Before committing to Brown, our family (West Coast) is trying to figure out how straightforward or difficult it is to take the bus/metro/train whatever the combo is from Boston to Brown and back up again. This looks to be a much better option as far as flight prices and choices than going into Providence (though that looks to obviously be much easier for a student traveling alone and with luggage.) Do students take the train/silver bus up to Logan without issue?
Also, it looks like the Fall Term doesn’t end up until the Weds before Thanksgiving at noon. The fights are much cheaper Tues night… would missing that Wednesday be unheard of, or is not that uncommon given the mayhem of holiday travel? At one of the huge campuses nearby here it would barely be noticed (might have to turn in a paper the day before, etc.) but in a small class I wonder if it would annoy the professor.
Traveling to/from college is such a small fraction of the next 4 years of your life that i really wouldn’t put too much weight into it.
Students routinely fly in and out of Boston. It’s definitely longer and west coast travel is the only place where it ever really makes sense to do once you factor in the cost of getting to or from the train station, the train, and the bus.
Weds before thanksgiving is entirely up to the professor if the class ends by noon. I had professors who didn’t schedule class that day from the start, who canceled the class last minute, who had class but didn’t care if you skipped it, and who had class and cared. The larger the class the less likely the prof is to care about your attendance (especially because, as you said, it’s hard to notice). Who knows, maybe you’ll end up with all tues/thurs classes and it will be moot.
I would also consider going to JFK and taking Bear Tracks to Brown. I think it’d be a nice way to meet new friends on the way there so you won’t have to stand all awkward among a thousand kids and their parents
From Logan, you can take the Silver Line bus to South Station, then take Amtrak or the commuter rail (MBTA) to Providence. I think the bus is $2 and they take cash. The Silver Line buses service all airport terminals and make a loop to South Station. Amtrak takes about 40 minutes and the commuter rail is a little longer. The Providence train station is walking distance to the Brown campus, although if your student has lots of luggage, they may want to take a cab. My son attends school in Boston and routinely takes Amtrak or the commuter rail back to Providence - trains run frequently and it’s a very easy trip. From other points in Boston, the T is the best way to get to South Station - much quicker than a cab or Uber, especially during rush hour.
There is also a Peter Pan bus that goes from Providence to Logan Airport.
I’ve taken the commuter train and Silver Line to Logan and back, and it’s easy. My one caveat – the commuter line doesn’t run very frequently. So the connections may not always work out well – meaning that you may have to spend 1-2 hours at South Station waiting for the next train to Providence or you arrive at the airport several hours before your flight. (When you look at the Providence/Stoughton schedule, note that not all trains go to Providence.) Or you can take Amtrak for more money.
There are certainly many students who leave campus early before Thanksgiving, even the Friday before. My advice would be to not count on it the first year and to avoid making an airplane reservation before arriving on campus.
Yes, commuter trains are sparse during off hours and run most frequently from Providence-Boston in the am and Boston-Providence in the pm. The Amtrak regional or Acela runs hourly both directions from about 5:30 am until midnight. A saver ticket on the regional is about $14-$18. The regional takes about the same time as the Acela because it only stops once between Boston and Providence. If using Amtrak, I would book the ticket online once you have the airline ticket so you can make sure to get the lowest fare - and a seat, especially right before holidays.
This is all great info, thanks to all. Can you tell we have no experience whatsoever with Boston/Providence?!
I know it might seem like something bizarre to be worried about now, but we re trying to budget travel into what it’s really going to cost to go to school at Brown, and though it might seem trivial Thanksgiving is our big big family holiday, only time some far-flung relatives gather. If my student ends up committing I would book refundable mileage tickets right away. If it’s not horrible to get to Boston it’s a straight shot to SFO. PVD is certainly an easier option, but over T-day they wouldn’t need more than a carry on and many more cheaper options.
Any reason you don’t all just rent a car? It’s so much cheaper than individual round trip bus tickets for each of you.
