20 miles per gallon, the 800 mile round trip comes out to just over $100 for gas, so it's nearly a wash financially -- might as well fly and save about 12 hours of your life you won't have to spend in a car.

I've driven between Atlanta and Memphis at least once or twice a year for the last 24 years, going back to visit family in Arkansas. As others have said, the I-20/US 78 route through Birmingham and Tupelo is vastly better than it used to be -- it's now nearly all freeway except for short stretch between Birmingham and Jasper, AL, instead of the winding two-lane highway it used to be. The I-75/I-24/I-40 route through Chattanooga and Nashville used be roughly equivalent in terms of driving time way back then, but these days unless you're going to be visiting/staying northwest of Atlanta itself or you're already on the east side of Memphis, it doesn't really have any compelling advantages, and the time difference is probably a bit more than an hour in favor of the I-20/US 78 route. I've also take US 72 east from Memphis through Florence/Tuscumbia/Muscle Shoals and on toward Huntsville and then cut over either to I-20 or up through Rome, GA; I really like it for coming back this way from Memphis, as US 72 has much less traffic than 78, and is generally an overall more pleasant drive. The downside is that there's no easy way to get from Huntsville to the Atlanta area -- any route you pick involves going out of your way and taking small obscure state highways for part of the trip.

[Johnny Ryall]

Originally Posted by JMT

AirTran offers cheap air fares and flies Memphis-Atlanta (also Tunica-Atlanta).

That's your best answer right there.

[sweetu1995]

Thanks a lot for all your suggestions!