[KarenH]

One of the families involved with Team 330 lived in the Atlanta area for a few years, and gave us this information about the weather:

Spring weather in Atlanta is unpredictable. It can be warm, even balmy; it can be dry; it can pour. The Championship falls around the beginning of hurricane season; spectacular thunderstorms and tornadoes are also possible.

I have personally seen, in the 3 years I went there: balmy weather the whole weekend; rain blowing sideways in sheets while lightning played havoc with our TV reception; near-freezing record low temperatures (Saturday night in 2005); light rain.

So watch the weather reports, dress in layers, and be prepared. (I've always brought a poncho, but the only time I used it was in Arizona!!)

Everyone complains about how bad the traffic is in Atlanta, even though lately L.A. gets the worst ratings for length of commute. Unless you plan to run errands all over town, the best thing is to stay downtown, and to get there by taking MARTA from the airport. (There is usually at least one thread that discusses where teams are staying.)

You could also stay near the airport. You could get a cheaper room, take the hotel shuttle to the airport, then MARTA from the airport to the Georgia Dome. But this makes for about a one-hour commute each way (due to the hotel shuttle schedules), and the time lost in transit isn't worth it unless you absolutely cannot afford to stay downtown. If you can afford a rental car plus parking, you can afford to stay downtown instead!