<p>vmac183: funny you should ask. I just walked into our local shipping place today and asked about shipping a bike across the country (3000 miles). About $120 for the box, packing, shipping and insurance.</p>
<p>I sent two trunks 2 years ago via UPS from New Hampshire to Tennessee. It cost about $100. UPS has an online calculator. They go by size AND weight so plan accordingly. Ship lighter weight, bulkier items and carry heavy items in the car. Example- we carried books and shipped clothes.</p>
<p>Thanks for the info. S already has a bike which gets used a lot. But at those prices it probably makes more sense to see if we can either rent / borrow a bike rack or get a used or basic model once he gets to school and try to find a place to keep it over the summer. He’ll be at orientation in a few weeks, so I’ll put that on his list of things to find out while he is there.</p>
<p>Re: bicycles…I would suggest getting a used bike via something like Craigslist. Unfortunately, bikes are easy targets for theft. Our kids did NOT take their (expensive) bikes from home. A cheap used one would have been the option.</p>
<p>There was a Parent Cafe thread a few months ago that took a tangent regarding bike shipments… <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/1140950-help-me-buy-bike-3.html?highlight=bike[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/1140950-help-me-buy-bike-3.html?highlight=bike</a></p>
<p>I just bumped it.</p>
<p>For ours who were that distance for college, we would do a one way van rental. DH and/or I with college kid would drive to the college, and then fly back home. We’d have use of the vehicle while there, save money by taking the late flight home rather than staying the night. We’d do the reverse for bringing the college kid home. Or you can do a full rental and drive both ways. With a large van, you can bring the sibling as well.</p>
<p>When I was in college, I bought a trunk at an Army surplus store and packed it with bedding, pillows, towels, school supplies, toiletries, extra clothes, and packed only one suitcase of clothing, which I took on the plane with me. I shipped the trunk air cargo. I kept the trunk, still filled with the extras, at the bottom of my dorm closet.</p>
<p>Fast forward 30 years for my son to go to school 5 hours away. We filled up the CRV, with a topper on top, with three totes for underbed storage, and a printer and vacuum cleaner. Son lives in a suite style dorm with his own bedroom and small kitchen. Went up two weeks later for parents weekend and brought a bookshelf and computer peripherals. When we picked him up unexpectedly in the end of April because of a tornado hitting the school, we were dumbfounded as to how we were going to get all this stuff home. We rented a small storage unit and filled it up with only son’s stuff. We are determined to bring only a tenth of what we brought next year and hope to bring most of the storage unit back home.</p>
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<p>I just ran the Post Office calculator, using our locations (California to Indiana). For Parcel Post (ground delivery), it was $51.72. Last year we shipped 3 gigantic boxes for $77; not sure of the weight, but it was well over 50 lbs.</p>
<p>I had always been a believer in UPS, until one day I couldn’t make it out to the UPS store and dashed into the Post Office instead. I haven’t been back to UPS since.</p>
<p>We also moved D across country- Calif. to PA. I bought a big suitcase at a thrift store for $8 and filled it with her stuff. She had another one that she also filled. I took my stuff in a carry-on and she took a carry-on. So we checked 2 bags - I unpacked the thrift store one and then dropped it off at another thrift store there. She kept her bag there for future use. We bought bedding towels, etc. there. My husband did not go because of added cost.</p>
<p>We flew into an airport about 3 hours away as it was WAY cheaperso did rent a car. I bid on a car thru Priceline and got a full size for $16/per day last August. You might try bidding although I tried again in April and could not get a good rate. That time I got it through Costco, still at a good discount.</p>
<p>I would also leave brother at home- there is nothing fun about move-in and the orientations can get very boring. Siblings tend to get very bored and get in the way. It is stressful enough without anyone extra!</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Because we were flying across country, we did not take a printer. It was cheaper to just buy one there- I think we paid $60 for a wireless HP printer. Also bought a decent guitar on Craigslist for almost nothing when we got there. D is in off campus housing and rents year-round, so most of her stuff including winter clothing stays there when she comes home for the summer. If your S or D does have to move out for the summer, many colleges have storage companies nearby who will pick up boxes and store them for the summer so that you don’t have to take everything home. They will then deliver them back before school starts. It is usually pretty inexpensive and worth it headache-wise.</p>
