<p>Can someone tell me how one gets to campus if flying in from the West Coast? Are there school shuttles or buses like Dartmouth has to Logan airport?</p>
<p>My D is a freshman at Vassar. We are from Washington State. She flies to JFK, takes something (I guess train?) to Grand Central Station. From there she takes commuter train straight to Poughkeepsie station. At Poughkeepsie station, she takes the cab which is less than 10 dollars. </p>
<p>There are shuttle services from school to major NYC airports at the beginning of the break, but there are no shuttle services from the airports to school.</p>
<p>Isn’t that hard to do with all the bags and stuff? My son will be coming from the west coast as well. I’ve heard different stories as well. Fly to Albany and take a train down…Fly to La Guardia and take a train up…That airport 35 miles from campus, is there a shuttle or a way to get to school from there? I’ve never been there so I am clueless but my son committed to being a freshman there next year. I’m looking for the easiest way, with bags for a carless 18 yr old to manage.</p>
<p>.
There are cab services to and from Stewart airport. The cost can vary wildly. Call a few companies for quotes. </p>
<p>The transportation service located at the airport is Visconti Ground Transport. Discounts are offered to cadets and college students</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.panynj.gov/airports/swf-taxi-car-van-service.html”>http://www.panynj.gov/airports/swf-taxi-car-van-service.html</a></p>
<p>For her move-in day last year, we rented a car in NYC and drove up to the school. So the lots of luggage was not a problem. For the breaks, she comes back with a backpack and a carry-on. She seems OK with it. We are planning to store lots of her stuff in the storage near campus during the summer break. Anyway, pack light, pack light!!</p>
<p>My son from Southern California is a senior. Freshman year we rented a car from Albany and drove him down. Albany is easier to get in and out of if you have a car. However, since then, he has flown to NYC (either La Guardia or JFK) and travelled as stated above. (There are shuttles from the airport to Grand Central or more recently he has been taking the Long Island Railroad into Penn Station–you can catch the Amtrak from Penn, or Metro North from Grand Central). It seems like a lot of work to me, but I am amazed at how quickly my son adapted to the trip. He has never minded it. He likes the fact that he can get a non-stop flight into NYC (not possible to Albany), he loves going through NYC, and the transportation has not been an issue. I didn’t realize how good we had it until his younger sister decided to go to another school on the East coast that is not as close to a major city. It has been a major hassle getting flights in and out–expensive, more likely to be cancelled when it snows, and very difficult to get airport transportation. The train really works well to Vassar from NYC-- so many students use it that he usually runs into friends on the train. He has shared a storage facility with friends every summer. </p>
<p>They have also run shuttles to the airports during major breaks, but my son has rarely used them. He prefers to go on his own schedule.</p>