Mastering ATL

As an expert user of Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport. I thought it might be fun to share the methods I’ve devised for making use of the airport with minimal impact. These tips assume that you’re a frequent flyer and not just a lamer leisure traveler. They also assume you’re flying Delta, which is pretty much inevitable if you live in and travel from Atlanta.

Park in the South Daily lot. It costs $16 per day but its right up against the terminal, so you’ll enjoy the shortest possible trek to and from your car. When you enter, take note of the green LED sign that tells you how many spaces are available on each level. You want the third level, because that’s the same level as the terminal. However, if there are very few spaces there, take level two instead. It’s more important to park in the right portion of the structure than to park on the third floor.

Speaking of which, you should always park on the right (west) side of the structure, at or near the walkway that runs to the terminal. That corresponds to locations 22 and higher on the parking signs. To save time, you’re better off just taking the first spot than looking for a closer one.

Sometimes parking runs low in these facilities, so check the airport website for open/closed lots before you leave home or office. Sometimes all the daily lots are full and you’ll have to punt.

You’re not checking a bag, of course, so there’s no need to bother with luggage in the terminal. Print your boarding pass at home, since even the self-service kiosks at ATL can get crowded at peak times.

Enter security at the South Terminal Checkpoint instead of the main one. Only amateurs use the main security line. Presuming you’ve got Medallion status of some kind, you’ll take the Sky Priority queue and wait only a few minutes for the TSA to check your ID. Then proceed to your flight or the SkyClub or whatever as normal.

Everyone has his or her own risk tolerance, and it is hard to predict exactly how long it will take to park and pass through security (not to mention the uncertainty of Atlanta freeway traffic). That said, arriving at the airport an hour before departure time, I always have more time than I expected. I enjoy using that breather to take in a quick refreshment at the SkyClub before boarding, but it’s not really enough time either to relax or to get any work done. If pressed, I’d still feel confident making a domestic flight if I drove into the parking structure with even 40 minutes left til departure.

All of the above is really just an investment in minimizing your exit from the airport after your trip is done.

Once you land and reach the train back to the terminal, don’t do what everyone else does, which is to take the first or second car all the way to baggage claim. You’ll wait forever on the escalators and then have to backtrack past baggage claim, which is out of the way since you didn’t check any bags anyway.

Instead, take the very last train car, which is usually empty or nearly so. Get off at T-gates and take the escalator directly to your left. This will take you back up to the other side of the South Terminal Checkpoint. Walk past it and through the exit, then continue to the S3 doorway. You don’t have to remember where it is, just walk until you pass the Brooks Brothers store and turn left at the next passage. This door leads directly to the side of the South Terminal daily parking lot where you’ve parked. Pay at the machine, find your car, and go.

Presuming again that you’re Medallion and therefore either upgraded to first class or seated near the front of the plane, you won’t have to wait long to deplane. If you really want to shave a few more minutes off your return, remember that Delta attaches its jetways to the second door on 757s and 767s. If you’re lucky enough to be in the front of the plane, choosing a seat toward the back of the F cabin will save you a few minutes, especially if its packed with slow and/or heavily luggaged travelers. Of course, before you do that you ought to keep in mind Delta’s FEBO meal preference method—front-to-back on even numbered flights, back-to-front on odd ones.

My personal best time from wheels down on the tarmac to behind the wheel of my car is 20 minutes. Can you do better?