<p>5 kiddos here, 3 went far, far away! (3000 miles+)</p>
<p>We shipped AFTER she was already there so she could pick up and put away. Packed before she left but shipped when we got back and removed what she didn’t want after moving in and seeing space issues or things we purchased there. Shipped a 20X20x20.</p>
<p>We also sent via Southwest when we traveled (flew) there in a 20x20x20 instead of suitcases, held more.</p>
<p>Same for the boys who were car rides away. When the boys were closer I used my old truck to haul their stuff. Didn’t have to worry about the distance or messing with my car. </p>
<p>We combined a family vacation with the move-in of S#2, only did the vacation part before the drop off and did most of our shopping in the college town. We would spend the day on the beach and then hit up one store each night on the way to dinner (BB&B, Target, BestBuy, etc). We rented a condo so I was able to wash all the towels and bed linens we bought as well as any clothes S wore during the week. S was able to enjoy the vacation with us and we all became much more familiar and comfortable with the area. It worked out very well. </p>
<p>I just came back from Office Depot, and they had a sign that any shipping over $20 was 20% off. That included USPS and UPS. It has been going on for a while, so if the discount is still going on when you student goes off to college, you can ship for a very good deal.</p>
<p>We drove her down in my SUV packed to the top with boxes ALL THE SAME SIZE. My h is the world’s best packer, he collected boxes all of the same size and fit them squarely to the ceiling in the SUV. Also took a hand truck tied to the top–very helpful for move-in. We also made trips down there vacations for the 6 yrs she lived in Charleston (graduate work too), went to beach and took our dogs with us. All of the usual stores are there: Walmart, Target, etc. If she will be buying stuff anyway, wait until you get there to buy or have it shipped directly to her. The worst was moving her from an apt. this past summer: filled a Chevy Avalanche inside and out plus a trailer with stuff on the top of it. Then we took her to Boston 2 months later for more grad school, same thing. We’ve told her that’s it–we are NOT moving her again, she’ll have to rent a truck and get friends to help. Getting too old for that stuff, plus she’s almost 25 now.</p>
<p>We loved going to Charleston, got to know I-95 really well and actually did the usual 10 hr trip in 8.5 hr one time! I recommend staying for a couple days after move-in in case she needs anything else. Google the stores and get locations and directions, everything is there that she will need. Good luck!</p>
<p>Keep in mind that smaller vehicles like the CRV were not intended to move kids to college; the rental fees may be steep, but if one busts something due to overloading…</p>
<p>You may want to find the vehicle’s gross weight, payload, etc and count fuel, adult occupant weights, and roughly weigh the luggage.</p>
<p>Bed Bath and Beyond has a fabulous option – you “shop” at home and it is all waiting for you in the store closest to your college. Our child went to school 1000 miles away (13 hours) and we didn’t drive anything down. We flew, and purchased everything but clothing there. Charleston has everything you will need.</p>
<p>Son just moved everything home before his spring semester abroad. He decided that when he returns for senior year next fall, he wants to pare down and take only what he needs. Renting a 10-foot Budget truck was much less expensive than renting a car (e.g., minivan or SUV), even when driven one-way. We were surprised to find that, even though you can’t rent a car at 20, you can rent a truck. It worked great!</p>
<p>We have a CRV and bought a Thule bag (I think it was the Tahoe). It works great and stores quite a bit of stuff. When not in use, just fold it up and it doesn’t take up that much storage space.</p>
<p>I shipped much of my first college girl’s things to my families homes when she went to school in Boston. We flew up because of the timing ( Labor Day weekend is about the worse time for us to be away from our seasonal business ) My sister and brother in law drove her things up and helped with the move in process , since they were seasoned pros
Remember , she won’t need everything in the first few days , and evryone brings more than they need in the first place !</p>
<p>The family vacation after dropping off the freshman is a good idea. You won’t be so sad to leave when you are going on to something else positive. My H and I did just a two-day little trip after dropping off our D, and I look back on that trip fondly.</p>
<p>Luckily my desperation caused me to google “Suggestions for shipping to College of Charleston” and this thread of conversation popped up as an option. The tips here have been more helpful than the hours (it feels like) trying to figure out shipping rates for USPS, Greyhound, etc. I knew that sending my baby across the country to college would be stressful but really didn’t factor in the additional pressure of trying to figure out how to get her stuff there, her dorm set up, etc via airplane. We purchased tickets on SW specifically to get the free bags but because she is going so far we don’t have the option of frequent visits to drop off extra things or exchange seasonal clothing. It sounds like FedEx ground is the shipping method of choice for parents in this forum. She set up her CofC mailbox when we were there at Orientation but haven’t been able to determine if we can ship dorm items purchased on-line directly to her mailbox at the college. Does anyone know if they will hold it there until we arrive for check-in? Any other cost saving shipping tips are appreciated, including maximum size/weights for the biggest cost benefits. THANKS!</p>
<p>MyAZBaby, this looks like it might be your first post, so welcome!</p>
<p>I can relate so well to your questions, and also to that little bit of angst that comes across in your post. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, I don’t have direct info about College of Charleston’s mail, but I had the exact questions for the school my son currently attends. It took me until the summer before soph year to learn that at the school he attends the mailroom acts as a “real” post office and that I could send packages when the school is closed. I was very interested in this info also because of textbooks that I wanted to buy outside the school’s bookstore and send to save some money. The way I got the info was to find the direct number to the school’s mailroom (I found it on the schools website, but it took a lot of investigating on my part to locate it), and I double checked all of the shipping minutia with the post office in the town as well. Hope this helps you out a bit.</p>
<p>LESS IS MORE - Everything you send now has to be stored or returned home next May. </p>
<p>Last summer my son stored his stuff with a relative an hour away. In our rented Camry we returned to college with all of his stuff, parents vacation stuff, a tenor sax, plus luggage and laptop backpacks for 2 parents. I do remember thinking it might have been tight if D had been with use too… but we didn’t ship anything.</p>
<p>I feel your pain. We moved our D to CofC from Baltimore a few years back. we had 4 of us and all of her stuff (and our stuff for a 4 day stay) in our slightly larger than your CRV, Buick Rendezvous. I borrowed a roof top carrier and used every inch of space available in the car. We were running very top heavy and the engine was straining to approach the 70 mph speed limits, but we made it. A couple of tips. Stay a couple of days to help your D get out to the Wal-Mart etc. once she and her roomate figure out what they forgot. You have to drive to get to big box stores, or take a long bus ride with alot of questionable characters. Don’t forget that you’ll likely be heading back down for parents weekend in about 5 weeks, so you can bring whatever she left at home. Another good tip is to rent a storage unit May-August. (Pack-Rat storage is close and cheap, being in Mt.Pleasant, just across the big bridge). Stay in Mt.Pleasant, not downtown, its much cheaper. The Days inn is something like $65 a night, and about 10minutes to campus. You can stay in the area and go to the beaches at Isle of Palms, Folley or our favorite being the public beach at Kiawah island, this way you are out of your D’s hair, yet close enough to solve some of those early problems. Enjoy! I wish my D was still there so I have a reason to visit.</p>
