Short answer, not as much as the pundits think.  Delta has been competing successfully with Air Tran for a long time now.  While Southwest is a much stronger company than Air Tran, the broohaha about their being some kind of low fare juggernaut is overrated if you ask me.  Their costs are higher than Air Tran’s, and at a minimum I think this means that it’s not likely that they are going to swoop in and throw a bunch of trash airfares into the Atlanta market.  Furthermore, most really informed travelers know that Southwest doesn’t always (if ever) offer the absolute lowest fare in any given market.  What they do offer is reasonable fares, generous ticket change policies, and the ability to check up to 2 pieces of luggage included in the cost of your base fare.

Delta has a fairly loyal base of business customers in the Atlanta market, first class cabins, normal boarding, assigned seats, and the ability to fly you to many, many more cities on its global network than a combined Air Tran and Southwest.  Delta will certainly need to be on its toes as it faces a much stronger competitor in its home town, a competitor with an almost mythical reputation for customer service.  But in the end, I just can’t see this deal being the end of the world for Delta….yet.  Opinions vary, and now you know mine.

I don’t typically blog about airline business deals, airline safety, and decisions made by the Departments of Transportation or Justice, or decisions they may make in the future.  I’ve got my reasons, and a little judicious googling would yield an answer as to why that’s the way I do things.  Of course, if I ever meet you in person, I’ll gladly explain why.  That said, I cannot let today’s announcement that Southwest Airlines is buying Air Tran pass by without saying anything.

I don’t fly Air Tran as a matter of personal preference, but I do fly Southwest from time to time.  Let’s face it, I think that today’s announcement may be just about the biggest deal in the history of domestic airline travel.  I’m a little loathe to use cute buzzwords like “game changer” but that’s exactly what this is.  I may not say much about the whole thing on the blog, but you can rest assured that I will be watching this deal move forward with great interest, and a little bit of envy for the folks who are making it happen.  And if I ever do meet you in person, I’ll be glad to discuss why I feel the way I do about this deal.

I recently completed a 2-night stay at the Atlanta Marriott Downtown.  This was a routine business trip, and this neat little downtown Atlanta business hotel fit my needs perfectly.

Getting There

I am a prolific MARTA user when traveling to Atlanta, and this stay was no exception.  The Peachtree MARTA station is the closest rail station to the hotel, however, my work project location is near the Five Points station, and I just walked to and from the Marriott from the office.  Cabs average around $35 dollars from Hartsfield-Jackson, while MARTA is $2 dollars.

Checking In

I normally do not check into a hotel until well after the usual 3PM check in time, but on this visit, I had some after work activities planned.  I had no desire to drag my bag around all evening, so I walked it over to the hotel during lunch hour.  The very polite clerk, greeted me as soon as I walked in, and processed me into room 722.  She was very pleasant, addressed me by name during the entire conversation, and mentioned my Marriott Rewards membership with thanks for my loyalty.  With that, I was off to the room.

The Room

Room 722, was a standard King room at the very end of the hall, far from the elevator, the way I like it.  It was also close to the stairwell, which made access to the 8th floor concierge lounge very easy.  The room itself was comfortable, had a very nice and well-lit work area, large LCD television, wireless and wired internet, and comfortable Marriott bed.  The in room coffee was even pretty good.  :)  Only noticeable issue (not one for me, but still worth mentioning) is that the bathroom was on the smallish side.  Not a big deal for a business person traveling alone, but something to keep in mind if you’re the type that carries a lot of grooming tools with you.

Here’s a short video tour of the room.

Around the Hotel

Downtown Atlanta isn’t home to a long list of restaurants and night life, but there are things to do and places to go.  Just up the street from the hotel is Ted’s Montana Grill, the restaurant that carries the name of CNN founder Ted Turner.  Ted’s is always a good bet, and hear you may even get lucky and see Ted himself in the restaurant from time to time.  Just across the Olympic Centennial Park, you’ll find one of my favorite restaurants, Peasant Bistro.  There’s also a Legal Seafoods, and Ruth’s Chris nearby.  Another favorite restaurant, Dantanna’s is located within the CNN Center.  All of these are good places to eat after a busy day at work.

The hotel itself is home to a restaurant, Aura.  Here’s a link to the hotel’s page on restaurants and lounges nearby, which include some of my choices, and others that I haven’t had the opportunity to check out yet.  I’d also be a little remiss if I didn’t mention the hotel’s concierge lounge.  Friendly staff, light snacks, and an honor bar.  It was a great little spot to grab a nightcap, and check emails via the hotel’s wireless internet.

The Bottom Line

The Atlanta Marriott Downtown was a good choice for me.  It’s a terrific alternative to the beautiful, but excessively busy Marriott Marquis Atlanta.  If you’re a Marriott loyalist, and looking for a convenient hotel in downtown Atlanta, give the Marriott Atlanta Downtown a try.  It’s a great little hotel, with friendly staff.

This Flyertalk.com thread details some of the changes going on at the Atlanta Sky Clubs.  This past week I had my first opportunity to personally inspect some of them at the Atlanta A Center Club (not mentioned in the thread, but something has definitely changed there), which happens to be my usual Sky Club hangout when I’m transiting the ATL.  Just my opinion, but the A Center club always seems a little less busy than the others in Atlanta, and I hope it stays that way.

The first change, is the first thing you see, the front door.  It’s now glass and self opening, which is actually helpful considering most people coming through it are dragging their carry ons.  The front desk also has a snazzy new backdrop.  I’m not sure if the desk has been relocated or whether the new door and backdrop are playing tricks on my eyes, but the lobby at least feels larger.

