And AAA offers a Bail Bond service. Hopefully they will never need that!
I am late to this thread and do not know if this has been mentioned…
Preorder FANS. We moved D from PNW to Boston during a heat wave and there seemingly were no decent
fans left in the city.
Plan on being super creative and a Parent Bear when the travel plans go wrong.
One trip back to VT there was a massive storm and the plane landed 2 hours from the College.
3 students stranded in the airport with no information from the airlines.
No hotels left. I called that city’s taxi service and rallied someone to drive them in the morning (other parents were worried and had no plan). No flights. Split 3 ways it was a deal.
D’s luggage was lost in cyberspace with conflicting stories about it’s resting place.
There was NO phone number for her needed airport. I finally called security and they could not help
me although small port. I then called the Hertz car rental in the airport and begged this nice guy to ask the
check in for the airlines. Sure enough the luggage had been behind their desks for days. Taxied it to
D’s college 45 minutes away.
Or alternatively, describe such potential situations to your young adult so they are prepared to handle them when they occur…
I know it’s bad form to quote oneself, but FWIW here’s how I answered the getting-there part of your question several years ago:
@SunnyFlorida22 this probably isn’t what you had in mind, but what about using an on-line clothing rental company? She’ll get lots of different outfits and won’t have to store the clothes.
How did you all tackle birthdays away or holidays you couldn’t be there or have them home for?
Send cupcakes from a local bakery. Enough for the whole suite/hall.
- Scan a copy of their driver's license and Social Security card. If they lose them, you will be able to send them a copy at very least.
- Tell them to not keep id/valuables in coat pockets. They all throw the coats into a pile at parties. At the end of the night, they all look the same and someone may leave with theirs. If it happens, #1 may help.
- Never book the last flight out of the day. If it's cancelled due to weather, they won't be stuck sleeping at the airport.
We mail packages from home. The USPS prepaid boxes stuffed full of whatever fun things from home we could think of.
Speaking of parties and coats, kid who went to a school on the opposite coast introduced me to the concert of “fracket.” It is an old jacket worn to those frat parties where everyone piles their coats into a pile. Old and not very attractive so no big deal of it is lost. 
That’s kind of like S’s idea of getting himself and his sister bikes that are REAL cheap junkers from police auction ($7 apiece), so no one wants to steal them. It worked great!
If your kid is going to college in a place that is quite a drive from the nearest airport, make sure to remind them to allow plenty of time to get to the airport. Sure it may mean that they might have to wait at the airport for a while, but better to allow more time then not have enough
Thanks so much, @maya54 ! Great ideas, I wrote them down & they will come in very handy
If your child takes medications figure out the best way to get refills. Depending on the medication and state some pharmacies won’t fill out of state prescriptions so you may have to get someone local to write them or you may be able to stock up and send your kid off to school with a 3 month supply. Your child’s pediatrician may also be able to help, but again, it’s best to know before something’s running out.
Likewise, if your child will need to see someone at the college’s health services for counseling, prescriptions, or anything else make an appointment long before they get to school. Health services can have long backups and you won’t want your kid to have to wait for weeks or months to have their medical needs taken care of.
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Often you can identify a local drycleaner who will store dry cleanable coats and sweaters over the summer and then clean them in time for pick up when the student returns in the fall. My daughter started doing this after one regrettable summer storage experience where she put things in the basement of her off campus house and everything got mildewed!
If your student hasn’t travel alone in the past, teach them how to travel, step by step. When I was taking DS to accepted students day, I ended up teaching him and another young man what to do at the airport. It was so cute. The other young man was trying to ease drop so I took him under my wing. Now, I’ve just got to perfect DS’s school break packing techniques.
Storage should be in a climate controlled place…that means AC/heat and humidity controlled. @ciervo probably cheaper than storing at a dry cleaner and having everything dry cleaned.
And you also want to ask about “pest management” at storage places.
^My husband did this before our kids started traveling independently. When we took a trip as a family he would have one of them lead us through it. They would have to check us in, find security, check the boards for the gate, etc. In addition to helping them learn how to do it I think it gave them confidence because they’d done it before, albeit with us as backup.
Our kids’ U recommended we have our kids (who have chronic health conditions) see 3 of their internists at their Med school campus so if they needed to get care beyond mere infirmary assistance, their records were in the system and they had already established a relationship. We came a week or two before move in day to have these appointments and sightsee, visit friends in the area and help the kids feel grounded in their new neighborhood.
It has been excellent for D as she continues to see one of the MDs at the Med school, who was referred to her by one of the internists. He in turn has referred her to many other excellent specialists and he continues to manage her care.