Atlanta's Highland Inn: To Stay or Not to Stay?

Atlanta's Highland Inn offers charming and unique accommodations. But there are some facts you need to know before you decide whether or not this Inn is for you. Like every major metropolitan city, Atlanta has many faces. There's the downtown area, which offers the more expensive hotels and better known tourist attractions. Then there's the area surrounding the Highland Inn, which has a completely different vibe.

That vibe is much more nuanced. If you're a family of four with kids in tow, this may not be the area for you. The Inn doesn't have a pool, there's no in-house restaurant, and you won't find any mainstream entertainment within walking distance. But if you are the traveler that likes to get off the beaten path, see how the locals live, and have more of an art and shopping-centric trip, then this is definitely the area for you to explore. The Highland Inn is actually right at the center of many unique, interesting, and relaxing Atlanta offerings. There's little five-points, which is an artsy shopping district populated with independent stores and restaurants. There's a wide variety of residential areas, off-beat clubs and bars, and large renovated loft buildings nearby that you may want to tour. There's even a cemetery full of intricate stones worth a look. Atlanta is so layered and patch-work that even things that are mundane in other cities, such as residences, become unique and worthy of touring in this town.

The Highland Inn can be your base of operation if you're into this kind of thing. The rooms at the Highland Inn are small. The heating and cooling system is old-fashioned, the carpets are worn, and the rooms are decorated with old film posters. Actually, the rooms are laid out in a similar fashion to dorm rooms. But I found them to be clean, comfortable, and pleasant. There is the standard television in every room, there's a table and a bathroom area. But the sinks are in the actual bed area, which is different. The showers are by no means luxurious, but they were clean and served their purpose. If it's a room with a view you're looking for, this is not the place. The Inn is in a town area, so there's not much of a view. But it's worth it for the access the area provides.

In every room you will find a plethora of literature telling you all about Atlanta, especially the clubs and areas surrounding the hotel. Guides like this can help you tremendously in this town, it may feel sleepy and Southern because of the weather, but there's so much to do at night and so many places to visit during the day that you'll need help picking activities.

In other words, it's the perfect place to stay if you're a yuppie. (Which it just so happens, I am.) As much as I enjoy luxury hotels, I also greatly enjoy local offerings and all the interesting quirks that small inns bring. (I especially like the significant drop in price that comes with the Highland Inn vs. a chain hotel.) There's Jack, the cat who freely roams the hotel as his home. There's the friendly staff. There's the fact that you can walk out the front door of the Inn and just explore, block by block, for miles on foot. I would definitely recommend staying at the Highland Inn; just know before you go that it will be a very different experience than staying at a large chain hotel. I also recommend bringing a good camera, as the Inn may afford you some unique photographic opportunities.