To answer your specific question about how the Dartmouth Coach operates at Logan Airport, they stop at the different terminals. If you go to their website I believe they tell you where to find the stop at each of the terminals. In fact when you make a reservation on the website, they ask you which airline you are using, so they will have a sense of how many passengers will be accessing the bus from each terminal.
This map shows the stops [hover over the light blue bus icons to see which ones are Dartmouth Coach stops]: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Boston+Logan+International+Airport/@42.3685618,-71.0195807,17z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0xc9394c31f2d5144!8m2!3d42.3656132!4d-71.0095602?hl=en-US
The âVIEW LOGAN AIRPORT GUIDEâ here gives examples of the actual signs to look for and the numbers on the closest terminal doors: https://dartmouthcoach.com/stop/boston-logan-international-airport/
We/kiddo would sometimes walk back counter to the traffic to an earlier stop â but I think that is less useful now since, as @b1ggreenca indicated, they have a sense of how many people will be getting on at each terminal. Plus, on heavy traffic days, they have extra coaches available â and getting on one of those can be a plus, since it may skip the interim stops if it is full with people heading to Hanover. We have known one of those to make it to town before the âscheduledâ one!!
and donât forget you can check out the Dartmouth webcams to watch your kids get on or off the Coach! http://www.dartmouth66.org/webcam/ as an ex-helicopter parent, we know these things! I remember watching my S wheel himself and his bag to the Coach stop in the early morning hoursâŠ
Oh, you mean like watching D [well, the picture was not very clear but how many tinies wearing SF Giants caps were there?] get off the coach & leave a suitcase at the bus stop for 20 minutes while she went to get her key from the after-hours place and then come back for it? Nah. Never did that.
If you can visit later in the Fall, that is even better. Biggest challenge is loading up on lots of things that you think you will need. You are probably only right on 25% of what you thought, but you need to haul around 100% for four years (actually you should cut the 75% upon first move but few will). If you are showing up 4-6 weeks after move in, have D hold off on purchasing what she might need. By the time you arrive, she will know what she really does need and is willing to lug around for four years. Having less to store through four years of D plan moves will be much appreciated. This is advice for students who do not have families within driving distance.
@suffysmom, @b1ggreenca , @AboutTheSame ,@Magnum PI, @ddpr03
Thank you all!! With your help I think that, for now, most of my questions have been answered.
With regards to the A/C issue, I guess it will not be a big problem for our D. She is trained to live
for two to three months per year with temperatures as high as 90 to 100. However, with very dry climate.
By the way , what is the typical highest temperature during summer and Early September?
On the other hand, I am mostly concerned with the winter freezing temperatures. I have read in this thread that
some dorms really feel cold. Is this still true or they have been renovated and better insulated?
It was really surprising to read this. My experience ,in Pittsburgh and NYC was that it was extremely hot inside
the buildinds ( even very old ones) despite the freezing outside temperatures.
I also assume that during freshman and senior year there are no room moves and my D will just leave her personal items in the room during breaks.
There generally arenât room moves freshman year so your D can leave her stuff in her room from Sep-Jun, including breaks. That is true also for senior year, although my D says most seniors donât live in the dorms (by choice).
My D was never cold in her dorm but everyone is different.
Summer/early fall highs are 80s to low 90s, mainly in the mid 80s. I found it very hot when we visited during sophomore summer, but I consider 75 to be a heat wave. B-)
We never heard complaints about the cold inside the dorms, but first year room [Cohen] had a southern exposure and a heated mattress pad was one of the parent things we insisted on buying [which was pooh-poohâed and then much appreciated]. Weâre from moderate climate Northern California, so winter was one of the things we worried about, but it was never really an issue â except for coming home on winter break the first year, but Iâve told that story too many times already.
My daughter is a Freshma and says her dorm is fine. Lots of warm bedding and thermal lined curtain. Itâs walking to class thatâs cold!
Well, up to mid 80s is very comfortable . 90 and above a fan should suffice. Are the summers in Hanover humid or relatively dry?
By Warm bedding you mean an electric blanket? What is a thermal lined curtain? Do the rooms provide it or we should buy one?
