<p>hello everyone. i've been thinking lately and i have come up with a list of questions about the dorms on campus. any responses will be greatly appreciated ! </p>
<p>are there alot of freshman who try to apply for springs for housing? what are your best on campus living experiences [ dorm halls in particular]? what is the noise level like in the dorms? how much should one bring [clothing wise] and still manage to fit it all into the rooms? how hot / cold does it really get in gainesville and are the dorms with no airconditioning worth living in to save money [ i see prices for non airconditioned dorms are lower than the ones with ac. ]? also, if anyone has had meal plans, where are the best places to eat and do you reccommend getting a mealplan in your experiences? </p>
<p>thank you ! : ]</p>
<p>I can't say much about Springs other than that I know zero freshman who live there.</p>
<p>I live in Yulee Hall, and I love it. It's not too noisy, but the people here are very friendly and a lot of fun. The walls aren't too thin, but you can sometimes hear someone banging around upstairs or, if your neighbor is particular loud, you might hear that once in a while. The amount of space you'll have for clothes depends strictly on a room-by-room basis; I'd like to think that I have a fair amount of clothing, but it fits into the chest of draws and about half of the closet without problems. </p>
<p>You will want air conditioning, whether you provide it yourself or get a dorm with AC. From May through early October, it's brutally hot, sticky, and humid. During the winter, it gets colder than I expected it to - there are a lot of mornings with lows in the 20's and 30's and afternoons with highs in the 50's. </p>
<p>About meal plans: it depends. The best place to eat with your meal plan will be dependent upon where your dorm is. If you're in Broward, Rawlings, Jennings, Yulee, Reid, or Mallory, you'll be eating most of your meals at Broward Dining. If you're on the other side of the campus with the other dorms, it's Gator Dining. You can go to either, but the convenience factor is a little hard to pass up. I, personally, do not have a meal plan - I don't like the food, the dorm kitchens are well-equipped, and on the rare occasion I want to eat in the dining hall, I have no problem paying the $8.00 for a buffet-style meal. Other people I know have meal plans and love them - the dining halls cook a variety of food and are usually pretty accommodating, and it's a good option for someone who doesn't like to cook. Just make sure you realistically think about how much you're going to eat before you buy one - at the end of the week/semester, depending on which one you get, your meals disappear and you've wasted money.</p>
<p>I lived in Springs my first summer, but its expensive and hard to get during the year. I lived in Riker (in the Tolbert area) my first fall and spring and loved it. The dorms arent glamorous, but the bathrooms in this area are brand new! Noise level isn't bad on most girls floors, guys I've heard otherwise.
Gainesville gets really really hot. A/C is a must and its not worth the money to scrimp on that. It also gets really cold. But dont bring up your winter clothes til you go home for thanksgiving, its a waste of space.
I bought a mealplan my first summer and I wasted it and hated it. The food is just not good. Unless you are so lazy you wont go to the grocery store and buy some cereal and PB&J...its not worth it. Guys who eat a lot...maybe it would be a good idea. The only thing I ever ate at the dining hall was pizza and brownies.</p>