Atlanta Hotels

Atlanta's huge Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL; tel:404 209 1700; www.atlanta-airport.com), 19km (12mi) south of downtown, is a major regional hub and an international gateway. With nearly 80 million visitors a year, it is the busiest airport in the world in overall passenger traffic. The Greyhound terminal (tel:404 584 1728; 232 Forsyth St) is next to the Marta Garnett station. Some journey times include Nashville, TN (five hours), New Orleans, LA (10 hours), New York (19 hours), Miami, FL (16 hours) and Savannah, GA (six hours). The Amtrak station (tel:404 881 3062, 800 872 7245; 1688 Peachtree St NW at Deering Rd) is 4.8km (3mi) north of downtown. Take bus No 23 for about 0.8 miles from the Marta Arts Center station.

The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (Marta; tel:404 848 4711; www.itsmarta.com) rail line travels to/from the airport to downtown, along with a few less-useful routes used mostly by commuters. The Atlanta Airport Shuttle (tel:404 524 3400, 800 842 2770) also transports passengers to hotels all over the city in a minibus. You will find that all the major car-rental agencies have desks in the airport at the baggage-claim level. Driving in Atlanta can be infuriating and confusing. You'll often find yourself sitting in traffic jams, and it's easy to get disoriented - a road map is invaluable.