@harnya Canât comment on summer humidity ( first year). Nothing electric, just a down comforter and a fuzzy blanket. Her windows were drafty in her dorm, so I picked up some thermal lined curtains at a local Walmart in Lebanon. I would wait to see what dorm she has, my daughter is in an older dorm with drafty windows. School does not provide. They just give you bed, desk, and chair, closet, bureau, shades on the windows. She used a fan for maybe three weeks, till the end of September.
@oscar63 , at which dorm is your daughter living? I am surprised that Dartmouth maintenance has not replaced the drafty widows .
Sheâs in North Fay. Itâs an old building, itâs fine. She is very happy!
@harrya the summers have been hot and humid while my daughter has been there. As I mentioned earlier I bought her a window fan to try and pull in the cooler air from outside during the summers in addition to a fan for in the room. We live in Florida and my daughter has grown up with hot and humid and sheâs been miserable at times the past four years.Sheâs had hot Septembers and Octobers as well.
The building that @oscar63âs daughter is in is 113 years old, maintenance might have a hard time fixing drafty windows.These past few weeks that have been in the single to negative digits tempeaturewise my daughter has been in her room in tshirts. As much as Dartmouth doesnât air condition the dorms they do not skimp on the heat.
All of the dorm buildings are different, a mixture of historical and modern. My daughterâs first year she lived in McLaughlin and was teased for living in the âresortâ on campus. The dorm was only 10 years old when she moved in and the rooms were spacious, everything was up to date, sound proofing and a lift. Since then she has lived in a building that was 111 years old and the exact opposite of McLaughlin and has finally settled into a newer building that is modern not historical. Your daughter will live in several buildings more than likely and each will have its pluses and minuses.Itâs a wonderful campus and environment and my daughter is going to miss it upon graduation.
As many of the other parents have chimed in donât get too wrapped up in trying to outfit your daughter and her room all at once. She should know fairly soon after her arrival what she needs/wants and Amazon can have it to her within 2 days.
I envy you the journey you are just beginning. It seems only yesterday we were moving our daughter into her dorm and somehow we blinked and in 4 months we will be moving her for the last time. Good luck to your family as you start the journey.
I second @saffysmum on ordering from Amazon, BBB, etc. There isnât much of a selection in Lebanon and, IMO, I donât think itâs worth the effort to take a bus to get to the Kmart. We went with my daughter to pick up a package during move-in and the parking lot behind Hinman had storage containers jam-packed with packages.
I have another tip for parents of incoming freshmen. My D traveled solo to Hanover and arrived a day early so that she could meet the check-in time for her DOC trip. Although sheâs traveled a lot, she had never done it alone and there were a lot of logistics for her trip to Dartmouth. The Dartmouth Inn is owned by the College and guests donât have to be over 21 like they do at many hotels. The Dartmouth Coach stops just outside. It isnât cheap, but, it gave me peace of mind and made things MUCH easier for her the next morning.
I need to unsubscribe from emails from the Dartmouth Inn. I want to go back to visit, just because.
@Suffysmum, I am really relieved that kids wear tshirts inside the older buildins even with freezing outside temperatures. That was indeed our only concern with regard to the weather. A/C although important is not a very big deal. Growing up in Greeceâs hot summers , our D will find a way to cope with the heat.
As far as the room purchases concern, we decided to follow your and other parents advise to do it in slow phases as D discovers what is really needed.
@sdteak , Our D has travelled alone three times to US , so we do not worry about her finding her way to Dartmouth. We are definitely planning her arrival one day before her DOC trip because with an overseas flight and long lines in the Immigration checkpoints you cannot be certain of the arrival time. Thankfully, Dartmouth states that only for internationals they make an exemption and they may allow a day earlier check in as long as you let them know in advance. If that is not possible than she will have to stay only one night at a hotel.
my SoCal Son was in Choates and he kept his window cracked most of the winter since he claimed his room was too warm.
Okay, veteran parents, whatâs the deal with stealing frackets?! I was sure no one would want the jacket my D had, but I was wrong. She told me she is going to write her email address and name with a sharpie all over the outside of the next one, LOL.
Conventional âwisdomâ said never take a black North Face fleece to a frat party. I like the Sharpie idea.