Two terminals, one airport
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL) has two terminal buildings. The Domestic Terminal, with its North and South sides, is on the west side of the airfield. The Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal, home to Concourse F, is on the east side. Between them run the concourses, linked to both buildings by the Plane Train, an underground automated train, and by a pedestrian walkway.
The two buildings have separate road entrances, the Domestic Terminal from I-85 and the International Terminal from I-75, so they aren't a short walk or a quick loop apart for a car. That's why the first thing to settle for any ATL pickup is which building the traveler will walk out of.
Domestic arrivals
After a domestic flight, travelers ride the Plane Train or take the walkway from their concourse to the Domestic Terminal, where baggage claim and ground transportation are. Whether that's the North or the South side depends on the airline, and airlines do move, so it's worth checking with yours before you fly.
For a pre-arranged chauffeured pickup, your chauffeur meets you in baggage claim or at the designated pre-arranged pickup area, holding a name sign and ready to take your luggage. We confirm the exact meeting point in your booking, so there's no searching around after the flight. A traveler with only a carry-on can be through in minutes. Checked bags at a busy hour take longer, which is exactly what flight tracking and the grace period after landing are there to absorb.
International arrivals and customs
International flights arrive at Concourses E and F. Travelers whose final destination is Atlanta clear immigration, collect their checked bags, clear customs and leave through the International Terminal, without rechecking their bags. Passport control and customs are the least predictable part of any arrival: the time depends on the hour, the number of flights landing together and how quickly bags reach the carousel.
Your chauffeur tracks the flight and meets you in the International Terminal's arrivals area, at the meeting point confirmed in your booking. Customs applies only to international arrivals, and only at the first US airport you land at. A traveler who cleared customs at an earlier US airport and then connected to Atlanta, or whose flight was precleared by US Customs before departure (as on flights from Dublin, Shannon, Nassau, Bermuda, Aruba and the major Canadian airports), arrives as a domestic passenger and leaves through the Domestic Terminal, which is why we ask for the flight that lands in Atlanta, not the first flight of the trip.
Flight tracking and delays
Every ATL arrival is tracked in real time, so an early landing or a delay doesn't change your rate or leave a chauffeur guessing. The pickup is timed to when your flight actually lands, and the one-hour grace period for luggage and customs starts at landing, not at the scheduled arrival.
Thunderstorms, most often from spring through summer, are a common cause of Atlanta delays. They can bring FAA ground stops that pause arrivals and departures for a while, and the knock-on delays can last well after the storm has passed. The tracker picks up each new arrival time as the airline posts it, and your chauffeur's timing moves with it, at no extra cost to you.
From ATL to the city
Hartsfield-Jackson sits on the south side of the metro, bordering College Park and Hapeville, so most corporate trips head north on the Downtown Connector, where I-75 and I-85 run together through the core, or around the Perimeter, I-285. Approximate drive times from the airport, all traffic dependent:
- Downtown: ~20 minutes
- Midtown or Decatur: ~25 minutes
- Buckhead or Brookhaven: ~30 minutes
- Sandy Springs and Perimeter Center, Dunwoody or Marietta: ~35 minutes
- Roswell or Alpharetta: ~45 minutes
Rush hour, or a big-event day downtown, can add a lot more. For a departure, work back from the flight: the airline's recommended arrival time, security, then the drive with a buffer.
Private aviation: PDK, FTY and RYY
Private aircraft can use Hartsfield-Jackson, but many private flights into metro Atlanta use one of three general aviation airports instead: DeKalb-Peachtree (PDK) in the northeast of the metro, Fulton County Airport–Brown Field (FTY) west of Downtown, and Cobb County International–McCollum Field (RYY) in Cobb County to the northwest.
For a private arrival, coordination runs off a tail number and an estimated wheels-down time, with the chauffeur staged at the FBO before the aircraft taxis in, not called after it lands. At PDK, FTY and RYY, the grace period after landing is 30 minutes for international arrivals and 15 minutes for domestic ones. Our FBO ground-transportation guide explains how that coordination works in detail.
Booking an ATL transfer
Every ATL transfer is a fixed, all-in rate confirmed in writing before you travel, with the 15% gratuity included and shown as its own line. The trip is carried by a vetted, licensed, insured local chauffeur partner, and Ardenmile stays your single point of contact before, during and after it.
Give us the flight number, whether it's domestic or international, and the passenger and bag count, and we'll take care of the rest. For a departure, tell us the airline, so the drop-off is at the right terminal. If the day continues with meetings after you land, book hourly instead of a single transfer, and the same car and chauffeur stay with you from the airport to the last stop. For frequent travel, a corporate account adds centralized monthly billing and priority booking. Atlanta is where the Ardenmile team is based, and pickups at every other major US airport are booked the same way, through vetted local partners, so the next leg of the trip needs no new provider.
Frequently asked questions
Where does my chauffeur meet me at Hartsfield-Jackson?
For a domestic arrival, in baggage claim or at the designated pre-arranged pickup area at the Domestic Terminal. For an international arrival ending in Atlanta, in the arrivals area of the International Terminal, after customs. Your chauffeur holds a name sign, and the exact meeting point is confirmed in your booking.
Which ATL terminal will I walk out of?
After a domestic flight, the Domestic Terminal, North or South depending on your airline, reached by the Plane Train or the walkway from your concourse. After an international flight ending in Atlanta, the Maynard H. Jackson Jr. International Terminal, where you clear customs. If you cleared customs at an earlier US airport, or before departure at an airport with US preclearance such as Dublin, Nassau or Toronto, you arrive as a domestic passenger. The two terminals are on opposite sides of the airfield, so tell us which applies when you book.
What happens to my pickup if my flight into ATL is delayed?
Nothing you need to manage. We track the flight in real time, your chauffeur is timed to your actual landing, and the one-hour grace period for luggage and customs starts when you land rather than at the scheduled arrival. A delay doesn't change your fixed, all-in rate.
Can you meet a private flight at PDK, FTY or RYY?
Yes. For a private arrival at DeKalb-Peachtree (PDK), Fulton County Airport–Brown Field (FTY) or Cobb County International–McCollum Field (RYY), share the tail number, the FBO and the estimated wheels-down time, and your chauffeur is staged at the FBO before the aircraft taxis in.
