Air Travel Changes
I recently returned from a trip to Mexico. I admit that it has been a while since I have traveled by air, but will someone please tell me when airlines began charging passengers for food? I mean, dang, U.S. Airways tried to charge a sister $7 for a sandwich. Dang, I wanted to ask the flight attendant to just give me about 8 teeny bags of trail mix (if they are still free). It’s a good thing that I made a pitstop to Publix before I got on the plane. I brought some food, but not nearly enough. I promise you that next time I take an international flight from Atlanta Iwill have a picnic basket on the flight.
That’s not all. They are even charging hapless travelers $5 for the headphones you need to listen to the sound for your inflight movie. I know that times are tough U.S. Airways, but we need a break! Now, I didn’t think that having headphones was a big deal until I sat in the same aisle as a woman with the most annoying laugh on the planet. I am not trying to be mean or anything, but her loud obnoxious laugh was torture in those otherwise friendly skies. If I didn’t have my MP3 player, I would have gladly handed over my poodle, home, car, and sold my first born child just to make her laughing.
Now, I am sure that you are wondering what all of this has to do with you and Atlanta. Well, I learned some valuable information while in the Atlanta airport. So, in addition to packing food, headphones and bringing cash just in case you run out of food, here’s some additional insider’s advice for navigating Atlanta’s airport.
1. The Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta has hourly, daily, and economy parking. Daily parking is $2 an hour and $14 a day. Economy parking is $10 a day at the airport. If you park in the economy spaces, you can ride a courtesy shuttle from 8 a.m. to midnight. It’s a little hike from the economy spaces to the airport terminal. There are also some cheaper spaces owned by a slew of different companies outside of the airport that are about $8 a day, but you will need to take a free shuttle from your car to the spaces (which is a pain if you have a lot of luggage). I prefer to park closer to the airport and pay the $10 so I don’t have to worry about waiting for the shuttle, even if it’s just a few minutes. I walked to and from the economy lot since I arrived at the airport at the crack of dawn and returned at 2 a.m. The courtesy shuttle was not available.
When driving to the parking areas, pay attention to the signs as you head to the terminal, on my trip, I had to stay in the left lanes to reach the economy parking lots.
If you plan to be at the airport between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m., you will find courtesy officers around the parking lots. When I went looking for my car at 2 a.m. I saw a sole courtesy officer whizzing by on a bicycle. I couldn’t get his attention to ask him a question, like where is my car? Who moved the parking lot? That brings me to my next point.
2. This is extremely important for any large airport. Write down where you park (the letter and number combination in the Atlanta’s airport). I left my car in area A13, for example. Note the parking deck level where you parked, even if you park outside of the deck. When you leave the baggage claim area after your trip, you may need to go up or down a level to reach your car.
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POSTED IN: Miscellaneous, Nuisances, Resources, Travel Tips - General Information
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