Going to Houston with VS/DL via a leisurely stop?

Right folks, a bit of a brain-teaser for those who are looking for a bit of a puzzle.

I would appreciate some itinerary ideas

Around May time next year, I will have a business trip coming up to Houston for a week (Will need to be there for Mon-Fri). Now I would quiet like to fly with VS (and with DL), so understand that I'd need to change somewhere on the way. I'd like to fly out the Friday pm before, and spend a short weekend break somewhere, before continuing my trip to IAH.

I did this last year and stopped in NYC for almost 48 hours, and it was brill. I'm happy to do that again this year, but as I already have a NYC break booked for 2015 around Easter, preferably somewhere else would be better.

So I thought I'd reach out to the well-travelled lot out here, and ask for some ideas as to where (on the VS route) might be good for a short hop? My current thinking is Boston or DC, but of course neither of these is a DL hub, so to get to Houston I'd need to go indirect again. Although I would appreciate the TPs from that, I don't want it to eat into too much of my time at the first leisurely destination.

What's Atlanta like? Would you recommend it for a single traveller without a car?

The other thing is that the total cost of flights in Y will need to be no more than it would cost to go direct. Having done a few dummy searches, flying direct with BA would cost around £800 so something around that mark would be fine.

Any ideas would be much appreciated!

NYC, Memphis, Minneapolis, Detroit, Atlanta, Salt Lake City, Cincinnati are the only places that come to mind in the US with nonstop DL flights to Houston. So if you want to avoid US connections, NYC/ATL are your only real options.

But, radical suggestion, what about a city break in...Paris!?

I can see London-Paris (AF); city break; Paris-Houston nonstop (DL); Houston-London via Atlanta (DL/VS) flights for £818.

You'd earn your miles and TPs on the DL tatl flight too.

Thank you for your input.

Interesting - I hadn't quite considered that! Despite my issues with AF, I would consider a quick hop with them... I have been to Paris quite a few times, though it would be an excellent opportunity to practise my French

With regard to the list of DL hubs - I did think that and was, I guess, hoping for a miracle I'm not completely against the idea of an indirect flight from the leisurely location to Houston, just don't fancy spending all days on Sunday on planes when realistically I'd only have the Saturday to explore.

Sorry, I think that CDG-IAH flight is actually on AF metal, only marketed by DL...

I have been to Atlanta once, 5 or 6 years ago and from what I recall I really liked the city. Its a big city and capital of the south so I'm sure you could find enough to do in a couple of days.

If you don't mind a less direct route I would suggest Chicago (using the VS seasonal flight) or maybe New Orleans for something a little different.

I've enjoyed my stays in Atlanta: there's great food to be had. Good cocktail bars too!

There are also some pretty nice hotels in downtown Atlanta. See if you can get a deal at the Mandarin Oriental, Four Seasons or Loews.

There is a basic public transport system, but if you're only there for 48 hours, you could take a cab to wherever you need to get to.

I have been to Atlanta once, 5 or 6 years ago and from what I recall I really liked the city. Its a big city and capital of the south so I'm sure you could find enough to do in a couple of days.

If you don't mind a less direct route I would suggest Chicago (using the VS seasonal flight) or maybe New Orleans for something a little different.

Ah yes, thanks - I have a one-week trip booked to Chicago in June (on Gs)

I have visited Atlanta many times, often in transit but also as a destination in it's own right.
There is a very clean, efficient rail service (MARTA) direct from the airport to downtown.
However might I suggest staying in the Buckhead/Lenox area north of the centre. There are some pretty got hotels there together with large upmarket malls and plenty of choice for dining.
Downtown is a short ride on MARTA, Underground Atlanta, The World Of Coca cola etc are there but being mainly a commercial centre the area can be quiet at the weekend.
Certainly plenty to do and see over a few days, and guaranteed onward connection with Delta!