SEC Championship 2026 Hotels: Downtown on Foot or Midtown and Buckhead by MARTA
By Matt Spaulding · October 29, 2026
Photo: Droidman1231, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
On 29 October, 9 of the 19 downtown hotels we read would sell you Saturday 5 December, the night of the SEC Championship, as a single night. Six sold it only inside a two-night stay. Four sold no Saturday, alone or inside Friday to Sunday. Friday was easier: 17 of the 19 sold it alone. All 8 hotels we read in Midtown and Buckhead sold Friday and Saturday, each as a single night.
We read each hotel on its own booking screen for Friday 4 December and Saturday 5 December, each night alone, for two adults in one room. Where a Saturday was refused, we tried Friday 4 to Sunday 6 as one stay. Availability changes daily.
Downtown walk times are routed on foot on a normal day, from each hotel to the nearer of two points on the stadium's perimeter. Midtown and Buckhead times further down run to the center of the nearest MARTA station, so the entrance you use can be a minute nearer or farther. They don't allow for game-day closures or gate assignments. Eleven of the 19 downtown hotels are in the Centennial Park area and eight in Peachtree Center.
None of the 27 showed a resort or destination fee on its booking screen when we read it for our hotel pages. Every room in Georgia carries the state's $5 a night hotel-motel fee, and Atlanta rooms add 8% hotel tax and 8.9% sales tax on top. No parking figure below says whether tax is extra.
Kickoff is still TBA, and the Falcons play Sunday
Saturday 5 December is the SEC Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and on 29 October the stadium listed kickoff and gates as TBA. Last year's game, on 6 December 2025, kicked off at 4 p.m. with gates at 1:30 p.m., per MARTA's page for it. The stadium's listing names no teams yet.
The Georgia World Congress Center calendar lists Dr Pepper SEC FanFare for 5 and 6 December in Buildings A and B, with no hours. Last year's ran in Hall C, Friday 1 to 7 p.m. and Saturday until 4 p.m., and MARTA called all SEC FanFare events free. On Friday 4 December the stadium and State Farm Arena list nothing, and the GWCC has nothing before FanFare.
The Falcons host the Detroit Lions at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday 6 December, gates at 11:30 a.m. and a 1 p.m. kickoff subject to NFL flex. On Saturday night State Farm Arena has Lil Baby at 8 p.m., and the Hawks play an NBA Cup game there on Sunday with no time listed.
The SEC puts attendance at 78,320 for the 2023 game, its Atlanta record, and 74,916 for 2024. Tickets go through the SEC Ticket Office, and the stadium's page gives no prices and no on-sale date.
The stadium's event page says more than 20,000 parking spots sit within a 20-minute walk. We found no lot names or prices for this game, and the stadium's home page recommends buying a pass ahead because parking often sells out.
Within 10 minutes, only Hotel Phoenix and the Glenn sold Saturday alone
Hotel Phoenix is the closest hotel in the guide, 2 minutes from the stadium's east side at 172 meters. It sold both nights. No page we could read gives its parking rate, so ask before you drive in.
Reverb by Hard Rock Atlanta Downtown answered Saturday alone with "Your check-in/check-out combination is not available on December 5, 2026." It then sold both Friday 4 to Sunday 6 and Saturday 5 to Monday 7, so Saturday there carries a two-night minimum. Friday sold on its own. Reverb is 182 meters away, a 2-minute walk. The garage entrance is at 38 Mangum St SW, and the hotel doesn't publish a price.
Signia by Hilton Atlanta, 7 minutes away, had no rooms either night, and Friday to Sunday sent us back to Hilton's search page with no rate list. There's no self-parking. Valet is $65 with in-and-out, and the hotel says pricing varies on event days.
The Omni Atlanta Hotel at Centennial Park sold Friday and had nothing on Saturday, alone or inside Friday to Sunday. It's a 10-minute walk, and parking is valet only, $75 overnight.
Saturday sold at the Glenn Hotel, Autograph Collection, 785 meters from the stadium, but the list showed two room types, each marked one room left. Friday sold too. Valet is $60 a day.
Four of the nine at 13 to 18 minutes sold Saturday only inside Friday to Sunday
At Embassy Suites by Hilton Atlanta at Centennial Olympic Park, a 13-minute walk, valet is the only parking, $60 a night. Friday sold on its own. Saturday alone had no rooms, but Friday 4 to Sunday 6 sold.
The American Hotel Atlanta Downtown, Tapestry Collection by Hilton is 15 minutes away, in the Peachtree Center area. Friday sold alone, and Saturday sold as part of Friday to Sunday but not by itself. Its $60 valet is the only parking, and the hotel doesn't say whether that's a night or a day.
Moxy Atlanta Downtown is the only hotel we measured to the stadium's north side, on Andrew Young International Blvd, and the walk is 16 minutes. Both nights sold. Valet is $55 a day, and we found no self-parking rate.
Self-parking at Hilton Garden Inn Atlanta Downtown is $45 a day in a covered garage, in and out for overnight guests, and valet is $60. The walk takes 17 minutes. Friday sold alone, and Saturday only as part of Friday to Sunday.
