Driving vs. Flying

[victorianpyrate]

What have been some of your experiences with driving to the con?  We've flown the last few years, and I'd rather not shell out three hundred dollars for a flight if I don't have to-the hotel is expensive enough.  It would actually be about half as much just to drive, even with parking.  We're booked at the Sheraton.  Has anyone done parking there

Comments

[iheartmyblog]

I think Sheraton's rates are $20-$25 a day (I believe they were $22ish this year but that could change of course) for self parking, more for valet. We always self-park at the Sheraton. We come in on Thursday and there is plenty of parking. The Sheraton also lets you take your car in and out but we have never tried that so I don't quite know how it works. Why would you need to drive during the Con anyhow?

Getting out Monday isn't difficult at all--getting a luggage cart is, but the garage itself isn't an issue.

[ninepointfivemm]

Yeah, getting out of any of the hotels isn't hard at all.

[fluffydragon]

When you get your car out you'll need to tip the valet a buck or two.

[charismaryllis]

i made the mistake of leaving in the teeth of rush hour tuesday morning this year.

in other words, it took about ten minutes longer to get out of ATL than it would have if i'd waited an hour. :)

also, the sheraton and hilton are practically on top of the 75/85 interchange. getting on the highway's no problem at all.

where would you be driving from?

[obscuranox]

I had no problem leaving on Monday. My drive to D*Con is about 7 hours or so and it's not that bad. I would MUCH rather drive than fly and risk getting my luggage lost or have to mail any big props, even if my drive was longer than that. I'm not even sure it is possible to bring what we brought this year if we had flown. I fly out to Europe every other summer and it's really way too much of a hassle for me.

[victorianpyrate]

That's one of the other main reasons we want to drive-we have a lot more freedom with everything that we can bring.

[carsonok]

I always drive to Dragon*Con. It's a 12 hour drive and I drive all night (yes I'm insane.) Advantages

1-You're more in control when you arrive and when you leave.
2-Easy to get to since the host hotels are all just a few blocks from the interstate.
3-Parking can be a hassle because you pay. But I just park it and forget about it until I'm ready to leave. I arrive early to make sure I have a parking space at the host hotel.
4-Gas isn't too much of an issue. I leave on a full tank, fill up once and then top off right before I get to Atlanta. That means a full tank when I leave.
5-Driving allows me to bring more stuff and take home more stuff. I can bring costumes and food without concerns a flight would bring.

[sonata_ix]

Haha where do you drive from? We do 12 hours overnight too, from central Illinois!

[carsonok]

Oklahoma, all interstate the entire way.

[encarmencita]

We do 12 hours from DC.

[madkestrel]

I live in SC, so I've driven the last two years. Instead of driving all the way to the hotel, I park my car at the Dunwoody MARTA station and take the train to the hotel. It costs five dollars a day to park and so far my car has been perfectly safe. It costs four dollars for a round trip train ticket, so I end up spending less for the entire weekend than it would cost for one night of parking at the hotel.

[neovenom]

Ditto for me, even the MARTA station choice of Dunwoody. Anything on the northern lines is a good pick.

The only warning I would give with this approach is if you have a lot of luggage or can't handle long-ish treks. I mean you're sitting on a train for most of it, but the walking to and from stations can take some time/effort depending on how much you're carrying on you.

Otherwise, it's definitely the most economical way to go!

[eidolon_bird]

One solution if you have a ton of luggage and more than one person in the car is to drop off all the extra people and luggage at the hotel. Let them check in to the hotel and take the bags up to the rooms while the driver takes the car to the MARTA station. When leaving, send the driver out early to pick up the car while others handle last-minute cleaning, packing, and checking out.

[valarltd]

I totally second the Dunwoody. Get a Magna cart and PACK LIGHTLY!

I wresteled a cooler, a softside carrybag, my CPAP machine bag and backpack through the stairs, onto the train, through the bank robbery and got stuck in the revolving door.

Next year, I leave the backpack and stick the cpap into the carrybag.