<p>I am late to this, but just our data point–the only vehicle we have that would fit everything is a 4Runner with 230,000 miles on it. Because of that we’ve always rented an SUV for move out and move back in the spring. Only one parent goes with the kid. And I assume someone else has given the age-old CC advice that if it doesn’t fit in one large vehicle, it stays at home? (And I’m a big fan of packing in sturdy lawn-and-leaf bags. They can be smushed into any shape.)</p>
<p>I’m always shipping stuff to my D who lives half way across the country. I’ve found for bigger packages UPS is the way to go. For smaller packages and to overnight things USPS. FexEx is not very convenient here so I’ve never used that option.</p>
<p>One thing to remember is that girls bring too much stuff. Too much crap they think is essential!</p>
<p>I would bring your S, as it sounds like he needs to be there. We have a minivan which we bought just for this sort of thing and it’s come in handy but since you don’t it will be fine.</p>
<p>Another thing that my D did is sign up for Amazon Prime. She can get just about anything in 2 days. I even sent a night stand, she’s bought contact solution and just about anything you can think of. I think she ordered her printer also on Amazon, I’m pretty sure she had it sent to her.</p>
<p>I’m not saying I’m an expert…because I’m not. BUT we have done all three kinds of moves…across country, somewhat close (2 hours), and somewhat far but in same time zone (12 hour drive). They all had a different “personality” but the key for each was that WE (the parents) set a limit on how much we were able too take, and the college students had to make their “stuff” fit into our limits.</p>
<p>For the cross country move, it was four suitcases…and two carryons (as two of us were traveling). No siblings, one parent only…and it was orientation weekend too. We bought all of the big “stuff” in the college area (bulky linen things, printer, small TV, desk lamp, toiletries, school supplies, etc). EVERYTHING else fit into the suitcases.</p>
<p>For the 2 hour move, we used our minivan. Again it was orientation weekend and we left the younger sib at home with friends. We were able to take more but the difference was we did NO shopping in Boston because it all fit in the car and was bought near our home. I will say…by the time this same student was a college senior, we were able to move him home using 1/2 the backseat to a Volvo sedan, and the trunk to that car. He took less and less with him every year because he realized he didn’t NEED all the “stuff” he thought he needed.</p>
<p>Same kid moved 12 hours away to grad school. We used the same minivan to move him but he was moving into an unfurnished apartment and the minivan held a loveseat, table and chairs, filing cabinets, three area rugs, lamps, and all of the kitchen “stuff”. A Subura sedan held the kid’s personal belongings. </p>
<p>I guess what I’m saying is…pack light. It’s the easiest way to get to campus with “all the stuff”. Just take LESS stuff. Things we learned…they sell toiletries everywhere. No need to take a year’s supply with you. No need to send extra clothes to store under the bed. Our kids (both boy and girl) neverf really LOOKED in those under bed boxes until AFTER they bought a replacement item for what could have been found under their beds!). If it fits into your car, it will probably fit into your dorm room. If you take two cars, or a very large van…you will probably be bringing things home with you on the return trip. And most important…the kids will accumulate “more stuff” while they are in college so leave SOME spare room for that to happen.</p>
<p>I agree that you should bring the bulk of her clothes when you go to parent’s weekend. She will survive just fine with a hoodie/light jacket combo and sweats/jeans for the month of September.</p>
<p>Check with your school to find out when they will start accepting packages. </p>
<p>Go to your local UPS or Post office and learn the “rules” for cost effective shipping. Sometimes using a box an inch or two smaller or a pound or two lighter makes a huge difference in shipping costs. There is one parent on CC who ships a full size roller bag (packed with clothes) for a reasonable rate - I think she does it via FED-Ex. (this does require a place to store the suitcase)</p>