The next change was upstairs. Historically the snacks were on the bar and the cubby just to the right of the bar.  Not anymore.  Delta knocked down a divider wall and constructed a new food bar which was stocked with typical Sky Club fare, crudites, cookies, snack mixes of various sorts, and the staple of road warriors everywhere, cheese and crackers.  :)

My apologies that I didn’t take pictures.  But given that I’m not a press representative, I think the risk of getting tagged a security threat instead of an ambitious blogger was too high.  That said, if someone at Delta wants to shoot me a couple of pics of the improvements, I’ll take them!

These are just a few of the improvements Delta is making in their lounge offering.  I still don’t think they’re quite where the NWA World Clubs were, but things seem to be headed in a positive direction.  I’ll try to check out the other Atlanta changes next time I pass through.

1. Citi AAdvantage Card holders check your mailboxes.  I had a promo in mine yesterday.  It’s targeted, and you have to call in to register.  You get an extra .5 miles for every dollar you charge on anything.  That’s not bad, and surely beats the last promo I received.  I sock drawered my Citi card during the summer.  They must’ve missed me.  Right now I’m focused on other things, so I guess they’ll continue to miss me.
2. If I haven’t told you lately the folks running Delta Air Lines @DeltaAssist twitter account are phenomenal.  Delta has really done something right with this, and they deserve a shout out for not burying their head in the sand on social media like some other aairlines I could think of.
3. I love the ability to work from home on occasion.  Since I want to keep doing it, back to work I go.  Happy Friday everyone.

Once upon a time, I was a Marriott guy.  Marriott Rewards Gold member, loyalist, credit card holder, etc.  Marriott didn’t chase me off, I had to leave because of business reasons.  Long story short, my new job assignment surrounded me with Hilton loyalists, and it was just easier to stay with Hilton.  Nothing wrong with Hilton, mind you, I just always preferred Marriott brand hotels.  I’ve had some great Hilton family stays, and as an HHonors Diamond VIP member, I’ll surely continue to stay with them.  But this week, I’m at a Marriott hotel, the Marriott Atlanta Downtown to be exact.  It’s a small hotel compared to the gynormous Marriott Marquis Atlanta, and frankly, I like it that way.  Good location for my work, great little concierge lounge, friendly staff.  I like it here.  It won’t replace my Atlanta favorite, the W Atlanta Midtown, but I will most certainly be back here again.  I’ll post a full review once my stay is complete.  It’s good to be back at Marriott.

It’s been a long, long time coming, but American’s Admirals Club has finally been struck by reality and will begin offering complimentary adult beverages (house brands) beginning October 1.  They’ll continue to offer premium brands for purchase.  I think this is a great competitive move by American, even if it is a bit overdue.  I expect that when United and Continental join hands on October 1, United’s lounges will shortly move to a similar policy like their new partner Continental.  This is an example of American bowing to competitive reality.  I think it’s a good thing, and I’m glad American is coming around on this.

You can read American’s presser on the topic here.

This little gem arrived in my inbox this afternoon:

Dear Marshall,

CLEAR is back! As new owners, we are thrilled to offer former CLEARmembers a complimentary 45-day membership.

Click Here to set up a new login and password – it’s easy. Once reactivated, your existing CLEARcard will work.

If you need to order a replacement card go to Your Account after you reactivate.

The CLEARlanes open in Denver October 31st, Orlando in November, and additional airports will be announced in the coming months.

We look forward to seeing you back in the CLEARlane.

Best,
The CLEARteam

Not sure what to think about this.  It appears they will be setting up shop in Denver first, and Orlando soon after that.  I’ve posted previously that I certainly appreciated Clear when I had it.  I found the service especially useful in Atlanta, where security lines can be highly unpredictable.  Having had time to reflect (and having discovered the first class security line in Atlanta), I just don’t see what Clear will get me that elite status on 2 airlines won’t.  Something tells me that the majority of Clear’s former members probably feel the same way.  I’ll certainly watch development of the second incarnation of Clear with some interest, but I don’t think I’ll bite this time.  I just don’t think it’s worth the $179 dollar annual fee.

• Tomorrow, I board my first intentionally booked flight on United Airlines in something like 3 years….maybe more.  I wonder if they missed me?  I’ll be taking the long flight from DC to Raleigh. 
• Speaking of flying DC to Raleigh, I’ll be flying on an A320.  Do you know how long it’s been since I flew on a mainline jet from DC to Raleigh?  A long time.  OK, I’m not counting the time when AA rerouted me from Eagle to a United flight back in the summer.
• Fall is truly a season of travel “firsts” for me.  Next week, I will lodge at a Marriott hotel for the first time in years.  It will be like going home.  Hopefully, the Marriott Atlanta Downtown will take good care of me.

I previously posted about the 2 big mileage sweepstakes from Delta and American promoting their respective iPhone apps.  Be sure and download the apps, and register for both contests.  AA has posted a pretty cool little video about the things its app can accomplish to their YouTube channel.  Check it out.

First learned about this from Grace.  Delta has announced a partnership with MasterCard to issue both personal and business debit cards.  Theoretically, these debit cards could be issued by most any bank that signs up to market them.  From a business standpoint, I really like the deal.  I mean, you can get an affinity card product in the hands of a large swath of population, a much broader potential market than just Amex, and Delta’s current banking partner, SunTrust.  On the flip side, just how many more miles do we need out there chasing after a diminishing supply of seats?

On the surface, I think the business case looks promising.  Honestly, I’m surprised some other airline hasn’t tried to do the same thing.  Perhaps they have and just haven’t been able to ink a deal yet.  I wonder if any other airlines have similar deals in the works?