Also, you might not have checked Southwest Airlines which is the low cost way to fly to Providence. Usually connects in Chicago or Baltimore. It doesn’t show up on Expedia or sights like that.
@ClassicRockerDad I was mainly wondering about Thanksgiving mayhem, where they will be alone. Good idea to do Boston possibly in the Fall when with a parent, although I’m a little hesitant just because none of us know the area at all. Did check Southwest, thanks for reminding me about that tip. Might become our go-to main airline.
Unfortunately, there is nothing direct from Providence to the west coast, not even on Southwest. I really wish that would change because I love TF Green - easy access and never crowded. Security rarely takes more than a few minutes. However, I always drive up to Boston to avoid having a connection. The extra time and hassle of the connection far outweighs the inconvenience of the hour drive to the airport. Also, direct Boston-LA flights are usually cheaper than a connection out of Providence.
Just to double check too… regional, Acela, and Amtrak are 3 different things? And then there’s Peter Pan bus as well? Goodness you’d hope with all those choices it would be possible for a student with carry-on only to be able to get themselves from campus up to Logan… that’s what I’m hearing, yes? Yes the flights from Boston - CA can be much cheaper than going into TF Green, and if there are delays there are many alternatives once at Logan.
It’s super easy to get to Logan from PVD on public transportation. There are two “brands” of trains – the MBTA commuter rail, which follows your typical commuter schedule and makes several stops, and Amtrak, which has fast trains (Acela) and slow trains (regional - more stops, less $). It’s probably no more than 15 minutes longer to take a regional, I wouldn’t pay the Acela premium for that short trip.
All trains go to South station in Boston, where you can catch the Silver Line (bus) to Logan airport. The Silver line has a small charge going to the airport, but is free from the airport back to South Station.
All of the schedules and timelines are available online - google MBTA Stoughton line schedule for the commuter rail, and Amtrak has their schedule online as well.
We are from the West Coast as well. As stated by others, the MBTA is definitely the easiest I believe, as flying out of Boston is always much cheaper than TF Green, which will involve multiple connections (at least for us). Southwest is good if the times work out, but Boston (Alaska Airlines for us since we are in the Pacific NW is usually the best). My son walks to the MBTA station from Brown, which is just a few blocks away, then takes the train to South Station, and bus to the airport. He says it’s very easy, and the bus has ample room for luggage since it’s an airport bus. He’s done this for 3 years now.
The station in Providence is called the Amtrak Station, not the MBTA station (although both Amtrak and MBTA trains do stop there). MBTA stands for Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, (otherwise known as the “T”).
Amtrak is the “regular” (non-commuter) train company: amtrak.com. The Acela is the high-speed train that Amtrak operates to NYC and DC (think TGV or other European-style high-speed train), and a “Regional” is the regular (somewhat slower) train. Amtrak.com has the schedules and prices.
Our graduating daughter almost always prefers to LEAVE from TF Green (Providence) airport since it is a brief 15 minute Uber/cab from campus and she worries that she will either miss her flight (for very early flights) or have to arrive far earlier than necessary because of bus or Amtrak schedules. Returning from the West Coast, she is more flexible, since she can always get the next train/bus home. She generally worked hard to return to the West Coast the weekend before Thanksgiving (missing several days of school), but there is no way to predict what your student’s professor will insist upon. We found that the return flight the Sunday after Thanksgiving was the most expensive flight of the year and booked that early.
PVD is much more convienent and they do have some direct flights to the west coast (PDX, LAX, SEA-TAC), maybe not to SFO though. Commuting up to BOS isn’t too bad most of the time but for thanksgiving weekend it will be a hassle…it always has been for me at least. Some students are commuters and/or locals so it might be more convenient for your student to throw a buddy $25 gas money and get dropped off at BOS.
Fun fact- the Providence airport is not in Providence, it’s in Warwick. Just something to keep in mind for future visitors that want to stay in Providence but end up booking a hotel in Warwick. Rhode Island is so small that it doesn’t usually interfere with travel- but it does cause a bit of confusion!
