<p>I am contemplating making hotel reservations for graduation (up the road) and have a few questions. As there is a college graduation and a house graduation (I believe) … how many days should parents plan on being there for the festivities? I’m trying to figure out how many nights to reserve at the hotel. Thanks.</p>
<p>There is Commencement, Class Day, House graduation, and other stuff. The festivities are spread over about three or four days. Plus there is getting D packed up and moved out of her House. So we have blocked out the entire week: fly in Sunday and fly back out Saturday. Graduation won’t fill the entire week, but we plan to visit friends in western MA and do a few things in Boston too while we are there.</p>
<p>We made hotel and plane reservations many months ago, so I hope you are planning for '09 and not '08 graduation.</p>
<p>Okay, I got out the exact schedule and these are the ticketed events:</p>
<p>Tuesday June 3 - Senior Class Family Dinner and Party
Wednesday June 4 - Class Day Picnic
Thursday June 5 Noon - Commencement Day
Thursday June 5 PM - Commencement House Ceremonies</p>
<p>So it looks like three days, but as I said we are there for the full week.</p>
<p>Thanks. We’re looking for beyond 2009, so I think we’re okay. Just trying to plan ahead!</p>
<p>Twinmom, we’re looking ahead to the same year as you, but I wasn’t sure that the dates were certain for 2010 yet because of the calendar change. If they are, I guess we need to get busy making plans, too. It seems so long from now, and yet I know it will be here before we know it.</p>
<p>Nceph: The 2009-10 calendar is set (at least it appears to be from what I can see) and commencement is May 27, 2010.<br>
[Harvard</a> University FAS Registrar’s Office](<a href=“http://www.registrar.fas.harvard.edu/fasro/common/calendar.jsp]Harvard”>http://www.registrar.fas.harvard.edu/fasro/common/calendar.jsp)</p>
<p>(Thankfully, that’s not the same day as the other twin’s commencement!) </p>
<p>These two years have flown by so quickly that I have no doubt the next two will too. </p>
<p>I feel like we were just touring colleges the other day. However, it’s nice to be halfway done with payments! :)</p>
<p>Thanks, Twinmom. Guess I’ll put it on the calendar and start to think about figuring out where to stay. And then not do anything till it’s too late to find anything within a 50 mile radius of the school.</p>
<p>nceph - The calendar on the FAS Registrar site is the “reformed” calendar: <a href=“http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2008/02.07/photos/undergrad.pdf[/url]”>http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2008/02.07/photos/undergrad.pdf</a></p>
<p>Also - any hotel suggestions? The places in the square (Charles, Inn@Harvard, etc) become beyond-exorbitant ($700/night for the charles!). But I’m sure parking is insane if you book a farther away place and a rental car. I think the ideal situation is somewhere on the Red Line a ways away (in Alewife?) but I don’t know any hotels around there in walking distance to the T.</p>
<p>This is for 2009, btw. As you 2010ers will find out quickly, most hotels open up availability 1 year before.</p>
<p>Try the Sheraton Commander.</p>
<p>I am glad that I am reading this thread and I will have to mark my calendar to reserve a hotel one year in advance. I suspect that with the change in academic calendar, it is going to be even more difficult to find a hotel room as there will be other Boston area colleges that will have graduation ceremonies at about the same time as H.</p>
<p>j<em>f</em>m, When we have visited DD, we generally stay in the Waltham area. I would recommend the Doubletree (FWIW, there is a Costco right behind it). From there, it is an easy drive to the Alewife station (Red Line) - about ten minutes.</p>
<p>We do the drive-to-Alewife-and-take-the-T-from-there thing too. But we usually stay in a hotel in Woburn. It’s an easy drive, but the hotel rooms are much more plentiful and significantly cheaper than in Cambridge.</p>
<p>Is there parking at the Alewife station?</p>
<p>Parking at Alewife</p>
<p>I park at Alewide frequently. There are 1500 spots at Alewife but, because Harvard graduation activities are usually mid-week, those spots are often taken up by Boston-area commuters by 8 AM or 9 AM. You cannot drive up to the garage at any time on a weekday and feel confident of getting a spot. On the weekends, and after 5 PM, there is always room at the Alewife garage.</p>
<p>I second the Sheraton Commander…it is a great spot at a “moderate” [for Cambridge] price-point. You can walk to everything in Harvard Square and take the T into Boston for additional museums, restaurants, etc.</p>