Hyatt Place Atlanta Centennial Park is 17 minutes away and sold both nights. Valet is $60 a day in a covered garage, and there's no self-parking.
The Westin Peachtree Plaza, Atlanta, another 17-minute walk, sold Saturday on its own as well as Friday. Self-parking and valet cost the same there, $65 a day.
Hampton Inn & Suites Atlanta Downtown has the lowest full-day parking rate of the 19 downtown hotels we read: $35 a day to self-park, with no valet. It's a 17-minute walk. Friday sold, and Saturday didn't, alone or inside Friday to Sunday.
Residence Inn Atlanta Downtown sold Friday, and sold Saturday only inside Friday to Sunday. It's an 18-minute walk, and the only parking is valet, $50 a day.
Courtyard Atlanta Downtown, 18 minutes out, sold neither night, alone or as Friday to Sunday. The only parking it lists is valet, $55 a day.
21 to 25 minutes out, and only SpringHill wouldn't sell Saturday alone
SpringHill Suites Atlanta Downtown is 21 minutes out and sold Saturday only inside Friday to Sunday. Friday sold alone. The hotel lists no self-parking rate, and valet is $55 a day.
Three hotels sit at 23 minutes, and all three sold both nights. Valet is $65 a day at the JW Marriott Atlanta Downtown, which lists no self-parking rate, and $67 a day at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, which lists no self-parking. At the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, valet is $60 overnight, or $65 for oversized vehicles, with in-and-out privileges. There's no official self-parking.
Hilton Atlanta has the longest walk in the guide, 25 minutes, and sold both nights. Self-parking is $45 in a covered third-party garage, and spaces are limited and not guaranteed. The garage takes cards only and has a 6 ft height limit. Valet is $60 a night, and it's required for anything over 6 ft.
From Midtown or Buckhead, change to the Green line at Five Points
Midtown, Arts Center and North Avenue are Red and Gold line stations. Buckhead is Red only. Neither line stops at the stadium, so you ride south to Five Points and change to the Green line, one stop west to SEC District, the stadium's station. The stadium also names Vine City Station, the next stop west on the Green line. From SEC District it's a 5-minute routed walk, 390 meters, to the stadium's north side. If you'd rather walk from Five Points, it's 15 minutes, 1,122 meters, to the east side.
We found no ride times from MARTA. Its line pages list weekend service from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. Last year MARTA ran a shuttle train between Five Points and SEC District from 2 p.m. and added trains before and after the game. We found no 2026 notice, so treat that as precedent only.
Midtown hotels 2 to 5 minutes from a station
We read three Midtown hotels for these nights, and all three sold Friday and Saturday. Nine more are 4 to 19 minutes from Arts Center or Midtown station. Hampton Inn & Suites Atlanta-Midtown has the shortest station walk in the guide: 2 minutes, 129 meters, to Arts Center. Parking is valet only, $50 per night.
Hotel Granada is 3 minutes from Arts Center, and one room type on its Saturday list was marked almost sold out. Parking is $50, but Marriott's page lists it as daily self-parking and the hotel's FAQ lists valet, per night. Ask which one you're getting.
From Hyatt Centric Midtown Atlanta it's 5 minutes to Midtown station. Self-parking is $32 per day on the open-air 9th floor of the adjacent 999 garage, with no elevator. That's the lowest daily self-parking rate of the eight we read in Midtown and Buckhead. Valet is $42 per day, and both have unlimited in-and-out. Vehicles 6 ft 6 in and over pay $75 overnight.
Buckhead: five hotels on Peachtree Rd NE, 5 to 7 minutes from the station
From Buckhead station the Red line runs south through Lindbergh Center and the Midtown stations before it reaches Five Points. All five we read sold Friday and Saturday. Seven more are 7 to 13 minutes from Buckhead or Lenox station.
The Westin Buckhead Atlanta is the closest, at 5 minutes and 362 meters. Self-parking is $55 a day, and valet is $65.
Waldorf Astoria Atlanta Buckhead and Hotel Colee, Atlanta Buckhead, Autograph Collection are each a 6-minute walk from the station. The Waldorf Astoria is valet only, $67 a night with in-and-out privileges. The Colee's valet is $59 a day, and it lists no self-parking. It doesn't say whether in-and-out is allowed.
Two more sit 7 minutes from the station. Hilton Garden Inn Atlanta-Buckhead is valet only, $45 a day, covered, with in-and-out. It doesn't take oversized vehicles. At Courtyard Atlanta Buckhead, self-parking and valet are both $45 a day.
The MARTA fare and the stadium's bag rule
The stadium's page for this game puts MARTA at $2.50 each way. The stadium's parking and transportation page says you now tap a bank card or mobile wallet at the faregate, and old Breeze cards no longer work. Check itsmarta.com closer to the game.
The stadium allows clear bags up to 12 x 6 x 12 inches, or a one-gallon clear freezer bag. A small non-clear bag up to 4.5 x 6.5 inches can come in alongside a clear bag. The stadium recommends bringing no bag at all.
The Celebration Bowl is at the same stadium a week later, and Celebration Bowl hotels covers that Saturday.
