<p>firstonetogo, my son’s first year roommate was from the midwest, and he and his family drove with his stuff before his trip. He had one of the late trips for kids who can’t go home afterwards. I can’t recall the details, but the college lets kids coming from a distance leave their stuff somewhere while they are on the trip–either in their room, or in some secure storage area.</p>
<p>So you could drive her there with her stuff and she wouldn’t have to fly, although you would have to say goodbye then, unless you wanted to do a New England mini-vacation while she’s on her trip. It’s a great time of year to visit Maine, NH, and VT, actually.</p>
<p>If she does fly and you follow, Manchester is obviously a much smaller airport and easier to navigate. I seem to recall that there are special buses from Logan and Manchester around that time—BUT if her flight is significantly delayed and she misses it, there may be fewer options getting to D from there. I seem to recall someone here whose D had this problem at Manchester. For that reason, I would suggest that if she flies you try to make sure that she is scheduled to arrive several hours before the bus leaves, and that you have a Plan B that she knows about. She might also be able to connect with another student on the Facebook group with whom she can arrange to travel from the airport. </p>
<p>And also consider that there are probably CC parents in the area who would be willing to act in loco parentis if the worst happens and she is stranded! There is a whole in loco parentis thread.</p>
<p>Thank-you consolation and ohmadre. Initially I was thinking that there was more parent involvement during orientation, but I looked online at last years’ schedule and it looks like there might be some forms to complete/sign, a welcome from the president and lunch with your student. I would guess that we could complete the necessary paperwork at another time. I think maybe we will all just drive up together before her DOC trip like you ohmadre. Then maybe when she comes home over winter break, she’ll know more kids including the others who are from this area (don’t know any of them presently) and tag along with them on the bus/plane adventure. Plus, we’ll be at the other end :)</p>
<p>Question: Does the student get to choose which trip letter (i.e. the timing) she wants? Does she rank them just as I assume she gets to rank the type of trip?</p>
<p>Flying into Boston is preferred to Manchester. S’s roommate flies into Manchester from the west coast and hires a car $$$$. Greyhound is the only other choice and the schedule is almost non-existent and horribly timed. </p>
<p>The Dartmouth Coach picks up from and delivers to all the Boston terminals every two hours (the scheduled pick-up time is from terminal A so if you’re at a subsequent one, you have a few extra minutes). Follow the signs to the bus area - easy to find. You can buy and print your ticket online or wait and get one at South Station where the coach stops for about 20-25 minutes after the airport. I’m pretty sure South Station is only about 10 minutes from the airport. (We haven’t had to try this yet, but if you just miss the bus you can conceivably catch a taxi to South Station and get the Coach there.)</p>
<p>We’ve flown into Manchester and rented a car. This airport is small and welcoming. The drive to Hanover is mostly interstate and easy, but kids can’t rent cars.</p>
<p>We’ve also flown into Boston when we visited in November and used the coach because we don’t know how to drive in the snow! (Of course, the weather was beautiful when we went, but one never knows.)</p>
<p>S has used the coach to Boston regularly and is pleased with this arrangement even though travel to and from home becomes a day-long endeavor. The coach is comfortable and plays a movie. There were free pretzels and water bottles in a cooler the time we traveled - have never asked S if this is standard. The drivers have always been extremely helpful with luggage and information. You’re dropped at the Hanover Inn and it is not uncommon to see people pulling luggage through campus and even downtown.</p>
<p>Getting to and from larger stores from campus using Advance Transit to buy dorm items can be challenging. We made numerous trips in our rental car. If S had to depend on riding the bus (which runs on bankers hours M-F only), he might not have gotten set-up as comfortably. </p>
<p>I’d recommend flying your daughter for the DOC trip and then driving up yourself to help her move in and set-up. It was a fun time for us as a family and not too taxing on S. I think he found the benefits outweighed having his family around during the process and we left with a visual of his tidy and organized room. I’m sure it has not looked the same since the day we left, but it’s a nice recollection for me.</p>
<p>Hope this helps. I also would be happy to answer PM’d questions.</p>
<p>Students get to indicate their preference of trips and I think time slot - if a student is from Ohio, they will absolutely be given one of the later trips.</p>
<p>Thanks for this thread! My son will be a '14, but due to the distance from our home (Hawaii) we will not be going to Dimensions. We know he will love it at Dartmouth and are already shopping online for winter wear (what’s that?) and boots. He wants a bike, but I don’t know about bike shops in Hanover. How much can he use it before it snows? He might sign up for the bike/hike trip. Thanks for any tips. Aloha.</p>
<p>My son was an indie music, urban raised guy who figured he should step it up on the trail climbing ladder, seeing how he was a guy, after all. I got him to go down to 3 on the 1 to 5 scale. He thought it was a great imposition, anyway, and said that he was more miserable than I realize he was, thinking back today.
