With Delta changing how they price their tickets March 1st, I want to buy as many tickets for my son and our family traveling to UA to get assigned seating and retain some of the privileges that will disappear for the cheapest tickets on March 1st.
I already bought tickets to orientation. However, now I need to buy tickets for move in, thanksgiving and coming back for Winter break. So here are my questions:
My son registered for Camp 1831, which means he can move in August 9th. We will be all flying from across the country, so the plan was to go Bed Bath and Beyond route for everything other than laptop and clothes. Do you think it is OK to fly-in August 8th afternoon to pick up everything on that day for move in on the 9th? Or should we arrive on August 7th?
For Thanksgiving coming home flight, do I understand it correctly that he can leave on Wednesday morning before Thanksgiving? And I guess come back on Sunday?
For winter break, it appears that tests run through Dec. 11th. So, do I buy ticket for Dec. 12th then? When does he have to be out of the dorm?
For going back from Winter break, it appears that classes start on January 13th. When do the dorms re-open?
Now for the difficult question. Our original plan was to move him in, and then the rest of our family to drive to the beaches and spend a week there, saying good bye to our son on the way back home (Sunday Aug. 18th). What I did not realize was that Camp 1831 is only 3 days long and he is coming back on his birthday (August 12th). This changes things as now we want to be back to Tuscaloosa on his birthday for a birthday dinner. So I am kind of lost right now, as I don't know how to plan it.
If we stay at the closest beach town and come back just for dinner and go back to the beach, is it feasible? Or should we just fly home next morning?
If we fly home in the morning (Aug. 13th), what would he do for the rest of the week until every one moves in? Do you know when WOW begins in 2015?
^#4: Jan 13th restart date is incorrect, I believe! I’ve already told ua about this…correct date will most likely Jan 6th.
^#2&3…your departure home depends on class schedule. Some students finish finals earlier than others. Also, students can leave on tues before break if their classes allow this (i.e., have 10am class…can leave anytime after that). The dec 2015 final exam schedule is already avail to view (academic calendar link).
“Closest beach town” - they’re all pretty much the same distance, which is going to be roughly a 4-hour drive - rather a long way to drive for dinner and back.
Looks like Week of Welcome starts Aug. 17. Aeromom, someone on Facebook noted that moving the second semester start date will move it away from any championship series football games, so Jan. 13 might be correct? Who knows?
OP, if he’s back on Aug. 12, and WOW starts 5 days later…he might spend the time sleeping!
January 13 restart date is not incorrect The dorm re-opening date is not posted. You could contact housing to ask if it’s been determined yet.
For winter break, students are supposed to leave the dorm within 24 hours of their last exam or by 10 am Saturday, whichever is sooner. You won’t have your student’s exam schedule until he registers for classes at BB.
As for the beach and the birthday dinner, very possible your student will have friends with whom celebrating a birthday may be far more appealing than hanging with mom and dad. I wouldn’t stress over this one too much.
I didn’t think Delta was expanding E fares (seats assigned at- check-in, fewer miles, no changes, etc.) to routes in/out of Birmingham as Spirit, Frontier, and Allegiant aren’t flying those routes. For non-holiday times, booking 6+ months out will have you paying a lot more than any increased fees might cost.
Have you considered having him move in alone with just a few essentials and then flying down closer to the start of school or even family weekend?
Alabama and Florida beaches are 4-6 hours away, which may or may not be the best way to spend your vacation. I was faced with that situation after I graduated from UA and decided to stay at a fancy lodge in North Alabama instead as it was only 2.5 hours away and is extremely well-priced (less than half the price of similar places in WA/OR/CA).
Why? With Delta, Ameican, etc if you change any part of the ticket it will lose the entire ticket. You do not have this problem with Southwest as they let you change just one leg of a multi leg ticket without it effecting the rest of the ticket. So, you book a OW for them to come home and they call and say, “mom, my classes on Wednesday are all cancelled and I can leave on Monday or Tuesday”. It happens. You can call Delta, American, etc and change that ticket without it effecting their return flight. The majors, if you booked a really great fare do not like for any part of the ticket to be changed and will cancel the ENTIRE ticket and you would have to rebook all flights at the higher fares.
One way ticket to come home. One way ticket to return to school. A long time ago it used to be a better fare to book RT vs OW. That is not the case any longer so there is no benefit in booking all tickets RT.
The problem with Delta and American is that their one way fares are sometimes significantly higher than their round trip fares divided by two. You will however incur a huge fare change fee plus the additional fare cost if you change your flights.
You could simply book the flights on the Saturday morning after all classes are due to finish. This gives your student time to pack, do laundry, and clean their rooms before returning home. They can even catch up on a little sleep and decompress. That’s what most students do anyway when they first arrive home. Afterwards, they arrive back at school, after the break, to a clean room and fresh laundry. This avoids all the upset and extra costs of flight changes. However, if your student could have left sooner, then they will have a day or two less at home.
How strict are they about making the student leave 24 hours after the last final? If they are strict, just make sure your student has a MWF 1:00-1:50 class so their final will be on the last day.
1 - Arriving on the 8th should be fine. You shouldn't need two days to shop.
2 - Depending on his class schedule, may be able to leave on Tuesday afternoon/evening if he has morning classes. Yes, come back on Sunday.
4 - Classes started on Wednesday after winter break this year and they were allowed to move in beginning Saturday evening. For next year, that would be January 9th.
5 - Camp 1831 ends on August 12th. Your son will now have made some great friends and will probably want to hang out with them. And ... the nearest beach is 4-5 hours away and quite a long trip for your family to travel just to spend the one evening with him. I like your original plan of visiting at the end of your trip. There will be other students on campus this week - All of the Honors Action students, Million Dollar Band students, Sorority recruitment. He will not lack for things to do. But remember that the dining halls may have limited hours before official move-in so you will want to send him some extra money to eat nearby or stock him up with some easy groceries.
Last year WOW started the Sunday before classes, so my guess would be Aug 16th this year. If it were me, I’d try to come back for the return trip Friday, take him out to dinner Friday night, go watch the bid day festivities Saturday morning then fly out Saturday afternoon.
There used to be a time when Delta, American Airlines, etc did give a huge break for roundtrip fares. Those days are over. Most fares are based on one way even if it is roundtrip.
Last year, my D’s RA was pretty strict on the 24 hour rule. Remember, they are also going to need to sign up for a final inspection upon having everything cleared out. There are only so many time slots per day available.
^^^ Hmmm, I have never found that to be true about American, Delta and others, in my experience, I always try round trip, then try one ways and there always seems to be a significant price difference. Maybe it depends on where you are flying to/from. Anyway check it both ways and see what works best. Check multiple airlines and multiple time configurations.
Airlines price flights based on future need, they know when school breaks, football games and other major events are happening. For instance, just try to book a flight to New Orleans for the Jazz Festival, you would be shocked at the prices. Airlines have a system in place to monitor all these types of events and price accordingly. It is just like any other business based on supply and demand. Yes, sometimes you can get lucky and snag a great price but you have to keep trying different itineraries.
I stand corrected on the restart date of Jan 13 2016. (Altho the official dates are still pending approval, the spring 2016 calendar is posted so I guess go make plans!..) This makes for a unique winter break: 4+ weeks instead of the usual 3 weeks. Enjoy! It also pushes graduation for 2016 a week…
