Sit on the Left side of the plane for the best views on flights from Raleigh-durham to Atlanta. Left side wins at both ends of this short southwest-trending flight. You get the Raleigh skyline on departure and the Atlanta skyline on approach, plus Stone Mountain as a distinctive landmark on final. The right side offers less at both airports given the runway headings.

During takeoff from Raleigh Durham International (RDU), sit on the Left side for the best views. RDU typically departs southwest on runway 23L/23R, putting the left side facing southeast toward downtown Raleigh and the Research Triangle area. You get a clear view of the city grid and the sprawling suburban development of the Triangle as you climb out. Notable sights include: Downtown Raleigh skyline, Jordan Lake reservoir to the southwest, Research Triangle Park campus clusters, Falls Lake to the north.

When landing at The William B Hartsfield Atlanta International (ATL), sit on the Left side for the best views. ATL predominantly lands from the east on runways 08L/08R/09L/09R, meaning the aircraft approaches from the east heading west. The left side faces south, giving views over the southern Atlanta suburbs and eventually Hartsfield itself. The right side faces north toward downtown Atlanta, but the left side gets the cleaner approach geometry over the sprawling south metro. Notable sights include: Downtown Atlanta skyline visible to the north, Lake Lanier faintly to the northeast on clear days, Stone Mountain visible as a distinctive granite dome to the east, Chattahoochee River corridor.

The flight from Raleigh Durham International (RDU) to The William B Hartsfield Atlanta International (ATL) takes Approximately 1 hour 20 minutes.

The flight tracks southwest across the North Carolina Piedmont, crossing the South Carolina state line near the Charlotte metro area to the northwest. The terrain is gently rolling Piedmont with dense pine and hardwood forest, numerous small reservoirs, and the broad Catawba River chain of lakes visible on clear days to the west. As you cross into Georgia the landscape flattens slightly into the Georgia Piedmont. No significant mountain ranges cross directly under the flight path on this routing.