If you are ready to spend some money, I would recommend that you and yours take the cog railway to the top of Mt. Washington. 19th Century technology to the surface of the Moon, where the highest recorded temperature is something like 63 degrees.</p>
<p>S considered taking a bike, but found that walking sufficed. He has lived in the River complex for two years, which is generally considered to be the most remote (I think). When I’ve been at D I haven’t seen people biking around. So for getting around campus, I don’t think a bike is needed. If your s enjoys biking and would like to bike for recreation, whether road biking or mountain biking, that’s another matter. I’d bet that there is some way to get in touch with fellow enthusiasts and get the scoop on bike shops and so forth.</p>
<p>Ooooo, about the bike I disagree. My son lived in the River cluster freshman year and found a bike to be very handy, especially because he went to the rugby field most days – around 2 miles away. He uses his bike Fall and Spring – not so much Winter term. Lots of bikes on campus. </p>
<p>Magnum PI, your son should wait until he arrives to get a bike – he might be able to get an old one from someone graduating. There’s a decent bike shop across the river in Norwich, VT – The Bike Hub.</p>
<p>Thanks D-parents for these words of wisdom. I was thinking about shopping for the bike while he was on the DOC trip, will look up the Bike Hub. And check the message boards for any bikes for sale. Dana, I’ve heard about Mt. Washington, I think there used to be a bike race to the top. I don’t know how far it is from Hanover, but the Mrs. and I will definitely try to visit when we are out there. This is a great time in our lives to send out son off to the next stage. We are so happy it is Dartmouth. We are inspired by the new President Jim Yong Kim (did you see the video on YouTube with Dartmouth Idols?) and hope that this adventure turns out well.</p>
<p>The 4 people we know who went to Dartmouth all met as incoming freshman on the DOC trip and eventually married. I warned my son about this, and of course we sent his older sister to Wellesley. ha ha</p>
<p>2 miles to the rugby field would definitely make a bike worthwhile! By “around campus” I was thinking more my S’s usual trips to the Hop to practice.</p>
<p>BTW, on shopping for cold weather gear, the usual advice given to those coming from warm climates to the colder parts of the US is to come with some long-sleeved shirts, some jeans, and some outer layers such as a couple of sweatshirts/hoodies and maybe a fleece jacket, and wait to see what everyone else is wearing and what you really need. There is an LL Bean in West Lebanon Crossing, about 5 miles away and reachable by bus, and undoubtedly other such retailers in Hanover. And of course there is the internet. I don’t know if my S, for example, has ever worn boots at D: he left them at home. I forced him to bring his hiking boots, in the probably futile hope that he would do some hiking. </p>
<p>I know a number of Dartmouth couples too. (And I’m a Wellesley alum. Good choice!)</p>
<p>Thanks! My D will be traveling to Hanover from WC this weekend to visit a friend and she will scope out the scene for us. Wellesley is awesome. One of Son’s classmate will be attending WC this fall based on D’s experience.</p>
<p>Any word on which dorms are best? and what is this about the food plan, you pay for what you eat?</p>
<p>My S is apparently not a big eater, because he says he has no problem eating enough with whatever amount of $$ are on his card. I seem to recall that Hmom5’s son, on the other hand, needed a LOT of extra $$ for food.</p>
<p>My son lived in French (part of the River cluster) his freshman year. The rooms were nice and, because it’s so d*mn far from everything else, he and his hall mates bonded really well. Many of them joined the same fraternity sophomore year and are still very very good friends.</p>
<p>The building doesn’t matter. It’s the people who make it good or bad.</p>
By “around campus” I was thinking more my S’s usual trips to the Hop to practice.</p>